Brown dishes out the praise for British driver: 'Norris is one of the best'

Daniel Ricciardo could count on fierce words from his team boss Zak Brown. The McLaren chief implicitly questioned Ricciardo's contract and said Ricciardo had not lived up to expectations this year. The remarks are now further nuanced when compared to Norris.

Brown nuances statements about Ricciardo

Brown said this to Sky Sports. The American said last week he was more critical of the eight-time GP winner. "I was just asked a question and had an honest answer to that. I think Daniel said the same thing." Brown partly took blame with the team's lack of success in building a winning car.

Brown: "That's what we have to do. And you know, we have a great relationship. I gave an honest answer and it can indeed be better." To add strength to his words, the team boss said he had dinner with Ricciardo in London recently and it was a fun night with lots of laughs.

Norris the best in the world

Despite the American's nuances, an enormous gap remains between Ricciardo and his teammate Lando Norris that cannot be ignored. Ricciardo has only finished in the points twice in nine races and is more than 30 points behind Norris. Brown told Sky Sports programme Any Driven Monday: "If you look at the gap between Max [Verstappen] and Sergio [Perez] and the gap between Charles [Leclerc] and Carlos [Sainz] you can see that those gaps are there. I think Lando is one of the best drivers in the world at the moment. It's a compliment to him to see how big the gap is."