Lando Norris is on the tail-end of a escape season. Had been it not for an ill-judged tyre name on the finish of October’s Russian Grand Prix, he’d be F1’s latest race winner.

Regardless of that missed alternative, it is onerous to disclaim the yr Norris has had. Three podium finishes early within the yr, the primary of which concerned a wheel-to-wheel battle with Lewis Hamilton by which Norris greater than held his personal, cemented the McLaren driver as one of many sport’s rising stars.

Norris’ stellar marketing campaign featured one other what-might-have-been second. Simply earlier than Sochi, he completed second behind teammate Daniel Ricciardo on the Italian Grand Prix as McLaren scored its first victory because the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix. It is one of many few weekends Ricciardo has out-paced his British teammate this yr.

For Norris, the nice and the dangerous have been equally necessary in setting him up for what McLaren hopes is a return to successful methods in 2022, when F1’s groups hope for a shakeup of the aggressive order with the introduction of latest aerodynamic guidelines.

“I positively really feel way more assured that if I used to be to battle for a win immediately within the first race subsequent yr, particularly after being within the place I used to be in in Russia. I believe I might really feel very assured in that place,” Norris mentioned in a current interview with choose media, together with ESPN.

“After all I might nonetheless be nervous and no matter however I believe I will be much more assured than if I did not have the yr I’ve had this yr and skilled a few of the issues I’ve skilled this season. However I really feel way more assured of realizing what I’ve received to do once I’m in that place.

“So I believe from that aspect I am prepared for it. However I assume you by no means understand how a lot better you are going to do as plenty of it depends upon the automobile and issues like that, generally you have to be fortunate, generally you are unfortunate. I labored onerous over the winter to make plenty of these enhancements.

“One factor that made me very joyful is seeing the enhancements really fairly clearly have an have an effect on and happen and present immediately by way of outcomes.”

He added: “Predominantly from a driver confidence, driver mentality viewpoint, I really feel very assured. Whether or not meaning we’ll do properly or not, we’ll simply have to attend and see.

“From how I really feel and what I’ve realized and issues, then I really feel like I can proceed and make some enhancements over the winter once more and go into subsequent yr beginning off how I really feel like I’ve ended, which remains to be higher than how I began this season. However the circumstances will simply be so totally different in subsequent yr’s automobile.

“Perhaps you may want totally different driving types and issues like that as it should be a really totally different automobile.”

Norris is aware of he nonetheless has areas he must work on to maintain his trajectory pointing in an upwards place.

“I am very joyful [with the season]. There’s positively some issues to nonetheless work on as there’s nonetheless some tracks and methods of driving I would like to enhance.

“When the automobile is the way it’s been the final couple of years and I do know precisely the best way to drive it, that is once I could be very robust.

“However when it begins to change into even trickier to drive, say the window’s like this and you must be proper right here and that is the place we’ll be fast, however it’s very tough to drive, generally on sure tracks there’s simply no good efficiency window when it is only a very tough automobile to drive and we’re not that fast. Then looking for the best way to drive that automobile is what I wrestle with a bit of bit extra.

“That is certainly one of my largest areas to enhance nonetheless.”