Lando Norris says there is more for him to learn during his rookie season in Formula 1 by pushing and finding the limit rather than being conservative with his driving.
The McLaren F1 Team racer has enjoyed a positive start to his Formula 1 career, finishing inside the top ten in five of the first twelve Grand Prix, with a sixth-place finish coming in just his second race in Bahrain back at the end of March.
His performances, coupled with that of team-mate Carlos Sainz Jr., have seen McLaren sit fourth in the Constructors’ Championship at the summer break, while Norris is tenth in the Drivers’ standings heading into this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.
Norris admits there is still a lot for him to learn and it is important for him to push hard in order to gain the experience needed to succeed at the top level of single seater motorsport.
“The more you do, the more experienced you are, the better you have an idea of everything,” Norris is quoted as saying by Autosport. “At the moment there’s a lot of things for me to learn so I’ve got to push.
“There’s already been some places where you probably save a bit knowing you can use it in qualifying, maybe a line or using a kerb. There’s more for me to learn by pushing and being on the limit than there is by saving and being more conservative.”
Norris admits he took some time to find out how best to handle the MCL34 in race conditions, and he acknowledges he still has things to learn when compared to his more experienced team-mate Sainz.
“The whole package of a race is something I wasn’t very good at in Australia and something I’ve got much better at,” admitted Norris. “I already made a step forward in Bahrain and that was a good result but there was still a lot of improvements to make from the racing side of things.
“There’s still certain things which Carlos is very good in and I still need to progress in.”
Norris is pleased that his season to date has gone so well, with the Briton making very few mistakes along the way, although he acknowledges that improvements still need to be made to take his driving to the next level.
“Whenever there’s been a chance to do something, generally I’ve been able to do it,” said Norris. “I’ve always been there when I’ve needed to and been in places to capitalise on anyone’s mistakes, or anything like that.
“I’ve not made any serious mistakes: crashed the car, crashed into anyone, anything like that. So overall, I’m pretty pleased. There’s obviously a lot of room for improvement still. It’s not always seconds’ worth, it can be half a tenth in qualifying, one tenth.
“Sometimes that can be quite a lot, especially with the midfield pack being so close.”
