Lando Norris’ mentality ‘polar opposite’ to Lewis Hamilton as title pivotal moment identified

Lando Norris’s approach to dealing with setbacks is in stark contrast to Lewis Hamilton’s, believes James Hinchcliffe, who reckons Mexico was a “pivotal” moment in the F1 2025 title chase.

Norris became the World Championship leader with a dominant victory in the Mexico City Grand Prix, with the British driver’s approach to dealing with setbacks this year assessed as markedly different to that of his compatriot Lewis Hamilton.

Lando Norris ‘has found what works for him’

Norris has seized the upper hand in this year’s championship fight against McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri, taking the lead in the points standings for the first time since the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as he took a peerless victory at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez last weekend.

While Norris has shown signs of mental fragility in tense situations before, particularly against Max Verstappen in the F1 2024 campaign, the British driver has bounced back from setbacks such as his collision with Piastri in Canada, dominant displays from the Australian, and even a devastating mechanical failure while running in second place at Zandvoort.

With four race weekends to go, Norris’s uptick in form has coincided with a downturn from Piastri over recent races, while Verstappen’s form has been such that the Dutch driver remains a viable, if unlikely, challenger to usurp both McLarens.

Norris is showing no signs of the same mental frailty that has previously been something of a setback for him in battle, and former IndyCar star turned F1 broadcaster Hinchcliffe believes the British driver has leaned into an approach to disappointing days that is in stark contrast to that of Hamilton, the most recent British F1 World Champion.

During a discussion on the F1 Nation podcast, host Tom Clarkson suggested that Norris has blocked out distractions such as engaging with photographers and cameras, ignoring social media noise, and that the McLaren man has become more single-minded as a maiden title becomes tantalisingly close.

“I think it’s driver dependent,” Hinchcliffe said in response.

“I think some people need that focus. And that’s how they get the best out of themselves. Cut all distractions out.

“You’re almost a different version of yourself at the racetrack; some drivers perform best when they’re light and free and feel comfortable just being there.

“I’ve always kind of found, not always, but, to me, it seems like Lando has identified himself as the latter. He’s found what works for him. Even when he’s had bad days this year, he still comes in the [media] pen.

“He can still crack a joke, he can still crack a smile. It’s polar opposite to Lewis. Lewis has a bad day, you’re lucky you get three words out of him.

“Lando will still crack a smile, ‘Yeah, hey, that one sucked, you know?’

“I think that’s been a conscious thing of his, to be light, because I think he performs well when he’s light.”

Lewis Hamilton vs Charles Leclerc in F1 2025

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates

James Hinchcliffe: Mexico a ‘pivotal race’ in F1 2025 battle

With Norris proving untouchable in Mexico, romping home to a win with a 30-second advantage after capitalising on pole position, this performance was in stark contract to a subdued performance from Piastri that saw the Australian claim fifth place from seventh on the grid.

There has been a pattern across recent races of Norris having the upper hand on Piastri, enabling him to transform a 34-point deficit into a single-point lead since the Dutch Grand Prix.

With talk turning to how drivers handle pressure in a title fight, fellow podcast guest Esteban Gutierrez suggested that Piastri has struggled with being the ‘prey’ in the championship fight, and that the roles might reverse now Norris is back in the position of being the hunted.

“I think Lando, what he’s trying to do right now is obviously get the extra or trying to do his best to get the maximum focus,” the former Haas F1 driver said.

“He’s probably trying these little things that give him or make him feel more comfortable in those kind of high-pressure situations, and, when discussing about Oscar, I think there’s also a lot on the mental approach.

“Obviously, Oscar leading the championship up to [Mexico], he had a lot more to lose than Lando.

“There is a pattern from the last couple of races where probably Oscar has not handled the pressure like he did in the past, and, perhaps going forward, it’s going to change back to his advantage, and that probably will make him come back and focus a lot better for the last couple of races.”

Hinchcliffe believes that, despite Piastri’s insistence that nothing has changed in his approach, the pressure of being in the lead may have played a part in his performances.

“Toto Wolff has said he thinks that the chasing driver has the psychological advantage, and I do think there’s some truth to that,” he said.

“Every driver will tell you, ‘Oh, I don’t look at it any different. I take every weekend the same and blah, blah, blah.’

“Yes, that’s what you try to do, but everyone’s a human being at the end of the day, and it is so hard to fight some of those natural instincts that drivers have.”

With Norris crushing the field in Mexico, Hinchliffe suggested the race could prove to be a turning point in the championship – one way or the other.

“I think we could look back on this race after Abu Dhabi, and look at this one as a pretty pivotal one, because I think it goes one of two ways,” he said.

“Lando has been chipping away at Oscar’s lead for the last four weekends, but it’s with seconds and thirds and even seventh in Baku, which was the best he could do when Oscar was out of the race.

“This was an absolutely dominant lights to flag from pole, massive margin in qualifying, victory by 30 seconds. That’s the kind of confidence that a driver really wants.

“It’s not, ‘Oh, he took four points out of him in Austin’… he decimated, not just him, the entire field.

“So this could kick Lando into an entire another gear, or now the eyes are on him and now, Oscar is like, ‘I’m not protecting a lead anymore, the only way I get this back is by being aggressive’, and we see him come back.

“We’re not going to know until Abu Dhabi, but I think we’ll be able to look back at this race and see it as a bit of a pivotal moment.”

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