Lando Norris is approaching McLaren’s latest upgrade for the Hungarian Grand Prix with cautious optimism, hoping it will help the team close the gap to the frontrunners. The reigning World Champion has faced a rollercoaster start to the 2026 season, marked by reliability setbacks, including a costly 10-place grid penalty at Spa-Francorchamps due to power unit component changes.
Despite the penalty, Norris showed impressive form in Belgium, securing the third fastest qualifying time and finishing seventh, convinced he could have podiumed without the sanction. Buoyed by this performance, McLaren’s upgraded floor and aerodynamic enhancements are expected to suit the high-downforce Hungaroring circuit, where the team previously achieved 1-2 finishes in recent years.
“This is probably the biggest upgrade of the season by quite a margin, and we’re hoping it brings us a significant step forward,” Norris told the Formula One website. “We’ve had a few parts this year that didn’t perform as expected, so I’m staying patient before getting too excited.”
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Norris outlined his expectations for the upgrade: “I’m hoping for more grip and a faster car overall. The goal is to extract more pace and mitigate some of the issues we’ve been facing. I’m confident we can still be quick. There have been several races, like Spa and Miami, where our pace matched or came close to the frontrunners.”
He did acknowledge McLaren’s ongoing qualifying struggles: “We’re still far off the pace in qualifying, with no chance of cutting four-tenths or half a second currently. Both the car and driver side need improvement, and I hope this upgrade can help us make that jump.”