I am an artist. The track is my canvas, and the car is my brush. The greatest drivers in Formula 1 have all had their era of dominance. Juan Manuel Fangio in the ’50s, Alain Prost in the mid-’80s, Michael Schumacher in the early 2000s, Sebastian Vettel in the V8 era, and Lewis Hamilton in the turbo hybrid era. But many still doubt whether their dominance was down to their skills only. Lando Norris has recently given some insight into the same trying to answer this never-ending debate.

For winning a championship, both the car and the driver must be in tune. One cannot win without the other. Ever since the dawn of racing, there have been arguments about the drivers winning only because the car is better than the competition. Yes, the car definitely plays a major role in our winning a championship, but just having the fastest car does not guarantee a title. Mercedes had the fastest car in 2021, yet Max Verstappen winning the title is a great example of that.

Lando Norris believes that up until F2, the driver’s skills matter more as the cars are very similar. But in Formula 1, great driver skills and a good machine are required to win. He explains how the cars are so different and the most comparable thing for a driver is his teammate. 

When asked about how much is down to the driver compared to the car during a podcast with Tom Daley named Made with Love, Lando Norris said “Up until you get to F1, a huge amount of it is more driver than car. Car is always important, you know. It’s probably one of the few sports in the world where it’s not solely about the athlete or the driver. You need something good to go with the driver which is the equipment.” Further adding “I don’t know what a number would be, 70:30 or 50:50” “But Obviously, there are 2 cars per team. The Most comparable thing between one driver is his teammate. Everyone knows that”

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The Briton somewhat answers the debate then. It wasn’t the driver skills alone that led to the dominance of the greats, but the whole team and the machinery complementing each other. Speaking of machinery, McLaren has probably had one of its worst starts to a season in recent times with both drivers being unhappy with the car.

What happened with Lando Norris during the Saudi Arabian GP?

Lando hit the wall during Q1 and was unable to set a fast lap time, meaning he would start from P19 on Sunday. Norris had a great start on Sunday. His progress was halted as he collected some debris from Oscar Piastri’s crash, forcing him to pit for repairs. Towards the end of the race, both Piastri and Norris were seen wheel to wheel on multiple occasions, with Piastri eventually overtaking Norris.

As per si.com, Norris said “It was a really good start, I just got all the damage from, I think Oscar and Ocon came together and all of their debris hit my car and it ruined my race. So, I had to do a nose box change, broke my front wing, but it just kind of ruined the rest of it.”

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Do you think McLaren with inferior machinery will be able to take the fight to the upper midfield this year?