McLaren to give Norris time to develop

McLaren CEO Zak Brown says that McLaren will allow time for Lando Norris to adapt to Formula 1. The Briton will make his debut in the series next year, after clinching second p[lace in the Formula 2 championship last season.

Norris was confirmed as Stoffel Vandoorne's 2019 replacement, gaining promotion after almost two years in the McLaren junior programme. However, Brown is not expecting the 18-year-old to be up to speed straight away and admits time needs to be set to allow for some adjusting.

"Formula 1 can be a pretty cruel environment," the McLaren chief told The Sun. "We need to manage expectations, not after three races, and pass judgment, which we as a sport are pretty quick to do. He will definitely be given time to develop. It is a high pressure environment and the first thing anyone does in Formula 1 is compare you to your teammate."

Norris will partner Carlos Sainz, who joins after spending just one full season with Renault: "We expect them to race each other hard, cleanly and, for sure, they need to get the measure of each other from time to time," Brown added.

McLaren endured a difficult 2018 campaign, ending the season as near backmarkers after failing to successfully upgrade the MCL33. Next year, it will be into the second season of its three-year contract with Renault as its engine manufacturer.