Formula One News

Home

Quizzes

Newsletter

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Jenson Button claims Lando Norris ‘hurts himself’ due to key weakness

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Aditya Pandya | Last updated 1/11/24

British driver Lando Norris displayed an impressive performance in the 2023 season despite the early-season slump produced by McLaren on the grid. The Woking-based team turned the season around amazingly and hence achieved an impressive fourth finish in the constructor’s championship. However, a few weaknesses within the 24-year-old have been pointed out by the 2009 World Champion Jenson Button.

Button insisted that Lando Norris is an extreme talent within the sport of Formula 1. In addition to this, the former world champion asserted that he had been watching the young talent ever since he first turned the steering wheel of an F1 car at the Hungary GP several years ago. This comment was made as Button was racing for McLaren when Norris got his first outing in F1 machinery.

Lando is an extreme talent, he really is, I’ve watched him since the first time he turned an F1 steering wheel, which was in Hungary, because I was racing for the team at the time. Button told Sky Sports F1.

In addition to this, The Briton claimed that Norris was a real thinker and this hurt him because the 24-year-old looked at himself too much and worried that he wasn’t performing well. This was far from the truth as Norris performed very well and just needed a team capable of fighting for victories, something which McLaren has been actively working over. However, Button raised uncertainty over this and pointed out that he was unsure when this was going to happen.

And it’s amazing how quickly he got to grips with it. But also, he’s a real thinker and sometimes that hurts him because he looks at himself too much and worries that he’s not good enough. But he is. He’s exceptional and I can't wait to see him in equipment that can fight for victories.

Lando Norris has to beat teammate Oscar Piastri

The fact that only one driver and team won the majority of the races in the season was very tough for other teams and drivers on the grid. However, finishing second was a great starting point to enable further opportunities to win the race, something which Lando Norris has been massively improving over in his recent performances. However, no one wishes to finish in the runner-up spot during the races, and hence even Norris needs to score his first victory in Formula 1.

Additionally, Button asserted that the 24-year-old would not leave the sport until and unless he at least scores a victory under his belt. Also, Norris is yet to outperform his teammate Oscar Piastri in some aspects as the Aussie already has a sprint win over the Briton in just his rookie season with McLaren. Hence, Lando Norris needs to beat his teammate in the coming seasons.

The improvement arc that the Woking has displayed proves that the team is capable of fighting at the forefront for a chance at the championship. Hence, Norris needs to string together better sessions and results and finally achieve the championship title that he very much so deserves in Formula 1.

This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: