It was a rough weekend for McLaren’s Lando Norris at the Saudi Arabian GP. After a late qualifying crash left the Briton starting P10 on the grid, Norris drove a stellar recovery drive to finish P4.
Heading into Jeddah, McLaren were the favourites to dominate from the get-go. After finishing all three free practice sessions in the top two, Norris solidified his fight as a contender for pole position. However, much to his disappointment, that didn’t happen due to his crash.
Norris felt “quite relaxed” ahead of the race
Following the race, the five-time race winner spoke to the F1 Nation Podcast about his performance. Norris explained he took a slightly different approach this time. Having explained his mindset leading up to the race, the British driver claimed he “was quite relaxed”. The British driver elaborated on howhow cancelling out the surrounding noise helped him relax.
“I was quite relaxed,” he stated.
“I put in my headphones for the first time ever. I’ve never worn headphones on the grid. It’s when I perform well, when I’m having fun and I’m relaxed.”
A perfectionist with high expectations
In his seventh season with McLaren, the Woking-based team has inevitably seen Norris grow. The Briton acknowledged the high expectations he holds for himself. Norris admitted he has been putting too much pressure on himself — purely driven from his own desire to do well.
“I’m probably putting a bit too much pressure on myself at the minute, not because of any [particular] reason, and not because of the championship and all these things. I just put too much pressure on myself because I want to do well, like I want to do so well.”
Winning the championship is not weighing on his mind, he admitted. Despite the 2025 season being in its early stages, the Briton knows he must “accept” that perfection will not come every weekend. Norris admitted that his quest for constant perfection is instead causing his mistakes.
“I want to be pole, I want to win, I want to be perfect, and I think I need to accept a little bit more that I’m not going to be perfect, and I’m making mistakes because I’m trying to be perfect, rather than the other way around.”
Speed and confidence are there, but Saturdays must improve
After a successful 2024 for McLaren, Norris is no stranger to knowing what it takes to be fighting for a championship. After duelling with reigning world-champion Max Verstappen throughout 2024, Norris knows he has what it takes. Moving forwards, trusting his speed will be key towards bringing him back to the top.
“I think I just need to chill out a little bit and have a bit more trust in my speed, because my speed today, and my speed in every race this season, has been, I think, the best,”
As the season continues to progress, Norris knows wins will come when he secures stronger qualifying results. Stating that improving his Saturdays will be “easier said than done”, it is now his main focus moving forwards.
“I’m very confident that I can win the races if I just give myself a better chance on Saturday. It’s easier said than done, and I need to go out and do a better job on Saturdays, but that’s what I’ll be working on.”
After the Saudi Arabian GP, Norris sits in P2 in the Drivers Championship behind teammate Oscar Piastri. Formula 1 heads next to Miami for the next round of racing, running from May 3rd to 5th.
