Lando Norris has picked up at Zandvoort exactly where he left off in Budapest. More than the result itself, it is the way the reigning Formula 1 world champion is driving that stands out: Norris finally appears completely in tune with the McLaren MCL40 and, freed from much of the pressure that accumulated earlier in the season, is once again expressing himself naturally behind the wheel.
The British driver is going through a particularly significant phase of his 2026 campaign. The MCL40 is no longer the same car with which McLaren began the season, and the technical package introduced in Hungary appears to have represented an important step in its development. At the Dutch Grand Prix, Norris immediately confirmed that the Budapest progress was not an isolated breakthrough.
Lando Norris finds growing confidence in upgraded McLaren MCL40
The most interesting aspect is the way Lando Norris is interpreting the revised car. He appears increasingly able to exploit its behaviour, building lap-by-lap confidence that allows him to push the MCL40 towards its limit. For the moment, Oscar Piastri does not appear to be extracting the same feeling from the updated package with equal effectiveness.
“It couldn’t have gone any better, I’m a little surprised, honestly,” Lando Norris said. “A decent lap, I was pushing, as you saw, because everything is so close: every hundredth of a second can make the difference.”
Those words capture Norris’s current position particularly well. There is satisfaction with the result, but more importantly there is an awareness that he managed to extract exactly what the car required in a session decided by extremely small margins.
At Zandvoort, where a few thousandths of a second can radically alter a driver’s grid position, Lando Norris once again demonstrated the ability to extract performance beyond what might initially appear to be the car’s limit.
McLaren turns difficult start into major Zandvoort improvement
That is where the value of the work carried out following Budapest becomes clear. Norris explained that the improvement did not happen by chance, but came through a specific response to the difficulties McLaren encountered earlier in the day.
“A good turnaround compared with earlier, when I felt we were struggling a little,” Lando Norris said, referring to the Sprint race earlier in the day.
The observation is significant because the relationship between Norris and the MCL40 has become a crucial element of his performance. Simply having a competitive McLaren is not enough; Norris needs to trust what the car will do when he commits to a corner, particularly at a technical and demanding circuit such as Zandvoort on the North Sea coast.
That confidence is exactly what now appears to have changed.
The Dutch circuit is particularly demanding in terms of car balance, aerodynamic load and tyre behaviour, with the Zandvoort Sprint format adding an additional set-up challenge because teams have less practice time available to refine their cars.
Small McLaren changes give Norris the confidence he needed
The most revealing comment from the reigning world champion came when he explained what McLaren had done to alter the behaviour of the car.
“We had to try something, because what we had before wasn’t enough, so we made a few small changes to give me more confidence.”
The key word is confidence. Lando Norris was not simply talking about outright performance, aerodynamic load or conventional balance changes. He was referring to being able to trust the MCL40 when the moment arrives to push at the limit.
That is perhaps the clearest difference compared with earlier stages of the season.
The upgrade package introduced in Budapest appears to have helped the MCL40 make a step forward in precisely this area. Norris is progressively learning how to interpret the revised car, understand its reactions and, most importantly, trust a machine that increasingly appears to respond to the characteristics he needs from it.
Oscar Piastri still searching for the same MCL40 feeling
The internal comparison with Oscar Piastri is therefore inevitable. The Australian has access to the same technical evolution, yet does not currently appear able to translate it into the same level of performance.
That does not necessarily mean the updated MCL40 is inherently better suited to Lando Norris. Instead, the British driver simply appears further ahead in the process of adapting to the car’s revised behaviour.
That difference is particularly important when the field is so closely matched. The ability to trust the rear of the car, commit on corner entry and understand how much performance remains available can determine whether a driver finds the final hundredth required to move several positions forward.
For Norris, that process appears increasingly natural. For Oscar Piastri, it remains a work in progress.
Lando Norris targets another win after Budapest success
The situation makes Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix particularly intriguing. Norris approaches the race having collected valuable information during the Sprint, especially regarding tyre behaviour.
Tyre selection and management provided important indications, and if the picture that emerged on Saturday is confirmed, the Soft compound could become an important weapon during the Grand Prix.
Strategy is expected to play a significant role at Zandvoort because overtaking is difficult and track position carries considerable value. Pirelli’s assessment of the Dutch Grand Prix tyre strategy also highlighted the particular demands created by the circuit and Sprint weekend.
Lando Norris therefore heads into the race with advantages that go beyond his Sprint result. He has a car in which he appears increasingly comfortable, additional information about tyre behaviour and, perhaps most importantly, no longer seems burdened by the need to prove himself.
Norris appears liberated after becoming Formula 1 world champion
After winning the Formula 1 world championship, Lando Norris appears to be racing with a different kind of freedom. He no longer has to chase the validation of becoming a champion or respond to expectations built around every mistake and every comparison with his team-mate.
He can simply drive.
When Lando Norris is able to operate without the surrounding noise, the result is increasingly similar to what McLaren saw in Budapest and has now seen again at Zandvoort.
The reigning world champion is demonstrating his status in one of the most difficult ways to quantify: by turning pressure into greater awareness and, once that pressure has lifted, continuing to perform at the front.
Norris emerges as Dutch GP favourite
With the MCL40 apparently having found a new level and the Soft tyre potentially providing an important strategic option based on what emerged from the Sprint, Lando Norris heads into the Dutch Grand Prix with a clear status.
He is the favourite.
The Hungary upgrade has given McLaren a more competitive platform, but Norris’s growing understanding of that package may be just as important as the technical changes themselves. While Oscar Piastri continues working towards the same level of confidence, the reigning world champion increasingly appears capable of extracting everything available from the MCL40.
After winning in Budapest and confirming that progress at Zandvoort, Norris now has one objective for the Dutch Grand Prix: do it again.
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