Lando Norris of McLaren F1 admits that 2021 was the season when former teammate Carlos Sainz had to get out of the “shadow” that covered him.
Lando Norris was Carlos Sainz and his teammate at McLaren F1 in the first two seasons of his F1 career, and the friendly relationship peaked in 2022 when McLaren took third place in the Constructors’ Championship.
Then, in 2021, Carlos Sainz transferred to Ferrari F1 and Daniel Ricciardo joined McLaren F1. A direct comparison with the seven race winners was theoretically considered a formidable opponent for Lando Norris.
Daniel Ricciardo has won eight times in the F1 Italian Grand Prix, but Lando Norris has won 20 times, including four podiums in 22 races, 45 points ahead of his teammates.
It was partly due to Daniel Ricciardo’s struggle to adapt to the MCL35M, but Lando Norris also feels that it shows how good Carlos Sainz was at McLaren. Carlos Sainz outperformed Lando Norris by 47 points in 2019 and 8 points in 2020.
“I think Carlos is one of the best F1 drivers, and I didn’t look very good because he’s a very good driver. He did a very good job,” Lando Norris said. Norris told Motorsport-total.com.
“I think I was a little hidden in his shadow because he was doing a great job.”
Carlos Sainz scored more points than his teammate Charles Leclerc, who was somewhat surprisingly acclaimed in his first year in Ferrari F1.
Carlos Sainz helped the team take third place in the Constructors for the second year in a row.
Lando Norris believes Carlos Sainz hasn’t got on the car fast enough to challenge the title and won’t get the credit he deserves.
“More and more people are now aware of his abilities,” says Lando Norris.
Still, Lando Norris felt that his improvement “would have been a little better than him,” even if Carlos Sainz stayed at McLaren instead of moving to Ferrari.
Lando Norris claims that Daniel Ricciardo didn’t feel inferior when he arrived as a new teammate.
“I wasn’t nervous when he came (to McLaren),” Lando Norris said.
“He has won several races, so many might have thought,’He’s here.'”
“Everyone knows Daniel’s abilities because he’s on the machine that won the race.”
Category: Category: F1 / Lando Norris / McLaren / Carlos Sainz Jr.