Norris: Speed and pace are there but ‘I need to get a move on’

Lando Norris insists he's not losing sleep over Oscar Piastri’s fast start to the 2025 Formula 1 season, instead expressing confidence that he can soon “get a move on” and challenge at the front again – while admitting there's work to do to tidy up his own performances.

After a strong win at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, Norris has found himself trailing his McLaren teammate, who has emerged as a title frontrunner with three wins in the opening five races.

But as F1 heads to Miami for Round 6, the Briton says he’s not rattled by the standings or Piastri’s form.

"No, not worried at all. He's doing a good job, and he deserves it," said Norris ahead of this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.

"I don't believe so much in the momentum stuff, just my opinion. But I'm doing what I can. Clearly, I've made some mistakes and not at the level I need to be. But I believe I can be at the level soon enough, so no reason to be worried.

“The pace is there – I just need to tidy up”

While Norris acknowledges that he hasn't yet gelled with McLaren’s MCL39 in the same way Piastri has, he believes the ingredients are there – and that a cleaner execution on his side will turn things around.

"It's round six of 24. I'm not going to say that forever. I know I need to get a move on, and I need to get into gear a little bit. But the speed is there, the pace is there," Norris said.

“The race pace is definitely there. It's just one thing I need to tidy up. And it's a difficult thing. But I'm confident that I'll get it."

Much of Norris’ focus in recent weeks has been on understanding the finer points of McLaren’s 2025 machine.

With fewer similarities to last year’s car, the new design has required a re-learning process — and plenty of time in the simulator.

“It was a productive couple of weeks”

"It was a productive couple of weeks,” explained the five-time Grand Prix winner. “That doesn't mean a lot of stuff has changed for this weekend.

“It's not like things are going to magically work as I would love, but there's a lot more understanding of what could have affected things, and what maybe didn't.

"The majority of my simulator work was based upon that and trying to understand some of these things, which is good.

“But then it's about understanding them further, knowing what measures you can take to start changing things on the car and what you want to put resources into."

While McLaren is expected to bring upgrades in the coming races – particularly once the European season kicks off – Norris is clear that he’s not leaning on those to fix everything.

"I certainly think [upgrades] will help,” he said. “But I also don't want to just rely on that. There are also things I'm trying to work on separately, and hopefully that's a better fix than waiting for the bits to come."

With 19 races still on the calendar, Norris remains well within reach of the title race – and determined to prove he’s far from out of contention.

• Read also: F1 legend backs Piastri for F1 glory, calls Norris ‘mentally weak'

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