Lando Norris says he remains unsure about the root cause behind his recent run of impressive form in Formula 1, suggesting that his upswing might not be as closely linked to McLaren’s new front suspension as some have speculated.
Just a week after his triumph in Austria, Norris claimed a commanding victory at his home race at Silverstone, bringing him within eight points of team-mate Oscar Piastri in the championship standings.
His latest surge has coincided with the introduction of a new front suspension designed to provide Norris with better feedback through corners.
It’s been a talking point within the McLaren camp, especially as the Briton’s car is the only one fitted with upgrade, which Piastri has so far declined.
But while the team believes it has contributed to his recent performances, Norris downplayed its significance, suggesting the hype surrounding the upgrade may be overstated.
“You sound more positive than I still am,” he joked at Silverstone when queried on the topic. “Yeah. It could be worse. It could have made it… people talk about it probably too much.
“That’s just my honest opinion. It could be that it’s helping me, and when I say helping, it’s helping me by hundredths, thousandths, I don’t know. It’s impossible to numerically put a number on it.
Norris acknowledged the team’s belief in the suspension’s potential benefits but stopped short of crediting it for his recent victories.
“Like I said in previous interviews, it’s something the team believed might give me more feeling, and I just roll with that, I believe.
“My faith in the team and my belief in them thinking this might help. Not a guarantee, but it might. And that’s it.”
Focus on Hard Work and Team Effort
Instead of attributing his success to the suspension, Norris highlighted the importance of his off-track preparation and collaboration with his team.
“Yes, I won two races since. I was real quick in Canada. I’m not going to say it’s down to that, obviously,” he added.
“I want to put more of it down to my hard work, my work I’ve been doing away from the track, with my team, with many people that I have around me.
“I put it way more down to that than some alterations on the suspension.
“At the same time, I could just say I think I could have achieved the same thing without it and just going back to our previous spec. So, I don’t know.”
Still, Norris admitted a desire to test the theory further, suggesting a comparative test might eventually offer clarity – though even that might not provide conclusive answers.
“Hopefully, one day we get to back-to-back test it and I might get a feeling, I might not,” he continued.
“My feelings have been good over the last few races, but I think more of that’s come from just my working on trying to get better feelings and maximising lack of feelings in certain areas more than it has been by so many improvements from a car point of view.”
Acknowledging McLaren’s Upgrades
Norris did give credit to the team’s recent development work, noting that the MCL39 has become a formidable package – something evident in the comfortable winning margins at both Spielberg and Silverstone.
“But we’ve improved the car. We’ve had upgrades last weekend, things like that, and that helps,” he explained.
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“We won by what, 30 seconds here. We won by 20 seconds last weekend, so the car’s pretty damn good.
“I want to put it more down to my hard work rather than that, but it’s a combination of both.”
Whether it’s down to suspension tweaks, personal development, or a faster McLaren, one thing is certain: Lando Norris is firmly in the hunt – and he’s not done yet.
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