“Not Sure Yet if They’re Good Enough”: Amid Lando Norris’ Contract Hype, Ex-Mercedes CEO Dampens McLaren’s Ambitions

Lando Norris decided to sign an extended multi-year contract with Papaya as the team is ready to put him at the forefront of the action. McLaren is ready to push Lando and mold him into a world champion. While that’s the dream McLaren is trying to achieve, the ex-Mercedes CEO, Nick Fry has something to say.

While Lando Norris is set to drive for McLaren, Fry expressed how Lando Norris is a great talent that can be a problem for Red Bull in 2024. But while talking about the performance form the McLaren cars, he mentions that he is “not sure yet if they’re (McLaren) good enough.”

What does Nick Fry think of the McLaren hype?

In an interview with OBGL, Former Mercedes CEO Nick Fry discussed his views on which teams have the potential to challenge the current world champions, Red Bull Racing. Fry told OBGL as quoted by F1 Maximaal, “I think McLaren will continue to improve. I hope they can win races. I’m not sure yet if they are good enough to consistently beat Red Bull or Ferrari. I think that’s far-fetched.”

​According to Fry, two teams stand out as potential challengers to Red Bull: McLaren and Ferrari. McLaren’s impressive performance in 2023, where they fought back from the back to the top, is acknowledged by Fry. However, he is skeptical about their ability to consistently operate at the same level as Red Bull. Recently Lando Norris agreed to a multi-year contract with Papaya and although Fry believes that the driver is good for the team, he talks about what he thinks of the team.

Fry expresses hope for McLaren’s continued improvement and winning races but doubts their capability to consistently beat Red Bull or Ferrari. While talking about one of the major drawbacks of not having a Wind Tunnel until now he said, “McLaren is now starting to invest in some of those facilities, but this is long overdue.” McLaren plans to have their wind tunnel fully operational by 2025.

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Although he believes that McLaren and Ferrari have a chance of beating Red Bull in 2024, he said, “I’m sorry to say, but I don’t think the technical team of my previous team, Mercedes, is strong enough.” He further explains his perspective on the current state of Mercedes. “Competing with Adrian Newey’s team is a tall order. They are a great team, but they have fallen far behind by taking a different technical path,” was what he had to say about his ex-team. Fry doubts whether Mercedes can compete with Red Bull shortly, stating that he doesn’t see them consistently beating Red Bull.

​What did Nick Fry say about Ferrari?

“Ferrari would be my favorite to beat Red Bull,” said Nick Fry. Well, what Nick Fry said about Ferrari comes from years of experience in analyzing the sport, but the same could not be said for his 8-year-old daughter.

While talking about Ferrari being a potential candidate to push Red Bull back a few spaces, he said “My eight-year-old daughter has a strong preference for Charles Leclerc and she told me to say Ferrari!” And while she is no expert on the matter, it’s safe to say that she has really good intuition.

Leclerc is set to have an amazing season with Ferrari as Vasseur has decided to prioritize him in 2024. With Sainz contract talks stalled, Ferrari has turned their focus to Leclerc who has recently signed a multi-year contract with the Prancing Horse.

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According to Nick Fry, Ferrari and McLaren are Red Bull’s biggest threats. Do you agree with his claim? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.