Norris had appeared ill all weekend and said on Saturday he “had pain in my throat and my eyes and he could see”, saying it was something other than COVID-19.
On the grid ahead of Sunday’s race, Norris continued to look out of sorts, but with the visor down the Briton rode a strong race to finish eighth, with teammate Daniel Ricciardo in 12th.
After a sweltering race, Norris canceled media duties to focus on his recovery, and team principal Seidl later explained that his rider had been struck down with tonsillitis.
“Obviously you don’t feel good all weekend when your energy levels are low with the tonsillitis he had,” Seidl said.
“It was a very difficult race, especially in these hot temperatures, so he was pretty flat at the end of the race and after the race, but thanks to the great medical support within the team that he has around him. .
“The target is now clear for the next four days, we have to make sure he gets a good rest now in the next four days before returning to Monaco afterwards.”
Lando Norris, McLaren MCL36, battle with Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri AT03, ahead of Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri AT03
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
Seidl praised Norris for battling his illness to score points for the team on an afternoon when ambient temperatures soared to 36 degrees, but only after team medical staff gave him the all clear to begin.
“I can’t thank him enough for fighting hard and he showed great fighting spirit because it finally got us those four points today,” Seidl added.
“It was just great to see the commitment from his side, but at the same time it’s also clear that we obviously have a doctor involved in decisions like that and we would never risk Lando’s health, just to be clear on that as well.
“But after the doctor gave the go-ahead today and it was also clear from Lando’s side that he was going to try, we went for it.”
If Norris cannot start in Monaco next week, the team would have Mercedes drivers Nyck de Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne available, with Alpine reserve Oscar Piastri also in the Woking team’s reserve pool after an agreement between the two teams was concluded in March.
Seidl wouldn’t be fired at potential replacements, saying the team would make a short-term decision if necessary.
