Lando Norris and McLaren are the Verstappen hunters

The cars in Formula 1 are becoming more and more similar. Suddenly there are four teams again that can fight for victory. The technical balance now raises the question of who is the strongest driver. Last weekend in Montmeló, the Dutchman Max Verstappen won in the Red Bull, he is the man in the currently second-best car.

The better car was once again Lando Norris’ McLaren, which finished second. For once, defending champion Verstappen won the power struggle on the track, but Norris has positioned himself as Verstappen’s hunter since he took his first win in Miami in May. In the four races since then, the Briton has finished second three times, only narrowly beaten each time. The duel continues this weekend at the Austrian Grand Prix.

Norris has been considered a promising future for Formula 1 for some time. McLaren team boss Zak Brown has therefore extended the contract with the 24-year-old driver from Bristol early until the end of 2024 – the driver market often works like an options trade. Norris is considered the man with the most promising future, closely followed by his Australian teammate Oscar Piastri. In the current World Championship standings, Norris is second, but still a whopping 69 points behind Verstappen.

He does not fit the stereotype of a racing driver

Norris is a reserved type in the glittering world of Formula 1, and sometimes overcomes his shyness a little awkwardly. But he is also highly professional: he already traveled with his own social media team in Formula 2. The son of a rich family doesn’t really fit the racing driver clichés. Although he is as enthusiastic about sim racing as his opponent Verstappen, in the analogue world he is mainly interested in graphic design and photography. In motorsport he wants to be the next British hero after record champion Lewis Hamilton. Like so many others, his inspiration is Ayrton Senna, although he can hardly have noticed the Brazilian during his active days.

As a driver, his personality is a mix of his opponents’ abilities. Like Verstappen, Norris has an incredible driving feel, an instinct like Charles Leclerc and a fighting spirit like Hamilton. What he still seems to be lacking is the sporting killer instinct that put Verstappen at the top.

There were flashes of this in the turbulent start phase last Sunday in Spain, when he pushed his Dutch rival onto the grass verge next to the straight. What would have caused great resentment between other drivers was something Norris and Verstappen simply smiled away after the Grand Prix. The two know each other from their karting days, where the cut-throat competition is much tougher.

“Lando No-Wins” becomes a winner

Every extreme experience like this boosts the self-confidence of Norris, who has often been described as being too thoughtful in the past. Perhaps this is just a misunderstanding. No one else is so publicly upset about missed opportunities. About his second place in the last race, when he was getting closer and closer to Verstappen towards the end, he said: “We couldn’t have won, we should have won.”

Norris drives himself with the expectation that things can always get better; at McLaren, they have long been able to correctly classify the supposed self-doubt. At the same time, this also gives rise to more and more self-confidence. The derided “Lando No-Wins”, who won a Grand Prix for the first time after 108 races without a win, has become a winning driver. To silence his critics, he is celebrating his success with his own “We did it” fan merchandise collection.

A year ago in Spielberg, McLaren, the Formula 1 dinosaur that had been stumbling more and more since the turn of the millennium, achieved a technical turnaround that was unparalleled in such a short space of time. Since then, every upgrade has worked, and the racing car seems to work on a wide variety of track types. The astonishing upturn that Italian engineer Andrea Stella initiated is now even serving as a great example for former series winner Mercedes.

Red Bull still has advantages in racing strategy

On the final stage to the top, McLaren still has to learn how to deal with the increased pressure. Norris, who his team boss Brown repeatedly confirms is doing an “incredible job”, has an important role to play. The designated team leader says: “We have everything we need. It’s now about bringing everything together.”

This is especially true for the right racing strategy, an area in which Red Bull Racing is still the leader. The loner Norris not only demonstrates his team spirit publicly by thanking the mechanics from the podium. He often helps the crew dismantle his racing car on Sunday evening after the race.

If only there wasn’t a Verstappen who was driving in the form of his life. Norris says that his opponent simply doesn’t make any mistakes. So his challenge is: “We can’t afford to let him get away right now.” After the race in Spain, Norris formulated his personal claim for the first time: “I think that we have a chance of winning the title this season.” He wants to extend his pronounced ability for self-criticism to the whole team: “We have to provoke ourselves more.” For him, that sounds almost euphoric.