Lando Norris has made it clear that he is not closing the door on a genuine push for the championship, and he believes the burden of expectation now rests squarely on the shoulders of current points leader Kimi Antonelli. The British driver, who secured McLaren’s inaugural Grand Prix victory of the season at the Hungarian Grand Prix, currently sits fifth in the Drivers’ standings, trailing Antonelli by 91 points with eleven races still to run.
Norris recalled the dramatic 2023 title chase, when Max Verstappen entered the final ten rounds 104 points behind the leader and ultimately fell short by just two points, handing the crown to Norris. "The pressure is on him [Antonelli] for sure.
There’s no pressure on me. I’ve been feeling very confident," Norris told Sky Sports F1 after his Hungarian triumph. He went on to comment on the performance of the Mercedes squad, noting that they have made more mistakes than McLaren this season. "They have made more errors as a team and we have made fewer.
We have been strong, but I still expect them to win races and I expect us to win even more. From here on out we have to be perfect for the rest of the year," Norris explained.
The McLaren team has benefitted from a substantial aerodynamic upgrade that debuted in Hungary, featuring a new floor that has injected a noticeable amount of pace into the car. This development has allowed the team to fight at the front of the grid more consistently than earlier in the campaign.
Team principal Andrea Stella highlighted that the 2026 season continues to be defined by a relentless race of upgrades. "The good news is that McLaren is back in this upgrade race, fighting for the lead," he said. "I expect the car that ends the season as the best will have added tenths of a second each race – possibly up to half a second over the next eleven events.
So there is still a lot of work ahead for everyone, not just McLaren." During the Hungarian Grand Prix, Norris found himself stuck behind his teammate Oscar Piastri after the opening lap, despite clearly having more speed. He eventually turned the situation to his advantage during the second round of pit stops by staying out longer than Piastri and executing an overcut. Prior to that, Norris had indicated on the radio that he was "miles faster" and wanted to pit first.
When asked about his desire to win, Norris said, "I just want to win the race. We have team rules that prevent us from jeopardising each other’s results by being overly aggressive. But I certainly had a much better pace than Oscar, and we had a far better chance of winning the race." He described the tactical dilemma of deciding when to pit: "When I was stuck behind Oscar, Max was three or four seconds behind, still a threat.
Ahead there was no threat, so we had a strong guarantee of a team win. I wanted to box and undercut because my pace was so strong that I could have opened a whole pit‑stop window on him, or force him to pit early.
It was a fine line between pitting too early and damaging both our races. In the end, the decision was made in the best interests of the team." Norris has generally enjoyed the upper hand over Piastri in recent outings, and many observers believe the British driver is performing at a level comparable to his world‑champion season last year. He admitted he is still trying to understand why his pace advantage was so pronounced in Hungary, but hopes the feeling will persist after the summer break. "The cars are identical, and I’ve just been feeling very strong lately.
I’ve worked on many areas from last year," he said. "I feel much more confident now about extracting performance, and I’ve spent a lot of time with my engineers to understand this car because it isn’t an easy machine to master and push to its limits consistently." When pressed about the source of his improvement, Norris pointed to hard work from both himself and his engineering team. "It’s simple – hard work.
Hard work from my engineers and from me to improve as a driver and to get better at extracting the car’s potential. That’s the answer," he concluded. Looking ahead, the Formula 1 calendar will resume after the summer hiatus with a sprint weekend at the Dutch Grand Prix from August 21‑23.
All sessions will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1, and viewers can stream the coverage via NOW with a flexible, contract‑free subscription. Norris’s remarks underscore his belief that, while Antonelli currently carries the championship weight, McLaren’s upgraded package and the driver’s renewed confidence could keep the title fight alive deep into the final stretch of the season.