Michael Schumacher is rated as the greatest driver of all time by a significant section of F1 fans. Having won 91 races and seven world titles throughout a career which borders three decades.
Only Lewis Hamilton is the driver in the entire history of the sport that surpasses him statistically. And many even pitch him against Schumacher for the GOAT debate.
However, there is one record in which a British driver defeats Hamilton. But it’s not Hamilton. In a rare occurrence, it’s Lando Norris who outweighs him in one contest.
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Lando Norris beats Michael Schumacher
Norris is a rising superstar who is a prestigious asset to McLaren. Maybe he’ll be a world champion someday. But surely he can’t be claimed at the level of Schumacher. Yet, he has defeated him in one stat.
In a list by F1_charts, Norris beats Schumacher in the percentage of most top finishes in the top 10 among all drivers who have raced more than 50 F1 races. The McLaren star hits a whopping 74.4% with 61 top-10 finishes out of 82 race starts.
On the other hand, Schumacher hits the tally of 73.4% with 226 top-10 finishes out of his 308 race starts. If the argument of Schumacher has done way more races than Norris, which is a fair point, Lewis Hamilton, who has raced 310 races, hits the 87.4% mark with 271 finishes in the same region.
Therefore, Norris can at least be appreciated for his consistency. Though, in the list, he is the only driver there without a race win. If his Russia blunder hadn’t happened, this imperfection in his record wouldn’t have been there.
He hates new-generation cars
Last year, Mclaren didn’t have the car to match the standards of their previous three years. The Papaya team failed to be even the top 4 and settled at P5 in the constructors’ standings.
In a recent interview, Norris said he isn’t fond of the new-generation cars, which are hard to set up perfectly. He is more inclined to have the cars of the last generation, where he had successful races more frequently.
This year, Norris would be paired with the rookie Oscar Piastri, and his challenge would be to remain above him, the rookie coming in with massive hype. For the first time in his career, he’s the more experienced driver in the team. It remains to be seen how he handles that.
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