Ex-Formula 1 driver Karun Chandhok believes Lando Norris is “at the top of the shopping list” for the three big teams in the sport: Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari.
Norris is currently contracted to McLaren until the end of 2025, with him having already been linked to Red Bull several times.
Red Bull reportedly spoke to the British driver before he signed his McLaren contract extension last season, showing how highly the Austrians view the 23-year-old.
There is no doubting that Norris is an exceptional driver who is capable of leading a team, something he’s proven at the Woking-based outfit.
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Norris is both quick and incredibly consistent, proven by the fact that he’s finished P2 in four of the last seven races.
The only thing missing from his CV is a victory in F1, with him having now scored more points than any other driver in the history of the sport not to have won a race.
Many suspect that McLaren are edging closer to claiming their first win since 2021, with many wondering how Norris will deal with the pressure of coming close to a maiden victory.
At the 2021 Russian Grand Prix, the pressure seemingly became too much, as he opted to stay out on slick tyres despite heavy rain having fallen.
Norris learnt a lot from that experience and is very much viewed as the best driver in the midfield, that was at least when McLaren were a midfield team.
The thought of Norris being at Red Bull with Max Verstappen is very exciting, but actually he’d be a huge signing for any of the three top teams.
If McLaren fail to return to winning ways, then Norris will need to look elsewhere if he wants to become a World Champion, with Chandhok recognising that the Brit needs the “right car at the right time” to be in the title fight.
“Lando Norris is at the top of the shopping list for Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes if they ever wanted to change drivers,” Chandhok said, as quoted by OLBG.
“They’ve all got good drivers now, so there isn’t a situation where they need to change drivers.
“Lando’s stock value at the moment is very high and McLaren will have to open the checkbook and give him more to keep him or it’ll be a tough battle if he keeps delivering. He’s hot property at the moment.
“What he can achieve in his career depends on the car and the team that he finds himself at.
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“This new generation of Lando Norris, George Russell, Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc have all got the ability to fight and win the world championship if they’re in the right car at the right time.
“Apart from Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, we’ve not seen any of them in a title situation, so we don’t know what they’ll be like with the pressure of a championship fight.
“I’d love to see it. We’d love to see a multi-driver and multi-team championship, but you can’t have that all the time. In another year, we might have a championship fight with all the teams in it.”