Lando Norris in fighting spirit after Hungary win: Why he believes a turnaround is on the cards

Formula 1 is taking a breather during the summer break. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli can sleep the soundest – he leads the drivers’ standings with 219 points, a whopping 50 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton (169), followed by George Russell (160), Charles Leclerc (138), Lando Norris (128) and Max Verstappen (109).

Norris would therefore need to make up 91 points on Antonelli to have any hope of successfully defending his title. Given Kimi’s low error rate and the speed of the Mercedes, that seems unlikely.

Yet Norris – winner of the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2025 and 2026 – tells himself: ‘Unlikely doesn’t mean impossible.’ The now twelve-time Grand Prix winner is in fighting spirit and still believes he has a chance.

Norris says: “We’re seeing more potential in the car and still believe we can turn things around. We don’t yet feel that we’ve fully understood this car, but even before our latest upgrade package – which helped us secure victory in Hungary – we’d already achieved some good results.”

“We know from recent years what it’s like when you understand the car and what happens when we can maximise the package.

We don’t yet feel that we’ve come close to its full potential, so I’m looking forward to the second half of the season.”