Lando Norris cut a composed figure on Saturday evening in Lusail, even as he unpacked the small but costly mistake that denied him pole for the Qatar Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver had looked in complete control after the opening Q3 runs and ready to break the supremacy of his teammate Oscar Piastri, but a flash of understeer in Turn 2 forced him to pull the plug on his final lap – a moment that ultimately handed the Aussie the top spot on Sunday's grid.
Despite the disappointment, Norris insisted there were no excuses, no frustration, and no bitterness. Just a moment that slipped through his fingers.
Norris’ banker lap had put him a fraction ahead of Piastri and several tenths clear of the chasing pack, setting up a final-run shootout between the McLarens. But the fight fizzled almost immediately.
“I don’t know. I just got a bit of understeer and was going to go off so I had to abort which was a shame. It is the way it is,” Norris said, explaining what had happened.
“Oscar did a good lap and drove very well, and has been driving well all weekend. Nothing to complain about. I didn’t do the lap and still P2 for tomorrow.”
While second place remains a strong position, Norris knows he’ll be starting from the dusty, less grippy side of the grid – with Max Verstappen looming behind and waiting to pounce on any hesitation at Turn 1.
Still, the Briton could mathematically seal the championship on Sunday if he wins and results elsewhere play in his favour. And though pole slipped away, he isn’t ruling out a bold opening phase.
“You never know. The first couple of laps there’s opportunities for everyone but after that it’s going to be pretty straightforward for everyone too,” he said.
“Tonight we will review some things and see what I can do better than this morning. Otherwise, we’re in a good position. The car has been feeling good. I was much happier today than yesterday. Progress but it’s a long race tomorrow.”
For Oscar Piastri, Qatar has brought a timely resurgence. After a difficult run of races, the Australian delivered his best weekend in months, taking sprint pole, winning the sprint, and now grabbing his first Grand Prix pole since Zandvoort.
He insisted little had changed in the car – instead, the setup sweet spot finally came to him.
©McLaren
“No. We left it pretty much the same,” he said. “Very, very minor tweaks here and there. Everything felt great all weekend. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.
“The team did a great job. There was a bit of a question mark on which tyres we wanted to use today because I did a quick lap on the used set in Q2.
“That threw a bit of a spanner in the works as we didn’t expect it to be so good. Q3 was really good on the new [tyre] so pretty happy.”
But Sunday’s race adds a twist: Pirelli’s 25-lap maximum per tyre set, enforced after concerns over tread damage on Lusail’s aggressive kerbs. The rule guarantees a minimum two-stop race and a relentless pace.
Piastri expects the physical challenge to be just as fierce.
“Pretty tough. I think with the two stops as well, the lap limits, we’re probably going to be pushing pretty hard the whole time,” he said.
“I don’t think it’s going to be as hot as a couple of years ago so hopefully it’s not as bad as that so I am expecting it to be a tough race. You’re pulling an insane amount of G-force around here, multiple times a lap. It’s hard work but incredible fun.”
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