Lando Norris is looking forward to a much improved weekend after McLaren endured a ‘shocking’ performance in Monaco.
The team struggled with pace throughout the Monaco Grand Prix, and Norris’s challenge was cut short by power unit issues that forced his retirement. Meanwhile, teammate Oscar Piastri managed to secure a fourth-place finish in a chaotic race. Reflecting on the weekend, Norris expressed hope for a comeback at Barcelona.
“We have to stay optimistic," Norris told the official F1 website. “It just wasn’t a good weekend overall. Oscar’s result ended up not being too bad, but from a pace perspective and for me personally, reliability was the bigger issue.
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“Retiring from the race was painful. The entire team — McLaren and HPP — have been working hard to diagnose the problem, fix it, and ensure it doesn’t happen again. Sometimes that’s just racing. We keep our heads down and move forward.
“I’m more optimistic about this weekend than I was heading into Monaco. I wasn’t very hopeful there, and unfortunately that proved true. I’m happy to be back and eager to show the pace we had demonstrated in Montreal and Miami.”
Norris added, “This weekend should give us reassurance and boost our confidence. We’ve been hard on ourselves because Monaco was really below par — not just poor, but a shocking performance. Montreal was decent, and Miami was a strong weekend.
“Just three weeks ago, we were very pleased with how things were going. Monaco was a bitter disappointment, especially coming off a win there last year. But we remain confident we can bounce back with a strong showing here.
“A solid performance now will be crucial for the remainder of the year and for the entire team’s morale. We want to get back to fighting for podiums and, hopefully soon, for wins again.”