Lando Norris admitted that McLaren’s speed during Thursday’s practice sessions at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix was far from competitive, describing it as "pretty pants" and saying he does not expect the team to fight for pole position. In the second free‑practice session, Norris was a full 1.5 seconds slower than the session leader, George Russell, and the tight, 90‑degree corners of the Baku street circuit seemed to expose the weaknesses of the current McLaren chassis. The team arrived in Baku with a substantial upgrade package that includes new side‑pods, a revised engine cover, an updated diffuser and a re‑shaped floor edge.
Despite the magnitude of the changes, the parts have not translated into an immediate performance boost. "We are miles off," Norris explained. "We’re in the right position relative to where we want to be, but we’re still 1.5 seconds off the leading pace.
Pretty pants," he added, noting that he sits 106 points behind championship leader Kimi Antonelli with nine races remaining. When asked whether McLaren could close the gap to Mercedes, Norris was cautious but hopeful.
"I hope so, I have no idea. We’ll see what we can do tonight.
The car doesn’t feel terrible, so it’s a bit of a knife in the heart when you see how far off you are," he said. "I just care about the pace.
We’re not very fast. I drive whatever car I get, I just want it to be quick, and at the moment it isn’t." During the second practice, Norris aborted a fast lap that, according to timing data, would have brought him within a second of Russell’s best time. Russell, who topped both practice sessions, later commented that while overtaking is possible on the Baku street layout, track position remains crucial because the circuit’s narrow sections and tight corners can quickly trap drivers. McLaren’s chief technical officer, Rob Marshall, stressed that the team is still in the learning phase with the eight new components.
"We have a lot of new bits on the car – a lot of learning. You put your package on and you need to learn how to dial it in and I don’t think we are there yet," Marshall said. He added that the aerodynamic maps appear promising, but the challenge lies in extracting consistent performance from the new hardware. Qualifying is scheduled for Friday at 13:00 local time, with the race itself set for Saturday at noon, both broadcast live on Sky Sports F1.
The weekend also includes a series of support events, including F2 sprint and feature races, and a post‑race analysis segment titled "Ted’s Qualifying Notebook." Mercedes, meanwhile, enjoyed a smoother weekend despite setbacks. Kimi Antonelli suffered a hydraulic leak in the first practice session and was forced to replace his power unit before the second session, losing roughly an hour of track time. Nevertheless, the Italian driver still managed to finish second in the second practice, only half a second behind his teammate George Russell, who led the session.
Antonelli reflected on the situation, saying, "We tried to do the maximum with what we had. Losing a lot of laps in FP1 and missing half of FP2 is never ideal, especially on a street circuit, but overall it was a good recovery.
I feel quite good in the car and look forward to tomorrow." Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was the closest challenger to Mercedes in the practice runs, yet he remained over eight‑tenths of a second off the leading pace despite Red Bull bringing its own upgrade package to Baku. Verstappen’s teammate, Isack Hadjar, returned to the car for the first time since July after a wrist injury forced him out for three race weekends. Hadjar, who is set to stay alongside Verstappen in 2027, also lost valuable laps due to an engine issue in the first practice but reported feeling "pretty happy" with the limited time he had. "It feels good.
I had a good feeling, not many laps unfortunately but this will come. I’m not too worried about the pace," he said.
"The new package feels nice – better than when I left it in Budapest." Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton both featured in the top five of the two practice sessions. Hamilton, a seven‑time world champion, expressed frustration with Ferrari’s tyre performance and straight‑line speed.
"I felt generally good in the car. The track is awesome to drive. In FP1 I felt very strong, but in FP2 the others took another step," Hamilton explained, noting that the team had not changed the car’s setup while rivals appeared to have found extra performance. He described the tyres as "really, really difficult to get to work," adding that a small change in lap count could suddenly unlock a large amount of grip, making tyre management a fine line.
"Our straight‑line speed is not as good as Mercedes. Whether we can close that deficit tomorrow we will try to work on tonight. Otherwise, a fun day," he concluded. Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur echoed the sentiment, saying the sessions were hard to interpret because every performance parameter – fuel load, engine mapping, tyre temperature – had a bigger impact than on a conventional circuit.
"The drivers were not very pleased with the balance, so we have a lot to do tonight to find a good solution for tomorrow," he said. The weekend schedule also includes a packed F2 programme, with sprint and feature races on both Friday and Saturday, and a series of Sky Sports Main Event live streams. As the 2026 Formula 1 season pushes forward, the Baku Grand Prix will be a crucial test for teams hoping to close gaps before the championship’s final stretch. The street circuit’s unique blend of high‑speed straights and tight, low‑speed corners continues to reward teams that can strike the right aerodynamic and mechanical balance, making the upcoming qualifying session a pivotal moment for McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari and the rest of the grid.