Lando Norris has firmly established himself as the 'best of the rest' driver in 2022, finishing an average of seventh position. Part of this is down to his blistering pace in qualifying, an attribute that McLaren Chief Executive Officer Zak Brown believes the Briton does not "get enough credit" for improving since his F1 debut in 2019. "[Lando is] just getting better and better," said Brown in an interview with McLaren. "He puts together some amazing qualifying laps, I don't think he probably gets enough credit for how awesome he can be when it's time to set a lap. "We'll be in Free Practice 3 and then, bang, there it comes in qualifying when he needs to do it in Q3 and [the reaction is], 'Wow, where'd that come from?' He does that often." Out of the midfield teams, Norris is second only to Fernando Alonso on Q3 appearances in 2022, with the McLaren driver on 16 to the Spaniard's 18.
Brown: Norris rarely makes mistakes
Coming into the season, Norris had signed a multi-year deal with McLaren worth millions of pounds, a strong vote of confidence in the team as they look to move further up the grid. Brown believes Norris has increased his confidence since they first signed him, having achieved six podiums in his Formula 1 career so far. The McLaren CEO added: "He makes very few mistakes, rarely makes a big mistake. If I look at when he started, versus now, he's got a very high level of confidence but not arrogance. "Lando is definitely one with the team and the racing car, he puts together unbelievable qualifying laps. And his race craft, I think that's probably – if I look at season one to now – his race craft is exponentially better."
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