“I struggle a lot with my body and back”: Lando Norris prioritizes driver comfort for next-gen F1 cars after struggling with current regulations

Lando Norris insisted the FIA prioritize drivers' comfort for the next generation of F1 cars considering the stiff ride quality that most teams are going through at the moment.

After the re-introduction of the ground effect in the 2022 season, F1 cars came across a new issue; porpoising. The low ride height of the cars increases the downforce which makes the cars almost stick to the track's asphalt. Leading to this, a sudden loss of downforce makes them bounce up again. This repeats in a cycle causing extreme bouncing.

This gets physically tough for the drivers in the car, as Lando Norris stated. He said that the situation was better with the older cars and the issue has only surfaced with the current generation of cars.

For this reason, Norris feels that the next-gen cars should be prioritized towards the drivers' comfort. He told Autosport:

"There's certain times when it starts to have a toll. It's definitely not as bad as what it was two years ago. Things have improved since then, with porpoising and all of this."

"But you still have to run the cars extremely low and stiff, and all of these things. And this takes a toll on you," he added.

Lando Norris also disclosed his own struggles while driving his McLaren, highlighting that if he plans to stay in the sport for a long time, it's an issue that the FIA needs to address.

"I struggle a lot with my body and back and all of these things. And I have to do a lot now, which I didn't have to do a few years ago," he said.

"I wouldn't say it's directly because of the car, I think a little of it is just naturally for me I have to work on it, but I think things in the long term need to be improved, especially if I want to be here for many years," he added.

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Minor upgrade in McLaren's plan as Lando Norris' opportunity for Australian GP increases

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have fought brilliantly in the first two rounds of the 2024 F1 season, bringing McLaren in third place ahead of Mercedes. However, this pace of the car is less when compared to what they had in the later stages last year.

Speaking of the plans for the season ahead, team principal Andrea Stella revealed that minor upgrades are planned for the Australian GP, and major upgrades will be brought along the way.

He told the media including Sportskeeda:

"We have some minor things that will come for Australia and hopefully for Japan, but they will be [delivering] a few milliseconds. And then hopefully, within the first third of the season, we will have a major upgrade. It’s going to be for around race six or seven."

Lando Norris finished P6 and P8 in the first two rounds of this season. Oscar Piastri was P8 and P4. The drivers have remained competitive in the midfield and were in constant battle with Mercedes during the Saudi Arabian GP.