By Joe Man
Lando Norris, the wonder kid from Bristol, seems to be in a world of pain in Bahrain. Never quite able to match his lightning-fast teammate Oscar Piastri, his weekend took a dive in Q3, where he could only manage sixth. It was a dreadful performance in a car so quick that only the front row was acceptable. But it was his comments afterward that really raised eyebrows — saying he felt “clueless” and “like I’ve never driven a Formula 1 car before.”
Everyone in the paddock knows just how fast Norris is. He has been quick throughout his junior career. When he’s on, he’s really on. But the issues seem to lie outside the car — in Lando’s mindset.
There were brilliant victories and plenty of self-inflicted errors in 2024, but overall, it was a step forward. The biggest concerns were his race starts and his wheel-to-wheel battles with Max Verstappen. Time and again, Max bullied him into mistakes — sometimes even crossing the line of what’s acceptable in racing. Yet Norris continued to be friends with him, party alongside him, and act like he was his big brother.
Now it’s 2025, and suddenly Norris has the fastest car on the grid and carries the weight of being the title favorite — a tag that doesn’t sit well with him.
So far, he’s won in Australia, getting lucky to avoid the rain-soaked fate of his teammate. It was a strong weekend, and rumors started swirling that we were watching the next F1 champion in the making.
Then came China — the first stumble. Eighth in the sprint, after putting a tyre in the gravel at the start with no pressure from behind. He recovered in the race, but again, Piastri came out on top.
In Japan, both McLaren drivers lost out to Max in a much slower car. Verstappen’s post-race comments — that he’d be “gone into the distance” if he had that McLaren — seemed to hit a nerve. His friend was mocking him.
Now we’re in Bahrain, and qualifying has been a disaster. Norris looks defeated — down, disheartened, and it’s only Race 4. He knows his teammate Oscar is calm, composed, and blisteringly quick. They couldn’t be more different: Norris, the party boy making headlines, and Piastri, quietly focused and flying under the radar.
Lando needs to sort a few things out — fast.
First, he needs to get his emotions under control. He believes beating himself up in the media brings out his best — he’s spoken about it, as well as his mental health struggles earlier in his career. But the more you say those things, the more you start to believe them. Piastri’s camp must be rubbing their hands together as the momentum shifts to their side of the garage.
It also gives away too much to his rivals. In a world where sports psychology is everything, you have to ask — what is his team doing to support him?
Second, sure, stay friends with Max — but when the season is on, he’s your enemy. Norris needs to plant seeds of doubt in Verstappen’s mind during wheel-to-wheel battles. Run him wide. Make him think twice. The same goes for Piastri. We’ve seen Oscar be aggressive when it counts, while Lando has looked complacent — assuming his teammate won’t fight back.
Lando needs to make a statement — and fast. Sixth in Bahrain is not good enough in a rocket ship. At the very least, he needs to be second. Ideally, he needs to close in on his teammate and remind everyone who’s quicker.
It’s a huge task for the dejected figure we saw in today’s qualifying press conference. But his team — and his family — need to rally around him and have a quiet word.
Be fast. Be ruthless. And keep your cards close to your chest.
WHEEL2WHEEL REPORTS 