Is it denial, ignorance, or a positive mental attitude? Whatever it is, Lando Norris is refusing to give up hope of winning this year’s drivers’ championship.
That is, at least, according to the press release issued by McLaren ahead of this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix in which Norris is quoted saying: “Everyone’s motivated and ready to give it our all in the fight for both championships.”
The reality is of course that the drivers’ title is out of reach barring an absolute miracle, while the constructors’ championship is a realistic option, given McLaren sit at the top of the pile with a 36-point lead over Ferrari.
Norris’s own challenge ultimately went up in smoke on lap 43 in Sao Paulo. As Verstappen passed Esteban Ocon for the lead, Norris locked up and went long into Turn 1, which dropped him back to seventh. In that moment, the momentum that the McLaren driver had built up over the previous races came to a sudden halt.
Verstappen’s win in Brazil left Norris 62 points shy of the Red Bull driver, who can clinch his fourth straight title this week in Las Vegas, the first race in the final triple-header of the year.
In the fallout from the Sao Paulo race, McLaren’s team principal Andrea Stella said winning the drivers’ title was never the main goal but instead it was the constructors’ title it wanted.
Stella said: “In terms of the constructors’ championship, I don’t think it changes anything.
“It was always our priority. Even when there was a call to be made to support one driver or the other, it was always secondary to that to maximising the constructors’ championship.”
A tough race in Brazil for Norris after starting on pole ultimately swung the balance in Verstappen’s favour
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
One suspects however that Norris has a different opinion. Which is why, if he does see Verstappen crowned this weekend, Norris’s reaction will be crucial to assessing his ability to recover from this latest setback.
Over the past two seasons, where McLaren have delivered him a car that has put him into contention for victories, Norris has been noticeably hard on himself whenever he had not capitalised to convert the result into a win.
Even from a media perspective – and let’s not delve into the British bias debate – it has been incredibly uncomfortable to watch at times as he wrestles with his mental demons.
It is, of course, nothing new. When he missed the…
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