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McLaren CEO Zak Brown says he was convinced of Lando Norris' potential as a Formula 1 driver from an early age. Norris was signed as a McLaren junior driver in 2017, and graduated to F1 with the Woking-based team two years later at the age of 19. The Briton has impressed at McLaren, comprehensively overshadowing teammate Daniel Ricciardo over the past two years, and coming very close to winning the 2021 Russian Grand Prix before falling foul of a late rain shower. With Norris' stock on the rise, McLaren moved swiftly earlier this year to tie the Briton down until 2025. Norris is set to take on the role of team leader at Woking in 2023, with rookie Oscar Piastri replacing Ricciardo, and Brown says the Briton's rise through the racing ranks came as little surprise. "The goal was always to get him into Formula 1 . I'm not surprise d [that's he’s made it]," Brown said in response to a question from TheFOXposts.Com . "I guess you are surp...

Lando Norris admits that he'll miss Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren , with the Briton acknowledging that the pair had become "good friends". Ricciardo's time with the Woking-based squad came to an end at the 2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix following a mutual decision with the team to terminate his multi-year contract early. He will be replaced by rookie Oscar Piastri, who will become Norris' third teammate in Formula 1 . Having previously developed a good relationship with Carlos Sainz when the pair both raced at McLaren in 2019 and 2020, Norris feels that this is something he has managed to do with all of his teammates, including Ricciardo. Norris explains 'respect' for teammates "I think it's something that, with all of my teammates, I've always grown to have good relationships with them," Norris told media, including TheFOXposts.Com . "...

Lando Norris has detailed how he has learned from Sebastian Vettel, particularly in terms of speaking out on off-track issues. Vettel became known for his activism work in the latter stages of his F1 career, with the German having used his voice to raise awareness of matters ranging from LGBTQ+ rights to environmental concerns. Norris is amongst the drivers to have joined Vettel in speaking about certain topics; the Briton has previously been vocal about his mental health struggles, having admitted to feeling "depressed a lot of the time" during his debut Formula 1 season in 2019. Following Vettel's retirement from the sport, Norris admits that the four-time World Champion has been influential in highlighting the important of talking about off-track concerns. Norris aware of 'influence' he has "I think probably one of the most important things is, nowadays, it...

Daniel Ricciardo believes former McLaren teammate Lando Norris has the "ability" but needs to be tested by a race-winning Formula 1 car. During their two-year spell at McLaren, Norris out-performed Ricciardo and finished ahead in the Drivers' Championship in both seasons, although the latter claimed victory in the 2021 Italian Grand Prix. Following the Australian's inability to turn his form around, McLaren opted to let him go and draft in Oscar Piastri from Alpine. Norris finished the 2022 season as the only driver outside of the big three teams to claim a podium – with third at Imola – and was a comfortable seventh in the Drivers' Championship. Ricciardo considers Norris to be among the best in F1 from a "driving ability" perspective, but feels there is still one test the Briton needs in order to be considered on par with likes of World Champions Max Verstappen or Lewis Hamilton. ...

McLaren Team Principal Andreas Seidl says he is unconcerned that the team's new driver line-up for 2023 may result in a different atmosphere and require a change in management style. After two years with a driver pairing of Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris , Ricciardo has been moved aside to make way for rookie Oscar Piastri from 2023 onwards. Ricciardo is well-known in the F1 paddock for his cheerful demeanour, and he and Norris enjoyed a good rapport during their two years as teammates. However, Seidl dismissed concerns that a different line-up may change the team dynamic for the worse. "Each driver is different, and that could end up in a different relationship between two guys, but that doesn't necessarily mean that one or the other type of relationship is better or worse," Seidl told media, including TheFOXposts.Com . "In the end, the way Lando is as a guy, [and] the way we got to know Oscar so far, I don't expect any issues there. ...

Zak Brown is confident that McLaren will be able to deliver Lando Norris the equipment he needs to deliver Formula 1 race wins and championships. Norris enjoyed a strong season for McLaren in 2022 and was the only driver outside of the big three teams to score a podium finish with third at Imola. He finished seventh in the Drivers' standings in his fourth season in the championship, but it still looking to take a maiden Grand Prix victory. The British driver has been mentioned as a possible replacement for Lewis Hamilton when he retires from racing, while Red Bull driver boss Helmut Marko is known to hold a long-term interest in Norris' services. However, McLaren Executive Director Brown feels the team will be in a position soon to allow Norris to fight for wins and podiums on a more consistent basis. Brown's Norris declaration Norris signed a new long-term deal with t...

Daniel Ricciardo admits that he saw elements of his younger self in teammate Lando Norris during their time at McLaren. The Australian struggled to match Norris in both the 2021 and 2022 seasons and the mutual decision was made by Ricciardo and the team to terminate his multi-year contract early, leaving him without a seat on the grid for 2023. Ricciardo's fortunes in recent times contrast to his earlier success in F1 , having claimed three of his eight victories in the sport during his debut season for Red Bull back in 2014 following promotion from Toro Rosso. Looking back on it now, the 33-year-old admits that he was filled with confidence. "I remember I had so much confidence that I was just like, 'If I had the car to win this year, I would have won,'" Ricciardo told the Beyond The Grid podcast. "That was just where I was at. I wouldn't say that was even form, it was just confidence. Obviously I stepped up to the big team, and now I'...

Lando Norris has highlighted a positive for McLaren to take from their difficult start to the 2023 F1 season. The squad have yet to score points after challenging weekends in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, with both Norris and Oscar Piastri retiring from the former with mechanical issues. While each driver finished outside of the top 10 in Jeddah – with Norris having picked up debris from a first-lap incident between Piastri and Pierre Gasly – Norris feels that the situation is not as bad as it may initially look for the team. Norris on McLaren's situation in 2023 "I don't think it's different to last year," Norris told media, including TheFOXposts.Com . "In a way, it's a little bit better than last year, [but] the field is tighter. "We've just had more issues, more reliability problems in race one. It was my mistake [in qualifying in Saudi Arabia], and the incident with Gasly cost us [in the race]. "It's not ...

Lando Norris has blamed the chaos after the Australian Grand Prix's second restart to the Pirelli F1 tyres used by all the teams, saying they provide 'literally no grip'. After a red flag was thrown to remove Kevin Magnussen's stricken Haas and assorted debris from the circuit, the action resumed with a standing restart on Lap 56 of 58. But almost immediately there was chaos at the first couple of corners, with Carlos Sainz tipping Fernando Alonso into a spin, Pierre Gasly running wide and colliding with Alpine teammate Esteban Ocon, and Logan Sargeant punting Nyck de Vries into the gravel trap. Norris, who was eventually classified sixth, said the decisions to issue red flags and standing restarts over deploying the Safety Car were made by people with little understanding of the challenges the drivers face in terms of grip levels. "The people who make decisions don't know what's going on inside the car," Norris told media, including The...

McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella says the Woking outfit are not getting carried away with their performance in the Australian Grand Prix, in which both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri scored points. McLaren had come into the Melbourne weekend as one of only two teams not to have scored Championship points over the first two races of 2023. But last Sunday's eventful race saw only 12 cars take the chequered flag, with Norris finishing sixth and Piastri taking his first F1 points finish in eighth place, resulting in McLaren vaulting up to fifth in the Constructors' Championship with 12 points. However, despite the optimism engendered by a better weekend, Stella said McLaren were keeping their feet on the ground, adding that the race's attritional nature had played into Norris and Piastri's hands. "We [aren't getting] carried away, we know that it was a very eventful race, but it's good to score points," Stella told media, including TheFO...

Lando Norris says McLaren's biggest weakness lies in their lack of straight-line speed and the ineffectiveness of their DRS. After having failed to score points across the 2023 F1 season's first two races, McLaren had a better weekend at the Australian Grand Prix, with Norris finishing sixth and teammate Oscar Piastri taking eighth, vaulting McLaren up to fifth place in the Constructors' Championship. But despite McLaren 's better weekend, Norris noted the ineffectiveness of the MCL60's DRS, noting that other teams' designs did a better job of reducing drag and providing more straight-line speed. "Our straight-line speed is so poor, I think not having DRS helps us," Norris told media, including TheFOXposts.Com . "It still shocks us how bad we are with DRS, and how draggy we are when we open DRS. "We gain a few km/h, but some of the other cars are gaining 10-15km/h, and it's a different ballpark to us. "So Saturdays...

McLaren driver Lando Norris has claimed potential alterations to Formula 1 's Sprint weekend schedule would fall in line with drivers ' initial hopes for the format. The sport is aiming to introduce a second qualifying session at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix with teams understood to have agreed to the plans, though confirmation will need to be rushed before the return to the Baku City Circuit. Under the current proposals, Saturday's second free practice session would be replaced by qualifying for the Sprint, with the existing Friday qualifying acting as a standalone grid-setter for the Grand Prix. This splits the 100km Sprint from the main race, taking away the element of danger from the Saturday event and would allow for the potential for harder racing between rivals. Viewed by others: Oscar Piastri Norris spo...

McLaren boss Andrea Stella is confident that the team have prepared for the "risk" posed by the upcoming Sprint race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Sprint will make its first of six appearances during the weekend in Baku, which will also see the introduction of a Sprint Shootout in place of Free Practice 2. This will determine the starting order for the Sprint, while Friday's qualifying will set the grid for Sunday's main race. While McLaren have had mixed fortunes in the opening races of the 2023 season, both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri scored points last time out in Australia, and Stella feels that the squad are in a positive frame of the mind for the Azerbaijan event. McLaren prepared for 'risk' in Baku "We come to Baku following a solid result in Australia, a short period away from track to refocus and with good spirits in the team so we're ready to go again for the first double-header of the season," Ste...

Lando Norris is confident that he could challenge Max Verstappen for the title if he was in a position to do so. McLaren have faced a difficult start to the 2023 F1 season, with the team struggling to score points until a tumultous Australian Grand Prix allowed both Norris and Oscar Piastri to finish within the top 10. Away from the track, various changes have been made to the outfit's structure. It was confirmed in March that Technical Director James Key had left the team, and that the role has since been split into a three-headed structure of technical directors headed by Peter Prodromou, Neil Houldley and David Sanchez, with the latter set to join in January 2024. Norris acknowledges that things have not gone as well as hoped for McLaren so far in 2023, particularly after the steps forward made in previous years. Norris: McLaren performance below expectation "If I'm honest, I will say it's below the expectation," Norris told The Race . ...

Lando Norris says McLaren 's much-vaunted Azerbaijan Grand Prix Formula 1 upgrade package is "where we should have started the year" following their slow start to the season. At the launch of the MCL60, McLaren were quick to downplay the new car, saying a new development route had been identified late in the process - with the new parts, relating to the floor - not being able to be brought to the car before Baku. The team have had a difficult start to the season, but scored their first points in Australia, and now with the upgrade coming, Norris is cautiously optimistic, but "does not want to get ahead of myself." Viewed by others: Guenther Steiner Steiner outlines how many races Magnussen has to prove himself ...

Lando Norris feels that McLaren "have to take a step" in 2023 following a difficult campaign for the team. The Woking-based squad had a tough weekend at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, which followed on from the team experiencing technical issues during testing ahead of the first race. Their fortunes seemed to improve when Norris claimed a podium at the fourth event on the calendar, the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. This proved to be the only top three finish for a team other than Red Bull, Ferrari or Mercedes in 2022. However, McLaren ultimately lost out to Alpine in the battle for P4 of the Constructors' Championship, and Norris hopes that their efforts to move forwards will pay off in 2023. Norris: One podium isn't enough While Norris remains proud of his podium result at Imola, he also acknowledges that he wants to achieve much more. "A podi...