Lando Norris Quips About Being “Forced” To Enjoy Oscar Piastri As McLaren Teammate

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have been teammates at McLaren for a year now, and their first season together was fruitful for the team. Norris has been the lead driver, but there seems to be no friction with Piastri as of now. They enjoy their time together, but are they being forced to do so?

In an interview with Lawrence Barretto, Norris and Piastri joked about being forced to enjoy spending time together. Barretto pointed out that they have a good relationship, to which Norris responded with,

“We’re forced to.” 

All three present in front of the camera let out a hearty laugh, but that wasn’t the end of it. Piastri added that they were contractually obligated to have fun with one another. It goes without saying that both these comments were made light-heartedly, and they indeed, share a good relationship.

“I can see how much you enjoy being together, is that fair?”
lando: we’re forced to.
oscar: by contract, yes.

these two are so unserious pic.twitter.com/v07mv0WpT2

— comfort lando (@safeforlando) February 15, 2024

In fact, ahead of the 2024 season, Piastri told Motorsport that for McLaren to have a successful season ahead, he needs to have an “open relationship” with Norris. As they look to topple Red Bull, and steer clear of other rivals, they must be honest with one another and help McLaren develop steadily.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri want to beat Red Bull

When the 2023 season started, McLaren was arguably one of the slowest teams on the grid. They failed to score points in the opening two races, and questions surrounding the future, especially Lando Norris‘, arose.

With time, however, they developed well and after the 2023 Austrian GP, they became podium contenders regularly. At times, they even gave Red Bull a run for its money. This year, Norris and Piastri want to do that on a more regular basis.

OUR 2024 CHALLENGER. Presenting the #MCL38! pic.twitter.com/92bFXbLSmb

— McLaren (@McLarenF1) February 14, 2024

“Of course, we’re not winning at the moment. We’re a lot closer than we were, but we still need to find that bit more to challenge and to beat Red Bull,” Piastri said to Motorsport.

Norris and Piastri are the present and future of McLaren. The latter has a contract with the papaya outfit until 2026 whereas Norris recently signed an extension. His previous deal was until 2025, and although the new deal does not have its duration mentioned to the public, it is expected that Norris will be tied to McLaren for the foreseeable future.