Lando Norris remained conservative about McLaren’s hopes of challenging frontrunners Red Bull and Ferrari in Formula 1’s Australian Grand Prix despite topping FP1.
A more realistic representation of the Woking-based squad’s outright pace came in FP2, with Norris situated in ninth and two places behind team-mate Oscar Piastri.
The Briton dismissed heightened expectations following his morning showing, quipping that McLaren’s MCL38 possessed “no strengths” around the Albert Park Circuit.
“I didn’t really feel great in FP1, I think it was just we showed more pace than the others, so I don’t really think it meant anything at all,” Norris expressed.
Despite ending last term as Red Bull’s most consistent contender, McLaren has not been in a position to mount a significant podium challenge in the opening rounds.
Norris had touted Ferrari to be a threat to Red Bull’s dominance coming into the weekend and he admits that the marque’s SF-24 gains time on McLaren across the lap.
“I think it’s clear Ferrari and Red Bull are a long, long way up the road,” Norris noted. “Ferraris are [on] pole tomorrow I think, Leclerc’s on pole tomorrow, or Carlos.”
“I think we lose just a little bit in every sector compared to the Ferraris, maybe a little bit more in the tighter twisty contours like the last sector.”
Norris added that despite McLaren’s “clearer weaknesses” being exposed, he believes “we’re in a reasonable position” to battle against Aston Martin and Mercedes.
“We’re just trying to improve the balance and everything, we’ll make everything get a little bit better,” he concluded.
Dusty and windy conditions saw both sessions littered with incidents and close calls, which both McLaren drivers agreed created challenging circumstances to tackle.
Melbourne native Piastri labelled the Friday “tricky” but stressed that despite the issues faced there were plenty of positive signs from the car.
“It’s going to be interesting to see where we come out,” Piastri said.
“I think if we’re a little bit quicker we’ll be right at the front, if we’re sort of how we were in FP2 there over one lap, we’ll be towards the back end of the top 10.”
McLaren was still testing setups late into FP2, with both Piastri and Norris swapping between high and low downforce front wings ahead of a final decision overnight.
Looking ahead to McLaren’s prospects for the weekend, Piastri added: “It looks very tight, as always this year.
“The tyre wear looks very, very high, so it’s going to be an interesting Sunday for sure, but qualifying at the front always makes life easier.”
