Formula 1 world champion Lando Norris has acknowledged the need to make “better choices” as McLaren seeks to move forward after his incident with team-mate Oscar Piastri in Singapore.
Norris earned criticism from his superiors for colliding with Piastri during their fight for fourth place on the last lap of the Marina Bay sprint race, resulting in the loss of eight points and contravening McLaren’s ideals.
Team principal Andrea Stella indicated that discussions would continue back at headquarters, and it is believed these conversations took place last week.
McLaren is eager to put the incident behind them, with Norris, who ended the sprint in eighth place as Piastri retired, expressing regret for his misjudgment.
“I accept accountability for my errors, and I strive to learn from them,” Norris was quoted in the team’s preview for this upcoming weekend’s United States Grand Prix.
“This team drives me every weekend, and my goal is to repay the dedication everyone puts in by improving, making wiser choices, and representing the team to the best of my ability.”
Lando Norris, McLaren, Oscar Piastri, McLaren
Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images
The 26-year-old’s collision with Piastri further added to what had already been a challenging triple-header for McLaren, which did not secure a podium and struggled to compete with the upgraded Red Bull.
Red Bull secured consecutive victories through Max Verstappen in Malaysia and Singapore, while Mercedes’ George Russell triumphed in Azerbaijan, and they are now merely seven points behind McLaren in third place with six races left to go.
Stella, whose team has clinched the last two constructors’ championships, stated: “Following a challenging triple-header, we aim to apply the lessons learned from both our performance and execution into actionable steps.”
“In F1, success is never assured – thus our reaction should be to continue developing, innovating, and advancing collectively as a united team.”
McLaren introduces latest upgrades after disappointing performance
McLaren had brought its own developments for the MCL40 as well, and although it was puzzled by its lack of performance in Malaysia, Singapore illustrated that while their updates appear to function as expected, they have simply been outpaced by Red Bull.
Ferrari, finishing in second place, was also notably competitive on the high-downforce Marina Bay Street Circuit, while dominant leader Mercedes has made additional performance enhancements to its vehicle.
McLaren is now set to introduce its latest batch of relatively minor upgrades this weekend, primarily focusing on the front of the car, as it hopes the Austin circuit will suit the MCL40 more effectively. Furthermore, tweaks have been made to enhance driver confidence when braking.
“We’re introducing a limited assortment of upgrades for this event, aimed at resolving some braking reliability and performance challenges,” remarked chief designer Rob Marshall.
“Additionally, we have minor alterations to the floor to evaluate. It has become apparent how unpredictable the relative performance of the top teams has been over the past five or six races. Clearly, numerous factors are at stake here: cars being updated, cars performing better on certain circuits, and driver preferences among many other elements.
“The recent races haven’t worked well for us, but I believe we’re regaining strength and Austin is likely a more favorable track for our vehicle.”
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– The Autosport.com Team
