Norris makes stunning pace claim despite Verstappen pole in Brazil
Norris makes stunning pace claim despite Verstappen pole in Brazil
Lando Norris has insisted that his McLaren was quickest during qualifying in Brazil, admitting that the chaotic weather conditions prevented any real chance at pole.
While the McLaren squad have enjoyed a recent change of form after their extraordinary mid-season upgrades, the Woking-based outfit have been unable to take pole position thus far in 2023.
Perhaps their biggest chance came in the qualifying session at Sao Paulo’s Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace. After hiding their pace in first practice on Friday, they entered the afternoon with hope of a surprise result. Their patience seemed to be paying off after showing initial signs of having the quickest package, but conditions changed quickly.
Unfortunately for Norris and Oscar Piastri, they had just one chance to go for pole and were unable to do so. Instead, they were forced to settle for seventh and tenth respectively. Any hope was ruined by the impending dark clouds and stormy conditions that resulted in an early end to the session as Red Bull's Max Verstappen took his eleventh pole of the campaign.
Speaking after qualifying, Norris revealed that he felt he had the pace to compete.
“It was great, honestly. The car was amazing, easily quick enough to be quickest today and on pole," Norris said.
“Pretty gutted we had to end it the way it did. I don’t know how to feel about it."
Norris: McLaren came alive
Arriving in Sao Paulo, most of the focus was on the possible battle between Red Bull and Mercedes. This allowed McLaren an opportunity to surprise with little pressure on the team, and it looked for parts of qualifying as though Norris was the driver to beat.
The sudden ending to the session left both McLaren’s frustrated, but Norris was still happy to see his MCL60 be capable of fighting for pole.
“I think the car was amazing," Norris continued. "It came alive a lot in qualifying and easily good enough to be quickest let’s say. Delivering the lap and putting it together in Q3 and everything is a different job. Disappointed, not a lot we could have done.”
READ MORE: F1 teams discussing possible rule change after Hamilton disqualification
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
F1 Miami Grand Prix weather forecast - latest today
- 20 minutes ago
F1 rival makes stunning Hamilton 'best' claim despite poor form
- 1 hour ago
F1 star emerges as SHOCK target for Audi
- 2 hours ago
F1 News Today: Horner BLAMED for Newey nightmare as ‘absolute b******s’ Red Bull claims slammed
- 3 hours ago
Hamilton F1 rival makes astonishing admission with Verstappen claim
- 3 hours ago
McLaren boss keen for stunning Alonso REUNION
- Today 10:57
Related news
Mercedes chief reveals Hamilton calamity beyond 'wildest dreams'
Jos Verstappen makes WILD prediction about son Max's retirement
Furious F1 drivers blame each other for Brazil start chaos
Red Bull's touching reason for Verstappen's Brazil radio karaoke
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860