LANDO NORRIS warned Max Verstappen he will be no soft touch this season as he battles to snatch the Dutchman’s crown.
The McLaren driver, 25, will fight tooth and nail to dethrone the four-time F1 world champion after his mentality was questioned last year.
Red Bull senior adviser Helmut Marko said before the Texas Grand Prix in October that Bristol-born Norris is “not the strongest mentally”.
Verstappen and Norris fought fiercely throughout 2024, going wheel to wheel on numerous occasions before an inevitable first collision in Austria which cost them both the lead.
The British ace silenced the doubters, though, by delivering an exceptional drive in the season finale in Abu Dhabi to bring home McLaren’s first constructors’ title since 1998.
Norris, speaking yesterday at Silverstone where his team revealed their new MCL39 car, said: “I need to get my elbows out and show I’m not going to willingly give him any positions.
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“But I also have to be a smart driver. You have to be smart to go up against Max. We saw it last year so I look forward to it.
“I like those moments when you have to make quick decisions — and it’s always a lot harder when you’re in the car than when you re-watch it.
“When I see some things that I do, I’m like, why the hell have I done it, what an idiot.
“But at the same time, I don’t need to go out and just prove something to him. I don’t need to take any unnecessary risks and go down trying. I just keep focusing on myself.”
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Norris is a marginal favourite over Verstappen to win the title this year.
His runner-up, career-best campaign in 2024 saw four race wins in 24 outings.
Team McLaren came from behind to finish ahead of Ferrari and Red Bull.
They will go into pre-season testing later this month — ahead of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on March 16 — as title favourites.
When Norris was asked if he would encourage people to put money on him becoming champion, he joked: “I hope they make a lot of money on me!
“Every year is a new year and every driver is going to come back more determined.
“When I brought pressure up in the past, people always turn it into a bad thing,
“But it’s not a bad thing at all. Those moments I thrive on are the ones where there is more pressure, more nerves and I enjoy that.”
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
