On the eve of the Chinese Grand Prix, Lando Norris is looking for redemption after a challenging opening race in Melbourne and has highlighted to McLaren the areas that need attention to close the gap to Ferrari.
The reigning McLaren world champion, Lando Norris, finished the season opener in fifth place, trailing the two Mercedes drivers and the two Ferrari drivers. During the Melbourne Grand Prix weekend, Norris had made candid comments about the Maranello team, describing their car as the best on the grid. Ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, the British driver reiterated his assessment and outlined specific areas that McLaren needs to address in order to get closer to Ferrari.
McLaren’s internal focus
Lando Norris identified several key areas where McLaren must intervene to reduce the deficit to Ferrari. During a media briefing and an interview with the official F1 channel, he explained: “Basically, it means more downforce, more grip, which simply allows us to do many things better. But it’s easy to make mistakes at this stage.”
The comparison with Ferrari is especially evident in cornering performance: “And even when we feel like we’re hitting a perfect corner, we’re still not fast enough compared to them in some turns. So we need to develop the car further, and the team, there at the McLaren Technology Centre (MTC), is working very hard to make that happen.”
Lando Norris added: “At the same time, maybe there’s more we can achieve over the course of a race weekend, but it’s difficult when you have to focus so much on the power unit and a bit on the car. You know, you have to focus on two things. So for us, it’s about figuring out how to improve both simultaneously. But creating a car that’s a bit more driveable for us drivers, a bit more forgiving, is complicated. The main thing is simply more downforce, which means more grip and makes our life easier.”
Lando Norris’s assessment of the MCL39 reflects a team currently caught in the crosshairs of a massive technical transition. While the car shows flashes of the speed that carried Lando to the title last year, the sheer efficiency of the Ferrari SF-26 in low and medium-speed corners has left Woking searching for answers. In Shanghai, where the circuit demands a perfect marriage of high-speed stability and mechanical grip, McLaren’s ability to “find more load” will be put to the ultimate test. If they can’t find a way to make the car more forgiving for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, they risk falling further behind the Mercedes-Ferrari duel at the front. The race is now on to see if the MTC can deliver the upgrades needed to keep their title defense alive.
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