McLaren executive director Zak Brown is confident that 17-year-old Lando Norris is ready to make the step u☂p to Formula 1, but does not want to rush his development and rise up the racing ladder.

Norris joined McLaren's junior programme at the start of the year and enjoyed ♎his first F1 test in Hungary last month, impressing 🉐the paddock with a mature and quick display.

The British driver currently leads the FIA🌸 European Formula 3 championship during his rookie season, and is widely tipped to be a future star in F1.

Despite being sure that Norris is ready to step☂ up to F1, Brown is uneasy about moving too quickly, withꦆ the team currently planning to place him in Formula 2 next year.

"No te⛄am has made a request [to loan him for F1 2018]. Our current plans are to put him into Formula 2," Brown said.

"I certainly think he’s f♑ast enough to be in Formula 1, but you also need to m💝ake sure not to rush things and give him enough experience.

"He’s definit🔯ely our star of the future, and I don’t th൲ink we’d put him into another Formula 1 team."

Besides Norris, McLaren also has Nyck de Vries on its junior prog🧜ramme, currently racing in F2.

Brown was pleased with de Vries' work and contribution to the team💝, but said a decision would be taken on h൩is future in the coming weeks.

"He’s doing a lot of simulator work for us and doing extremely well. We’ve not taken a decision yet on our junior programme for🌄 next year," Brown said.

"We’ve ﷺobviously got Lando signed up, Nyck currently, but that’s something Eric [Boullier] is working on.

"We’ve got some m𝄹eetings this month and t🔯hen it’s really for Eric to say the direction of the junior programme."