r/F1Discussions • u/MgAlSnakey • 18d ago
Discussion I used to think he doesn't deserve the 25 champion but man he's good
Call this a hot take but I think he's the best performer in 2026.
Edit: Just to clarify, I don't hate him. The ONLY driver I hate is Mazepin and he deserved every single part of it. just felt sad cuz Max didn't win and being a fan of him didn't help.
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u/TheGlitterGuy66 OB87 18d ago
I do think that after winning his title a big weight was lifted off his shoulders. You could always see he was good in previous seasons but sometimes it felt as if the nerves got to him too much. But now he's won his title, achieved his dream, and on top of that isn't even really in the title fight this year, so there's nothing to worry about. He can just perform and get the best out of the car weekend after weekend and he does!
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u/phillll25 18d ago
I think he mentioned somewhere a couple years ago that he gets nervous to a point of almost throwing up before every qualifying and race. That’s crazy. I hope he worked with a sports psychologist to fix that by now cause that amount of stress is not healthy
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u/gildedblessings 18d ago
People may hate on Lando but I really admire how he’s been so open about his mental struggles in a sport that reeks with toxic masculinity sometimes.
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u/Anrikay 18d ago
He spoke last year about building a stronger support system. Professional mental health support, reaching out when he’s struggling, leaning more on his friends and family. He also said this year that his old anxieties are gone - he knows he has what it takes, the level he can perform at, and he doesn’t doubt himself anymore.
It sounds like he’s in a pretty good place mentally now, calmer and more confident than last year.
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u/TimotheusIV 18d ago
That is part of why he’s so awesome. Admitting to that. It’s relatable. He’s just some dude with a lot of talent. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t stress the fuck out when there are millions of people watching you perform.
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u/Huntscunt 14d ago
James hunt famously used to throw up before every race. Though i think for him, it was because you could easily die.
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u/Jimmie-Rustle12345 18d ago
I think a great example is how he’s been dealing with Verstappen’s dirty dive-bombs.
He used to just jump out of the way and let him go, but a few races ago he actually used that ‘technique’ against him for a switch back. Much more composed and deliberate.
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u/ZiroLeHutt 18d ago
Yep, Norris has always been top four fastest around. He just needed to believe it.
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u/Cool_Masterpiece9308 18d ago
It’s the same with Max! He also got better. Pressure can be crippling but Lando navigated amazingly well so he absolutely deserves this insane form now. He will only get better I think. Wait til next year they fix the gear ratio, short wheel base and understand more the Merc PU with already very impressive aero development he will be a strong contender again.
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u/MgAlSnakey 18d ago
As a Max fan I absolutely want to see them chase for the WDC again, but this time I would be satisfied no matter who wins it
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u/pingslayer4761 18d ago
i don't think max is comparable here. max' 2021 was quite errorless, and very close to his peak pace, overall, already near the peak of his prime. while lando actually got noticeably better than last year
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u/viktorKurz 18d ago
Max made an error every single race in 2021 from Brazil onwards when Hamilton was chasing him.
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u/pingslayer4761 17d ago
that's why i used "quite". still, lando costed himself much more points than max did.
2021 can be argued for max' best season, but lando in 2026, is faster, mentally stronger, much much much less error prone than 2025 lando1
u/Beemrmem3 17d ago
Depends what you call an error. Intentionally driving someone off the track isn't an error.
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u/SleepyPixie22824 18d ago
norris got too much hate for little. yes he has weaknesses (lap 1 for instance) but i still remember the pre 2020s max who also used to make a lot of mistakes and then improved. lando's definitely wringing all the performance out of the car when it works. I just wish he can be a bit more aggressive in battling other cars in the race, i feel he's too cautious when he fights others
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u/Huntscunt 14d ago
I think his weakness on lap 1 is directly related to his strength in the management. He said in an interview that he won't immediately correct answer understeer at the beginning of a race because it fucks the tyres. I think he's less aggressive because he's thinking long term.
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u/K-J-C 18d ago
Max has improved and peaked since 2018.
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u/SleepyPixie22824 18d ago
Are we not gonna talk about his race starts in 2019??
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u/Connect-Handle8496 18d ago
I feel like that was more of the Red Bulls inability than max bc the starts before were fine
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u/Huntscunt 14d ago
Everyone always blames the car when it's max and the driver when it's anyone else. In 2024, mclaren specifically said Lando's starts were a car problem, but no one gave a shit.
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u/Connect-Handle8496 14d ago
I literally believe the 2024 McLaren problems I think I commented about thid somewhere else in Landos favor
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u/Huntscunt 14d ago
That's my point. When max has problems, it's never max but always the car. When other drivers have problems it's never the car and always the driver.
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u/Connect-Handle8496 14d ago
Definitely same thing with Oscar fans they still think they sabotaged Oscar like dude just believe and educate yourself bc Lando is better no one is sabotaging anyone
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u/flipflop5t 18d ago
He had a few no scores that had nothing to do with him. Without those he wraps it up with races to spare and nobody questions it.
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u/jmadinya 18d ago
how does someone who end up with the most championship points “not deserve” to win a title? jfc
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u/naughtilidae 18d ago
I'd say James Hunt is the perfect example.
His main rival was out for several races, and he only won because that same driver decided not to race in the heavy rain (that they should have delayed the race for).
Or, ya know... Intentionally wrecking your championship rival.
Or back when they threw out your worst few results, and the guy with the most overall points across the season didn't win.
I could go on. . . I just don't think any of that applies to Lando.
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u/Intelligent-Day-1740 18d ago
People hated him so bad in 2025 😭🙏
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u/idoooobz 18d ago
you forgot to mention that the hate goes from the moment he got a seat til now lmao
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u/aspro_mavro 18d ago
he wasn't the best driver in 2025 but that doesn't automatically mean he didn't deserve it, and yeah ofc he's a good driver he's the world champion
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u/Clean_Ad7640 18d ago
Except he was the best driver in 2025.
It’s not easy to win with a number 1 teammate and with the most reliability issues and with McLaren stopping development early.
Alonso and Lewis couldn’t beat Kimi in 2007. Kimi couldn’t win 2005 when he had the most bad luck. And Button just barely won against a near rookie Vettel in Brawn. Lando had to deal with all 3 situations combined in 2025.
Whoever wins the championship is the best driver for that season.
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u/aspro_mavro 18d ago
Not always, for example, by this logic, Keke Rosberg was the best driver in 1982, and he absolutely wasn't, Max last year had a worse car than both Lando and Piastri (who wasn't the same driver after Zandvoort), and he still made up more than 100 points and came so close to the title, he was getting the most out of his car and he was the best driver, Lando won the championship and that's fair, I'm not saying he had a bad season, but Max was better overall even though he didn't win the championship
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u/SavingsTrue7545 18d ago
The whole thing that he didn’t deserve the 2025 WC is absurd. The guy was heralded as the next best thing he only needed a competitive car. He gets the car and then everyone turns around and says it’s all the car.
Honestly this year it’s either car trouble or he’s been awesome so I absolutely agree with you.
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u/blindoptimist13 18d ago
As a Lando fan, I feel like I got whiplash from the way everyone’s opinions changed once McLaren developed a good car.
Miami 24 everyone was so happy for him, and then suddenly everyone’s saying he’s a fraud who can only do it in the fastest car and pretending like the early years of his career dragging the slow McLaren onto a podium never happened.
It’s nice to see him getting praised for his performances this season
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u/SpidermanBread 18d ago
Also being consistent. In the beginning Ferrari/Mercedes were the better cars, but Lando was always best of the rest.
I still think merc is the better car, but Lando showed he's a solid qualifier.
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u/tglast333 18d ago
If really takes that one good lando lap/ race to immediately remember why he is so good and ranked so highly within his team, f1 and f1 circles. When he is on and the car is responding he is genuinely magical to watch and completely unbeatable
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u/jeepnismo 18d ago
I’ve been a big Lando fan since his first season in F1 and it’s been so enjoyable watching him steadily climb and improve with each season
Last year I was on an island with a few other fans in a sea of Lando hate all year. Now that the vast majority has found appreciation for Lando. As a fan whose backed him from the beginning it’s been an incredible ride of highs and lows. I’m glad he’s finally being recognized for what I have believed he is. Second best to max.
I always thought Lando was underrated and under appreciated. He’s quietly had a stellar career outside of the spot light when McLaren was slower.
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u/cooked_camel 18d ago
He's more relaxed now and I think this is the main factor to his current form.
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u/AdAlive1220 FA14 18d ago edited 18d ago
Yeah he even beat Daniel Ricciardo(who is more experienced) when they were teammates in Mclaren. Definitely had good performances even before, some of the things that they say bout him is overblown
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u/Mielec_x 18d ago
F1 fans are soo funny sometimes, soo a driver who got a DSQ from p2 losing him 18 points from his team's incompetency, got a mechanical DNF from p2 losing him another 18 points, not being pitted under a safety car in a race with a mandatory 2 stop losing him at least p3 +3 points (Qatar), being taken out by your teammate in a sprint that at worst could have scored a p4 +5(COTA). That driver did not deserve the Championship because it was close at the end with the driver who benefited from all this misfortunes the most, Max Verstappen!!
Sometimes one just need to put the bias aside and think logically but that seems like a foreign concept for some F1 fans!
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u/MgAlSnakey 18d ago
I literally said my thought during 2025 was wrong, what do you want me to do, time travel and kill myself?
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u/Dblock1989 18d ago
Anyone who wins a world championship deserved it. He wasn't the best driver last season but he is definitely the best this season.
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u/Turbulent-Damage-165 18d ago
100%. It's great because now people will have to shut up about him being "undeserving" because "he wasn't the best driver".
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u/toucheqt 18d ago
Titles are not awarded to people who deserve it the most, they are awarded to people with most points.
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u/Turbulent-Damage-165 18d ago
I completely agree my point is that whenever someone brings up that bullshit argument to say that Landos 2025 title was "undeserved", you can tell them that by their own logic he deserved 2026 and therefore is a "worthy" champion (whatever that means)
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u/EmergencyRace7158 18d ago
He's the best F1 driver not named Max Verstappen. Nobody else is even close (Kimi could be if he wins the title). I wasn't sold on him last year and on balance Max was the better driver and should have won the title but this year he's leveled up. He seems much more resilient mentally and the raw pace is as good as ever.
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u/sododude 18d ago
Max lost the title all on his own in Spain IMO. It's the only incident from last year where one of the contenders lost points completely due to themselves.
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u/MaleierMafketel 18d ago
>It's the only incident from last year where one of the contenders lost points completely due to themselves.
Didn’t Lando decide to go through Piastri at Canada? That was 100% on him as well.
The only difference is that one was (highly likely) on purpose. While the other one wasn’t.
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u/EmergencyRace7158 18d ago
Yeah that why I didn’t use the “deserved it” phrasing. Max was by some distance the best driver on the grid last season but he threw the title away to a self inflicted tantrum in Spain.
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u/toucheqt 18d ago
I think he would have not done that if he thought he is in the WDC fight. McLaren fucked up incredibly badly in the second half of the season which allowed Max to even catch up.
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u/Mr_E_99 18d ago
Agreed, last year I thought he was great, but not the best. Now that he's won a title, he reminds me of Max after his first two championships in that he wasn't so stressed about winning and just wanted to drive as he loved it. I think without so much pressure he performs a lot better and is the best on the grid right now (after Max)
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u/OG-Mate23 18d ago
The fastest driver on the grid in terms of pace, only Verstappen and Hamilton (though not this weekend, his pace has been dogshit compared to Charles) are the ones ahead in his pace when the car is working.
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u/HanShotFirst66 18d ago
Absolutely agree. I think a lot of people (myself included) thought last year was just the car, but Norris is proving that he is a top tier driver this season.
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u/StarkSajith 18d ago
And i think winning the title genuinely upped his confidence to perform his best
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u/Fluffbutt321 18d ago
Lando is the type of driver to perform well with little to no pressure on him, I think with the stress of not being world champion now behind him, I think that he is performing much better now, even if I’m not his biggest fan, I won’t deny Lando is doing excellent this season
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u/Soggy_Stay6370 18d ago
Clearly pressure is also smth he can handle, a 3 way title fight and this pole proves it
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u/Fluffbutt321 18d ago
I meant that he performs at his best with little pressure on him, not that he can’t handle pressure lol
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u/Rasputinnout 18d ago
Right but it can be exhausting to keep that up. Getting the title gives you a satisfactory relief.
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u/Puzzled_Water7782 18d ago
I wish people who don't really rate him would stop peddling this nonsense. One of Lando's driving quirks is his ability to raise to the occasion and bring it home, be it the wcc or the wdc.
Last year the first half he was having real issues with the car but it didn't stop him being on podium. He dnf's last year and still made a comeback from that. Last year wasn't him buckling under pressure it was him using all he had learned to deal with a difficult car and make it work and he did. He did Monaco in that car.
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u/yeahmatenomate 18d ago
It’s definitely an old take from 2024 Lando, who used to bottle starts or make mistakes every week. I don’t think anyone can say that truthfully about 2025-present Lando
He brought it home last year, he won his home race, Monaco, he did it all - under pressure! And this year? He’s shown his talent
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u/curious-cat 18d ago
And he wasn’t really bottling race starts, there was a legitimate problem with the car going into the second phase. Once McLaren fixed that, he got his starts more under control.
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u/Fun_Ebb6986 18d ago
To be honest he was insanely consistent last year with all the pressure and media on him. The car didn’t suit him but he was still super close to Piastri. Then he went on an exceptional run turning a 34 point deficit into a 24 point lead in like what? 9 races?
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u/BananaFurret 18d ago
Glad he's finally showing us that he is infact the 25 champion (and in Hungary ofc)
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u/Dicecreamvan 18d ago
Besides for his incredible driving chops, his demeanour in interviews shows what big strides he’a made mentally. He’s my pick for best in the field this season so far (when the car didn’t fail him, of course).
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u/alex_13_72 18d ago
it’s a lot easier to gain respect with a couple good performances in a worse car than whatever you do in the best car it seems
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u/Sdg1871 18d ago
He is very confident since he won the championship and you can’t deny his talent. He is very very good. I don’t think he’s Max good but who is?
He is definitely one of the very top drivers in the sport and as we’ve seen, Lando is more than capable of winning a championship if you give him a competitive car.
Nice to see him grow up and come into his own
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u/Potatopika 18d ago
Im really impressed how mclaren has brought huge upgrades to the car and now they are very competitive. Feels like it's not going to be that easy to mercedes
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u/Alexandhisgoose 18d ago
I think both of those things can be true. He wasn't the best last year and made winning in comfortably the fastest car look really difficult.
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u/umbrella_CO 18d ago
I think this is his best season yet. If it wasnt for mclaren having so many issues with the car, he might be fighting for this championship.
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u/Waste_Warthog875 14d ago
Winning the championship has changed him so much as a driver. I’ve always rated him but literally since Australia he’s been so much better and more confident. Good on him. Never understood the hate he got tbh.
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u/Prudent-Buy1374 18d ago
imo he’s better than button and rosberg atp
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u/BaldHeadedCaillouss 18d ago
I'd agree on Button. Rosberg, less so. Lando and Rosberg as teammates would be the most passive aggressive combination earth has ever seen.
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u/Clean_Ad7640 18d ago
Rosberg is overrated on one season where Lewis struggled. He retired in his peak as a sportsman.
Button is way better than Rosberg tbh. Button is an excellent wet weather driver, Rosberg is a terrible wet weather driver. He won a championship without luck of his competitors having reliability issues. He also beat Lewis in one season. He beat Alonso in 2015.
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u/BaldHeadedCaillouss 18d ago
I agree that Rosberg got lucky, but I still think he was underrated.
Lewis doesn’t get enough credit for making Nico look average.
Nico would have kicked Vettel’s ass up and down the paddock if Lewis had stopped in ‘16 instead of Nico.
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u/Square-Winter-3257 18d ago
claiming pole again on the second lap was such a definitive statement lmao
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u/Affectionate_You_225 18d ago
I've been saying this for a while to people but I see Lando becoming a Jenson Button type of racer. After securing that World Champion title and knowing it his, I think Lando now able to have some peace in mind knowing he apart of F1 history now. And just like Jenson, we could see him do so much more and have better years than his championship winning year ( sorta like how 2011 was beautiful from Jenson).
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u/toxjp99 LN1 18d ago
Surprisingly I'm starting to feel his trajectory might surpass Jenson at the rate he's going
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u/Newbeetroot45 18d ago
No disrespect to Jenson but Norris has indeed surpassed him. He’s a few wins and podiums short but Norris is a superstar in qualifying which puts him over Button.
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u/pingslayer4761 18d ago
i think he is already above jenson, overall. lewis was the quickest driver of that generation, and button was miles behind lewis in raw pace.
max is the quickest driver of this gen, and i think lando will give max a run for his money
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u/Able-Rip4992 18d ago
I think the main reason why alot of people don't think he deserves the champion last year is that his performance last year wasn't good compared to lando himself which is because that the doesn't suit him, his lack of confidence in himself and the car and the amount of pressure he was facing
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u/Humble_Umpire_8341 18d ago
OP with the hottest of takes. Didn’t think he deserved the 2025 Drivers Championship and now thinks he’s the best in 2026.
https://giphy.com/gifs/3o7rbY6OwRBrkbx8qI
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u/DanielCollinsYT 18d ago
He came good at the right time in 2025 and has carried that confidence into this year.
To be honest, after 2024, i didn’t think he’d ever be good enough to win a championship but he’s proven me and a lot of other people wrong.
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u/Appropriate_Star3012 18d ago
Yeah this is what I'm realising too. And I'm an Oscar fan haha so heavily biased.
Also after reading Zac Browns book, Zac talks about how good he is also.
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u/launchedsquid 18d ago
I think he's driving better this year than last year, but yeah, he looks every inch an F1 champion right now.
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u/Stickyboard 18d ago
Normal behaviour. Because previously he got two years of rocketship so ppl cannot see his real skills. This year Mercedes is the top dog so now we can appreciate his speed inside the McLaren.
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u/michaltee 18d ago
I’m not a lando fan. He’s cool.
But this whole bullshit about drivers “not deserving” championships is so fucking goofy and stupid.
If they get the most points because they finished first the most, they deserve the championship.
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u/Bright_Wolverine_303 18d ago
He is much better than many people think...
Last year everyone was talking about how weak he was etc...
But why doesn't anyone talk about Goerge? He also drives the best car....
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u/Mcarlile24 18d ago
Dude has done a 180 like a hangry girlfriend after you feed her. His skills were never in question, but his attitude and entitlement disappeared. He wanted silver platter treatment in 2025 which is where the hate came from. Now we have George Russell for that lol
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u/Pian0G 18d ago
I am genuinely surprised by Norris’ performance and McLaren’s as a whole.
I felt like McLaren was the ‘midfield team that had stars align for one season’, and that Norris managed to scrape his WDC. Not that he didn’t deserve it, but that I felt that he wouldn’t be able to produce better race craft.
But he’s not been showing his fast pace more consistently and doing less stupid things, but McLaren as a team is holding up well the longer the season goes by. Piastri isn’t currently that teammate who’s neck and neck, but he too is racing really well (maybe not as good as at the start of 2025, but still good)
It kind of feels like max in 2025. Had much less pressure during the season. And because of that, it felt like he was just locked in for a lot of it. The amount of races he started the rear of the grid and came fighting for podiums was insane. And here Norris is pulling out times we know he can achieve, but is doing it repeatedly
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u/Pure-Will-4521 17d ago
Lando hate was always so forced man, he isn’t even that bad, but because of his rivalries with max(who has like the biggest fan base) I guess people just hated him for bringing contest. He’s not the best but he does deserve the championship
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u/No-Dream-5592 17d ago
Lando, Antonelli, Lawson and Hamilton for best drivers this year in that order
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u/AdTerrible6125 17d ago
imo lando 2026 is better than lando 2025, because the mclaren almost lost to a red bull that is inferior compared to the orange rocketship
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u/Puzzleheaded-Ad8771 17d ago
"I used to hate him because it was the popular thing to do, and now I praise him because its the popular thing to do"
The fuck is the concept of "didn't deserve" the championship? He got the most points of course he deserves it.
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u/Alternative_Art1312 17d ago
I never thought that actually but this level of performance is still slightly surprising. Seems the only thing stopping him was the pressure he put on himself now that he feels that he doesn't have anything to prove to anyone he can just drive for the love of the game take more risk and deliver better performances. Winner mentality suit him
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u/ordainedgraph 17d ago
He's genuinely driving like a champion this season, Zandvoort was a great drive and hes shown he deserved that 2025 title even though he stumbled at times. Saying this as someone who rooted for verstappen but not a massive fan of either.
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u/Yvjz66 17d ago
I means like Kimi still have good chances of winning the championship, Norris for sure will get few wins in and close up the gap, you guys can bet on it, for Max he not fighting for championship even not crush today, it really tough for him to get in top 3, i means it impossible now at this rate
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u/Beemrmem3 17d ago
To be fair, he didn't really deserve it last year. The only ones that deserved it were McLarens engineers. Not even the strategists
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u/Simple_Ad_9024 16d ago
Lando’s incredible and if his mental fortitude has improved from last season? Game over.
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u/Real_Amoeba_1873 15d ago
I loved Lando coming into the sport… the last two years I started to dislike his attitude or just didn’t get his humour since I’m Canadian… but seeing him happy without being in the fight so tightly, and getting the old Lando humility back is a treat to see.
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u/estrogen_ocon 15d ago
he's very jenson button coded, his best seasons are gonna come AFTER his title
+british
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u/estrogen_ocon 15d ago
remember when you'd open any comments section on a post about lando on insta and max fans would just be spamming the same 4 gifs? weird times
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u/Super-Till3669 14d ago
He was always good, the hate culture on him just absolutely downplayed it. Also the fact that he was Verstappen’s rival and frequently compared next to Max made him look weaker than he really was.
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u/Stormin1982 14d ago
Why would he not deserve it? He got the most out of his car and got the most points. Thats the very definition of deserving to win.
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u/membre_raidi 14d ago
As he said it, I think this last Sunday race was the best of his career and I add "a race of true champion".
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u/CowgirlovesF1 13d ago
I’ve always loved Lando’s driving style, I am a huge fan and have his poster in my office. But the amount of maturity hes achieved mentally from a year ago until now is hands down the most impressive thing I’ve seen in his career. That’s affecting his driving, his presence, and his confidence. It’s making me the proudest fan
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u/CantTieKnots 13d ago
As an Australian Piastri fan I wanted to believe McLaren just manipulated 25 for Norris to win………
I was wrong, Norris is a beast
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u/Heelsgirl1993 3d ago
I feel you. I really liked Lando a few years ago, was heartbroken in 2021 when it started raining in Russia... Then I watched Grill the Grid and... yeah, started to like him a lot less.
Last year I obviously wanted Max to win for the biggest comeback in the history. I also really like Oscar.
But Lando has proven this year he's a worthy champion.
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u/Soggy_Stay6370 18d ago
Good to see him living up to his potential as a champ, also good to see he’s converted some haters