Lando Norris expressed his frustration after retiring for the second consecutive race at the Monaco Grand Prix due to mechanical issues, leaving him searching for answers.
McLaren’s milestone 1000th Grand Prix weekend proved challenging. Norris and teammate Oscar Piastri qualified eighth and seventh respectively, more than half a second off pole position set by Kimi Antonelli.
At the race start, Norris lost ground to Pierre Gasly and found himself unable to overtake the Alpine driver for much of the opening stint. While maintaining position, Norris began reporting power issues, visibly slowing through the tunnel. Eventually, after being overtaken by George Russell, he was instructed to retire his car and return to the pits, marking another race without points following his gearbox failure in Canada.
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Reflecting on the disappointing day, Norris told F1’s official website: “I was fighting for eighth, and with Gasly having a penalty, it was an opportunity to grab points. We aren’t expecting wins or podiums this year, but scoring fifth to eighth is crucial—those points add up. Both the team and I are working hard, but we’re just not being rewarded. It’s a mix of bad luck and some failures.”
He acknowledged the difficulties of recent races due to reliability issues, especially contrasting with McLaren’s strong performance in Miami where he won the Sprint race and both drivers finished on the podium.
“I always have faith in the team. Some things take time. Miami showed how strong our pace can be—we could have won that race. This sport is unpredictable; it’s tough to nail the setup and perform consistently every weekend, and our car is a challenging one. Being six tenths off and still fighting for a win is impressive,” Norris said.
He added, “Everyone’s working extremely hard, including me. Despite the setbacks, I believe we can make progress through the season. It’s tough to start races and not finish, but that’s part of the challenge we face.”