Lando Norris has revealed he will not be the number 1 driver at the start of the McLaren F1 season this year. Despite his clear domination over Oscar Piastri in 2024, he confirms that the team is resetting the counters and that he will have to prove himself again if he wants to be considered a leader.
“The 2025 season is a new start and Oscar has the opportunity to fight for a championship too” assure Norris. “A lot of what you write and what you talk about is because of the fight for the championship, the fight for the drivers’ championship, and that’s where a lot of the discussions and things started.”
“And I earned the right to have some of those privileges. I earned my right by doing a good job throughout the season, to have that opportunity. I didn’t set out to get it. And that’s definitely not how I want to win a championship. I want to go out there and give Max a fair fight and do my part and win it my way.”
The Briton is happy to see that the understanding has been good between him and Piastri in 2024: “Sometimes there are inclusions, which allowed Oscar to help me a few times. Everyone was talking like it was for every race. We went to Baku and it was actually the other way around .”
“I put in a bit of effort and Oscar helped me win in Brazil. Unfortunately things went south on Sunday and the opportunity was gone, but I got it back in the Sprint in Qatar. So I think that’s our strength as a team. I don’t think any other teams operate that way.”
“And that’s certainly part of why we are where we are as a team today, why we are the best team in Formula 1, and why we fought for victory in the Constructors in 2024.”
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