Has Norris become a top driver?

Lando Norris continues to be praised at the start of this season for his performances, especially his consistency. The British driver is currently in third place in the drivers’ championship after five Grand Prix races. With the misfortunes of his opponents, including his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, the talent of the friendly Englishman fully justifies his current success.

Confirmation in Monaco?

Monaco Grand Prix – Norris: a dream to step on the podium here

With its 3rd place, he gets his second podium in five GPs. This very good result in the principality highlights all of Norris’ qualities: no errors over the weekend, much more decisive in Monaco than elsewhere.

According to the team director, Andreas Seidl, Lando Norris’ performance was as remarkable as it was unexpected for the British team: “I would say that we absolutely did not expect to be so close to Mercedes, Red Bull, and also Ferrari in terms of pace.”

Lando has increased in power throughout the weekend, present in the top 10 in all sessions. He clinched fifth place in qualifying, less than a tenth behind Max Verstappen, who was in second place.

The Briton was able to take advantage of the successive retirements of Charles Leclerc and Valtteri Bottas to clinch this podium finish. A crucial result for McLaren, which maintains its third place in the constructors’ standings, just two points ahead of Ferrari.

Andreas Seidl declared on the subject: « For the championship, the way the race unfolded is obviously a good result for us: seeing Ferrari’s very good pace on Thursday and also Saturday, yes, there was a high risk of losing a lot of points compared to them.

« The way the race unfolded is a good result for us »

Lando Norris was faultless throughout the weekend, while even the best, like Lewis Hamilton, struggled to combine precision and speed.

Do Ricciardo’s troubles accentuate Norris’s performances?

One can legitimately wonder if Norris shines or if Daniel Ricciardo is looking pale. Or both! The result is clear between the McLaren teammates: Lando Norris leads his garage neighbor by 32 points after only five races. This is the biggest gap recorded between two teammates from a midfield team this season.

In the five races that have been previously held, Norris has finished ahead of his Australian teammate four times, while the latter has outperformed number 4 three times in qualifying.

Daniel Ricciardo is in dire need of rhythm and is having a lot of difficulties adapting to his new racing car. The talent of the Honey Badger is evident, his experience and his past results speak for themselves.

He seems lost at the beginning of the season, having never been so ghostly in a team. The team of Woking is doing everything possible to put Ricciardo in the best possible conditions, suggesting that he will quickly regain his composure and improve in performance thanks to the unwavering support of his team.

We cannot, however, minimize the undeniable progress of Lando Norris. The young Briton is praised by his team as well as by fans. He recently signed a multi-year (indefinite duration) contract with McLaren, proof of the trust placed in him.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown rejoices: “Lando played a crucial role in our performance improvement at McLaren, and we are proud of the progress he has shown since he started with us in 2017.” Andreas Seidl added: “Lando has impressed us with his performances since his first year, and his evolution as a driver is evident. He is an integral part of our plan to return to the front positions.”

« Lando impresses us with his performances »

Is Lando Norris a driver of the same caliber as Leclerc or Verstappen?

The premier category of motorsport gathers the best drivers in the world. A hierarchy is also established in excellence. There are good drivers and top drivers. F1 has made room for raw diamonds, notably Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc. The latter, young as they may be, have become the reference for their respective teams and their talent is undeniable. It remains to be determined whether Lando Norris is part of them.

The Bristol native is only 21 years old, compared to 23 for Verstappen and Leclerc. He is in his third season in Formula 1, the fourth campaign for number 16 and Mad Max is already in his seventh participation.

The statistics also support this, as McLaren’s flagship has 34 points in third place in the world championship. All proportions kept according to the performances of the different cars, of course.

Norris embodies the future of Woking. The hopes of regaining a world champion title in the coming years are placed on him. Zak Brown persists and signs: Lando is one of the greatest talents in Formula 1 and we look forward to seeing him succeed on and off the track.

He proves race after race and season after season that he has the makings of a Formula 1 world champion. He will have to maintain consistency, another hallmark of great drivers.

The editorial team of Motors Inside debated the case of Lando Norris in its last Twitch Live, last Tuesday to review the Monaco Grand Prix. Find the replay of this Live on our YouTube channel right now.

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