All 20 drivers are back for the most iconic race of the season, and McLaren driver Lando Norris shared his thoughts on the F1 Monaco GP. The Briton is a championship contender this year, separated by 13 points from his teammate, Oscar Piastri. With the new FIA mandatory 2-stop rule in play, the Monte Carlo circuit became even more challenging for the teams.
McLaren is currently leading the Constructors’ Championship, and it has been since the beggining of the 2025 season. Both of the papaya drivers hold the first two places in the drivers’ standings, with Piastri in P1. Therefore, this exclusive race will not only give Lando the chance to reclaim pole, but also separate himself even more from the current world champion. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen seems to not be going down without a fight, and Norris will get another attempt to beat him this weekend.
Qualifying to set the pace
In the past, it looked like the key to winning in Monaco lays primarily in the starting positions. As a result, having a great qualifying lap is crucial. After taking a quick look at Lando Norris’ qualifying sessions this season, the pressure will be on for a good Saturday at the F1 Monaco GP.
While setting a perfect flying lap has not been his strong suit this season so far, the 25-year-old needs all the confidence he can get. Norris admitted that his performance in terms of qualifying in 2025 is not ideal, despite car’s great potential:
“I mean I’m confident I have the speed, but you know, it’s true that this year I’ve not been able to put things together as well as what I have done in the past. For many, many years. So it’s something I’ve been very at one with and very, I wouldn’t always say confident, but something I’ve always just been very, very strong in. And I’ve just not done well enough this season.
“So it’s not like I’m doing a bad job, but when you’re against the best in the world, not doing a perfect job is also the definition of doing a bad job.”
Nevertheless, the Briton is already working with his team towards finding a solution to thi. He pointed out just how strong his pace feels during race stints.
“I mean, I’m focussing on working with my team, whether I’m back home or when I’m here at the track, on improving these things because it’s been my biggest letdown so far of my season. My races on Sunday have been very strong: my racing, maybe not every one, but my decision making. My Sundays I don’t even need to think about.”
Yet, not all hope is lost for Lando Norris and his F1 Monaco GP weekend. The driver talked about the support McLaren has provided for him, emphasising that future changes will come from both sides working together. Norris made sure to add that even if it might take some time, he can get back to his qualifying form of 2024:
“I’m very happy with my opportunities on Saturday. I know what I need to focus on, but like I said before and I’ve said the last few weeks, it still takes time. It takes work from both halves. Both from me as a driver and people I work with and also as a team providing me the equipment, the feelings that I need to perform at the level that I did last season. Because I think the level I performed at last season is a level that would have got me a lot more poles this year. So yeah, I’ve got it. I know that it’s there somewhere, but unlocking it just takes work and time.”
The contrast to Red Bull Racing
Despite Verstappen’s win in Imola from last weekend, Red Bull struggled to keep up with McLaren this season. Here at the Monte Carlo circuit, Red Bull had problems in the past due to the slow speed corners. As a result, some might expect Norris to find a sort of encouragement out of his rival’s possibble disadvantage in the F1 Monaco GP.
However, the Briton quite disagrees with the outside perspectives. He went on to differ, pointing out how some aspects can look different from an inside point of view:
“Well, they won last weekend. They’ve been, you know, pole several times this season. Max has won several races. He should have won in Saudi. There’s also slow speed corners in Imola where they were very strong. So, I think we have more of the facts than, I think, what people on the outside do. There’s a lot of negative stuff about how bad their car is, but they’re very quick.
“We said that the whole season, outside people have underestimated them, but we know that they’re a threat. They have been the whole year. They will continue to be, especially when you have a team that has won many world championships, especially in the last five, ten years. And they have Max, and I don’t think you can ever doubt them.”
Although McLaren and Red Bull Racing are rivals, Norris gave credit where it is due. He recognized Red Bull’s performance in Imola was good, yet he pointed out the vast posibilities of one race weekend. Moreover, the british driver remarked the variations a car can have between the different circuits:
“So, you know, they won last weekend because they deserved it. They were good in slow speed, they were good in high speed, and they have a good car. But like we saw between Miami and Imola for ourselves, we can look like heroes one weekend and then we get beaten the next.
“And it’s not because anything changed, literally just the track. The car is the same, the tyres were the same. It’s literally just the track is different. And we go from one to the other, you know. So, we just take every weekend as it comes. It could be amazing here, and go win.”
Possible future upgrades
While the F1 Monaco GP is right around the corner, Lando Norris spoke briefly on his wait for “better tools”. The McLaren driver could not give an exact date, but he highlighted the efforts his team has made and will continue to make:
“I mean, I don’t know what to find short-term and long-term in Formula 1. Sometimes that’s, I mean, it can be days or it can be months, but I’d say weeks. Weeks still is probably the best way of saying it. It could be a matter of months, you know. It’s a constant thing that we’re looking into and trying different things. And from those different things that we try, we get different answers and that might lead us to more stuff. So, yeah, it could be weeks, it could be still a couple of months.”
