Lando Norris has become Britain’s newest Formula 1 world champion, yet his 2025 triumph has sparked considerable debate about the nature of his achievement.
The McLaren driver secured his maiden title by the slenderest of margins, finishing just two points ahead of Max Verstappen after a dramatic season finale in Abu Dhabi.
The 26-year-old’s victory ended the Dutchman’s run of four consecutive championships, making Norris the 35th driver in history to claim the sport’s ultimate prize.
However, the dominance of McLaren’s MCL39 machinery throughout the campaign has prompted former champions and racing figures to question whether the car, rather than the driver, deserves primary credit.
Lando Norris insisted he ‘does not care’ about the criticism levelled at him
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The discourse has drawn pointed commentary from several notable voices in the paddock.
Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, has offered a compelling analysis of Norris’s transformation during the campaign.
The Canadian identified the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as the pivotal moment when the British driver’s mentality shifted decisively.
Speaking on the High Performance Podcast, Villeneuve observed: “We’ve seen two Landos this year, the Lando until Baku.”
He noted that McLaren endured a disastrous weekend in Azerbaijan, with Oscar Piastri crashing on the opening lap whilst Norris could only manage seventh place.
Verstappen capitalised with victory, suddenly emerging as a genuine title contender.
Lando Norris beat Max Verstappen to the World Championship this year
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Villeneuve explained that prior to Baku, Norris had been overly self-critical, constantly pointing the finger at himself “even when it wasn’t deserved and apologising all the time.”
From that point onwards, the Briton adopted “more like a winner in his attitude as well.”
Juan Pablo Montoya has offered a more provocative assessment of Norris’s championship success.
The Colombian former driver acknowledged the Briton’s achievement whilst simultaneously diminishing it, telling a betting site: “Lando is a worthy champion, but anybody in that car could have been world champion.”
Montoya drew parallels with previous dominant machinery, noting that Verstappen enjoyed similar superiority two years prior.
“The car had such a big advantage. Anybody would have been world champion,” he stated.
The former Williams and McLaren driver did concede that Norris improved markedly as the season progressed, suggesting the team required time to understand how to extract maximum performance from the MCL39.
“Once he and the team understood how to maximise the car, they made the necessary changes to make things better,” Montoya observed.
Max Verstappen ended up just two points shy of snatching the title from Norris | REUTERS
Norris himself has dismissed the ongoing debate about his standing relative to Verstappen with characteristic directness.
Following his championship-clinching third place at Yas Marina, the newly crowned champion told media: “My motivation is not here to prove I’m better than someone else.”
He elaborated further, stating: “That’s not what makes me happy. I’m not going to wake up tomorrow and go, ‘I’m so happy because I beat Max.'”
The 26-year-old was emphatic in his indifference to external comparisons.
“I honestly, deep down, don’t care about that. I don’t care if every article is ‘Do you think he’s better than me?’ or ‘Oscar’s better’, or whatever it is. Doesn’t matter. I have no interest in that,” Norris declared.
Instead, the 11-time Grand Prix winner emphasised that personal fulfilment and the impact on those closest to him matter far more than rivalry narratives.
