24-year-old F1 driver’s team now desperate to extend his contract beyond 2025

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McLaren are now desperate to extend the contract of star driver Lando Norris as he continues to show why he’s one of the most talented drivers on the grid.

A report from The Athletic has shared the excitement around the team about their current driver line-up.

Very few rookies have created as much excitement as Oscar Piastri.

The young Australian nearly reached 100 points in his first Formula 1 season, standing on the podium twice and winning the Sprint Race in Qatar.

McLaren did a fantastic job luring him in from Alpine, but it’s his teammate who has stolen the show recently.

When the team delivered an upgrade package in Austria, all of a sudden Lando Norris looked like the driver we all knew he could be.

Only Max Verstappen bettered his tally of podiums after that race and all Norris needs is to add his first win to his CV to cement himself as one of the best drivers on the grid.

McLaren recognise Norris’s potential and want to tie him down to a new long-term contract.

The issue may be whether the Brit is as keen to extend his time with the team given the potential opportunities that might arise on the grid.

If he doesn’t think the team can deliver a car that can challenge for the championship, then he might have to move on.

With next year expected to see plenty of drivers considering their futures at their current teams, a slot at another manufacturer might open up that takes his fancy.

McLaren want to extend Norris’s contract

The report from The Athletic suggests that even though Norris’s contract runs until the end of 2025, McLaren want to lock him down for longer.

They demonstrated that they’re happy to commit to their drivers by giving Piastri a new deal earlier this year that will see him with the team until 2026.

The pair are two of the youngest drivers on the grid but already two of the fastest.

They’re a very good car away from competing with Red Bull and Max Verstappen, however, that’s going to be easier said than done.

They have to get the car right this year as spending heavily on development in 2025 is a risk with a big rule change set to be introduced in 2026.

Norris will be desperate to succeed with McLaren but might hold off on a new contract until he’s seen what car they deliver.