Lando Norris believes McLaren could be capable of winning at every Formula 1 circuit if the MCL40’s remaining weakness in tight, low-speed sections can be addressed. The reigning world champion made the claim after an impressive Dutch Grand Prix victory at Zandvoort, his second consecutive win and another boost to his pursuit of championship leader Kimi Antonelli.
After losing the lead at the start to Kimi Antonelli, Lando Norris never allowed the Mercedes driver to escape. Better tyre management eventually gave the McLaren driver the opportunity to launch the decisive attack late in the race, when he had fresher tyres than his rival.
The result gave Lando Norris a second straight victory. His deficit to the top of the championship remains substantial at 83 points, but his form across the latest races has established him as one of Kimi Antonelli’s main challengers. Norris also believes his own performance level has improved compared with last season, although he has identified the areas where McLaren must still make progress if it wants to fight for victory on every type of circuit.
Lando Norris credits McLaren response after difficult Sprint
The Zandvoort victory represented a significant turnaround from McLaren’s performance in Saturday’s Sprint. Norris and his engineers spent the night analysing where improvements could be made, particularly in tyre management and how aggressively the car could be pushed.
“I rate this victory very highly, especially because of the response compared with Saturday,” Lando Norris said. “I was quite disappointed, and seeing how much we struggled in the Sprint took a bit of the fight out of me. We worked hard overnight to understand how to push and manage the tyres better than the others, and I really think I managed to do that.”
“In the first stint on the soft tyre, the situation was similar to the day before, but when we put the hard tyre on, the race went in a different direction.”
The Sprint had already provided a clear indication of the close battle between Norris and Antonelli, with the Mercedes driver explaining why he chose not to risk an overtake on Lando Norris during Saturday’s shorter race.
Lando Norris praises his own improvement behind the wheel
Lando Norris also highlighted his personal development, both in terms of driving and his approach to working away from the circuit.
“When the car gives me what I need on turn-in and through the corner, and I’m driving at the level I am now, I know I can win,” he said. “Compared with last year, the car is in some ways more difficult to drive, as shown by the bigger gaps between team-mates, but I understand situations better and I’m eliminating my weaknesses.”
“For once, I want to give myself a bit of credit. I think I’m doing a better job than the others behind the wheel, and that makes the difference.”
That confidence comes as McLaren’s broader development has increasingly established the team among Formula 1’s strongest forces, a shift also acknowledged by rivals who believe McLaren has made major performance gains.
Norris explains poor Zandvoort start from pole position
One area that did not go to plan was the start. Despite lining up on pole position, Lando Norris suffered significant wheelspin and immediately lost the lead to Kimi Antonelli.
“It’s absolutely not a weakness of mine. I’m one of the best starters on the grid,” Lando Norris insisted. “Already on Saturday from pole there was less grip than from the second grid slot.”
“We’ll have to analyse the data with the team to understand what went wrong, but even Oscar [Piastri], who started on a wetter line on the inside, was able to push harder, while I immediately had much less traction.”
Despite the setback, Norris remained close enough to Antonelli to keep the race within reach before tyre strategy and degradation eventually swung the advantage towards McLaren.
Lando Norris identifies McLaren’s key low-speed weakness
Although several rivals now regard McLaren as the new performance reference, Lando Norris urged caution. In his view, the MCL40 still lacks the all-round performance of Mercedes, particularly through the slower sections of a circuit.
“Our rivals say we’re the team to beat simply because they’ve just lost,” Norris explained. “Mercedes has a more complete car overall. We have a huge advantage in high-speed corners such as Turns 7 and 8, but they have an equally clear advantage in the slow sections.”
“That’s why I don’t yet have the confidence to say that I’ll easily fight for the championship.”
McLaren’s strengths at higher speeds have become increasingly evident during recent races, but Norris believes targeted development will be essential if the team is to maintain its championship push when the calendar moves to circuits that expose the MCL40’s weaker areas.
McLaren upgrades crucial to Lando Norris title challenge
For Norris, further upgrades aimed specifically at improving low-speed and tighter corners could make the difference between being competitive only at certain venues and fighting for victory every weekend.
“If we don’t have the right car for every circuit, things become more complicated,” he said. “If we can improve in the tight sections and in the low-speed technical areas, I’m confident I can win every race. Otherwise, it’s going to be difficult.”
“The latest upgrades have lifted the entire package, and the development recovery we’ve made compared with a year ago is crazy – almost a second gained on our rivals – but we have to push even harder if we want to close these gaps.”
The improvement in the MCL40 has already transformed the competitive order and increased the pressure on Mercedes. Norris’ recent run of results has also strengthened his position in the 2026 Formula 1 championship battle, even if the gap to Kimi Antonelli remains significant.
Zandvoort demonstrated that McLaren can now exploit its strengths in fast, flowing corners while managing the tyres well enough to challenge Mercedes deep into a race. For Lando Norris, the next step is clear: improve the MCL40 in the slower sections and turn a car that excels on certain circuits into one capable of fighting for victory everywhere.
