Lando Norris endured a frustrating Sprint qualifying on Friday at the US Grand Prix, the McLaren driver describing his best effort in SQ3 as “shocking” after securing fourth in the session.
Despite splitting the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz and ending up just 0.25 seconds off Max Verstappen's pole time, Norris was visibly disappointed with his performance, admitting to having struggled with balance and set-up throughout the day.
The Briton enjoyed a straight forward path to the final segment of qualifying, although he never appeared as a genuine contender for pole, setting the fourth and sixth fastest lap in SQ1 and in SQ2.
Reflecting on his performance, Norris bluntly admitted that it had not been very good.
“So not a great day,” he acknowledged. “I've been struggling the whole day, honestly, with the balance and the set-up... my lap was shocking."
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Despite his disappointment, Norris was actually relieved that it wasn’t worse.
"In a way I'm happy with P4 because I felt like it could have been a lot worse, but my lap was shocking,” he said. “Not a terrible day and it could have been worse, but could have been better. But I'll take it.”
Norris explained that McLaren’s raft of upgrades for Austin, which included changes to the front wing, suspension, and rear, had left his MCL38 “pretty much the same” compared to last month.
When asked about McLaren’s race pace compared to their rivals, Norris admitted uncertainty but remained cautiously optimistic.
"I hope to go forward, that's my plan," he stated. However, he confessed, "I have no idea how much we can."
The runner-up in the Drivers’ standings will aim to make up ground in Saturday's Sprint event, but his struggles in qualifying suggest a challenging weekend ahead in Austin.
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