In preparations for the team’s future beyond 2024, it is being reported that Charles Leclerc is on the verge of signing a contract extension with Ferrari. On the other hand, however, Carlos Sainz seems to have hit a roadblock in his negotiations, prompting the Scuderia to bring his ex-teammate and ‘best friend‘, Lando Norris onto their radar.
The main bone of contention between Sainz and his new deal at Ferrari is the length of the term the Italian team is willing to offer the Spaniard. Naturally, this has rubbed the 29-year-old the wrong way and has forced the Scuderia’s hand into considering options elsewhere on the driver market.
Sainz souhaiterait une prolongation d’au moins 2 ans, mais Ferrari pourrait opter pour un renouvellement d’un an seulement, en surveillant entre-temps les opportunités qui pourraient se présenter sur le marché. Exemple ? Le contrat qui lie Norris à McLaren expire en 2025…
— Scuderia Ferrari FRA (@FerrariF1FRA) December 3, 2023
La Gazzetta dello Sport reported (as quoted by GPBlog.com), “He [Sainz] has indicated that he would like a two-year deal, but the team from Maranello has so far only made a one-year offer. The team apparently also has their eye on Mclaren’s Lando Norris. After 2025, his contract expires and Ferrari may see opportunities to bring in the Brit.”
Leclerc is reportedly very close to penning a deal with the team till the end of the 2028 season. Sainz on the other hand is into the last year of his contract and the team are only willing to extend it till the end of the 2025 season. Hence, the urgency from both the parties. But will Ferrari’s planned Norris coup work?
Are Ferrari running a fool’s errand chasing Lando Norris?
After McLaren’s stunning turnaround during the 2023 season, Lando Norris has reiterated his loyalty to the project at Woking. Despite early season rumors of the Briton defecting to a more successful rival, the team’s rising fortunes have changed the 23-year-old’s mind.
His dedication to win with McLaren can only be exemplified by his decision to turn Red Bull down. Hence, it would be a far-fetched idea to dream that he would leave McLaren for Ferrari given that he has in fact turned down a rumored offer from the current world champions.
Lando Norris has been on the podium 6 times in the 2023 season, the same amount as #Ferrari as a team [6] #F1 #Formula1 #McLaren #USGP pic.twitter.com/rWRU3UxSGs
— McLaren F1 Updates (@TheMcLarenZone) October 24, 2023
Despite Norris’ answer, it would also not make sense at Ferrari’s end to go through with this pursuit. The team find themselves in a good place with a strong driver pairing that has delivered results on occasion this year. Hence, there doesn’t seem to be much logic in shaking-up their lineup in the near future.
