Christian Horner Left No Choice but to Rebel Against Red Bull’s Values to Get Lando Norris

Ever since Lando Norris has showcased his true self to the world of F1, he has caused a stir. The entire grid was always aware of Norris’s prowess behind a single-seater. The Brit was able to prove it, as his skills were on full display thanks to the upgrades of the MCL60. Immediately after the race, Norris came on Red Bull‘s radar, who are already looking for a strong and long-term driver to fill their second seat. After Norris’ incredible performances, he became the strongest contender for the seat. However, as rightly pointed out on the Red Flag Podcast, Christian Horner will have to go against the team’s values to sign the Brit.

If Horner pushes and signs Norris, a hypothetical that received a boost after his comments, he will definitely be a long-term solution to Red Bull’s problems. However, this will effectively see two of Red Bull’s driver program drivers get discarded, namely Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson. This would effectively mean no driver since 2016 would’ve successfully made it into the team.

This is the exact conundrum Horner will face if they decide to go with Norris, as pointed out by the hosts on the podcast.

The host said, “If you’re Red Bull if you don’t promote Lawson, you’re kind of admitting that the driver program’s dead at this point because he is all there is at the moment. If you look back at what the Red Bull driver program used to be, we’ve got Lawson, he’s the guy. He’s Red Bull funded, he’s a young guy, we trust him, we think he’s going to be something, let’s put him in a car.”

However, the host then talked about Red Bull’s conundrum surrounding Norris. He said, “If you put him in the car for a bit and then demote him back to the sidelines it doesn’t look great from that point of view. Then Red Bull needs to ask them a deeper question of ‘Do we even need this driver program?’. If they’re going after Lando, what is the point of the driver program going forward if they’re just going to sign the best drivers that exist.” 

Read More: “Lando Should Be Careful What He Wishes For”: Verstappen’s Robotic Dominance Dubbed a Caution for Ambitious Norris

Red Bull faces an internal problem solution to which they would need to find before the end of the next season. However, from Norris’s perspective, everyone is warning the Brit off of the enticing Red Bull seat.

Lando Norris is warned of his ambitions to join Red Bull by experts

Currently, Red Bull has the strongest car on the grid and every driver would love a crack at the RB19. However, the problem lies on the other side of the garage in Max Verstappen. The Dutchman is known to demolish his teammates and to beat a man who’s the most consistent driver in the sport’s history won’t be an easy task.

Not for Norris, not for anyone, and that is exactly what journalist Natalie Pinkham wanted to remind Norris of before he leans towards the Red Bull seat.

Pinkham said, “I think every driver would love to pit themselves against Max in the same machinery right now. The big question everyone wants to know now is, ‘Can Max be beaten in a Red Bull?’ I think Lando should be careful what he wishes for because Max has been at that team and fits that car like a glove. And that car fits him like a glove. It’s a big, big gamble to go up against him in the very same car.”

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We are not sure if the Brit will even have a chance to get to Red Bull or if the seat will entice him enough to leave McLaren. Regardless, if he does partner with Verstappen, he will have an uphill battle to victories and championships.