Lando Norris reflected on the teammate with whom he shared the McLaren garage since he became a Formula 1 driver, admitting that Oscar Piastri pushed him the most.
Norris entered the top flight as a McLaren, as he had been groomed by them until that point, and his first teammate was Carlos Sainz.
The two shared a bromance in the two seasons they were teammate before the Spaniard joined Ferrari and was replaced by Daniel Ricciardo.
Ricciardo who arrived at McLaren as race winner from his Red Bull days having spent two underwhelming seasons with Renault and despite winning one race in Papaya, he was totally dominated by Norris and was ousted at the end of 2022 to make way for Piastri.
The Australian turned out to be Norris’ toughest challenge as a teammate and was in Title contention in 2025 until he mysteriously dropped back midseason. Some say it was Papaya Rules.
Norris went on to win the 2025 Formula 1 Title, beating Max Verstappen by the slightest of margins.
Looking back on the teammates he raced against, and the effect they had on him over the Goodwood Festival of Speed weekend, the Briton said: “From Carlos my first few years, Daniel my second bunch of years, and now Oscar, you learn the most from these guys, and I’ve also enjoyed just spending time with all of them because they’re amazing people.
“To be with Carlos, to be with Daniel, I enjoyed those years so much, and then obviously the last three with Oscar. He’s pushed me an insane amount, too much for my liking.
“But that’s what you need in F1; it’s what you want. It made me a much better driver, last year especially.
“Rivalry is the key to becoming a better person at the same time,” Norris concluded. (Source: Motorsport.com)