McLaren star Lando Norris is the talk of the Formula 1 paddock right now after finally securing his first Grand Prix victory in Miami.
After five full seasons with McLaren, his 16 trip to the podium saw him stand on the top step for the very first time.
Speaking on the Beyond The Grid Podcast, CEO Zak Brown was speaking about the drivers he’s come up against within the team.
Lando Norris is finally the more experienced teammate at McLaren alongside Oscar Piastri, although the Australian is arguably pushing him harder than he’s been pushed before.
When he first joined the F1 grid, he was up against Carlos Sainz and despite the Spaniard having three years at Toro Rosso and a season at Renault under his belt, they were very closely matched.
However, Brown has admitted that Daniel Ricciardo never quite lived up to expectations at McLaren and Lando Norris ultimately got the better of him.
The Australian’s career after his time at Red Bull has been up and down, to say the least.
So much so, that last season he needed another driver to be dropped to return to the grid and speculation surrounding his future started after just a few races in 2024.
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Zak Brown says Daniel Ricciardo didn’t put Lando Norris under pressure at McLaren
Daniel Ricciardo is one of the most experienced drivers in Formula 1 right now, having entered 246 races during his career.
In that time, he has eight race wins, 32 podiums and three pole positions.
He achieved the majority of those feats during his time with Red Bull and has arguably been Max Verstappen’s toughest teammate.
However, after two years with Renault where he achieved two podiums and a 5 place finish in the Drivers’ Championship in 2020, Ricciardo decided to move to McLaren.
Under Brown’s leadership, Ricciardo was paired with Norris who in the previous two seasons had shown his credentials and earned his first podium finish.
Off the track, the pair had unbelievable chemistry and are one of the primary reasons why McLaren are still so popular among fans today, especially with the growth in popularity of Drive to Survive.
However, Ricciardo struggled in the car and was outscored during their two seasons together before being replaced by his fellow countryman Piastri in 2023.
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Daniel Ricciardo struggled to live up to expectations at McLaren
Talking about the 34-year-old driver, Brown said: “Daniel [Ricciardo] didn’t put him under pressure much and I think that probably helped his confidence a lot because Daniel’s an awesome racing driver with a huge pedigree and I think a lot of people thought Daniel was going to show him how it’s done.
“And it turned out being the other way around, so I’m sure that made Lando [Norris] feel like, ‘Well, he’s won eight Grand Prix and I’ve gotten the best of him’.
“But, the team, Lando, Oscar [Piastri], it’s raising everyone’s game, but I think he definitely has a very fast teammate and he knows it, but I think it’s healthy.”
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There was one occasion during Ricciardo and Norris’s time at McLaren together that brought Brown and the rest of the team so much joy and highlighted that the Australian was still an extremely talented driver.
In one of the most tightly-contested championship battles in Formula 1 history, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen fought for victory at Monza in 2021.
On lap 25, they collided and took each other out of the race, offering an outsider the perfect opportunity to pounce.
McLaren were the beneficiaries and came home to secure a one-two finish, with Ricciardo leading Norris over the line.
While the Brit may have been the stronger driver during their two seasons together, that race gave Ricciardo ample bragging rights that up until the Miami Grand Prix meant he was still McLaren’s most recent race winner.
Norris no longer has to worry about that though and appears to be reaching another level in 2024.
The post ‘Didn’t put him under pressure’: Zak Brown admits 246-race driver simply couldn’t match Lando Norris appeared first on F1 Oversteer.