Lando Norris says he is prepared to be patient until McLaren is in a position to win Formula 1 races, hoping the team can contend for victories by 2024.
Norris is yet to register his first victory in F1, coming closest at last year’s Russian Grand Prix when he led from a maiden pole position before a late rain shower saw him slip down the order.
The British driver had hoped McLaren would use the major overhaul of the technical regulations to forge itself as a front-running outfit, but the team has instead slipped into the midfield.
Norris, who is contracted to McLaren until 2025, is the only driver outside Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes to stand on the podium this season, with limited opportunities to score bigger results.
Analysing the team’s prospects in the long-term, Norris believes McLaren can realistically work towards the aim of winning races within two to three years.
“I would say even between 2022 to 2023 I’m not expecting realistically a win or a couple of wins,” said Norris, as quoted by Motorsport Week.
“For me my confidence is in 2024 and 2025, and until then I need to play a little bit of the patience game.
“There’s still times where you could achieve a win, even with Daniel [Ricciardo] last year achieving a win, and me almost having pole in Austria, having pole in Russia, almost winning Russia – those things can come along the way.
“Even when [Esteban] Ocon wins and [Pierre] Gasly wins, those moments can come, but until genuinely being in a position where I can say ‘There’s now more excuses and we want to win genuinely rather than with a bit of luck because certain things happen’, that time is in 2024 and 2025.
“Until then it’s a patience game, which is not the nicest thing because I do get frustrated, like this year we’re not as competitive as what we want to be. So is the whole team, like James [Key] and everyone understands we should have taken a step forward this year and if anything we are a little bit back from where we were.”
Norris sits seventh in the drivers’ championship with four races remaining, 23 points ahead of Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, who’s team is currently beating McLaren in the battle for P4 in the constructors’ standings.
McLaren’s inability to fight the top teams in 2023 has been a frustration admits Norris, but he retains faith in the team to dig itself out its current situation.
“Of course everyone is frustrated because of that because we all have the same goals,” Norris said.
“I guess just personally as a driver sometimes it hurts, you can feel like you do such a good job and you get a little bit stuck at times.
“You don’t feel like you’re getting rewarded that well for what you’re achieving or what you’re putting in, but I think that’s just Formula 1, that’s just what happens.
“Many drivers have gone through those times. I just have the faith that we will be able to move out of this little area that we’re in, and have been these last few years, and take those next few steps earlier on.”
