It is often difficult to maintain one’s form in F1. Although a good form doesn’t guarantee a win – look at Lando Norris. Despite having the fastest car this season and outperforming Red Bull, the Brit is repeatedly failing to take the top spot. He will be inching away from the Driver’s championship title if this persists. On the other hand, his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri has picked up pace. And in no time, the Aussie could overtake Lando on the tables. But why is Norris straying away from the target?

Ex-Ferrari boss Peter Windsor has found a possible reason. He believes Lando Norris’ “meaningless” social media guise is the root cause of his debacles. It surprises fans how Norris’ on-track output had collapsed considerably. Lando being #2 in the Drivers’ standings is impressive, but Oscar Piastri is closing in with each race.

Discussing the matter with Cameron F1, Windsor said: “I think he’s (Lando Norris) become too much of a social media star too quickly. Forget about the time frame, I think that you’ve created a persona. Then when you have to do that you kind of have to live up to being that persona.” He further added, “That’s not going to beat Oscar Piastri and win a world championship for McLaren”, concluding: “That’s a meaningless persona, that does absolutely nothing for you as a racing driver at all and it’s a distraction.”

Norris is quite active on social media. You’d often find him sharing cheeky posts and stories that appeal to the fans, and maybe, this is causing trouble. Windsor pointed out that his ‘image’ on digital platforms does not comply with his on-track persona. So, if Norris wants to beat Max or Piastri, he might need to separate social media from the real world.

Peter advises Lando Norris to “toughen up” like Nigel Mansell

Having worked with the F1 icon Nigel Mansell, Peter Windsor shared a piece of advice for the McLaren No.1. The former boss said that Nigel in 1987 wouldn’t have messed with around at all (shifting between social media and the real world) even if Facebook or Twitter existed back then. “That’s the difference-  Nigel’s a racing doesn’t want to mess around with all that rubbish. Lando should be the same, I’m sorry he should be the same he needs to toughen up if he’s going to beat Oscar.” Windsor implies that Norris needs to focus more and toughen himself further if he wants to win races and beat Piastri. Because the 23-year-old Aussie is catching up quickly.

Here’s what you need to know about Peter Windsor’s Nigel Mansell reference. Mansell won the 1992 F1 world championship. But before his successful stint, he had failed in six seasons prior. Moreover, he didn’t lose his faith. However, right after his first championship victory he fell out with teammate Frank Williams and left F1 for IndyCar. Looks like, Windsor is passively suggesting Norris to work in partnership with Piastri while focusing on his game. Surely McLaren wouldn’t want a Mansell-Williams situation in their squad!

However, Windsor’s opinion on Lando Norris’ performance drop could be correct. Repeated disappointments have followed the Brit since his Miami GP win. Despite being the pole sitter he’s missed out on capitalizing on the position. And Lando Norris must do something about it after the summer break. If he truly wants to win the championship, he must deliver!