F1 star Lando Norris admits rivals are CLEARLY ahead of McLaren after Japanese GP

Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, McLaren, Japan, 2024 — Photo: © IMAGO

Japanese Grand Prix

F1 star admits rivals are CLEARLY ahead of McLaren after Japanese GP

British driver dejected after difficult race at Suzuka

By Lauren Sneath.

Sunday 7 April 2024 17:30

Lando Norris has made a disappointing revelation about McLaren's Formula 1 rivals after the Japanese Grand Prix.

He and team-mate Oscar Piastri failed to make any real impression on Ferrari or Red Bull in Suzuka, finishing fifth and eighth.

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Norris said the fight against faster teams feels like 'fighting a losing battle' as those behind Red Bull race to secure P2 in the championship.

“It was a tough race,” Norris said, adding that the McLaren didn’t have the pace to catch the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.

Max Verstappen won the Japanese Grand Prix

He appeared to lament the regression of the team, which last season began far down the grid but climbed up thanks to smart upgrades.

Norris said: “It doesn’t feel great, you know, when you start third and just kind of go backwards.

You kind of feel like you’re just fighting a losing battle against these guys, because they can do a lot more.”

Norris: Ferrari is clearly ahead

Asked if the fight between McLaren and Ferrari for second place in the Constructor’s Championship was close, Norris was unequivocal in his response.

“No, no,” he said. “Ferrari is clearly ahead. They’ve been ahead all year, they’re still ahead. We’ve not changed anything. There’s no reason why we should be ahead.”

Carlos Sainz came in third in the Japanese Grand Prix

Meanwhile, his team-mate was similarly dejected. Asked why the race wasn’t more successful for McLaren, Piastri said: “Just struggled a bit with the tyres. I think we just didn’t have the pace of the cars around us.”

He added: “Today showed that we still have some work to do. We’re clearly not quite at the level of Ferrari yet, so we just need to find a little bit more.”

Red Bull Max Verstappen Ferrari McLaren Lando Norris Charles Leclerc