Lando Norris: A weekend full of missed opportunities

Lando Norris finished third in Qatar and is satisfied with the result, although he thinks he could have achieved more…

Question: Lando, starting tenth, you climbed to the podium. Did you expect such a result?
Lando Norris: We knew the car was fast, but there were questions about tires and pit stops. I don’t think anyone knew before the start how everything would turn out.

So we knew we had excellent pace, it wasn’t enough to fight for the win, but it was enough to get back. We hoped to compete with Mercedes, but they made our lives easier with their clash. I was focused on staying ahead of those we were faster at: Ferrari and Aston Martin.

When we came through the first corner I felt we could fight for the podium. So from the first lap the podium was my goal. Our pace was even better than I expected; at some points in the race we might have been a little faster than Max, and at other times a little slower. Overall, third place is a worthy result. I’m happy for the team, for Oscar, for everyone at McLaren. The double podium is fantastic.

Question: This year we never heard you say “faster than Max.” Were you closer to him in this race than before?
Lando Norris: Probably. I don’t know how much faster Max could have gone in qualifying. But I had to fight for both poles this weekend – and for two wins.

This may sound too harsh, but I think if everything had gone well, if I had worked better and not made mistakes, everything could have turned out even better. For me this is a weekend of missed opportunities, I could have tried to force the fight on Max.

I feel like I missed the opportunity, didn’t do what I should have done, didn’t achieve what I should have achieved, but I’m happy with third place.

Q: If the team hadn’t been tasked with holding positions, could you have finished second?
Lando Norris: Unsure. Every time I approached Oscar, the car hit a stream of disturbed air and I immediately lost time. The same applied to the riders I overtook for a lap.

On a track where everything depends on engine power and long corners, this becomes a serious problem as soon as you get into congested traffic.

I think I was a little faster than Oscar, but he did a great job this weekend, made fewer mistakes and finished in front. Take off my hat!

Question: Logan Sargent withdrew from the race due to ill health. Many riders encountered difficulties. Do you think Formula 1 has reached its limit in this race, under these conditions, with these cars, or perhaps even exceeded it?
Lando Norris: I think we’ve reached the limit this time. Not the most pleasant situation: people end up in a medical center and lose consciousness. This is not a case where you can simply say that riders need to train more.

We are in a car that gets very hot during a truly grueling race. It may look easier on TV, but if it means someone has to leave the race or feel unwell, it’s too dangerous at such high speeds.

I know that the race in Qatar next year will be later, that in a few months it will be much cooler here, but this is something to think about. This simply shouldn’t have happened.