Lando Norris Aims For More Success After First Formula One Title

Lando Norris enters the 2026 F1 season as defending world champion and is already targeting more success. The McLaren driver says last year’s first title remains a life goal achieved, yet Norris still approaches the new campaign with the same drive to win again, despite being content if that remains Norris’ only championship.

The title in 2025 came after a close contest, with Norris edging Max Verstappen and McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri. That season-long contest strengthened Norris’ belief in the team’s direction. Speaking before McLaren’s 2026 car launch, Norris underlined that the achievement has not reduced motivation, even though Norris regards the championship as a permanent personal milestone.

"I still have many more years in Formula One, and I will still try and get as many more championships as possible. If I never do, I'm still happy, you know? I achieved one. If you ever see me not smiling or something, just give me a punch or something, remind me! I achieved my goal in life. I'm very happy, I'm proud, that's something I'll always, forever take with me. As much as I say that, I don't feel any different coming into this season. I still feel like I just want to go out and win. If I don't achieve something again, I always have something that I'm very proud about, and I know it is a huge achievement. But it certainly hasn't taken away any ambition or desire to want to do it again, or to come into this season and go and not care about it. That's certainly not how I've pictured everything and seen everything. If anything, I enjoyed last year a lot, and of course, I want to do it again, just hopefully with a longer off-season at the end of this year, would be nice. I've come into this year with the same ambition as I did last year, which is to try and win again."

Norris’ 2025 crown followed a tense three-way fight, where consistent results gave Norris a narrow edge. Verstappen and Piastri remained in mathematical contention late into the calendar. McLaren often had both cars in the front group, which increased strategic complexity for the team as Norris and Piastri fought each other while also racing Verstappen.

The closing phase of that season highlighted those internal pressures, especially at the Italian Grand Prix. After a slow pit-stop disrupted McLaren’s planned order, Piastri received an instruction to let Norris through. The team applied what became known as the "Papaya Rules", which managed risk for the title challenge but drew scrutiny from fans and analysts.

Lando Norris F1 title defence and Oscar Piastri’s team orders view

That Monza call left Piastri frustrated at the time, and Piastri later admitted the situation was difficult emotionally. However, Piastri now expects similar team decisions to remain part of McLaren’s approach in 2026. Piastri believes the overall treatment across the season stayed fair, even if some individual moments could have been handled in a better way.

"I think I got a fair shot last year and I'm expecting that to stay exactly the same," Piastri said. "That's definitely not to say that certain things could have been done better last year. I think that was probably clear for everyone watching. But at no point were there any bad intentions or any times I questioned the intentions of things. I think things could have been done better, situations could have been handled differently. But that is part of elite sport. You're never going to get every decision right, you're never going to make every single person happy. That's part of the unique nature of F1, given it's a team sport with an individual prize at the end as well. I think I got a fair shot last year and we're working on how we can improve things."

Norris and Piastri spoke before McLaren’s 2026 launch event, where attention again turned to how the team balances both title hopes. McLaren’s social media build-up featured Norris addressing supporters ahead of the new season, with the group keen to show unity after last year’s tense finale and the debate around team instructions.

With the 2026 F1 season starting in just over a month, Norris approaches the defence with familiar intent. The 2025 championship gives Norris lasting satisfaction, while McLaren and Piastri aim to refine processes around team orders. Both drivers expect another shared challenge for wins and titles, under the same high-pressure environment of modern Formula One.