Nico Rosberg believes that Mercedes will have a difficult end to the 2026 Formula 1 season, following McLaren’s progress. The former driver of the category highlighted the speed shown by Lando Norris in the victory at the Dutch GP.
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Norris won for the second consecutive time, after also triumphing in Hungary, in a streak that put the Brit back in the title discussions. The result increased the pressure on Mercedes, while McLaren appears as the strongest team at the moment.
Rosberg’s assessment was mainly based on Norris’s pace during the race in Zandvoort. According to the 2016 F1 champion, the McLaren driver was between seven and eight tenths of a second per lap faster than George Russell in a similar situation, using hard tires.
“Lando was flying. The speed was incredible. Mercedes will be worried now about this McLaren pace, because they are the team to beat right now and are developing the car faster than any other,” Rosberg told Sky Sports F1.
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The strength demonstrated by McLaren also gained importance due to the championship context. Kimi Antonelli, leader in the drivers’ standings, finished behind Norris in the Netherlands and acknowledged his concern, assessing that Mercedes could be only the second or even the third fastest team.
Rosberg also highlighted Norris’s performance, who started on pole, lost the lead to Antonelli after the restart caused by Max Verstappen’s accident, and then managed to overtake the Italian to win by 11.5 seconds. For the former driver, the Brit’s recovery was evident compared to the start of the season.
“Who said it’s not possible to overtake in Zandvoort? We saw many great overtakes. An exciting race and world champion driving from Lando,” Rosberg added, before reinforcing his concern about Mercedes: “This could be a really tough end of the season for Mercedes. It really could,” concluded the former driver.
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