Lando Norris mentality shift noted: “He wasn’t just shi**ing on himself anymore”

Former IndyCar driver James Hinchcliffe noticed a clear shift in mentality from Lando Norris during the 2024 F1 season.

2024 proved to be a breakthrough year for Norris as he took four wins for McLaren, guiding them to their first constructors’ title in over 25 years.

But despite achieving those milestones, it was arguably a missed opportunity for Norris in terms of the drivers’ championship.

While Max Verstappen won seven of the opening 10 races, Norris and McLaren were left to rue a number of errors, particularly with strategy, which allowed the Dutchman to remain well clear in the points standings.

Norris slowly closed in on Verstappen up until the Red Bull driver’s historic win from 17th on the grid at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, effectively ending the title race.

Throughout the ups and downs of the 2024 season, Norris was vocally critical of himself, but Hinchcliffe recognised a change in approach from the British driver in the closing part of the campaign.

“If you look at how Lando would talk about ‘Lando’ in the first half of the year, versus how Lando would talk about ‘Lando’ in the back half of the year, there's a very noticeable difference,” Hinchcliffe said on The Red Flags podcast.

“Every athlete is very hard on himself. Lando was publicly so hard on himself, and in the second half of the year, you didn't hear that.

“Even when it wasn't a great day, he wasn't just shitting on himself anymore. And when Oscar gets taken out in turn one, and Leclerc goes from 19th to 8th in the first lap, and all of a sudden the constructors’ battle is, the race is on, Lando cannot make a single mistake. If he loses one place to Carlos, they lose the championship.”

Can Norris win the F1 title in 2025?

Norris will likely start the year as the favourite for the championship, given McLaren’s end-of-season form in 2024.

McLaren had the most consistent car across a range of circuits.

Conversely, Red Bull and Ferrari varied depending on the track characteristics, or in Mercedes’ case, climatic conditions.

Norris tied up some of his errors from earlier in the year following the summer break, aside from a scrappy race in Brazil.

Under immense pressure in Abu Dhabi, Norris won from pole position ahead of the two Ferraris.

Had Norris not won the race, then Ferrari would have been handed the constructors’ championship due to Oscar Piastri’s lowly position after his Lap 1 tangle with Verstappen.