McLaren’s Lando Norris believes that he is “on the right track,” to enjoy a strong 2024 season.
This season will mark Norris’ sixth season in F1 and he comes into the campaign off the back of a memorable 2023, in which he claimed seven podium finishes – including a second-placed finish at Silverstone – and matched his sixth-placed championship finish of 2021.
Reflective on his best season in F1 yet during a chat with mclaren.com, Norris believes that he had learned to have “even more openness,” last season with his engineers even if the reality isn’t ideal.
“When working with my engineers, in terms of being very open with one another, that is not something new or something I have only just learned, it is something I have always done and continue to do.
“I just prefer the honest truth. I would rather have the brutal, honest truth. If I suck, tell me I suck. If I’m good, tell me I’m good. It is not always easy to do, but it is very important, and we will continue to do this to teach and help other people.”
Norris also had a new teammate to contend with in the shape of Oscar Piastri, who the Brit believes “had an incredible season,” as he praised the Australian for providing competition that taught him the importance of “keeping calm and being yourself,” especially when in battle on track.
The 13-time podium finisher also acknowledged Piastri’s attitude towards pressure as a rookie, especially compared to when he started out in F1 in 2019 alongside the experienced Carlos Sainz at that time.
“I think he’s been very, very good at dealing with pressure, better than I feel like I remember I was when I started, but I think that’s because everyone’s very different with all of this – dealing with pressure and remaining calm and chilled.”
Norris however admitted that he feels that he has “… gotten a lot better with over the years – I know how to deal with all of these things much better myself now.”
He also spoke of having “… a lot of respect for Oscar in how he was able to stay so calm in a new environment, in Formula 1, on the big stage.”
2024 however promises to be a huge season for McLaren with many fans expecting them to challenge Red Bull for wins, although Mercedes and Ferrari will also be eager to mount regular fights for wins again.
“We’re on the right track,” commented Norris as he addressed the learnings made last season.
“We’ve learned so [much] really over the last four, five, six months. So the progress we’ve made, we’ve learned a lot.
“We have some new hirings coming in, and although not everything that they can bring to us will be on the car straight away, there are some things that we already know now.”
Last season saw McLaren endure a disastrous start to the campaign as one of the slowest teams on the grid in Bahrain, but Norris is confident that they can avoid a similar fate this year.
“I’m excited because we’re finally on the right track, and we know in which direction to push, and I just want to start the season off well. If we can start well in Bahrain, I’ll be much more excited.”