F1 News
Norris is brutally honest with himself again as slim title chance appears
Lando Norris has self-proclaimed he is not performing at the level of a World Champion during the 2024 Formula 1 season. The McLaren driver has an outside chance of fighting Max Verstappen for the title but admits he needs to improve. Norris has received plenty of criticism in recent weeks, but the Brit claims it has not affected him.
For the first time in his Formula 1 career, Norris won a Grand Prix. But that's not the end of the story. The British driver has consistently been in the mix for pole positions and race wins. It's largely agreed that the McLaren car is the best all-rounder and the Woking-based team should've won more races. Canada, Spain and Austria are just three examples.
For the majority of his (still short) F1 career, Norris has been fighting for the lower sets of points. With this first life experience at the top of the sport, Norris has learnt just how brutal the criticism can be.
"If you're not fighting for anything in a championship, it can disappointing. But the fact that 1-2-3-4 points can make a much bigger difference in my type of scenario now, then of course it's going to affect you a little bit more and it's going to mean more at the same time. So I don't think it's changed much from lan output point of view, or from the outside. It's not changed much like pressure wise," Norris told GPblog and others in the paddock at the Dutch Grand Prix weekend.
Is Norris ready to become World Champion?
"It's just the need for perfection and just that little step up that I needed to do. I think I've done at certain times, but just not consistently enough. After the first half of the season, I've not performed at the level of a world champion, simple as that. I've not performed at the level I need to. At certain times I have, and many races I have done, but also little things have just let me down along the way," Norris added.
"We work hard to go out and do our best and not make mistakes and to try and win. And when we don't do that as an athlete, we're not going to be happy. We're not going to be satisfied with our own job."
Has the criticism troubled Norris?
Norris has picked up a lot of criticism for how he competed in 2024. Among others, Ralf Schumacher was honest with his viewpoint after Silverstone, explaining how he was not at the level of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. But Norris brushes it off.
"I'm fine with it. I don't mind. As long as I know what I'm doing and the people around me know what I'm doing, my group and my circle and my team, I'm happy. I don't mind what other people come up with their opinions. I'm very happy with people to come up with whatever they want. As long as I know what my goals are and how I'm performing, that's fine. And in my answers and, interviews, I've always been very honest when I know I've done a good job and when I've not," Norris concluded.