Lando Norris remains convinced that McLaren can still mount a serious challenge for the World Championship once the Formula 1 calendar picks up again after the Miami Grand Prix. Even though the early part of the season has seen Mercedes and Ferrari pull ahead, the British driver believes the team has enough time and resources to close the gap and fight for top honors.
The reigning champion has endured a frustrating start to his title defence, failing to reach the podium in any of the first three rounds. His teammate, Oscar Piastri, managed a second‑place finish in Japan and could have taken the win if a safety‑car interruption hadn’t disrupted McLaren’s momentum.
That near‑miss highlighted both the potential of the car and the fragility of the circumstances that have hampered their results so far. Now, with the mandatory April break over, every team – McLaren included – has roughly five weeks of intensive work at their respective factories before the next race weekend arrives in just a fortnight. Norris sees this period as a crucial window to refine the car, address reliability concerns, and extract every ounce of performance from the Mercedes power unit that powers the chassis.
"I think we can have a good season, even if we're not where we want to be right now," Norris said, acknowledging the 47‑point deficit to Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli, who currently leads the drivers’ standings. "And although we haven't started the season where we want to be, we still want to push hard for the championship. This isn’t a case of giving up and focusing on next year – I’m not sure that approach ever really works." He pointed to several past examples where teams have stumbled at the opening stages of a campaign only to finish strongly.
"There are plenty of examples where we weren’t where we wanted to be at the start of the year, but we ended up in a much stronger position by the end – 2023, 2024 and so on. We’re a stronger team now than we were then. We've been there, done it, learned from it and I trust that this team knows how to do it again. Plenty of hard work ahead, but we’re ready for it," he added.
Norris also highlighted the importance of solving the reliability glitches that have plagued both the chassis and the Mercedes engine package. "We’re not in a terrible position, but we’ve definitely got to work to get back in contention for wins, and even then we need to keep going to make sure we have a car capable of winning every single weekend," he explained. He stressed that gaining track time is essential for developing a deep understanding of the car’s behaviour, especially regarding power‑unit integration.
"One thing we realised very early is that time in the car, and getting laps on the board, is so important when it comes to learning how to get the most out of the car, and specifically the power unit. Tiny, tiny margins make significant differences. Combine that with the fact that we didn’t start the Grand Prix in China, and that we didn’t get enough track time during practice in Japan, and it’s easy to see where we’re lacking," Norris said. To bridge that knowledge gap, McLaren is exploiting the interval between the Japanese and Miami rounds.
The team is spending countless hours on its simulators and has returned to the Nurburgring for a tyre‑testing programme that, while primarily focused on next year’s rubber, also gives drivers valuable seat‑time. "We’re putting a lot of time in on the sim, and we were back behind the wheel for a tyre test at the Nurburgring. Even though the test was focused on next year’s tyres, time behind the wheel is certainly never going to hurt," he noted.
Oscar Piastri echoed Norris’s optimism, emphasizing that the gap to Mercedes is manageable and that the team’s engineering prowess can deliver the required progress. "We have a lot of work to do to be back at the front consistently, but closing the gap to Mercedes and out‑developing the field is something that’s within our control," the Australian driver said. He added that McLaren’s recent history demonstrates an ability to turn adversity into advantage.
"This team has proven how we’re able to turn things around, and we’re starting in a stronger position than we have in previous examples, such as 2024. I have complete trust that the team will do everything they can to get us there and I am genuinely excited to see what we can achieve," Piastri affirmed. Looking ahead, the Miami Grand Prix will mark the return of Formula 1 action on May 1‑3, featuring the season’s second Sprint weekend. Sky Sports F1 will broadcast the event live, and fans can also stream the race via NOW without a long‑term contract.
The break gives McLaren a vital opportunity to fine‑tune aerodynamics, improve tyre management, and extract more consistent power from the Mercedes engine. If they can convert the lessons learned from simulation work and the Nurburgring test into on‑track performance, the team could realistically challenge for podiums and even victories in the remaining 19 races of the season. In summary, while the early championship table may not reflect McLaren’s ambitions, both Norris and Piastri are confident that strategic development, focused testing, and relentless work ethic will enable the squad to climb back up the order.
Their message to rivals and supporters alike is clear: the season is far from over, and the fight for the title is still very much alive.