Lando Norris urged not to ditch McLaren for F1 rivals Red Bull

Lando Norris has been urged by Formula One fans not to ditch McLaren for a rival team just yet with the Briton having been linked with a move to Red Bull in the near future. Norris enjoyed a strong 2022 season in which he almost single-handedly led the team’s fight against Alpine in the Constructors’ Championship, with team-mate Daniel Ricciardo sorely struggling.

Ricciardo has since been axed by the team and replaced by rookie Oscar Piastri, with Norris the undisputed No 1 driver at the Woking-based outfit. The 23-year-old signed a new deal back in February worth up to £20million per season that ties him down until 2025.

He had held talks with Red Bull before committing to an extension with McLaren, with whom he has spent his full four-year F1 career thus far. And Norris continues to be linked with Max Verstappen’s team, who won both championships in 2022 as Verstappen became a back-to-back world champion, despite his lengthy agreement with the historic British team.

Yet F1 fans voting in Express Sport’s latest poll have pleaded Norris to keep the faith in McLaren. A total of 65 per cent of 4,322 fans who voted said he should stay with his current team, with 35 per cent disagreeing and arguing by contrast that he needs to quit.

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Norris meanwhile said of talks with Red Bull to Auto Motor und Sport: “Of course there are talks with other people from time to time. You always ask yourself the question: What is the best thing for my career? I want to win and win world championships.

“There have been talks with Red Bull. They are a team that has been in the top three for years. But that just shows even more how much confidence I have in McLaren. Although there were talks, I felt McLaren was better for me to achieve my goals.”

While similarly, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner reflected: “We’ve talked to Lando a couple of times over the years, but every time we’ve had a conversation, he’s signed a contract with McLaren the next day. He’s on a long-term contract with McLaren and it looks like he’s going to be there a few more years.”