Lando Norris, McLaren, had a brilliant start to the 2025 season, but has since lost the lead of the championship due to small mistakes in races.
The Briton has often struggled to read racing situations and has ended up as the loser in duelling situations, including being forced off track.
Small mistakes lead to bad performance
Former F1 driver and Sky Germany pundit, Ralf Schumacher is unconvinced by Norris’ performances in 2025. The Briton continues to suffer from the smallest mistakes, Schumacher elaborated on it.
”The reality is he simply isn’t capable of it; otherwise, he would perform better. He has been in this environment long enough. There are no justifications for this kind of behaviour,” he admitted on Sky Germany’s podcast Backstage Boxengasse.
Furthermore, Schumacher highlighted Norris’s weak preparation for overtaking manoeuvres, comparing the Briton to other F1 drivers on the grid.
“There are drivers who have a keen eye for it; for example, Max. The same goes for Piastri and Bearman, who are great examples of preparing someone for an overtaking manoeuvre. Lando simply lacks that skill, and he will not learn it.”
In Miami Norris, had two opportunities at the start after lining up second the grid.The first, carefully planning to overtake pole sitter Verstappen, remaining patient.
The second, aggressively manoeuvring the McLaren, stealing P1. Norris chose to be impatient, a factor Schumacher said is indicative of his ability.
“That’s how it is; as a result, he attempted it, and it was a defiant reaction. Unfortunately, it occurred at the wrong place and at the wrong time, which poses a challenge. Therefore, I will say it again; he can’t learn it and will stay that way.”
Norris’ incapability of executing the plan is Schumacher’s opinion
In Jeddah, Norris suffered from a crash in Q3, therefore qualifying P10. Even though the Briton showed good pace that weekend, this small mistake crashed his confidence.
“In my opinion, the same thing happened in Jeddah. His maneuvers with Hamilton indicate a lack of fundamental overtaking skills,” said Schumacher.
“This is something typically learned in karting, so he should be capable of executing it. Once again this weekend, while progressing through the field, he occasionally took too much time, which is concerning, and that’s not the path to becoming a world champion.”
The gap between Norris and teammate Piastri extends with every race. The Australian has been leading the Championship since the Saudi Arabian GP. While both McLaren drivers visibly show dominance on track, Norris’ confidence in becoming a World Champion in 2025 is fast becoming tenuous.
