McLaren's Andrea Stella praises Lando Norris and addresses Mercedes development

McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella has praised Lando Norris for his continuous improvement and world-champion-level performance following a dominant victory at the Dutch Grand Prix. Norris secured the win by over 11 seconds, overcoming earlier struggles with the MCL40 car during the Saturday sprint.

Stella noted that 2025 served as a turning point for Norris, who has refined his approach to race weekends to overcome previous challenges. The driver has demonstrated significant resilience, scoring 101 of his recent points in the last six races despite reliability concerns.

Regarding technical competition, Stella addressed discussions surrounding Mercedes' development capabilities. While Mercedes has suggested that budget cap constraints limit their ability to implement a rapid development program, Stella believes the team can find resources—potentially through budget allocations related to 2027 power unit regulations—to convert aerodynamic research into tangible car upgrades if competitors continue to close the performance gap.