Lando Norris has admitted it will be a “struggle” to land a podium in Formula 1‘s Canadian Grand Prix as two crucial errors resigned him to qualifying down in seventh.
The Briton seemed to have the upper hand over McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri as he headed the third practice session prior to topping the timesheets again in Q1.
However, Norris’ prospects unravelled once Q3 arrived as he missed the last chicane on his opening run and his second lap on the same tyres placed him fifth overall.
But while he still had another shot to improve on new rubber, Norris brushed the wall exiting Turn 7 and was unable to improve his time, leaving him rooted to seventh.
“Just a couple of big mistakes,” Norris told media including Motorsport Week.
“One, hitting the wall on the last lap in the exit of seven. And first lap, I think, last corner. So, yeah, just two mistakes that cost me, I guess.”
With Piastri ending up third behind a Mercedes and a Red Bull, Norris highlighted that McLaren hasn’t been as competitive this weekend compared to previous tracks.
“I think we’ve clearly not been as quick as normal. I think that’s just because of the layout of the track,” he explained.
“I think the car has not been performing relatively well. I was happy through all of qualifying.
“Maybe not the car to take pole today, but good enough to be up there and fighting for top three.”
Norris suspects that the lower grip asphalt used at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, coupled with its reliance on a car that can absorb kerbs and bumps, harmed McLaren.
“It’s very low grip. I think, first of all, it’s one of the bigger things. And, therefore, the car balance just never comes together as much as what it does on other tracks.
“Probably just low grip and some of the kerb riding bumps, which just hurts us, it seems, more than some others.”
Norris unsure McLaren change an improvement
Norris opted to continue using the updated front suspension that McLaren brought to this weekend’s round, while Piastri decided to revert to the previous convention.
However, Norris, who’s denied the revision was intended to make the MCL39 quicker, is unsure whether it has improved the numbness that has impacted both drivers.
Asked whether the part has enhanced his connection with the car, Norris responded: “It’s tough to say because this track, everything just feels different.
“So, I think it’s something we’ll have to wait and see on the next few races through Austria and Silverstone and so forth to understand.
“And maybe back-to-back tests between them both, but it’s nothing that I’ve felt just yet.
“But it’s more that when you go to a new track, it’s hard to remember everything perfectly relative to other tracks.
“So, like I said, we just need a bit more time to understand if it’s any better or not.
“It can be a benefit elsewhere, but it’s not a guarantee that it’s going to be a benefit just yet.
“So, it’s aimed to maybe give a bit more feeling. It’s not aimed to make us quicker or give the car more performance. So, it’s again something that we’ll have to review over time.”
Norris cautious on recovery prospects
Looking ahead to the race, Norris is concerned that McLaren not possessing a visible pace advantage will thwart his endeavours to make up ground over the 70 laps.
“I think a podium is tough, just because we don’t have the pace we’ve had in the last few races,” he assessed.
“But it could be easily a one, two or a three stop, depending on how the tyres behave tomorrow.
“So, of course, I’ll hope for a bit more to happen, but not as confident as in other places, for sure.
“Still confident we can go forwards, but clearly I think we don’t have the best car today. So, it will be a struggle to get to the top.”
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