Norris makes ‘easy’ Verstappen F1 title claim

Lando Norris has suggested Max Verstappen enjoyed an “easy” season this year, a campaign during which he scored his fourth F1 title.

Verstappen clinched the championship in Las Vegas after facing a mid-season threat from Norris after Red Bull slipped down the pecking order.

The Dutchman managed to build a lead in the early part of the campaign as Red Bull started the season strongly.

Verstappen, however, endured a 10-race winless streak from Austria to Brazil as rival teams took turns reaching the top step of the podium.

Verstappen has claimed Red Bull did not possess the fastest car for at least 70 per cent of the campaign, but despite the theory, Norris has stated the 27-year-old did not endure a season of hardship.

“Some of it’s experience,” Norris said when asked by RacingNews365 what he can learn from Verstappen. “I think he’s still had a relatively easy season.

“If we had a better car at the beginning of the year, we would have been fighting him a lot more.

“He would have been under a lot more pressure than he’s ever been.”

Norris asserted the pressure McLaren put Red Bull under this year had an impact on Verstappen’s form.

“We put him under pressure, as soon as we did, he made mistakes,” he said. “The team made mistakes.”

However, Norris conceded the mistakes were too minor to have a major impact on the title fight.

“But over the course of the season, that’s very few in terms of what he did,” the Briton added.

“That’s what makes him so good. He’s not had a bad qualifying, not a bad race. I think his worst race was probably Budapest. He still finished fifth. [Note: Verstappen finished sixth on three occasions – Monza, Mexico, Abu Dhabi].

“He just gets everything out of the car every time. It’s always impressive to see. There are always things to learn.”