Lando Norris praised by Ralf Schumacher for ‘very clever’ Monza moment that proves his racecraft is improving

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Lando Norris failed to close the gap in the Formula 1 title race by as much as he would have hoped at the Italian Grand Prix.

Few expected that Max Verstappen had the capacity to dominate at the front, but McLaren were still able to complete the podium. With a little controversy along the way, the team ensured that things were kept fair in the drivers’ championship battle between their drivers.

Although a late swap courtesy of a botched Norris pit stop won’t have pleased Oscar Piastri, he did the right thing to keep his team on side with many races left. The rise of Red Bull means that they might now have one more headache to deal with at each event.

Piastri has a ‘card to play’ with McLaren now that he surrendered to their orders. It might come in handy later in the season. McLaren have chosen which driver they want to win, according to Bernie Ecclestone, who believes that they would rather see Norris lift the trophy at the end of 2025.

READ MORE: Guenther Steiner raises McLaren fear after ‘unnecessary’ Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri team orders at Monza

Lando Norris praised by Ralf Schumacher for ‘very clever’ Monza moment against Max Verstappen

David Coulthard accused McLaren of ‘manipulating’ Monza and felt as though their team orders decision wasn’t necessary. From a luck perspective, their British driver certainly hasn’t had the rub of the green lately with his Zandvoort retirement and slow pit stop.

Maybe they felt it was necessary to give him a little boost to keep him motivated, but Karun Chandhok thinks Piastri avoided a mistake Lewis Hamilton once made at the same team, which made his life a little more difficult.

The only team on the grid that has a slight reason not to be focusing entirely on the 2026 F1 regulations right now is McLaren. They’ve always made it clear that the constructors’ is their main priority, not the drivers’ title. However, it’s Norris and Piastri’s battle which is attracting the most attention.

Speaking on the Backstage Boxengasse Podcast, Ralf Schumacher shared something ‘very clever’ that he spotted Norris do in Monza while fighting Max Verstappen.

“Yes, and Norris said again on lap 4 when Verstappen overtook him that he didn’t want to defend it too much because he could see the battle with Piastri and didn’t want to wear himself out fighting Verstappen,” he said. “That’s understandable, too. That was also very clever of Lando Norris.

“He knew full well that he didn’t stand a chance against Max Verstappen in the Red Bull this weekend, that he would only ruin his tyres, and that if they fought each other, Oscar would come up from behind, overtake him and then attack him. So in that respect, Lando Norris did everything right in this case.”

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Norris can’t risk ’50-50 moves’ knowing that a retirement could expel him from championship contention. He’s in quite a tricky spot. On Piastri’s side of the garage, he has the luxury of being able to take those small risks, which can help him extend his lead.

Martin Brundle’s advice to Norris is to move on from his retirement at Zandvoort as soon as possible and focus on making up for it at the first opportunity. The upcoming race in Baku is a chance to register another victory, at a track which could force an error from his rival.

A few years ago, F1 paddock experts mocked Norris for signing a McLaren contract extension, but it has turned out to be an inspired move. He’s now in one of the best situations and should have a chance to win for the next few years.