Norris Fires Warning To Verstappen & Hamilton Ahead Of 2024 Season

Monday, 29 January 2024 at 17:00

Lando Norris wants to challenge the best, and the best at the moment are Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.

The Mercedes driver is the most accomplished driver to currently race in F1. With 103 race wins and seven World Championships there's no one even close to Hamilton at the moment.

On the other hand, his Red Bull rival has won the most recent three World Championships, and he already has 54 race wins, so he's arguably the best driver on the grid right now.

And then, there's Norris in McLaren, who's yet to win his first World Championship, or even his first race, but his ambitions are hight, and his trust in the British team even higher.

Recently, Norris signed a contract extension with the Papaya team, and after the team's success in the latter parts of the 2023 season, he believes they can challenge the likes of Red Bull, Mercedes, and Ferrari in 2024.

"Do I think we’re ready to challenge them? Yeah, absolutely. In those situations, and there’s opportunities where we’ve been fighting against Red Bull, Ferrari, Mercedes, going against them head-to-head in strategy, pit stops, all of those things, and the majority of times we’ve executed them extremely well."

Read also

Norris 'Convinced' He Can Win World Championship With McLaren

The British driver felt that whenever his team had a chance to achieve a good result in 2023, they dealt with the pressure well, and that's what makes him optimistic also about 2024.

On top of that, the 24-year-old feels ready to challenge the two of the most successful drivers currently in the sport, as he wants to fight against them.

"When it comes to pressure, I think everyone is in a very good position, but as soon as you mention fighting for a championship, everyone’s mentality just changes a little bit. But I feel I’m ready to go against Max [Verstappen] and Lewis and fight against them."

However, Norris is still aware that it may be difficult for McLaren to fight for the championship in the upcoming season. Yet, he believes that the 2026 season, when the regulations change, brings a new opportunity for everyone on the grid.

"So, yeah, [being in the fight for a] championship, I don’t know. As much as I’d love to say over the next two years, ‘26 is an opportunity for everyone on the grid, so that’s the big, big question mark. We’ll see how we do this year and you can ask me that question again."