Despite McLaren’s Failure to Create Any Ripples, Lando Norris’ Exploits Render Max Verstappen and Co. Restless

The Spanish GP weekend proved to be an eye-opener for the paddock as McLaren came roaring through in Qualifying. Though their race performance was a disappointment, Red Bull Boss Christian Horner believes Lando Norris poses a threat to Max Verstappen.

Norris put in an impressive flying lap in Q3 that took him to an unexpected P3 on the grid. He was quicker than both the Mercedes and Aston Martin cars. If not for an unfortunate incident on Lap 1, Norris could have possibly secured a podium. Max Verstappen was the quickest, as usual. But the proactive man that Christian Horner is, is already cautious of McLaren’s progress.

In a post-race interview, Horner said, “Well, the form’s moving around. You look at Lando [Norris’] lap [for third in qualifying], the Mercedes looked strong in the race, the Ferraris didn’t have the pace that we thought they might.”

Commenting on the changing dynamic, he said, “The form behind us does seem to be moving around quite a lot at the moment, so it’s difficult to predict who’s going to be where at which event.”

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Different teams have made cars that are better suited for certain kinds of tracks. Like the Aston Martin, which is better suited to street circuits and slower corners. Or Red Bull’s RB19 with an overpowered DRS, that is quicker on long straights. But Max Verstappen has extracted more than what the RB19 has to offer.

Max Verstappen Showing His Class via Some Dominant Performances

Max Verstappen has been a notch above the rest this season. Sitting with a commanding championship lead of 53 points, Max is showing ominous signs for the 2023 season. Besides this dominance, the Dutchman is also showcasing a very composed attitude on track.

He is so far ahead that he tries to entertain himself during the race by taking unnecessary risks. In Barcelona, Verstappen got black and white flags for exceeding track limits multiple times. Despite his race engineer refusing him to attempt the fastest lap, he did so anyway. And he got an extra point for himself. He lapped 8 cars and eventually finished the race 24 seconds ahead of Lewis Hamilton at P2.

As if the Dutchman’s dominance isn’t enough, Red Bull has more upgrades to assist him extend his lead. Horner spoke about the same, saying, “I think that we’ve got some stuff in the pipeline… we’ve got some bits coming later into the season.”

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Unless Mercedes’ performance re-initiates the 2021 rivalry against Red Bull, Max Verstappen winning the WDC seems like one of the most probable outcomes this year.