Max Verstappen narrowly missed out on the World Championship last year

Max Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen has launched a pointed critique at Lando Norris, insisting the British driver ought to have wrapped up the 2025 Formula 1 championship far sooner given McLaren’s superior machinery.

Speaking to Formule 1 Magazine, Vermeulen was unequivocal in his assessment: “With that car, Norris should have become champion much earlier, of course.”

The Woking-based outfit claimed the Constructors’ Championship with a record six rounds to spare, yet a series of collective blunders throughout the campaign allowed Verstappen to mount an improbable challenge.

Vermeulen pointed to these failings directly: “But if you turn it around, McLaren made a lot more mistakes.”

Lando Norris should have won the World Championship earlier, says Max Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen

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Despite falling agonisingly short by just two points, Vermeulen described his client’s season as nothing less than masterful.

“This season has been a work of art by Max,” he declared.

The Dutchman found himself a staggering 104 points adrift with nine races remaining, yet orchestrated an extraordinary recovery that saw him string together ten consecutive podium finishes, six of which were victories.

His performances proved so compelling that team principals voted him the finest driver of the 2025 campaign.

Vermeulen even questioned whether this effort surpassed Verstappen’s dominant 2023 season, when he triumphed in 19 of 22 grands prix.

Max Verstappen endured tough moments over the season but only missed out on the title by two points | PA

“What he has shown this season, given the circumstances, is phenomenal,” he added.

Former Formula 1 driver Johnny Herbert has offered a starkly different perspective, placing Norris firmly among the sport’s elite champions.

“Lando is one of the greats of F1,” Herbert told a betting site, whilst acknowledging the McLaren driver still has room for improvement.

The former steward was particularly struck by how Norris challenged the four-time world champion throughout the season.

“He’s actually making Max think. That’s very powerful and that just shows how good Lando has become,” Herbert observed.

He emphasised that defeating a driver of Verstappen’s calibre significantly enhances the value of Norris’s maiden title triumph.

Herbert believes Norris, currently 26, has yet to reach his full potential and will likely hit his peak as he approaches his thirties.Lando Norris beat Max Verstappen to the World Championship this year | REUTERS

“Lando is a late bloomer,” he explained, suggesting the experience of securing a world championship will elevate the British driver to another level mentally.

When asked where Norris ranks among title winners, Herbert was emphatic: “Well, he’s very high up.”

The former driver noted that Verstappen himself acknowledged at the Abu Dhabi weekend that Norris had produced his finest driving to date.

“We definitely haven’t seen the very best of Lando,” Herbert concluded.