Lando Norris has claimed Red Bull’s late charge in Formula 1 in 2025 shouldn’t come as a surprise, citing McLaren had to make “bigger steps” in the past to win titles.
The season had long been seen as a straight-out duel between Norris and Oscar Piastri as McLaren dominated proceedings with 12 victories in the opening 15 races.
However, Red Bull has staged a remarkable resurgence since upgrades at Monza transcended the RB21 in Max Verstappen’s hands into the new benchmark package.
Verstappen has outscored the two McLarens across the last four rounds, clinching three victories in that time, to now lie 40 points behind Piastri with five races to go.
But although his colleagues have been marvelling at Red Bull’s turnaround, Norris, who never discounted Verstappen, has insisted that he has not been shocked at all.
Asked whether Red Bull had stunned him, Norris retorted to media including Motorsport Week: “No, because they won the last four Constructors [sic, three] before us.
“They’re some pretty smart people in the team who have won multiple World Championships and they were never that bad; they were never that far off.
“They had certain issues and as soon as they addressed those issues.
“So I think from that, I think when you understand where we’ve come from a couple of years ago, we made much bigger steps than what they did to win the championships.
“I think when you know what’s possible internally from my team at McLaren and how, once you start to figure things out and understand things, what kind of differences you can make, it’s the same with them.
“They have an incredible team who have won many World Championships, an incredible driver that, when you put things together, it cannot be a surprise, especially when you live in a world that is similar.
“So I think when you know everything that goes on and when you understand how the aerodynamics work with the car and all these things, it’s quite the opposite of a surprise.”
Norris will maintain same approach despite Verstappen surge
Along with Verstappen, Norris has also been making continuous inroads on Piastri as he has gained points on his team-mate at each race since retiring at Zandvoort.
The Briton, who has reduced Piastri’s advantage to 14 points, has asserted that Verstappen’s renewed threat will not impact his approach as he chases a maiden title.
“I mean, it’s not like I’ve won every race since,” he highlighted. “It’s not like it’s been an easy return from what it was, 30-something points, to what it is now.
“Quite a few points to turn around, especially against an incredible driver in the same car. So I feel like I’ve been doing a good job from that case.
“But of course there’s another guy who’s been winning the races and has been catching it for months.
“But from that side, nothing we can do about it. He’s been quick, he’s been very fast, he’s been doing a good job like they have been all season.
“He’s had many pole positions through the whole year, so it’s not like they were ever that bad. He’s had pole positions at almost every single point of the year.
“So yeah, it’s not a surprise that when it just clicks a little bit more they get the car in a better place and Max does what he does.
“They’re catching up, but at the same time, it doesn’t change anything that I do.
“I try and win the race every weekend. That’s my approach, has been for a while and that’s the approach I’ll continue with.”
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