Lando Norris and Max Verstappen were pitted in the Drivers’ Championship fight last year. But the Dutchman won the title comprehensively against the Briton, with the season’s last two race weekends remaining.
With the second half of the season having McLaren as the fastest car, Norris was able to secure pole positions more often. Yet, often he couldn’t sustain the advantage as his ‘bad starts’ made him yield his edge repeatedly and lose on possible victories.
However, Norris doesn’t consider his poor race starts to be his biggest weakness. “There were maybe three starts this year where I lost one or two positions. But those were often just positions to Max. Or in Budapest one to Oscar and little things like that,” said Norris.
He further stressed upon losing battles against Verstappen, which he wanted to be framed as his weakness. “I certainly didn’t get the upper hand as often as I would have liked in certain moments as a driver, especially in my battles with Max,” said Norris.
“Nobody has a good time racing against Max. I think Mexico was a kind of turning point when it became clear that not everything he does is perfect,” Norris added.
“Lando he’s the favourite for next year now to win the championship”
Nico Rosberg is backing Lando Norris to take the Drivers’ Championship in 2025 pic.twitter.com/4do9pddg7q
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) December 10, 2024
But 2025 brings a new opportunity to Norris. He is already touted as the favorite to win the title in the upcoming season, and now identifying his ‘problems’ could be the first part of his road to glory.
New year, new opportunities for Norris
While McLaren is expected to have the fastest car on the grid followed by Ferrari in 2025, Red Bull are likely to enter this season on the back foot. Thus, Verstappen is indeed at a disadvantage.
Unlike last year, Norris will hope to gain a significant advantage in the first few races of the season when Verstappen is unlikely to have a quick enough car to challenge him for wins. A similar strategy was adopted by Verstappen last year, which helped him to create enough of a buffer to Norris when the Briton did have the fastest car.
“I didn’t have what it takes to fight Max and do what I needed to do this season,” said Norris last year. However, Norris’ problem in 2025 will not be Verstappen alone.
The Briton’s biggest threat would be his compatriot Lewis Hamilton, who has been hired by Ferrari to bolster their chances of securing their first world championship in 17 years. Not to forget, Charles Leclerc and McLaren’s other driver Oscar Piastri are also notable contenders.
