What crucial Verstappen fights taught Norris

2024 marked Lando Norris' best F1 season to-date, despite falling short of defeating Max Verstappen to the drivers' title. 

Norris had to settle for second and four victories, 63 points adrift of the four-time world champion. The British driver's superb campaign did, at least, support McLaren's charge to a first constructors' crown since 1998.

For the majority of the second half of the year Norris and McLaren were the duo to beat, with many already pinpointing the 25-year-old as the favourite in 2025. 

Based on McLaren's title success, Norris being labelled as a potential champion in the new season is understandable, even more so when it is taken into account what he has learnt from Verstappen. 

Norris battled Verstappen on several occasions in 2024, some of which resulted in dramatic contact between the pair. 

Often, it was Verstappen who came out on top, but that is not necessarily a bad thing for Norris when the bigger picture, such as 2025, is looked at. 

So what exactly did Norris learn from fighting Verstappen? Let's take a look.

Aggression

The recently completed season marked the first time Norris has been involved in an F1 title fight. 

Based on Verstappen's points advantage after winning seven of the first 10 rounds, plus Norris' inability to consistently outscore the Dutchman by a big margin, the 'fight', so to speak, was never really on in the end. 

It was a constant chase for Norris, whose own errors in a certain respect handed Verstappen a fourth consecutive championship despite having an inferior car.

What was clear in the pair's first serious battle in the Austrian Grand Prix was that Verstappen had a noticeable edge over Norris with his aggression. 

Verstappen's aggressive defending towards the end of the race at the Red Bull Ring resulted in contact between the pair and saw the Red Bull driver handed a penalty for causing the collision.

It was a collision which could be foreseen, based on how many laps the pair came close to coming together. Despite the penalty, Verstappen scored 10 points to Norris' nil, as the Briton was forced to retire from the race. 

Calmness was needed to beat Verstappen on that day, yet Norris fell into his trap, as did Lewis Hamilton often in 2021, of trying an outrageously late move.

Norris, again, came out second-best in the pair's clash in the United States Grand Prix, where Verstappen simply refused to be overtaken around the outside. 

It was attempted by Norris several times to no avail, before both drivers went off the circuit in the closing laps. Norris rejoined ahead of Verstappen, resulting in a time penalty which demoted him behind the Red Bull driver. 

After two battles, it was two-nil in Verstappen's favour. In those two races alone, Verstappen scored 13 points more than Norris. That was until Mexico City. 

Verstappen saw red in Mexico City, forcing Norris off the circuit twice. Unlike before, Norris did not play Verstappen's game and out-smarted the world champion. 

Two 10-second time penalties were handed to Verstappen, with Norris having scored 10 points more than him. 

Mexico City was a defining moment as for the first time Norris showed that he had learnt from his previous, and unsuccessful, battles with Verstappen. Knowing how to fight the 27-year-old and beat him, is crucial for Norris next season.

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Dominance

Verstappen has raced to 63 F1 victories in rapid fashion, with many of his wins having been claimed following a dominant performance. 

Being capable of this is key to a title pursuit, something Norris showed he can do on multiple occasions. 

Bad starts from pole position were an unwanted theme to start Norris' season, most notably in Barcelona where it cost him victory to Verstappen. 

A bad start also saw Verstappen get ahead of Norris in the Dutch Grand Prix; however, the McLaren driver's initial setback was quickly brushed aside, as he later reclaimed the lead and still won by 23 seconds. 

It was perhaps Norris' greatest F1 performance, matched by his outstanding victory in Singapore by 21 seconds. 

Knowing how to win by a huge margin even after recovering from a bad start, is significant for a potential Norris title challenge.

What is still to be learnt

Whilst Norris showcased that he can fight for a title in 2024, there remains areas for improvement. 

The first of which is actually linked to dominance, with perfection still being something Norris is yet to master. 

Despite crushing wins in Zandvoort and Singapore, as mentioned, Norris had a poor start in the Dutch GP and nearly crashed twice whilst comfortably leading at the Marina Bay Circuit. 

When fighting Verstappen, every chance must be taken and no big mistakes can be made. In essence, perfection is required to topple him. 

The Spanish Grand Prix was won by Verstappen despite Norris having been on pole. A bad start cost Norris that day, and lost him valuable points.

Like with a car, Norris requires some fine-tuning; however, he has proven that he does have what is required to beat Verstappen to a win. The next challenge, is to beat him to a title.