Lando Norris dismisses Bahrain GP qualifying excuses with blunt "just slow" admission
Lando Norris gave a blunt assessment of McLaren's qualifying pace at Sepang, admitting the team was "just slow" after falling six tenths short of pole position.
The Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia has thrown a curveball when it came to qualifying, as for the first time in 2026, a Mercedes-powered car is not on pole position.
McLaren was one of the Mercedes-powered teams that were impacted on Saturday afternoon, as Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri qualified in sixth and seventh places.
When asked whether there were factors that held McLaren back during qualifying, Norris gave a very blunt verdict on the team's performance at the Sepang International Circuit.
“No, we're just slow,” Norris admitted after the qualifying session.
“The car's not good enough here. I think this tarmac is very different to a lot of other tracks we've been to this year, and therefore, I think you see Mercedes struggle a lot more today, especially.
“You see Red Bull quicker than they usually are. So, I think the—the order is just shaken up a little bit.
“I think we struggled a little bit more than what we were expecting because of the surface. So, I think we will struggle a bit more than we thought this weekend.
“But my lap was good; that's the only thing I can complain about, really, is if I did a good lap or not. And it's down to me, and I did a good lap, so I'm satisfied with my performance today, but just the performance of the car is a long way off.”
During Free Practice on Friday, Norris appeared to show a decent race pace, which he was asked about. However, the 2025 F1 world champion does not believe his pace will be enough to overcome his deficit to Red Bull and Ferrari.
He said, “It’s a big ask when you're six tenths off. It's hard to make that up anywhere.
“I'm still struggling with the straights with my car or the power unit. I don't know what it is now, but I'm just slower in a lot of straights, and that makes my life tougher than it needs to be, and it should be.
“So, we have to do a better job as a team still and fix this. But it's a long race. There are a lot of pit stops that could be up for grabs, and potential to make positions, so we can still be optimistic, for sure.”
