Lando Norris considers it “stupid” to talk about winning the world championship, which is either an attempt to delude himself or a failure to appreciate recent history.
If it’s the latter, you might be interested in having a word with Lewis Hamilton.
That is because a heartening parallel to what might be developing between Norris, the dominant winner in Holland on Sunday, and Max Verstappen, the once untouchable leader, came in 2007, when Hamilton was putting together the most dazzling debut season Formula One has ever known.
The British sensation led Kimi Raikkonen by 17 points going into the final two rounds. Under the old points system, up to 20 points could be awarded.
Despite facing a tough race like the Eiger, the Finn won the final rounds in China and Brazil, scoring all the points, while Hamilton only managed two. Raikkonen was champion by a margin of one.
Lando Norris kept the chase going in the Formula One championship race by winning the Dutch GP on Sunday
Norris has branded rumours of catching Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in the championship race as “stupid”
Norris starred in Verstappen’s home GP and beat Verstappen at the Zandvoort circuit
Yes, you could say Hamilton was the victim of unique circumstances: McLaren was in total chaos, torn apart by both the Spygate scandal and the acrimony bordering on hatred between Fernando Alonso and his boss Ron Dennis.
Hamilton was also raw in a way that Verstappen is not; he and Alonso were taking points off each other, something Sergio Perez has not managed against Verstappen; and Hamilton surprisingly crashed on the way to the pits in the penultimate race.
Norris’s task is less demanding than Raikkonen’s, however. On the one hand, there are nine races and 258 points left to close a deficit of 70, the equivalent of about 25 under the old system. Bonus points for fastest laps and two sprint races, in Austin and Qatar, make the road ahead even longer.
Another advantage Raikkonen never had was the absolute supremacy of Norris’ car, which won by 23 seconds at Zandvoort, a bigger gap between first and second than in any other race contested by any driver this season.
If the McLaren was the machine to beat for several weeks, a major improvement over the weekend – the team’s first such leap since Norris claimed his maiden win in Miami two months ago – has put it on another level.
Verstappen could do no more than hold on to second place to limit the damage. Incidentally, Norris’s task would be made easier if his teammate Oscar Piastri could get ahead of Verstappen.
As Norris conducted his post-race interviews with a broad smile, Red Bull boss Christian Horner sat on the first floor of his Energy Station with A4 papers in his hand telling the story of the race. “If it was like this for the next nine races then, yes, it would be very difficult for Max to win the championship,” he admitted.
“We are lucky that McLaren underperformed earlier in the year and we have some room for manoeuvre, but that can quickly disappear. The McLaren has been the benchmark car in recent races.
Norris can learn from Lewis Hamilton’s iconic previous battles with Verstappen over the years.
Hamilton was once beaten by Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen in epic circumstances in 2007.
“There are no silver bullets in this business. It’s about understanding the problem, addressing it and then implementing solutions.”
Their ability, or lack thereof, to do so at the right time brings us back to another echo of 2007, when McLaren illicitly received 780 pages of technical secrets from Ferrari. That is because Red Bull has spent much of the season mired in its own chaos.
Although Horner was cleared of inappropriate behavior toward an employee, the lava left a trail at the factory.
For example, what would Red Bull give now for the expertise of Adrian Newey, Formula One’s most revered designer? The team maintains his departure was not directly linked to the Horner scandal, but the manner and timing of his exit were undeniably abrupt.
Max Verstappen (right) and Christian Horner (left) have endured a difficult period during Norris’ recent rise at McLaren.
Norris may try to take advantage of Red Bull’s difficulties to increase the pressure on Verstappen
Whatever the case, how can we not miss him if one keen observer I spoke to is to be believed when he said after Sunday’s race: “They know they have to do something to improve their game, but they don’t know what?”
Verstappen’s future is uncertain in the wake of the scandal, with his father Jos keen for the triple world champion to move on. Mercedes are favourites to secure his signing for 2026 and channels between Verstappen’s team and Toto Wolff remain open, although Italian teenager Kimi Antonelli will replace Hamilton next year. That is expected to be confirmed this week.
Horner, who has managed to keep his cool through the greatest turbulence of his life, summed up the state of the championship accurately when he said: “It’s remarkable that it was only Lando’s second win in that car. But he’s driving well, he’s finding confidence and the pressure is on us to respond.”
So no matter what Lando says, talking about him for the title isn’t entirely out of place.
