Lando Norris’ post-race commentary on McLaren at Suzuka: the World Champion secured a solid fifth-place finish
Lando Norris is smiling once again. Following his Did Not Start (DNS) in Shanghai, the British McLaren driver claimed a resilient fifth position, earning 10 crucial points in the Drivers’ Championship and bringing his season total to 25.
Despite trailing teammate Oscar Piastri for most of the weekend since FP1, Norris managed to cross the line in fifth—arguably the maximum result achievable for his MCL40 today.
Praise for Piastri and Insights on the MCL40
Lando opened his post-race interview by praising the young Australian: ” Oscar drove an excellent race today. Even for me, trying to reel in the Ferrari at the end in clean air was incredibly difficult. Oscar managed the situation perfectly right from the start “.
Starting from fifth on the grid—having missed out on Leclerc’s fourth-place time by a mere four-thousandths in qualifying—Lando surged into podium contention immediately. A stellar getaway saw him leapfrog both Mercedes: ” We both had great starts, which was fantastic. It felt good to be running first and third again and to relive that sensation. There are many positive signs for us as a team“.
However, after being overtaken on track by the Silver Arrows of Russell and Antonelli, Norris was the first of the frontrunners to pit, attempting an undercut on Leclerc.
The strategy was compromised by a Safety Car triggered by Ollie Bearman’s heavy impact into the barriers with his Haas. This played against Norris, who lost track position to Hamilton, as the latter was able to pit during the neutralization. Nevertheless, the World Champion managed to overtake Lewis on track on the penultimate lap, securing 10 points from the Suzuka weekend.
Lando concluded by discussing the technical evolution of the car:
“We are clearly gaining a better understanding of the deployment, the battery, and all elements related to the Power Unit, which is always a positive sign. Some areas still require effort to fully master, but Oscar and I are reporting identical issues”.
He ended on an optimistic note: “There are positive indicators, and there are always aspects I can refine personally. I am very confident we can return to the front“.
