Norris and departures: a complicated relationship. From Spain to Belgium, passing through Austria, the English McLaren driver struggled a lot at the starts. The good performances in qualifying were partly undermined by lackluster ideas at the start. A deficient case study, of which Norris and McLaren will have to find the key to the problem. For Andrea Stella it will take time to understand.
Lando Norris and departures: a complicated relationship lately
There are only three Pole Positions in Lando Norris' career. Two this year, in Hungary and in Spain. The first, however, three years ago on the Sochi circuit in Russia. However, the data presented is disarming for the English driver: on none of these three occasions Norris managed to translate the good things he did on Saturday into a victory on Sunday. In Russia the race was chaotic, with Lando Norris trying in vain to complete the final laps in the incessant rain on dry tyres. A wrong reading of the race that cost him the first victory of his career, which only came this year in Miami. This year, however, the problems all seem to arise in the very first few meters after the traffic lights go out. The races, if you read them badly, often take care of the Orange wall instead.
There is certainly a psychological difficulty in managing the early stages of the race. Norris, since his debut in the 2019 season, has always proven himself to be a competitive driver. However, it's one thing to fight for points in the middle of the group, it's a completely different story to constantly fight for victory. In both Hungary and Spain Norris was unable to maintain pole position, while in Belgium he went too wide towards the outside of the first corner, putting part of the car on the sand. In the last two grands prix, as if that wasn't enough, the presence of Oscar Piastri, Lando's teammate, who has little to lose and a lot to gain, has become increasingly cumbersome. The pressure suffered by the young Australian may have led Norris to make incorrect assessments in both cases.
Lots of points lost. For Andrea Stella, a situation that needs to be resolved as soon as possible
Although Norris finished fifth at Spa behind Leclerc, who instead took the podium, the number 4 driver retained second place in the general classification. Max Verstappen however, regardless of the downturn in which his team finds itself, still remains very distant. The picture would have been totally different if Norris hadn't stumbled upon that whole series of negative starts. Both enthusiasts and professionals have noticed the English driver's difficulties, showering him with criticism, at times even exaggerated given that many have seriously questioned the driver's sporting value. Finally, after the last weekend, team principal Andre Stella also spoke out about Lando's difficulties.
Stella, in the statements reported by Passion formula, first of all tried to reduce the problem, also to defend its driver from the criticism he received. “First of all it should be remembered that we are talking about marginal episodes. At Spa, for example, I think Norris was distracted by what was happening on the inside and went a bit wide. We certainly work with Lando as we work with Oscar to try to identify all the situations in which we can improve individually, but we also analyze where we can collaborate better to be more prepared or to make the best use of our qualities.".
The negative data, however, falls entirely on Norris, while Piastri is obtaining better results at the start, also taking the lead in the race in Hungary. Andrea Stella then focused more on the English driver. “Regarding Lando, for example, it seems that statistically there are some dynamics that tend to occur in the early stages of the race. We must therefore verify whether these findings have a reason or whether they are just random. But like any other athlete or driver, I believe that Lando himself, who is part of the team, he will think about what he can do better to make sure he capitalizes on the good work we are doing".
Source: formulapassion.it
