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Norris and McLaren do not deserve the drivers' world title
It seems that McLaren does not want to win the world drivers' title, and with Lando Norris, too, it is questionable whether he really has what it takes to become champion. One might even question whether McLaren and Norris deserve to be world champions at all.
It is clear that McLaren are on their way to the constructors' world title. The papaya cars have been the fastest of the entire field since the Miami Grand Prix and have almost completely closed the gap on Red Bull Racing. With eight races to go, there is therefore a good chance that McLaren will take its first world title in the constructors since 1998.
While it deserves the title in the constructors, that is not currently the case in the drivers. That goes back to when McLaren chose to bring in Oscar Piastri. With Lando Norris, McLaren already had a fast and young driver who worked just fine with Daniel Ricciardo by his side. With the speedy Piastri alongside, Norris is no longer the clear No.1.
As a team, you want two drivers who are fast and close together. That way, you make sure that a driver from another team cannot get between your own two drivers. However, if they are too close together, you have a problem. Then, the two drivers take points away from each other too often, and that comes at the cost of a drivers' world title.
Why McLaren should know better
McLaren should know all about just that. The team, which, according to David Coulthard, has always put the interests of the team above those of the individual, had problems with Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, as well as Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. Even Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard, for good measure, were perhaps a little too much in each other's way.
Whereas in the days of Prost and Senna, McLaren were so dominant that even crashes could not prevent one of the two from becoming world champions. That was not the case in 2007. Then, Hamilton and Alonso were so eager to get in each other's way that Kimi Raikkonen could win the world title with Ferrari. Why? Ferrari did dare to put everything on one driver from the summer break, therefore sacrificing Felipe Massa to secure a title.
With Zak Brown and Andrea Stella, there is a completely new management at McLaren, but the mindset is still the same. The 'papaya rules' mean that the two are allowed to fight each other, as long as they don't crash. A nice tactic when you are miles ahead of the rest. This is how Mercedes did it between 2014 and 2016 in the battle between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton. However, Mercedes were so far ahead of the competition back then that they could afford to have a battle between the drivers. McLaren cannot afford that somewhat arrogant attitude at all.
Why McLaren and Norris do not deserve the world title
McLaren may have the best car since Miami, but they have still 'only' won 3 of the 11 Grands Prix it has run since, so there is no huge dominance at all. Besides, the team is still behind Red Bull Racing in the world championship, and Max Verstappen has a 62-point lead over Lando Norris in the world championship.
There is a unique opportunity for McLaren to become world champions. Moments like that don't come easy. It is not a given that McLaren will just become the world champion in 2025 and can pass up this opportunity to keep the good peace between the drivers. Norris has the biggest chance, so he should be favoured now. For it to let the drivers race at Monza, thereby letting Leclerc come between the two of them and therefore even see Leclerc win the race in the end is particularly embarrassing.
Besides the fact that McLaren now has to make a choice, it is also up to Lando Norris to man up. He will have to speak out clearly within the team but also show himself more on the track. Over one lap, Norris is fast, but in the race, he has been defeated by his teammate on several occasions this season. In Hungary and Monza, Piastri was simply more aggressive on the opening lap than his teammate.
If Norris really wants to become a world champion, he has to do everything within his power. The way he lets himself get pushed aside at times is something rarely seen from champions like Hamilton and Verstappen. Norris has to take that step if he wants to become world champion.
This article was written in collaboration with Olly Darcy
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