Lando Norris said that McLaren “paid the price” for setting up its MCL38 Formula 1 car for cooler conditions ahead of Sunday’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola.
Norris fell away from eventual race winner Max Verstappen at the start of his second stint, having put on the hard Pirelli compound tyres.
After several laps struggling to get the tyres and balance of his McLaren in the right window, amid mounting pressure from Charles Leclerc behind, Norris was eventually able to switch things on.
From there, Norris mounted a late-race challenge on Verstappen, finishing under a second behind the Dutchman at the chequered flag but was left ruing possible set-up tweaks that could have granted him a second victory in as many Grands Prix.
“We were expecting it to be a little bit colder today than what it was, so we kind of set up the car more for colder conditions rather than hot,” said Norris post-race.
“I think I paid the price in general. So that’s why I had to do so much of an introduction to the tyres and kind of bring them up so gently and look after them. Because if I didn’t, I just would have fallen off a cliff like the others did.
“So my only chance was to drive my race and that meant being under pressure from Charles [Leclerc] for more laps than I would have liked.
“But as soon as I kind of cleared the traffic and got back into my own rhythm, then I felt good with the car.
“The tyres kind of came back to me and I could push and I was happy. So from then on, the pace was amazing. And it’s a good sign.
“It’s always a good thing to have is good race pace.
“But clearly when it’s hotter and there’s more degradation to the rear tyres, we start to struggle a lot more. And it’s something we know and maybe we could have prepared for a little bit more.
“But nevertheless, I’m happy with the outcome.”
Norris has made three successive Grands Prix finishing in the top two, second in China, a maiden victory in Miami and now second at Imola.
At times McLaren looked like the second fastest team in 2023 and many hoped over the offseason that would continue this year.
Norris’ recent form suggests the time for McLaren to be a consistent threat to Red Bull and McLaren is now.
“Hopefully, it continues like that because it’s exciting, it’s tough, and it gets you excited every weekend,” added Norris.
“I’m looking forward to the next few.”
