McLaren chief addresses Red Bull’s ‘mental weakness’ comments after Lando Norris attack

McLaren CEO Zak Brown was not surprised by Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko’s ‘mental weakness’ statement towards Lando Norris. He called it a comment in ‘pretty bad taste’ that sets the premier class of motor racing back ten to twenty years.

Marko, who is known for his outspoken opinions and his soft side towards Max Verstappen, has witnessed the revival of McLaren this season, surpassing Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Meanwhile, Norris continues to close the gap to Verstappen in the drivers’ standings, with the margin now reduced to just 52 points.

However, the 81-year-old advisor is confident that Verstappen will win the 2024 Formula 1 championship from Norris, because he is mentally stronger. Marko even included Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc in the comparison, indicating that Verstappen is also stronger than him. He said in an interview with Motorsport-Magazin:

“(Max) is the best, he is the fastest and above all he has the mental strength to theoretically fight for the world championship more than Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris.

“We know that Norris has some mental weaknesses. I have read about some rituals he has to do to perform well on race day.”

Motorsport.com referenced an interview with Norris during the Italian Grand Prix in which he revealed that he gets so nervous and excited during race weekends that he can’t eat anything. He said:

“I’m still so nervous before qualifying and before the races, I still get just as excited and just as nervous.

“On Sundays I hardly eat anything. On Sundays I struggle to drink anything, just because of the nerves and just because of the pressure.

“I think it’s about how you can turn that into something positive. How do you make sure it doesn’t affect you in a bad way, and how can you actually use it in a good way so that you can focus on the right things concentrate?”

Rather, Brown called Norris an “ambassador for mental health” as he joins several such initiatives to shed light on related issues. He called Marko’s act “inappropriate” and said:

“I have read Helmut’s comments, which I found disappointing, but not surprising.

“Lando has been something of an ambassador for mental health. Toto (Wolff) has spoken about mental health, so I think it’s a serious issue that we’ve tried to talk about and brought to the forefront.

“It’s quite inappropriate to poke at that situation and it sets us back ten to twenty years. But it’s all fun and games in the way some people go about racing and what tactics they use from a sporting perspective, but I thought that was the case. rather bad taste.”