"Lando Norris has been clever": McLaren driver praised by Natalie Pinkham for declining the opportunity to be Max Verstappen's teammate

Lando Norris was lauded by Natalie Pinkham for sticking with McLaren and declining a move to Red Bull as Max Verstappen's teammate. The young driver has been on the Austrian team's radar for a long time but has rejected the opportunity to move.

Lando Norris joined F1 in 2019 as a McLaren academy driver. Since then, the driver has continued to improve and grow. In 2021 when the team brought Daniel Ricciardo to the fold, Norris ended up getting the better of him and taking over as the team leader.

In 2022 and early 2023, when McLaren did not show the improvements to be a frontrunner, Lando Norris was approached by Red Bull to be Max Verstappen's teammate. The young driver, however, rejected the offer and revealed early in 2024 that he did not think it would have been wise to move.

When discussing Lando Norris possibly being a Red Bull driver alongside Max Verstappen on the F1 Nation podcast, Natalie Pinkham felt that the McLaren driver made the clever call by sticking with the Woking-based squad. She said,

"I don't think so. I think it's a really smart move. McLaren are going in the right direction and they continue to do so. He played down their chances at the start of the season. I know they lack pace in a straight line. He was frustrated in Saudi. But there is something so important about being loyal to a team, sticking to a team, moulding that team around you."

She added,

"Lando has been clever, in that respect. I'd love to see him in the Red Bull. That would be great to see him perform alongside Max. But everything is a risk. You make the wrong move at the wrong time in your career and it can change everything. I think [Norris has been] smart."

Lando Norris has been approached by Max Verstappen's team on multiple occasions

Lando Norris has been approached by Red Bull multiple times in his F1 career. The first call was an offer to join the academy and race for Torro Rosso in 2019 after his impressive F2 debut. At the time, Norris declined the offer and joined McLaren.

Christian Horner had earlier revealed that the driver was approached multiple times by Red Bull. Every time, however, Norris went ahead and signed a new extension with McLaren.

At the moment, the possibility of Lando Norris teaming up with Max Verstappen seems unlikely as the young driver has a long-term contract with McLaren. On the other hand, Max also has a long-term contract with Red Bull until 2028.