Lando Norris excited by landmark McLaren F1 signing, but it's bad news for Max Verstappen

GP, Norris, socials — Photo: © IMAGO x GPFANS

McLaren F1

Lando Norris excited by landmark McLaren signing, but it's bad news for Max Verstappen

The world champion is excited by McLaren's newest signing

Graham Shaw Consultant Editor

Digital sports specialist running global brands for 30 years

Thursday 23 April 2026 14:57

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F1 world champion Lando Norris has hailed the landmark signing of Gianpiero Lambiase after McLaren swooped to take away Max Verstappen's closest remaining ally at Red Bull.

Two weeks ago the F1 world was stunned when it was announced that Lambiase - long-time race engineer and team radio voice for Verstappen - would be joining McLaren as Chief Racing Officer not later than 2028.

While it is a huge deal for McLaren to pull off, it appears to be yet another personnel change at Red Bull which could push Verstappen closer to an earlier exit from the team and potentially even the sport.

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Norris says he was surprised when he heard the news of Lambiase's impending arrival, but he is excited by the potential it brings.

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Lambiase will boost McLaren - Norris

Norris told Sky Sports F1: “We've already got an incredibly strong team, in some ways you might think what other space do you want to fill. But we want the best of the best in every area.

"As a team we believe there's an area that he can cover and a responsibility that he can improve within our team. But it's all about working together and we believe he's a good team player and someone that can just help us to elevate in another area and we want to be the best in every single area possible."

Good for McLaren, major loss for Verstappen

Norris also praised Lambiase’s track record with Verstappen, admitting: “He’s obviously a great guy, he's someone who has achieved an incredible amount with Max. Everyone knows of him and and everyone hears him on the radio every now and then. So he's a cool addition.

"I think it's a great opportunity for us to learn from someone new. But it's also something good to have another guy join the team and someone that wants to join McLaren as well. That makes it even better.