Lando Norris has dismissed the notion that his Dutch Grand Prix retirement alleviated the pressure on him and inspired the run that saw him claim the Formula 1 title.
A podium in the final race in Abu Dhabi was enough to see Norris clinch a maiden Drivers’ Championship over Max Verstappen and McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri.
Norris had ended up as much as 34 points behind Piastri in late August when an oil leak caused his McLaren to grind to a stop in the closing exchanges at Zandvoort.
However, a remarkable response to that setback, coupled with Piastri enduring a sudden dip, witnessed the Briton overturn the gap across the subsequent six rounds.
But while he expressed at the time that he could be more “chill” about the title, Norris has denied that is what enabled him to piece together his season-defining surge.
“I honestly would just want to say no, it didn’t allow me to relax,” Norris told media including Motorsport Week when asked to recall that moment.
“Like, when I see 34 points against a guy who’s in the same car, who’s doing an incredible job, who I know is incredibly quick, that didn’t fill me with confidence.
“And it wasn’t like, ‘I got nothing to lose now, I can just go.’ I felt like I was trying to do everything I could before, and I continued to try and do everything I could after.
“But I just had to step up what I was doing away from the track. Like I said before, the people I was working with, I added more people to that group.
“I had to work harder both on the simulator and here at track. I had to change my approaches.
“I had to dig deep and try and understand more things quicker and in a more advanced way than I ever have before.
“That’s what gave me the advantage I had – not, ‘Oh, the pressure’s off, I can go and do what I’d like to do.’
“It was really the opposite. I was like, ‘Oh, shoot. I’m quite a long way behind against a pretty freaking fast driver, and I’ve got to step it up.’
“And I got to be more myself because of external factors – working with more professionals in different areas to unlock more of my ability.
“I think when you saw that, I had that run of great results, which is ultimately what got me the championship in the end.”
READ MORE – McLaren believes beating Max Verstappen gives added prestige to Lando Norris’ F1 title success
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