Despite Sudden Meteoric Rise, Lando Norris Drags Down Zak Brown & Co. With a Cruel Reality Check: “It Isn’t to My Strengths”

As much as everyone in the Formula 1 world was anticipating Daniel Ricciardo’s return at the Hungarian GP, there’s something else people were interested in seeing too. And that was McLaren’s performance in Budapest. Over the past two race weekends, McLaren made a significant step forward to close the gap to Red Bull. After the first and second rounds of its major upgrade package at the Austrian and British GP, respectively, the Woking outfit looked like the second-best car on the grid. Considering how fast the car’s been looking and the performance Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have been able to extract from it, you would think the MCL60 would be a pleasure to drive. But Norris feels otherwise.

Lando Norris is undoubtedly one of the most talented young drivers on the grid. And when you watch his onboards, his movements and handle over the MCL60 make it look like he’s one with the car. But that’s not the case. In an interview with Sky on Thursday, as reported by eurosport.com, he said, “You have to drive [the car] quite one way, but it’s also a way that I don’t want to drive or like to drive. I don’t like to drive the car the way that I have to drive it now. I feel like it isn’t to my strengths at all.”

He explained, “I want to be able to carry minimum speed and U a corner, and the last thing I can do in the world now is U a corner.” To U a corner means to carry momentum into it and take a wider line out of it. At the Austrian GP, Norris did this in almost every lap at Turn 3, but it wasn’t helping his pace too much. He added, “I have to V the corner more than ever, and I’ve never been the biggest fan of doing that, and I don’t like it that much.” To V a corner involves braking earlier and getting on the throttle that much earlier while exiting the corner.

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Despite the car not being to his liking and him having to adapt to it, he’s been able to maximize the MCL60’s potential. But no driver would want to drive a car they’re not too comfortable in, so McLaren CEO Zak Brown & Co. might want to change the car around to retain its performance while also aiding Norris to feel more comfortable. With the third and final round of upgrades to the car at the Hungarian GP, McLaren would want to continue its good run, but the track might not favor it.

Could Lando Norris & Co. struggle in Budapest?

The MCL60 is suited for fast tracks with straights and fast corners, which is a major reason why it did well in Austria and Silverstone—with Lando Norris finishing second at his home race. But coming to the Hungaroring, which features predominantly slow and medium-speed corners, McLaren could struggle. According to Speedcafe F1 editor Mat Coch, “I don’t think [McLaren’s] going to be looking at second and third. We’ve got Ferrari, Mercedes, Aston Martin – Aston Martin were usually pretty good at lower-speed stuff.”

Although McLaren was expected to not go well in Hungary, Friday’s running suggested otherwise. The Woking outfit was second-fastest in both simulations—qualifying and race pace. With Ferrari setting the pace for qualifying, the Papaya team is just 0.12 seconds off that pace. And with Red Bull setting the race pace, McLaren is 0.13 seconds off it. It could be the upgrades, or it could be teams holding back. It’ll all come to light during qualifying on Saturday and the race on Sunday.

What do you think about Lando Norris’ problems with the MCL60?

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