Lando Norris has admitted that “some magic” is needed if he is to beat team-mate Oscar Piastri to victory in Sunday’s Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix.
The Brit lost out on pole position to his Australian counterpart by just one hundredth of a second at Zandvoort, having previously topped all of the free practice sessions.
Piastri revealed that “patience” in his approach to tweaking the set-up on his MCL39 was a deciding factor in what proved to be a swing in his favour.
Losing out in the battle for pole could be crucial in the title race, as the coastal circuit is notoriously difficult to overtake on, meaning pole carries more of an advantage than usual.
Speaking after qualifying, Norris confessed that he desperately wished to have taken top spot, but acknowledged the usual closeness between them since Friday.
“I would have loved to be on pole,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “I think that’s the thing that would have made me the happiest. But it’s been close all weekend.
“You just look at the results and I’ve been ahead. But I easily could have been behind by just losing half a tenth or a tenth here and there. So, it’s not like I’ve dominated it.
“I’ve just been ever so slightly ahead and it’s just switched the other way around for quali. But I still am confident for the race pace. We know that’s one of our strengths as a team.
“But I also know my main competitor is the guy ahead of me. We’ll see tonight. Of course, we always put the plan together, but with the other side and with Oscar and everything.
“So, it’s always a little bit trickier to beat that one guy. But at the same time, it’s a long race. We’ll see what we can do.”
Norris to figure out what he ‘can dream of’ before race day
Last year in the corresponding Grand Prix, Norris overtook Max Verstappen on his way to victory.
When reminded of this, Norris pointed out the differences between now and then, and how divine intervention might prove to be what hands him victory again this time around.
“I mean, yeah — no offence to Max — he was in a much slower car last year,” he joked. “So that helps a lot.
“Oscar’s in a much quicker car this year and the hardest guy to normally overtake is your team-mate, especially when in a quali like today where we were split by one hundredth.
“So yeah, I mean, it’s going to take some magic, some good strategy or incredible tyre saving or something.
“But it’s normally pretty difficult to overtake in the first place. It’s even harder to do that behind your team-mate. So, I’ll see what I can dream of tonight.”
READ MORE – Oscar Piastri grabs pole position for F1 Dutch GP in McLaren 1-2
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