For a lot of Formula One fans, the sport has been a little bit boring in recent years. The controversial decision from race control that allowed Max Verstappen to win the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the end of the 2021 season was the last genuinely exciting thing that happened, with the Dutch racer going on to win the following two seasons comfortably.

Whilst those that like him obviously enjoy everything he does, a lot of people dislike him and feel that his personality as well as his driving style rub them up the wrong way. With nine races to go, Lando Norris sits 70 points behind him, so might he be able to pip him to the title?

‘Pretty Stupid’ to Think Norris can Win

As the world of F1 descended on Circuit Zandvoort to watch the Dutch Grand Prix, all eyes were on Max Verstappen as he attempted to win his home race for the fourth year in succession. Lando Norris had an excellent qualifying and managed to get himself pole position, only to lose out to Verstappen at the start of the race.

Norris managed to catch up with the Dutch driver, however, much to the disappointment of the home crowd, going on to win it by 22 seconds. It was Norris’ second win of the season, but with Verstappen having won seven races heading into the Dutch race, the Dutchman is still very much the favourite for the title.

Yes yes yes @LandoNorris 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/rs2JVHBobG

— Ryan Faidil Kurniawan (@ryan_faidil81) August 25, 2024

That was outlined by Norris himself in the wake of the Grand Prix in the Netherlands, saying that is was ‘pretty stupid’ to think that he would be able to overhaul Verstappen. Instead, Norris intends to just take it ‘once race at a time’ and see how he gets on.

Of course, he wouldn’t make it in the competitive world of Formula One if he didn’t believe that he can win, should he get a fair wind behind him. Although Verstappen has won seven races so far, that means that he hasn’t won eight. Unfortunately for Norris, the wins have been shared around pretty evenly between the chasing pack, so suddenly dominating seems unlikely.

It Would Take Something Special

Realistically, Max Verstappen has already won the Grand Prix title for this season. With a 70 point lead, Norris would have to see some pretty remarkable results go his way in order to pip him to the post. There are nine races remaining in addition to three ‘sprint events’ that will give both Norris and Verstappen a chance to pick up some points.

There is little doubt that Norris obviously needs to keep beating the Dutchman himself first and foremost, but he could also do with some of his fellow gridmates to push Verstappen further down the pecking order when it comes to final race positions in the remaining events.

@formulaclips_ #dutchgp #f1 #formula1 #motorsport #landonorris #maxverstappen #mclaren #mclarenf1 #redbull #redbullf1 #redbullracing #fyp ♬ original sound – ‍

Norris also needs to start races better than he has been doing at times, given that he all but lost the Spain and Hungary Grand Prix races because of his poor starts. Given the fact that Oscar Piastri also lost places off the line at Zandvoort, it looks like it might be a car problem more than a driver one. Lando managed to haul Verstappen back and claim the win, but he can’t depend on that happening every time they race. When you consider that nobody has ever managed to overcome a gap in such a short space of time as nine races, you can see that it would be one of the biggest accomplishments in the history of the sport if Norris did it.

It’s All About the Team

The curious thing about Formula One is that it is simultaneously one of the loneliest sports there is whilst also being one in which the team can be crucial. Whilst constructors obviously want both of their drivers to finish in the points in order to ensure that they add said points to the Constructor’s Championship tally, there is also the fact that the two drivers can help each other out. If, for example, Norris won every remaining race and assuming that neither he nor Verstappen managed to get a point for the fasted lap, he would finish on 474 points. If Verstappen came second in them all then he would end up with 478 points.

In other words, Piastri will need to finish ahead of the Dutchman and behind his teammate in order to see Norris claim the win. When Norris won the Miami Grand Prix, it was the first time that he had won a race at the top-level of the sport. It is unrealistic to expect him to now go on a winning run and take home all nine of the remaining races. With that in mind, he will need his teammate to finish ahead of Verstappen and for the Dutch driver to struggle in a few races along the way as well as wining none of his own. That obviously isn’t impossible, but can the teamwork really happen well enough to get him the points? It’ll be exciting to find out.