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Norris sets himself an unrealistic target for the 2019 season

Norris sets himself an "unrealistic" target for the 2019 season

12-12-2018 08:29

Lando Norris has called his own 2019 target "unrealistic" as he moves closer to making his Formula 1 racing debut for McLaren. The 19-year-old comes in to replace Fernando Alonso and partners up with Carlos Sainz who moves from Renault.

"My ideal aim is to beat Carlos at every race, and in every qualifying session. That is an unrealistic goal to set at the moment, but I will do the best job I can and complete as much preparation as I can to be ready for it," Norris told F1i.

The rookie is lining up against a man who has completed 81 Grands Prix. Norris identifies this but says he is used to being in this position.

"Every year when I have gone into a new series, my team-mate will have had one, maybe two seasons in that discipline, whereas Carlos is heading into his fifth year in F1, so that's a big difference," Norris added.

When speaking to GPBlog, Norris confirmed he'll always be comparing himself to his team-mate, but also keeping an eye on other rookies. This includes fellow British rookie George Russell who he has grown up close with.

“I guess you can compare to the other rookies in some ways but the one guy you can always compare yourself against is your teammate, so from my side of things the perfect guy to compare to is Carlos," Norris told GPBlog.

But if you have a rookie who’s beating another driver who’s raced for several years it’s obvious he’s doing a very good job."