Norris: We were ahead of those we wanted to be ahead of

McLaren is generally pleased with the results of qualifying at the Mexican circuit, as Lando Norris starts for both Alpine cars and Daniel Ricciardo is already much more comfortable behind the wheel of the MCL36 this weekend.

Lando Norris (8th): “I’m quite happy with the results of the day, we did well, for the guys we wanted to be ahead of. It seems to me that I put in a good lap in the qualifying final, which will allow me to start for both Alpine cars. This is the maximum we can achieve in such circumstances.

We are way behind the top teams, but this is the usual one, so I’m glad we were able to increase our chances a bit before the race. On this track there is a long acceleration towards the 1st corner, so a lot can happen in the beginning.

Now we go to the preparation for the race, we have to pay maximum attention to a good start, start normally, then be persistent and try to race without any problems.

Daniel Riccardo (11th): “I think certain aspects of qualifying are encouraging, we showed a normal pace. The first attempt in the second session was not bad, although a few corners of the second sector could have been better, but it seemed a feasible task.

On the second attempt, however, the heavy traffic held me back and the exit circle from the pits didn’t go as well as I wanted: the pace was too slow, preventing the tires and brakes from warming up properly. It has cost us a lot and we need to prepare better for such situations.

Still, there is hope that tomorrow everything will turn out better. The car can handle a normal pace, although I would like to do better in qualifying and go into the final session.

Andreas Seidli, team leader: “As qualifying was not easy, we were happy with the results. Lando did everything in his power and confidently rode the lap with the 8th fastest time, but we are also happy with Daniel’s 11th result.

This weekend he is much more comfortable behind the wheel, he will start from a good position and will compete for points. Unfortunately, during the last attempt in the second session, he was prevented by traffic on the last sector of the circle when exiting the boxes, which prevented him from preparing the tires and brakes optimally.

We expect tomorrow’s race to be difficult and intense – as always on this track, where there are grip problems, and it is high above sea level. Reliability will also play an important role, but given the settings we’ve chosen, we think we’re pretty ready to fight.