Martin Brundle questions Lando Norris’ ‘killer instinct’ in championship battle with Max Verstappen

Lando Norris’ lack of experience challenging for a world championship has proved telling against Max Verstappen this year, according to F1 expert Martin Brundle, who has delivered a brutal assessment of the McLaren star.

Martin Brundle has questioned whether Lando Norris has the “killer instinct” to challenge a “brutal” Max Verstappen in the Formula 1 drivers’ championship after the Dutchman’s potential knockout blow to his McLaren rival’s quest for a maiden title.

In a race of contrasting fortunes for the F1 championship combatants at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, the title-chasing Brit’s bid to erode Verstappen’s title lead was crushed after finishing sixth from pole position as the Red Bull world champion stormed to a memorable win from 17th on the grid.

What was a 44-point lead to Verstappen before the Brazilian Grand Prix has now opened up to 62 points with 86 left to battle for across the final three race weekends of the season in Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

Verstappen’s Sao Paulo victory snapped a 10-race winning drought, delivering his first win since the Spanish Grand Prix in June.

Lando Norris finished sixth from pole position at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. Picture: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

Brundle said Norris’ lack of experience fighting for a world championship had proved telling this year and he would learn that battling for the Formula 1 crown came with a “whole new set of challenges and rules”.

But Brundle went a step further, suggesting the Brit lacked “the killer instinct” to take on Verstappen.

“It’s (about improving) everything at the level he’s at,” Brundle told Sky Sports News.

“He’s had some amazing victories and not least in Zandvoort and Singapore where he just ran off and hid, a little bit like Max (on Sunday).

“But he lacks the experience of challenging for a world championship and I think that’s a whole new set of challenges and rules – and that’s what he will learn from this year.

“Sometimes you wonder if he lacks the killer instinct up against Max, who we know can be pretty brutal in combat.

“But I think Lando will learn a lot from this season, and Max winning seven of the first 10 races pretty much put him out of reach really.”

He started from pole and ended up P6

Lando Norris reflects on his ups and downs at Interlagos#F1#BrazilGPpic.twitter.com/FKbq0y7XmL

— Formula 1 (@F1) November 3, 2024

Verstappen’s Sao Paulo victory snapped a 10-race winning drought, delivering his first win since the Spanish Grand Prix in June.

He dominated the first half of the season and has eight Grand Prix victories overall for the year, while Norris has three.

Brundle said Norris’ title bid was all but over, barring some “bizarre things” happening in the final three races.

“If you add all that up together, Lando needed to take a chunk of points out of Max every single race and hope that there was his teammate and a Ferrari or two, and even a Mercedes or two, between them,” Brundle said.

“But one turnaround, like in Brazil, and that little escapade was over by and large unless a lot of bizarre things happen now in the final races.”

Max Verstappen won the Formula 1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix to break a 10-race drought. Picture: Miguel Schincariol / AFP

On the question of whether McLaren should have prioritised Norris earlier in this year’s championship battle, Brundle felt the team had managed the balance between Norris and his Australian teammate Oscar Piastri well.

“Lando was very clear – ‘I don’t want to win a world championship because my teammate had to keep gifting me stuff here and there’- and McLaren know they can’t just park a great talent like Oscar Piastri as second in the team and having to yield at every opportunity because it’s really hard psychologically to get over that and keep your credibility and reputation intact,” Brundle said.

“McLaren have learned a bit this year as well being frontrunners for the first time in a very, very long time but they certainly haven’t hampered Lando.

“They have given Lando every bit of support that he needed and the car that has been very fast.”

Originally published as Martin Brundle questions Lando Norris’ ‘killer instinct’ in championship battle with Max Verstappen