“It Was Lost Yesterday,” Lando Norris Blames Poor Qualifying for Woeful P7 Finish at Azerbaijan GP

Lando Norris asserted that his disappointing outing at the Azerbaijan GP Qualifying ruined all his chances to shine on Sunday.

“It Was Lost Yesterday,” Lando Norris Blames Poor Qualifying for Woeful P7 Finish at Azerbaijan GP

Lando Norris (via XPBimages)

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The Azerbaijan GP was nothing short of a nightmare for the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Both drivers headed into the race weekend looking strong for a positive finish in Baku. However, come qualifying, both Piastri and Norris suffered from an extremely woeful outing and had no shot at the pole position. Moreover, the Briton only finished in P7, right where he started, and berated his outing on Sunday.

McLaren had the chance to achieve the constructors’ title at the Azerbaijan GP if they managed to outscore Ferrari by nine points or more. However, Oscar Piastri binned his car into the wall on Lap 1 and finished his race very early. Meanwhile, Lando Norris gave it his all on track, but a P7 start meant there was only so much he could do throughout the race.

To make matters worse, Lando Norris also suffered from a botched pit stop with McLaren in the final stages of the race, which ruined any chances of achieving a good finish. Now, the Briton opened up on his results in Baku and how his dismal Qualifying outing caused his ultimate downfall over the weekend and nullified his chances to succeed on Sunday.

Lando Norris insisted that he did the best he could in the wreck-filled Qualifying session, only to achieve a P7 start in the end. However, Norris emphasized that he had lost the race on Saturday after failing to achieve a pole position or a better start for the race. The Briton recalled that going out on the track earlier than everyone else caused him to ultimately lose a lot of running in the session.

I did the best I could yesterday, today. It was lost yesterday, going out a bit early, not doing the best lap, maybe it could have gained a couple positions.

Lando Norris said in a post-race interview

Andrea Stella claims Lando Norris finished where he ‘deserved’

McLaren would definitely like to forget their woeful outing at the Azerbaijan GP and prepare better for the upcoming Singapore GP. Team Principal Andrea Stella opened up on the team’s insignificant outing in Baku, especially Lando Norris’ P7 finish. Even though the results were disappointing, Stella noted that Norris finished in the position that he deserved, more so after the tough qualifying session.

Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris and Andrea Stella (via F1)
Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris and Andrea Stella (via F1)

Andrea Stella recalled that the slow pit stop of over 4.1s definitely did not help Lando Norris’ aim to achieve a better finish in Baku. Stella pointed out that Norris was intentionally left out on the track for a lot longer than expected in hopes of being lucked out by a safety car. Regardless, ultimately the Briton finished in the position he deserved as he gave it his all till the end.

I’m not sure, certainly the slow pit stop didn’t help. We left to see whether it was decisive or not for the position. We stayed out as much as possible to see if there was a SC. I think ultimately we finished in the position we deserved.

Andrea Stella said in a post-race interview

Lando Norris still decreased the deficit to the championship leader, Oscar Piastri, by a handful of points. With just seven races to go, both McLaren drivers will aim to maximize their results and not repeat the woes at the Azerbaijan GP. Now, time will tell how the two bounce back in the coming races and achieve both championships under their name.

Also Read: Lewis Hamilton ‘Couldn’t Care Less’ About Azerbaijan GP Finish After dismal run