Lando Norris: “It has nothing to do with that”

For the fourth consecutive season, Max Verstappen has been crowned world champion. However, unlike the previous two seasons, the fight was much more intense, especially against Lando Norris.

The British driver, second in the championship, still had hope of winning his first title this season. A hope that is now no longer relevant after the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Even though the driver’s title will have to wait another year, the man with three F1 victories wanted to congratulate his rival on his new world title.

Congratulations to Max. I am disappointed not to be in the loop, but Max deserved to win. He had a better season than me, he deserved it more than anyone else. Max simply has no weaknesses.

McLaren’s rear wing: not the cause of title loss according to Norris.

The Briton also took the opportunity to respond to recent claims that the loss of the driver’s title is due to the modification of the rear wing of the McLaren after the Baku Grand Prix. Indeed, several teams had alerted the FIA to the flexibility of this appendage, with images showing the rear wing of Oscar Piastri’s MCL38 lifting up on the straight lines, allowing to reduce drag and therefore increase top speed. After several days of discussions with the FIA, the Woking team decided to modify it.

« Although our rear wing used in Baku complies with the regulations and passes all FIA bending tests, McLaren has proactively proposed to make some minor adjustments to the wing after our conversations with the FIA », she said in a statement.

« We also expect the FIA to have similar conversations with other teams regarding the compliance of their rear wings. We have made minor adjustments to all our rear wings since Baku, to varying degrees, to avoid any future issues in this area.

Since these changes, the British single-seater does not seem as dominant as before. In the last four races, McLaren has not achieved any victory and has only secured one podium with Norris’ second place in Mexico. Results that have gradually seen its chances of winning the championship diminish, especially after the round in Brazil. However, the former Formula 2 driver at Carlin rejected the idea that the recent poor performances were due to this new rear wing.

« Everyone says what they want. They can believe in their own bullshit », said the Briton on Sky F1. « This made a very small difference, much less than what everyone thinks. It brought us much less than what people imagine. It has nothing to do with that. »

A delay too substantial from the beginning of the season

For him, McLaren fell too far behind at the start of the season, which did not allow the team to fight for both championships. “We started the season being the worst of the top four teams, and we finished being the most consistent and probably the best,” Norris said.

« I am prouder than anything else. I regret nothing. There are always those things where you think to yourself: Maybe I should have done that a little differently. But nothing I regret, because I don’t think that even if my year had been perfect, we could have won the championship this year.

The Brit also sent a charming message to Verstappen and Red Bull, who have once again won a trophy this season. « I think Max drove too well. Red Bull and their team did too good a job for us to catch up. It was decided in the first six races. We caught up a bit, it fluctuated, but we never managed to close the gap. »

A new challenge in 2025

Lando Norris nevertheless says he is satisfied with his season, aware that to beat Red Bull, one must be perfect throughout the season, which he did not manage to do.

However, he says he is ready for a new challenge next year and hopes that the outcome will be different. “I am still happy that it is us who put pressure. I look forward to being there from the beginning next year.”