The McLaren team could potentially claim the championship during the race weekend in Baku. The reigning world champions have been working towards another highly dominant title fight since the season start in Melbourne. Driver Lando Norris is confident that the constructor’s title will be decided this weekend. He also discusses what has made McLaren so successful over the past two years.
During media day in Azerbaijan, Lando Norris was asked about McLaren’s impending constructor’s title. “I’m relatively confident,” he responded optimistically. “We’re in this position because we’ve been so strong all year. It would be strange if I didn’t trust in another good weekend now. That being said, we saw in Monza that it’s still very close and we’re definitely not invincible. We generally perform less well on street circuits. Last year, Oscar Piastri (Piastri, ed.) won here, but even then we didn’t really have the speed of other teams.”
“At the same time, I’m incredibly happy for the team that we can claim the constructor’s title so early,” Norris continued. “That’s an incredible achievement. As a team, we’ve worked extremely hard to win two years in a row and defend our title. For me, it’s of course nice, but for the team, it means everything. The men and women at the MTC (McLaren Technology Centre, ed.) truly live for this.”
The Key Role of Stella
Norris was then asked about the key to McLaren’s success over the past two years. What was decisive? “Two drivers who respect the team and don’t just think about their own interests,” he responded. “You don’t see that anywhere else. In addition, of course, the leadership of Zak Brown and Andrea Stella. If I have to point out someone who has really been decisive, it would be Andrea. Particularly the way he approaches the team and the staff,” concluded the Brit.
Currently, the papayas have accumulated 617 World Championship points. As it stands, Ferrari is the biggest challenger for a new title, although the chances are slim that the Scuderia will pose a threat. Ferrari follows with 280 points in second place in the World Championship. The difference is 337 points, while a maximum of 346 points are still up for grabs after the race weekend in Azerbaijan. If the British racing team wants to claim the championship as quickly as possible, it needs to score nine more points than Ferrari in Baku.
