“He Made Too Many Mistakes”: Guenther Steiner Excludes Lando Norris From ‘Three Best Drivers’ on the Grid List

For the first time in his F1 career, Lando Norris got a car underneath him that allowed him to challenge Max Verstappen for the drivers’ championship in 2024. However, former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner recently shared his thoughts on why Norris might fall short, as he highlights what it takes to win one.

In his recent appearance at the Oxford Union, Steiner argued that only three drivers have consistently demonstrated the qualities needed to win a world championship this season: Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, and Fernando Alonso.

“To be a world champion, that is one of the things you need to have in you—that you rarely make mistakes,” Steiner noted.

“Look at Lando Norris. I think Norris could have done a lot more, but he made too many mistakes. I think he’s fast, he has the talent, everything, but just made too many mistakes, and that is one of the things you need to overcome.”

“There’s two guys or three guys out there who are very good at that. It’s Alonso, Lewis, and Max, and they’re the three best drivers.”, he added. Steiner’s point is certainly valid as Hamilton, Alonso, and Verstappen are the only three world champions on the F1 grid currently.

Norris and his peers like Charles Leclerc, George Russell, and Oscar Piastri have shown some potential to become world champions someday. But that potential is yet to materialize into consistent results.

Norris’s 2024 campaign has also shown flashes of brilliance, but it has also been marred by errors. On several occasions, he failed to convert pole positions into race-winning situations, often losing the lead on the very first lap of the race.

Another notable mistake occurred in Austria, where a collision with Verstappen after many laps of heated battle ended his race. At Silverstone, the Briton’s decision to go on the soft tires during the final laps also cost him a potential victory, leaving him to settle for third behind Hamilton and Verstappen.

Norris’ championship hopes seem to be fading away

Despite the setback in Brazil, Norris remains determined to fight for the title until it is mathematically impossible to do so. With just three races left and a maximum of 86 points available across the events, the McLaren driver is still 62 points behind Verstappen.

And the odds are heavily stacked against him. In Las Vegas, Verstappen only needs to finish ahead of Norris to secure his fourth championship. Even if both fail to score, Verstappen will still claim the title. Norris must outscore the Dutchman by at least three points to keep his hopes alive for one more week.

While the Briton has vowed to push until the very end, McLaren’s leadership has already shifted focus as team bosses have hinted that their primary goal now is to secure the Constructors’ Championship.