McLaren have shown a remarkable improvement over the course of the 2023 season. At the start of the year, the team was fighting just to finish on points. However, in the last few races, the side has been in the hunt for podiums. Lando Norris has clinched two podiums in the past three races despite interestingly claiming that the car is “terrible“. Even though the Briton made such remarks, it does not bother McLaren CEO Zak Brown. Now, a month later to Norris’ comment, Brown revealed in a recent interview with ESPN how the 23-year-old‘s remarks have motivated the team to work hard to solve the issues they were facing at the start of the campaign.
The 51-year-old’s recent comment came after Norris cautioned the fans last month despite clinching a second-place finish at the British Grand Prix. As quoted by The Guardian, the Briton stated, “We do have a poor car and I would say pretty terrible in the slow-speed corners“.
P2!!! Another podium. Papaya is back 🍊 pic.twitter.com/lwRf065Srt
— Lando Norris (@LandoNorris) July 23, 2023
“I feel as if we’re getting excited and I accept that, but we’re going to go to a couple of tracks coming up where I’m sure people are going to be saying: ‘What have you done now? Like, how has it got so bad all of a sudden,'” added Norris. While Norris has called for caution, Brown seems to be optimistic about the future.
Zak Brown keen to give Lando Norris a car capable of winning
Zak Brown has opened up on how McLaren is doing everything possible to convince Lando Norris to stay at the team. The 51-year-old believes that the team’s recent results have proven that they are not far from fighting for wins and also championships.
“He loves McLaren. It’s been his family. So, there’s no doubt in my mind that his number one choice is to win a world championship with McLaren. I think the best thing we do to retain him is to demonstrate to him we’re a team capable of doing that,” explained Brown in a recent interview with ESPN.
After stating the same, Brown added that the team has everything in place to take the next step forward. He pointed out how McLaren aims to return to the front when the regulations change from the 2026 season onwards.
Brown reveals McLaren’s plans for the 2026 season
In the same interview with ESPN, Zak Brown explained how the 2026 season is going to be a huge reset for all the teams. Since all the sides will have a level playing field, the American believes that McLaren can have no excuses.
Brown believes that they have all the resources, the technology, and two great drivers that can help the team win championships in the future. He also believes that Red Bull will not have the same kind of dominance that they are showcasing now as the Milton Keynes outfit will have a number of challenges of their own.
The 51-year-old pointed out how Red Bull will have the new challenge of producing their own engine, something which the team has never done before. These are the reasons why Brown believes that McLaren are well positioned to enjoy success in the future.
