13/04/2025
NEWS STORY
There was no mistaking Lando Norris' despondency after qualifying sixth for the Bahrain Grand Prix.
While teammate Oscar Piastri delivered a faultless performance to grab pole, the Briton was scrappy and ended the day sixth on the grid.
While there is a long run to Turn 1, and the Bahrain track offers lots of opportunities for overtaking, Norris' failure to finish higher up the grid stunned fans and clearly himself.
"I mean, it was just every lap, honestly," he told reporters at the end of the session, the youngster barely able to speak. "I've been off every lap this weekend," he added, "just not comfortable.
"No big complaints," he insisted. "The car's amazing. The car's as good as it has been the whole season, which is strong.
"I've been off it all weekend... I don't know why, just clueless on track at the minute. I don't know. I just need a big reset or something.
"Oscar's doing a great job, so I can't complain," he continued. "I'm not going to have the excuse that I can't drive my car. It's my job to drive whatever car I've got, whether it's easy or hard. And I'm not doing a good enough job, so the team are doing an amazing job.
"I'm not going to complain about the car not suiting my needs. I'm not comfortable. It doesn't drive the way I like, but that's not an excuse. The driver's job is to drive whatever car they're given, and I can't drive this car quick enough."
The Briton admits that his issue isn't merely single-lap pace.
"I just don't know how to approach it. I can't figure it out," he said. "Every time I try something, it's good for one session, and then it's the wrong thing for the next session, because the wind has changed
"I just can't flow with the car, and when I can't flow, I'm not very quick," he admitted. "I've just got to work on myself. I can't follow the team, and the car is the best by a long way. But clearly, I'm just not clicking at the minute."
Starting from pole, and with Norris so far behind, offers Piastri the opportunity to take the lead in the championship, surely a worry when racing for a team that insists its drivers are free to race.
"I'm not concerned. I'm just concerned about me," said Norris. "I couldn't care less. Like I said, I don't care about myself. I don't care about what the others do.
"I've always known Oscar's good, and he's quick, and he's doing the job, I know he can achieve with the car that we've got. So, yeah, well done to him. But I'm more worried about my own performance than others. So, yeah, I don't care about the rest of it."
Due to his struggles on Friday, McLaren had made changes to the car for Saturday, but clearly it wasn't enough.
"I think on Lando's side, there's especially a particular phase of driving the car that doesn't make him entirely comfortable," explained Andrea Stella. "I think we've achieved a very good understanding of what that is.
"It would be inappropriate to share the details," he continued, "but let me say that for this race, we've made some adjustments to the car, going back to some solutions that we think may improve the predictability of the car in relation to Lando's driving input.
"I think we see that Oscar is just more confident in qualifying," he added. "He's just more capable of putting things together. I think he has more awareness, which comes with experience, which comes with all the analysis that has been going on during the winter. So we see a stronger Oscar."