McLaren’s MCL39: Norris Eyes More Points Early On

Lando Norris sets sights on a stronger season start, believing McLaren’s MCL39 marks progress in his quest for more early points.

Lando Norris was pleased with his first experience behind the wheel of his new 2025 challenger. The McLaren F1 driver took the MCL39 for a shakedown run at Silverstone on Thursday, where he also explained that he would take a different approach against Max Verstappen in 2025.

“Let’s say it’s a first step in the right direction because the team has been quite innovative with some design choices,” Norris said after the initial run before addressing the Verstappen topic.

“I need to be more assertive and show that I won’t just give up positions to him, but I also have to be a smart driver. You need to be intelligent to race against Max. I don’t need to prove anything to him. I don’t need to take unnecessary risks and end up going backward. I don’t think there’s anything special you have to do to beat Max.

“He’s fast, aggressive, and one of the best of all time, but the simplest way is to be just a little bit quicker and stay ahead. You just have to be smart—that’s the answer to everything—and sometimes think long-term.”

“But I also have to be a smart driver. You have to be a smart driver to race against Max. We saw that last year. I’m looking forward to those battles. I enjoy those moments when you have to make quick decisions.”

“It’s always much harder when you’re in the car. When you watch the replay later, you think, ‘Why on earth did I do that? What an idiot!’ There are definitely things I need to improve, but the main change this year is that we need more points at the start, which will impact the fight ahead.”

With a significant early deficit when McLaren reached Red Bull’s level, Norris was never able to catch Verstappen. The Briton points out that this gap, combined with his rival’s relentless approach, made any comeback impossible.

“We’re talking about facing one of the toughest drivers in both attack and defense. As we saw in Mexico, he sacrifices himself for the overall result, and when a driver has that mentality, it’s very difficult to overcome when you’re 50 points behind.”

“The main thing that will change this year is that I need more points at the start, and hopefully, it will be the opposite. With his driving style, the risks he takes, and his aggressiveness, I had virtually no chance of making up the gap I had.”

When asked about the role of lost points early in the season in his defeat, Norris insists he wouldn’t have changed his approach: “It would change the title fight, but I remain in the mindset of taking things step by step.”