Lando Norris has dismissed the suggestion that he is lucky to be just nine points behind his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri in their battle for the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship.

With the season resuming this weekend as Zandvoort hosts the Dutch Grand Prix after the sport’s summer break, the small margin means the title contest is tantalisingly poised going into the remaining 10 rounds.

The battle has ebbed and flowed throughout the first 14 rounds, with Piastri building a lead after overturning an early deficit, only for Norris to hit back with three wins in the final four races before the break.

Former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer said on a recent episode of the F1 Nation podcast that Norris was fortunate still to be in contention due to his belief that various moments of luck have gone the Brit’s way.

Asked about that assessment on Thursday, Norris said: “I’ve certainly had a little bit of luck. I’ve also been unlucky, but that’s life.

“I can’t choose those things. I’m lucky that I’ve been with McLaren for the last seven years. I could not have been with them for five of those, so I’ve also made good decisions.

“I back myself, I’ve made good decisions along the way and especially this year. I’ve improved as a driver this year.”

Palmer, who drove two seasons for Renault in 2016 and 2017, pointed to various races this year where he felt Norris had been lucky, including the last round before the break in Hungary.

Piastri appeared to have the race under control when he pitted from the lead, but Norris, running fourth after a poor start, switched to a one-stop strategy and held off his team-mate in the final stages for a crucial win.

Norris continued: “I’ve had a car that I found a lot trickier to drive – just as much as everyone complains when they have a car that doesn’t suit them or drive as well as what they like – and I made some good steps forward to come back and have some good races.

“I would not have won in Budapest if I didn’t improve on those things myself, and that was not luck. That was hard work, a lot of dedication with my engineers and my team, both at the track and away from it.

“So yes, I’ve had a little bit of luck here and there – everyone needs a bit in their life – but so has probably every other driver at some races. I’ve also made good decisions, kept myself out of trouble, stuck by the rules. All of these things are part of being a racing driver, and at times they’ve earned me points. So that’s also down to me doing a good job.”

Piastri: I don’t feel hard done by

Piastri was clearly frustrated when a controversial time penalty for him handed victory to Norris at the British Grand Prix in July, with the Australian suggesting over the radio at the time that their positions should be switched back.

However, he insists at this stage that he doesn’t feel “hard done by” looking back on the season as a whole.

Piastri said: “There’s always going to be things in racing that you don’t necessarily agree with or don’t go the way you want, and that’s just part of it.

“I certainly don’t feel hard done by. I think we’ve done a lot of things well that we can control this year.

“There have been some tough moments, some tough lessons, but I’m very confident with the position that I’m in.

“I feel like I’ve driven well this year and a lot of the things I can control, I feel like I’ve controlled very well.

“There’s an alternate universe where a lot of things look very different, but none of that matters, so I’m just trying to focus on these next 10 races and how I can perform either the same or better than I did at the start of the year.”

Formula 1 returns after the summer break with the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime