"He's a total star" - Lando Norris showered with praise by McLaren CEO

McLaren boss Zak Brown has showered praise on Lando Norris and said that he's the kind of driver around whom teams are built. Norris made his debut with McLaren, and after spending a couple of seasons learning the ropes, he has matured into one of the best drivers on the grid.

In the last two seasons with the team, Norris has been the shining light for McLaren. He has been their lead driver on many occasions. Norris, who will team up Oscar Piastri this season, has received praise from team boss Zak Brown, who told ESPN:

"Lando's a franchise driver. Lando's one of those guys if we put everyone in a dirt buggy, and we put all the F1 drivers in a race, he'd be at the front because he's got that kind of natural talent. He's a total star. And he's pushing us."

He added:

"He wants to be winning races. I'm sure he knows he can beat George, and he has beaten George before. ... and he goes out and wins. He's going to be anxious people he's raced with don't get too many more wins before he starts getting his."

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He's clean but hard - Zak Brown on Lando Norris

Praising the evolution seen in Lando's driving, Brown touched on how the McLaren driver tended to play a bit safe early on when he made his debut with the team. However, as he has matured, he has gotten much better in wheel-to-wheel combats. Brown explained:

"Definitely. Unbelievably fast. He pulls it out in qualifying all the time. He can put a lap together. He rarely makes mistakes - when he does, they're very small. It's, he missed the apex, he locked a brake, but you don't see him sticking it in the fence."

He added:

"His race craft is really strong now. If I look at year one, he was a little too polite on track at times. Now he's someone you can race hard with, and he'll race you hard; he's clean but he's hard; he gets his elbows out. He can manage tyres very well. I think he is as good as anyone on the grid."

Norris is on a long-term contract with McLaren, but it will be interesting to see how patient he remains if he does not see much improvement with the team.