Lando Norris’ glorious win in Miami—his first in F1—came as a result of McLaren’s development package which made them the fastest on the grid. A real chance of him winning the Drivers’ Championship arose, something Norris ended up fumbling because of multiple mistakes both on his and McLaren’s part. Max Verstappen, who won the title ultimately, also claimed that he could have won sooner with Norris’ McLaren MCL38.
Verstappen kept insisting how the McLaren and Ferrari cars were quicker than his RB20—which was struggling with balance—for a large part of the 2024 season.
In a recent interview with the Swiss-German publication Blick, he reiterated that claim, but only for McLaren. “I would answer that question with a resounding yes for McLaren, but I wouldn’t be so sure about Ferrari,” he said.
Both Norris and Charles Leclerc had refuted Verstappen’s claim about comfortably winning his fourth World Championship in their respective cars. Norris quipped that the Red Bull driver had a good sense of humor, whereas Leclerc deemed that his comments were a bit of a stretch.
| Max Verstappen is confident he would have won the Championship with Mclaren and Ferrari even earlier.
| With Mercedes, on the other hand, he admits it wouldn’t have been so easy.#Formula1 #F1 pic.twitter.com/U3ethpLFfS— Racing Infinity (@RacingInfinity1) November 25, 2024
Verstappen, retracting his claim about emerging victorious in a Ferrari made sense, as the Italian team went through a slump midway into the campaign. Their upgrades did not show a correlation with their on-track performance, which forced Ferrari to take a U-turn in their development.
Norris’s stubbornness regarding the Dutchman’s claim, however, lacked substantial logical grounding. The Bristol-born driver missed out on several wins due to his own errors. In contrast, Verstappen, who secured the crown with a less competitive car, could have capitalized on the MCL38’s potential to win six to seven races during the European leg. Norris managed only one victory in that period.
Norris’ weak title challenge
Even in a less competitive car, Verstappen consistently maximized his results, securing podium finishes or placing in the top five when victories looked out of reach. In contrast, Norris showed huge inconsistency, especially in his race starts, often surrendering his pole position advantage. Of the eight races he started from P1, the McLaren driver converted only two into wins.
The immense potential of McLaren’s 2024 challenger was squandered, as Norris failed to come within 25 points of Verstappen in the drivers’ standings. Despite the unexpected championship challenge that emerged midway through the season, the 24-year-old would likely be rueing a missed opportunity.
2025 will be the true test for Norris, who vowed just four weeks ago at the Abu Dhabi season finale to contend for the title. If the Briton can harness McLaren’s potential, it will be a thrilling spectacle. Otherwise, it could be a repeat of last season, with Verstappen or another contender like Oscar Piastri, Leclerc, or Lewis Hamilton seizing the championship.
