McLaren's Struggles Continue: Norris Admits Team Lacks Pace in Baku Street Circuit

Lando Norris, the talented McLaren driver, has expressed concerns about his team's performance in Azerbaijan following a lackluster showing during practice sessions. The young Briton believes that McLaren is significantly behind its Formula 1 rivals in terms of pace, highlighting the challenges they face as they prepare for the upcoming race.

McLaren's Struggle in Baku

During the practice sessions in Baku, McLaren's performance was notably subdued. Oscar Piastri, Norris' teammate, managed to secure the fifth-fastest time, but was still half a second behind the pacesetter Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari. The gap between McLaren and other top teams like Red Bull and Mercedes was equally substantial.

Norris himself only managed to finish 17th, failing to set a competitive lap time on soft tires towards the end of the session. While it's important not to draw definitive conclusions from practice times alone, given variables such as fuel loads and engine modes, Norris couldn't hide his disappointment with McLaren's current standing.

Pushing Beyond Limits

The British driver revealed that both he and Piastri were having to push their MCL38 cars to the absolute limit just to extract decent lap times. This level of effort required to remain competitive is a clear indicator of the challenges McLaren is facing on the Baku street circuit.

"We're quite a long way off. I'm having to push way too much to try and get a lap time out of it, clearly," Norris admitted in an interview with F1 TV. He added that even if they managed to optimize their performance, they would still be trailing behind their main competitors.

Realistic Expectations

Despite McLaren's recent success in other races, Norris was quick to temper expectations for their performance in Azerbaijan. He emphasized that while they have been doing an excellent job overall, there are still circuits where they struggle to match the pace of other teams.

"There have been plenty of circuits we've not been quick. People just love to believe that we're the best everywhere, but we're not," Norris stated, bringing a dose of realism to the situation.

Low-Grip Conditions: A Contributing Factor

The extremely low-grip conditions in Baku appear to be exacerbating McLaren's difficulties. Norris pointed out that the team typically performs better on high-grip circuits, and the current track conditions are far from ideal. This has resulted in slower practice times compared to the previous year and has caused several drivers to go off track.

As the Azerbaijan Grand Prix approaches, McLaren faces an uphill battle to improve their performance and close the gap to their rivals. Norris and the team will be working tirelessly to find solutions and extract the maximum potential from their car in the challenging conditions of the Baku street circuit.