Lando Norris offered a sarcastic riposte to a question posed of whether McLaren will prioritise team-mate Oscar Piastri amid a refreshed Formula 1 title bid from Max Verstappen.
The Brit arrives at this weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix 25 points behind his Australian counterpart, after a dismal weekend for the Woking-based squad last time out in Azerbaijan.
With Norris finishing a modest seventh and Piastri crashing out on the opening lap, Verstappen was free to take a dominant win, his second in a row.
The Dutchman is now just 44 points behind Norris in the standings, giving him a chance, albeit an outside one, to get himself back into contention to retain his title.
Verstappen has been reinvigorated by the apparent improvements made by Red Bull to its RB21 challenger, giving him the package to firmly challenge when previously unable.
Norris is all too aware of the challenge Verstappen has and can pose, and reiterated a season-long held belief that until it’s mathemically impossible, he is in the hunt.
“[He is] Genuinely a challenger,” Norris told media including Motorsport Week in Singapore.
“I think if you go back to the beginning of the season, you know they were challenging the first six, seven races of race wins, challenging us in the drivers, and then we brought some upgrades, improved a little bit.
“A couple of weeks ago, they brought some upgrades and it seems like that’s kind of put them back on the same level as us.”
Norris believes the team is confident of carrying a label as favourites at the remaining seven races, but acknowledged the remainder of the supposed ‘big four’ will offer serious competition.
“I think we’re still expecting and we still come into every race with the ambition and with the goal of winning and wanting to dominate as a team and continue the form that we’ve had all season,” he explained.
“Nevertheless, it’s a track where Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull certainly over the last few weekends have been closer, so we expect battles especially with him.”
‘There’s a chance’ Verstappen could still pose threat – Norris
Naturally, Piastri is the title favourite and Norris behind him in second, with Verstappen still requiring a big swing to place himself from the periphery of the title fight to the centre.
Statistics will give the McLaren duo a significant edge, and when asked what sort of threat Verstappen could pose, Norris refused to be drawn to put a percentage on it.
“I mean, there’s a chance, so more than zero,” he reasoned. “I don’t know. It’s probably like actual stats. I don’t know. Yeah, there’s a chance.”
A primary narrative of McLaren’s dominant campaign has been its willingness to offer fairness to both drivers, and not prioritising one over the other, as per its long-held principles.
When asked if he was concerned the Piastri’s advantage may force McLaren into giving him outright priority to ensure the title is won by a McLaren driver over Verstappen, Norris sarcastically quipped: “I’m very concerned, yeah. Very worried about it. Yeah, and scared, frankly. I was happy you asked that, actually.
“No.”
READ MORE – The vital change that has reignited Lando Norris’ F1 title dream
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