After two dramatic FP sessions, McLaren’s F1 Singapore GP is still uncertain, with Piastri leading FP2 as Norris took some damage to his MCL39. This weekend will be a tough one for drivers and teams, as the Singapore GP was officially declared a heat hazard.
With the many incidents that caused stoppages during these Friday Free Practice sessions, McLaren did not get to test their car in any long run setup. Nevertheless, their season so far has been incredible. Currently, they hold the top spot in the Constructors’ Championship with 623 points, retaining a 333-point gap.
Norris’ unfortunate luck in FP2
Lando Norris had a difficult F1 Singapore GP weekend with his McLaren. Seemingly unable to find the balance, the Briton faced an incident involving Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. A moment of drama outside the track, on the pit lane, saw Leclerc taking a costly exit from the garage. This incident had Norris take on some minor damage to his front wing.
Overlooking his session, Lando Norris reflected on the collision with Leclerc. Moreover, despite his disappointment, he admitted he got lucky to have avoided further damage to his suspension.
“I mean, cost the team a bit of money, which is a shame.”
On a track like the Marina Bay Street Circuit, even the pit lane is narrow and can prove to be difficult to manage traffic. Nevertheless, the stewards opened an investigation, taking into consideration a possible unsafe release.
Searching for confidence
When it came to long runs that offer the teams an idea of their race pace, many did not get the chance, as the stoppages had them focus on qualifying pace. The F1 Singapore GP will prove to be a challenge for McLaren, as the FP sessions had Norris struggle.
Confessing to a general lack of confidence, Lando Norris went on to call this Friday a “bad day”. The McLaren driver seemed disappointed, comparing his current issues with the MCL39 to last year’s experience:
“Just a difficult day for me. Not feeling too great with the car. Yeah, missing all of the feelings that I had here last year. So plenty of things to work on. Yeah, just a bad day.”
Pace for the rest of the weekend
However, while he could not get a proper grip on his car, his McLaren teammate had a different experience at the F1 Singapore GP FP sessions. Lando Norris admitted that himself, explaining that the issues are not completely a consequence of a bad car altogether:
“Yeah ish. I mean, Oscar’s [Piastri] quick, so I got nothing to complain about. But just not doing a very good job.”
Quickly pointing out how he did not manage to try any heavy fuel runs today, “No, nothing.”, Norris went on to state that his focus will be on learning through the race. With Qualifying being a crucial aspect at the Marina Bay circuit, McLaren looks to be focusing on perfecting their flying lap times.
“Yeah, just wing it and go into the race.”
Piastri’s top run and Friday overview
McLaren ‘s Friday at the F1 Singapore GP was between two extremes. While Norris finished the FP sessions disappointed with his performance, Oscar Piastri took P1 in the second Practice. The Australian shared his thoughts in the print media pen, highlighting his process of finding the pace around Singapore:
“Yeah, definitely. I think I found my feet on the medium at the end, there. And then, yeah, soft felt good.
“So, yeah, obviously not much representative kind of race running. But the car’s been in a good place. Feel like I’ve learned a lot through today. And that’s the aim of practice, so it’s been a good day.”
With one driver confident with his medium and soft runs, McLaren still has a third Free Practice session to help Lando Norris recover. Having two competitive drivers around the F1 Singapore GP could mean a double podium for McLaren.
Learning through the stoppages
Piastri’s FP2 showed a lot of improvements compared to his FP1 outing. Despite the multiple interruptions throughout the second session, the Australian and his team chose to prioritise Qualifying pace over long runs this Friday.
“More or less, I think, you know, here qualifying is a massive part of the weekend. And it’s a massive part everywhere. But I think especially here it’s one of the most important.
“So you’d rather qualify further up and deal with the unknown for the race than qualify further back but know exactly what’s going to happen in the race because it’s not really going to help you.”
With a clear plan to perform in Qualifying, McLaren ended their Friday at the F1 Singapore GP with a P1 from Piastri and a P5 from Norris. Nevertheless, as the championship battle is getting closer and closer between the two, pressure will be high to find the best setup for Saturday’s Qualifying.
