Lando Norris said McLaren should be regarded as the championship favourites following his victory in the season-opening race yesterday.

However Norris, who led Max Verstappen home by less than a second, pointed out rival teams could overturn the advantage McLaren showed in Melbourne yesterday.

“Max was three-tenths off yesterday,” Norris pointed out after the race. “Last year, we were much further off [but] ended up with the best car by the end of the season. We were over half a second off at the beginning of last year behind Red Bull and ended up with the quickest car.”

He dismissed George Russell’s claim McLaren are so far ahead they could win the championship without putting further development into their MCL39. As last season’s champions, McLaren are already permitted less wind tunnel testing time than their rivals under F1’s performance handicapping rules.

“I know George made some comments earlier this weekend that we can just turn our focus to 2026,” he said. “If that’s their mentality, wonderful, but that’s not the mentality to have.”

“We know we still have a lot of work to do on this year’s car. If you relax in this position, you fail. In Formula 1, if you start thinking things are good and groovy, that’s when you get caught.”

McLaren and Mercedes are tied on points after the season-opener, while Norris leads Verstappen by seven points in the drivers’ championship. But Norris suspects other tracks won’t suit their car as well as Melbourne did, such as Bahrain International Circuit, where teams tested last month.

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“I do think we’re favourites because the team has done an amazing job and the car is flying,” he said. “But we will have races where we struggle.

“If we started the season in Bahrain, I don’t think we would have won, and [I wouldn’t be asked] this question. Let’s allow a few more races to take place before making any obvious statements.”

Norris came under sustained pressure during yesterday’s race from his own team mate, Oscar Piastri, as well as Verstappen. Sitting next to Verstappen and Russell, whose team mates are far less experienced than Piastri, Norris pointedly remarked that McLaren’s driver line-up is part of its strength.

“We are the team to beat, mainly because we have two drivers up there pushing each other. That helps.

“Do I think me and Oscar pushing each other in qualifying yesterday allowed us to get one-and-a-half [tenths], one tenth more than the two drivers here, because their team mates aren’t as equipped or experienced? Yes. So add that into the equation as well.

“It’s not just about the car. The team has done an amazing job, and I thank them for everything they’re doing. But we know we can make it better, and that’s our aim.”

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Teams’ fastest lap times in Melbourne

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