Lando Norris Praises McLaren’s “Incredible Story” Amidst Constructors’ Title Pursuit

Lando Norris, who has been with McLaren since the 2019 season, lauded the team’s “incredible story” after securing pole position for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. This achievement places McLaren on the verge of clinching their first constructors’ title in 26 years. McLaren holds a 21-point lead over Ferrari heading into the final race of the season. In qualifying at Yas Marina, Norris led a front-row lockout, with his team-mate Oscar Piastri qualifying directly behind him. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz qualified third, but his team-mate Charles Leclerc will commence the race from 19th position following a challenging session. A maximum of 44 points are available in Sunday’s race, which is scheduled to begin at 13:00 GMT. In the drivers’ championship, Norris is currently in second place, maintaining an eight-point advantage over Leclerc. Norris, who made his F1 debut with McLaren in 2019, commended the efforts of McLaren Racing chief executive officer Zak Brown and team principal Andrea Stella for guiding the team to its current standing. Norris stated: “People have come and gone and Andrea has done an incredible job. To have been part of this incredible story not long after Zak joined and started turning things around, and made it a happier place to be, I have been on the journey with Zak. It has been a long rise. Which has been good fun.” McLaren started the previous season at the back of the field, but a car upgrade in mid-2023 significantly improved their performance, positioning them among the teams chasing the dominant champions, Red Bull, last year. Red Bull dominated the beginning of the current season, but another upgrade introduced at the Miami race in May transformed McLaren into consistent front-runners, a status they have maintained ever since. Norris joined McLaren after a period in the 2010s when the team had fallen to the back of the grid. Stella was appointed team principal at the end of 2022, at a time when the team’s forward momentum from the preceding three seasons had stalled. Norris commented: “We made progress, nothing clicked, or continued to grow, and it was hard to break that barrier of getting close to Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull, because for such a long period they have dominated F1.” He added: “Not only have we broken that barrier, we have risen to the top of it, and being the best team and hopefully going on to win.” Norris further stated: “I don’t think from the outside people would give enough credit because it is not an easy sport.” “To go from where we were to out-do Ferrari, who have turned things around a lot, and catch Red Bull and Max (Verstappen), who one year ago dominated every race, for that to flick around so much we can only give a hats off to the whole team,” Norris concluded. Norris expressed that his greatest satisfaction came from his decision to remain with McLaren, as he believed they would become front-runners, despite having had opportunities to join other teams. Although he did not explicitly state it, Red Bull had previously extended an offer for him to drive. Norris remarked: “I’ve really loved it and enjoyed it and the fact I am proudest and most happy about is the fact I am still here, because I believed in the team for many years.” He continued: “I had opportunities to not be in papaya and maybe go on and win races at an earlier stage of my career but I believed and I wanted to do it with McLaren, the guys who gave me my opportunity in F1.” Norris concluded this thought by saying: “We were hoping for next year. We didn’t think it would be possible this year, and the fact we are doing it this year, I am proud to have been on this journey and I will be very happy when I hope it is finished off.”