McLaren takes pole with a superb performance from Lando Norris, marking the 14th pole position of his Formula 1 career. Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri continues to struggle, largely affected by the same issues that limited his performance at the United States Grand Prix in Austin. Even he doesn’t fully understand what is happening at the moment, while Norris is in top form, able to fully exploit the versatility and performance of the MCL39.
Piastri’s crisis also has a technical element
The first interesting question regarding McLaren concerns Oscar Piastri. The Australian has lost his sharpness and, at least for now, cannot pinpoint why his performance is no longer at the top. Psychological factors are undoubtedly important in these situations, which makes it surprising to see the calmness and consistency he displayed for two-thirds of the season suddenly vanish.
There are also technical components that are not helping Oscar. This mainly involves adapting to the car. It should be noted that the Drivers’ Championship leader rarely started the weekend at full speed. Instead, he always preferred to carefully study his car’s behavior, understand its strengths and weaknesses, and then find the right balance to perform at his best.
This is currently a context that Oscar Piastri is unable to recreate. Tonight the number 81 car will start in the fourth row, seventh position—not eighth—due to the penalty applied to Carlos Sainz. However, the bigger issue is the gap that his teammate has built: almost six-tenths over the entire lap. That is significant and highlights how far Oscar Piastri’s confidence behind the wheel has fallen.
Piastri’s confusing comments
As discussed in our regular Ferrari analysis, it may seem surprising, but even though the McLaren had more performance than the SF-25, Ferrari’s balance seemed even better. Oscar Piastri could not understand the MCL39 in the three free practice sessions available to him. He lacked the reference point needed to build a setup capable of exploiting his driving abilities to the fullest.
He himself acknowledges the consistent and substantial gap to his teammate. Nevertheless, he does not blame himself excessively, considering his technical work to be solid. However, calling his lack of speed a “mystery” underscores the point: unlike Lando, he was unable to find the car’s optimal working point, leaving part of the performance untapped.
Oscar suffered the same issues as in Austin, which is starting to raise concerns. He insists his driving style has not changed at all and that he is applying the same intensity, dedication, and approach as when he was performing at his best. This makes understanding the problem even more difficult. One certainty remains: he is confident he will soon regain his peak form.
Norris’s outstanding performance
Lando Norris, on the other hand, delivered a completely different performance. The Englishman was flawless in Q3. In free practice, his advantage did not seem so evident, but from the second part of qualifying onward, it was clear: he was the driver to beat. Charles Leclerc tried to stay close and, although he put in an exceptional lap in the SF-25, he still lost around two and a half tenths across the three sectors.
With Norris, McLaren finally extracted the full potential of the MCL39. He managed to put everything together at the right moment, something that had often been missing in recent races. The MCL39 is on pole because the chosen setup optimized most of the track, a result that is far from obvious considering McLaren’s previous outings.
In the second sector of the Mexican track, the team had consistently lost time over the weekend, but in qualifying Norris made a substantial step forward, gaining 71 thousandths over Leclerc’s SF-25 number 16. The British car has always been the most complete and versatile, with the widest operating window. Here in Mexico, it could shine—and thanks to Lando Norris, it did.
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