Lando Norris 'couldn't ask for a better boss' than Andrea Stella at McLaren

Since the arrival of Andrea Stella as Team Principal at the end of 2022, McLaren has changed dimension. The Italian manager has led the British team from mid-table to the top. Currently, with six Grands Prix to go in the 2024 season, the Woking team leads the Constructors' Championship with a 41-point lead over Red Bull and is well on its way to winning a ninth world title, the first since 1998. Above all, one of its drivers is more than ever in the running for the world crown: Lando Norris gradually comes back to Max Verstappen and reduced the gap to 52 points before the final sprint.

Precisely, Lando Norris confided in the relationship he has with his team principal. The Briton certainly must not regret the choice to have stayed at McLaren, at the start of 2023, when the team's performances were not exceptional! It is notably thanks to Andrea Stella's power of persuasion that the Englishman, who now has three victories in F1, has decided to continue the adventure. And despite the small controversies and the hiccups on the team instructions during the season, the McLaren driver praises the work of his Team Principal.

“Of all the people I have known and worked with, I think Andrea is one of the most important elements in keeping a team together, motivating it, pushing it, and making the team what it is today, which is almost the best team in Formula 1 right now., says Lando Norris. I have great confidence in him and we work well together. There are always positive points, constructive points, critical points, but all this allows us to work better as a team. I think the most important thing we have is honesty between us.

Norris likes the look « competitor » from Stella

"When I agree or not, when he agrees or not, we tell each other and we find the best solution, he continues, discussing his working methods with Andrea Stella. I am very pleased with his way of working, his willingness to understand things. He is an intelligent man, but he is also a competitor. He knows how to race and he has worked with a lot of incredible drivers in the past. So he knows the mentality of drivers and knows that every driver wants to go and win and not listen to what people say, but knows that you have to do it at the same time. I couldn't have asked for a better boss."

Regarding the famous team instructions between Lando Norris and Oscar piastri At McLaren, the Briton believes that they would not have had much impact if they had been given earlier. Above all, he recalls that Oscar Piastri, just like Charles Leclerc, are still in the running for the title too, and that McLaren was not at fault in Italy for example, where the two teammates were free to fight. "I am very happy with the way we worked as a team and the direction we are taking," he concludes simply, while McLaren has chosen to prioritise him in the race to try to catch Max Verstappen in the championship.

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