Norris’ lack of McLaren exit clause questioned - “There’s always a way out”

Ahead of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, McLaren CEO Zak Brown revealed Norris has “zero exit clauses” in his contract. 

The 23-year-old Briton’s future has been the subject of intense speculation after McLaren’s woeful start to the 2023 season. 

Norris is tied to McLaren until the end of 2025 after signing a long-term contract extension last year. 

But speaking on the F1 Show, Schiff questioned just how watertight Norris’ contract is. 

“Exit clauses, do they really mean that much?” Schiff said. 

“Contracts can be watertight but there’s always a way out. We saw that Daniel [Ricciardo] also didn’t have a way out and he should have been able to stay with the team but they came to a mutual agreement, and Daniel’s no longer with the team. 

“So there’s always a way and I’m pretty sure that if Lando is really not happy there and it’s not working for either party, they might come to a mutual agreement. 

“Bizarre that he would sign such a long contract with no way out. He must have a lot of confidence in the team at the time.”

Former F1 driver and 2009 world champion Jenson Button said he was surprised to hear Brown speak so openly about Norris’ contract situation. 

“I’m more surprised that we are hearing that he’s got no way out, because normally you don’t discuss contracts,” he said. 

“Lando’s chosen that route so it is what it is. We can talk about it as much as we want but he’s at McLaren and he’s got to hope that they start performing. 

“Last year wasn’t a great start either and then they did reasonably well and did some good results. 

“It’s really competitive out there at the moment, if you look at the teams around McLaren. So you can make a massive leap up the field if you gain a few tenths.”