Norris: Fresh start for 2019 'the best thing' for McLaren

Lando Norris believes a “fresh start” for McLaren with a brand new Formula 1 driver line-up for the 2019 season is the “best thing’ for the team as it looks to recover following a difficult period.

Formula 2 racer Norris, 18, was announced as part of McLaren’s 2019 F1 line-up on Monday, with the Briton being placed alongside the incoming Carlos Sainz Jr. for next season.

Norris and Sainz will replace outgoing drivers Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne for 2019. Alonso took the decision not to race in F1 next year, instead favouring challenges in other series, while Vandoorne was dropped by the team, making way for Vandoorne.

While Norris said that while he would have liked to partner two-time world champion Alonso at McLaren, he feels a fresh start and break with the past for 2019 is in the best interests of the team.

“As much as I admire Fernando, and I loved working with him from Daytona all the way through McLaren, I think for the longevity of McLaren and helping them improve as a team together, I think having Carlos is another thing where we can really push each other together,” Norris said.

“I think Fernando, if he was here again next year, he would definitely help the team improve, but I think going throughout all the years, I think it is good teams have fresh starts every now and then. Especially with where McLaren are now.

“I don’t think it is a bad thing or a good thing that I am going with Carlos. I look forward to working with him. I have never spoken to him or met him, so I look forward to it.

“It is a shame because I really would have loved the opportunity to drive with Fernando. Hopefully I will in the future whether it is in Formula 1 or some endurance race. I would like to.

“But for McLaren and myself, I think it is the best thing.”

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown said he felt 2019 marked a fresh start for McLaren, having also overhauled the technical and management team in recent months, as well as the driver line-up.

“I think we still don’t have everything in place, ie James Key [incoming technical director] – and I’m sure we’ll continue to add to our technical team, but I feel like it’s a big step forward,” Brown said.

“We’ve got lots of clarity, we’ve got lots of motivation, we’ve got the excitement of two new drivers, so I definitely feel like we’ve got a fresh start going into ’19.

“But we don’t have everything we need, so as I’ve said before, it is going to be a bit of a journey to get to our fighting way.”