So a fan favourite is no longer in the series so Lando is drafted in to soften the blow for all the hardcore fans........but enough about Star Wars we're here to talk about F1. Yes the only other Lando you know will make his F1 debut with McLaren this year and if McLaren aren't already in talks with Disney about a special Star Wars promotion on the car for some races this year then they really are out of touch with the world.
Lando Norris (cue FB posting a pic of Norris from Coronation Street) is a 19 year old whizz kid from Bristol. I've watched him quite a bit over the years and from the very first moment I saw him drive the words 'next Lewis Hamilton' floated into my brain. He has won championships in every series he has raced in.......until last year. When he was announced in F2 i quickly tipped him for the championship but, like many times before, I was proved to be wrong. There is no doubt he was quick and he was in the slightly slower Carlin car but no question he was out classed by both Russell and Albon. Why is a harder thing to put your finger on. He was quick and was often in the right positions in the race but the results did not come his way. It might be explained away by the fact his entry into F1 was a sure thing from around half way through the season as it was quite clear that if McLaren didn't sign him Toro Rosso would. Maybe he took his eye off the ball in F2 because of that? Who knows.
However Norris got here he is now here and will be driving a McLaren already tipped to be at the front of the midfield pack. We have of course been promised this before. His team mate is one Carlos Sainz and in my mind Sainz is really ripe for the taking. It's not talked about much (mainly because Zak Brown owns the motorsport press) but Sainz was really torn a new one by Hulkenberg last year. I can't remember one race where he did something special. So what Norris has ended up with is a team mate who is highly rated but seems to have lost form. If Norris beats him this year there is no doubt it will sky rocket his rep. In my mind Norris's only job this year is to beat his team mate.
As good a rep and opportunity Norris has I can't help but notice the road block up ahead for him. He is part of the McLaren junior programme and he is already in a Mclaren so he's top of the tree. Unfortunately I don't see McLaren ever getting back to the front of the grid in the current F1 climate. This means at some point Norris will have to make a switch to one of the big 3. The problem with that is that the big 3 already have their young stallions in their stables and it's going to take a bit of luck or some really good form for Norris to displace one of them.
We are getting ahead of ourselves though. First things first though let's see how the kid does this season.
Anyone excited for Norris?
Lando Norris (cue FB posting a pic of Norris from Coronation Street) is a 19 year old whizz kid from Bristol. I've watched him quite a bit over the years and from the very first moment I saw him drive the words 'next Lewis Hamilton' floated into my brain. He has won championships in every series he has raced in.......until last year. When he was announced in F2 i quickly tipped him for the championship but, like many times before, I was proved to be wrong. There is no doubt he was quick and he was in the slightly slower Carlin car but no question he was out classed by both Russell and Albon. Why is a harder thing to put your finger on. He was quick and was often in the right positions in the race but the results did not come his way. It might be explained away by the fact his entry into F1 was a sure thing from around half way through the season as it was quite clear that if McLaren didn't sign him Toro Rosso would. Maybe he took his eye off the ball in F2 because of that? Who knows.
However Norris got here he is now here and will be driving a McLaren already tipped to be at the front of the midfield pack. We have of course been promised this before. His team mate is one Carlos Sainz and in my mind Sainz is really ripe for the taking. It's not talked about much (mainly because Zak Brown owns the motorsport press) but Sainz was really torn a new one by Hulkenberg last year. I can't remember one race where he did something special. So what Norris has ended up with is a team mate who is highly rated but seems to have lost form. If Norris beats him this year there is no doubt it will sky rocket his rep. In my mind Norris's only job this year is to beat his team mate.
As good a rep and opportunity Norris has I can't help but notice the road block up ahead for him. He is part of the McLaren junior programme and he is already in a Mclaren so he's top of the tree. Unfortunately I don't see McLaren ever getting back to the front of the grid in the current F1 climate. This means at some point Norris will have to make a switch to one of the big 3. The problem with that is that the big 3 already have their young stallions in their stables and it's going to take a bit of luck or some really good form for Norris to displace one of them.
We are getting ahead of ourselves though. First things first though let's see how the kid does this season.
Anyone excited for Norris?
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- but one thing I did call way way way back on a thread about "the next big driver" was the rise of Lando Norris.
