Norris now fulfilling "top driver" billing for McLaren

McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl has lauded the step forward made by Lando Norris over the winter but stressed the Briton must continue his rich vein of form in what will be "a very intense" F1 season.

In Sunday's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Norris scored the second podium of his F1 career by claiming third behind championship contenders Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.

Seidl described the result as a "confirmation" the driver is "heading in the right direction".

“I can clearly see that in terms of personality and character, he made the next step which is normal for these young guys," said Seidl.

"It is what I would expect from these guys because they need to make these steps in their early years if they want to become top drivers.

“I’m obviously very happy with what I have seen from Lando this year and it is simply important now to pull this off, like the first two races, weekend by weekend, which is a big challenge for a Formula 1 driver because a season of 23 races is very intense.

“Also, the sun is not always shining. You will not always have these great moments that we could experience again these first two weekends.

"It is simply important to stay focused, keep the positivity up and pull it off again next session when you jump in the car.”

After two races, Norris is third in the drivers' standing, seven points clear of fourth-placed Charles Leclerc.

As to what has most impressed Seidl about the 21-year-old this season, he added: "The most obvious thing for me is the lap times he is putting in consistently, which is the most important thing for me, as I have said many times because if the lap times do not come, I can’t fix it. It needs to come from these guys.

“In the end, his lap times are also the result of, I would say, the hard work he has put in together with his team, together with our engineering team again over the winter in order to learn from his second season in Formula 1 last year.

"And, in order to digest it in the right way and make the right conclusions and come back this year to clearly be in a position to make the next step."

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