Norris wants title win 'by fighting and beating' Verstappen

Lando Norris has expressed his desire to earn the world championship by competing fairly, despite McLaren indicating that team orders may be in place to support him if necessary.

McLaren's team principal, Andrea Stella, told BBC Sport that they would prioritize Norris in their efforts to win both the drivers' and constructors' championships this season. However, Norris emphasized that he prefers to win on merit, stating, "I don't want to be given a championship... I want to win it by fighting against Max and beating Max."

Heading into the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Norris is 62 points behind championship leader Max Verstappen, with 232 points still available across the final eight races of the season. In the constructors' championship, McLaren trails Red Bull by eight points, while Ferrari lags by another 31 points.

Stella clarified that McLaren has not made a definitive decision to ask Norris' teammate, Oscar Piastri, to support him under all circumstances. "We [will] bias our support to Lando, but we want to do it without too much compromise on our principles," Stella said. Piastri has acknowledged the possibility of team orders but expressed that any such request would be context-dependent, particularly if he is in contention for a win himself. "It still needs some more discussions, but the main point is it's not just going to be me pulling over for Lando every race," Piastri commented.

For Norris to claim the title, he would need to gain an average of just under eight points per weekend over the remaining races. While he has done this in the last two races in the Netherlands and Italy, Verstappen remains the highest-scoring driver over the last 10 races, having won seven times this season.

Verstappen, who finished sixth in the previous race in Italy after qualifying seventh, acknowledged that Red Bull needs to improve. "We learned a lot from Monza, but it is a work in progress," Verstappen said, adding that he hopes for better results in the upcoming races. Despite this, Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton remarked that Verstappen is "still a very long way ahead" in the title race.

McLaren's approach comes after their strategy to let Norris and Piastri race freely in Italy backfired, allowing Ferrari's Charles Leclerc to claim second place, which contributed to his victory. Leclerc, who has taken pole position in Baku for the past three years, is considered a strong contender for Sunday's race. Meanwhile, Mercedes has reverted to an older-specification floor for this weekend after struggling with their performance since introducing a new one at the Dutch Grand Prix.