As the lights went out in Austin, it was Lando Norris who won the drag race with pole-sitter Charles Leclerc down into turn one at COTA. The McLaren Ace was looking to settle the score from Qatar, with Oscar Piastri’s shocking exit from the US GP, after being plagued with technical issues. Unfortunately for the speedy Brit, the MCL60 couldn’t keep up with Max Verstappen and the RB19s charge at the US GP. And to make matters worse, Lewis Hamilton had found his bearings!

The Mercedes Man was determined to chase down his arch-rival from 2021, paying no heed to Norris at all! Although Hamilton got disqualified after the race for a shredded barge-board, inadvertently gifting Lando Norris the second step on the podium. This didn’t ease the young Brit’s concerns for the final stretch of the 2023 season. This is why it’s no surprise that Norris was looking down in the post-race interview! But the Papaya Army will be shocked to know where Norris got some much-needed encouragement from!

Lando Norris rings the alarm bell for McLaren’s 2023 campaign

After a tantalizing weekend at the Qatar Grand Prix, McLaren was hoping to solidify their claim as the ‘second-best’ team on the grid currently. But they failed to account for Lewis Hamilton, who felt the need to remind everyone why the Brit’s a seven-time world champion! After crossing the chequered flag one position down from the start, Norris wasn’t looking too hopeful in the post-race interview, as quoted by a tweet.”Do I think our best chances have gone? I would say yes,” the Golden Boy warned the Papaya Army not to get their hopes up, “I think Qatar was our best chance of winning a race. And I missed out on that one. I don’t want to say no, I don’t say like never.”

While the team has been on a mega comeback ever since the Dutch GP, Norris thinks the Woking outfit is past its prime for the 2023 season. The MCL60 has been dominant at low-downforce, high average-speed tracks, the 2023 calendar has run out of such tracks. Norris added, “I think there’s no super high-speed, Suzuka-style, Qatar-style circuits left which is where we’re strong.” The Papaya Army might want to sit the next few races out if they heed Norris’ prophecy! – “I don’t think they’re any good ones for us coming up. I think our best have gone. I just want to be hopeful that we can do good results and I think we can still fight for podiums but these guys are too quick for me.”

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While Lando Norris remains hopeful that the Woking-Outfit can fight for podiums, a win seems to be out of the question.

“Abu Dhabi specialist” – Max Verstappen gives Norris some hope after the US GP

To make things easier for McLaren fans, Norris shared his idea of which tracks will suit the MCL60, but we must warn you! It’s not looking good, according to Norris, “If you looked at the GPS overlays of how bad we are in the slow speed [areas], I’m not looking forward to Brazil. I think we’re going to be pretty shocking there. Vegas and Abu Dhabi are probably the better ones.” Although Lando Norris isn’t radiating positivity about McLaren’s remaining stint, fans of the Woking-based outfit, fret not! After all, Norris was given some much-needed hope from a very reliable source!

Giving some hope to a shell-shocked Norris was none other than Max Verstappen, at the US GP post-race conference. Chiming in on Norris’ pace, the reigning champion monikered the Brit as the ‘Abu Dhabi specialist’, he was quick to point out that Norris was ‘always quick there’.

If there’s one person whose judgment McLaren fans can trust, at least when it comes to race pace, is Verstappen. Even Norris was shocked, “Am I?” – Verstappen confirmed, “You are always quick there!”, the Brit was baffled! – “I? Me? Not the car?” – laughing it off, Norris had a change in mood, “Maybe Abu Dhabi, you never know!”

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While Norris thinks McLaren’s chances of challenging Red Bull ended with the US GP, it’s not over. There’s no encouragement better than when the toughest competition acknowledges your strength. But will Lando Norris live up to Verstappen’s praises? Or has his prophecy begun to unfold? Stay tuned to find out!