Lando Norris expresses confidence for McLaren F1 at the Bahrain GP, acknowledging challenges but foreseeing potential beyond.
Lando Norris is confident for McLaren F1 ahead of the season’s opening race, the Bahrain Grand Prix, which starts tomorrow. The Brit believes his team will lag behind Red Bull and Ferrari, but he also predicts that the MCL38’s level in Bahrain won’t be indicative of the following circuits.
“I think we have a rough idea of where we stand, but we don’t know how we compare to the other teams. We think there’s a clear top two and then a group including us. But Bahrain has never been a good circuit for us,” Norris stated.
“We’ve never performed our best there. So, I think it’s far too quick to judge and say, ‘okay, we’re not going to be good here in Bahrain, it’s the end of the season for us.'”
“I believe for everyone, since everyone has their ups and downs, we need to give it two, three, four, or five races to have a first honest assessment of everyone’s position relative to others, and not just judge based on the performance we’re going to see here in Bahrain.”
“We’ve made the car faster”
Norris identified some issues with the MCL38 but believes it will perform very well despite some areas needing attention: “It’s a combination of things. There are issues we still need to tackle if we want to be sure we’ve made a step forward. And I think we have.”
“We’ve made the car faster, and that’s very clear from all the data we have. But some things haven’t allowed us to progress as much as I would have liked, and I think as much as the team would have liked.”
“Some of these issues were highlighted here in Bahrain due to the nature of the circuit. So, I remain confident when we go to some circuits where we were very fast last year, like Suzuka and others, we can still be one of the best cars.”
“Bahrain has never suited our car, necessarily. And that’s exactly why I think we might struggle a bit more here. But I am convinced we can turn things around later on.”
Oscar Piastri, on his part, moderates McLaren’s objectives for this first race. Nevertheless, he is pleased to see his single-seater performing well and that McLaren continues in the same vein as last year.
“The car feels quite familiar compared to last year, which is what one would expect with stable regulations and similar tires. I think we’re in a good position. Of course, we want it to be fast first and easy to drive next.”
“I’m hoping for points, but I think a podium will be difficult… Red Bull looks very fast, Ferrari seems strong, Mercedes, no one really knows but they’ll be there, Aston looks good… The fight will be very tight again, just like at the end of last season.”
Norris Confident in McLaren’s Post-Bahrain Surge .Norris Confident in McLaren’s Post-Bahrain Surge
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