The McLaren driver has been singled out as the man to end Max Verstappen’s run of four consecutive crowns by observer Tom Coronel.
Norris finished second to Verstappen in the 2024 title race by dint of winning four races across the season.
Three of those came in the final 10 events of the year, having claimed his maiden F1 victory at the Miami Grand Prix.
Though Verstappen was only capable of two wins in the second half of the campaign, his strong early run left him with what proved to be an insurmountable advantage.
McLaren had arguably the fastest car by year-end as Ferrari also overshadowed Verstappen’s Red Bull RB20.
Mercedes too, on occasion, showed it was a contender at the front of the field.
That quartet of teams is expected to again lead the pack in 2025, though Coronel believes McLaren, and more specifically Norris, will emerge on top.
“Lando Norris,” he declared when asked by RacingNews365 who he believed would win the 2025 F1 world championship.
“You’re as good as your last race, and he’s just ridiculously good.
“You saw in the last race [in Abu Dhabi] that Carlos Sainz took a shot and then Norris was able to accelerate again. So he just has what it takes.
“McLaren will be the best team with the best car, and then if Norris isn’t under too much pressure, he’ll do his thing nicely as well.”
While McLaren won the 2024 constructors’ championship, the season was far from perfect.
Both Norris and the team made costly mistakes that blunted his charge, not helped by a slow start to the year that left the Brit on the back foot when it came to challenging Verstappen in the latter rounds.
As Norris’ threat increased, Verstappen’s healthy points advantage enabled him to adopt an aggressive defensive position; he picked up two penalties on the opening lap of the Mexico City Grand Prix for forcing Norris off track a week after displaying similar behaviour at the United States Grand Prix.
Verstappen also never finished lower than sixth when he did see the flag to ensure he continually added to his points haul despite McLaren’s rising fortunes.
“In the last half of the season, [Verstappen] was smart and had a few lucky moments, and he made sure that Norris couldn’t catch up so quickly,” Coronel noted.
“But actually, Norris should have thrown all the punches with that car. That was more about Norris than the car.
“I think Norris has grown along the way and those problems will no longer be there. So I think Norris will distance himself at the start.”
McLaren was the first team on track in 2025, with a shakedown of its MCL39 at Silverstone last Thursday,
Both Norris and Oscar Piastri got behind the wheel for a handful of laps as preparations continue for the coming season.
McLaren will unveil its new look at the F1 75 Live event on Tuesday night in London ahead of three days of pre-season testing in Bahrain from February 26.
