Lando Norris admitted that McLaren had serious doubts after the free practice sessions of the Canadian GP, despite the arrival of a significant package of upgrades on the MCL40.
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McLaren arrived in Montreal with a substantial set of technical upgrades intended to allow the team to continue its progress against Mercedes and Ferrari. However, the first laps on the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit cast doubt within the British camp.
During the only free practice of the sprint weekend, Lando Norris finished only sixth, more than a second behind the best time set by Kimi Antonelli. A significant gap that immediately raised questions about the real effectiveness of the new parts introduced on the car.
The Briton acknowledged after the sprint qualifying that McLaren had started the day with some concern, notably due to the lack of confidence felt behind the wheel.
“It was a very good surprise in the end,” Norris explained after his third place in sprint qualifying. After free practice this morning, we were a bit worried about our deficit, especially because of the lack of confidence in the car.”
A quick reaction before sprint qualifying
Between free practice and SQ, McLaren managed to reverse the trend. The Woking team made several adjustments to the setup to better exploit the new upgrades under particular conditions.
On a low-grip and very bumpy track, Norris immediately regained better feelings behind the wheel of his McLaren. Result: a solid third place on the sprint grid, behind the two Mercedes of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
“We made some changes and it seems to have brought a nice improvement,” continued the reigning world champion. I’m happy with this third place. My lap wasn’t perfect, I could have gained a bit more time.”
Even though Mercedes seems to have kept a slight advantage over one lap, Norris was satisfied with his team’s reaction after a very difficult start to the day.
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“When I saw the gap with the drivers ahead, it wasn’t actually that big. It’s a positive turnaround and I’m proud of the team for managing to react so quickly.”
Some upgrades already set aside
Despite this encouraging comeback, McLaren remains cautious about some of the new parts brought to Canada. Norris revealed that he would not keep the entire new package for the rest of the weekend, proof that the team has not yet fully understood the behavior of some components.
The Briton believes that the very particular characteristics of the Montreal track make it extremely difficult to analyze the data collected on track.
“Some parts remain a bit more questionable and we probably need more time to analyze all that,” Norris confided. This circuit is so atypical, with very little grip and lots of curbs, that it’s hard to get a completely accurate picture.”
McLaren could thus reintroduce some elements during the next rounds, notably in Barcelona, a track much more representative of the real behavior of the cars.
Norris optimistic for the rest of the weekend
Despite these technical hesitations, Norris believes the car’s base remains very competitive. The British driver notably highlighted his excellent feeling with the soft tires during SQ3, a particularly encouraging point before the sprint and the main qualifying.
“The rest of the car was clearly working very well,” he concluded. In Q3, especially with the soft tires, I finally regained confidence. It’s a real step forward and we will now see what we can still improve for the rest of the weekend.”
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