Lando Norris expressed his disappointment at missing the chance for a potential victory in the Spanish Grand Prix. The McLaren driver criticized his own performance, stating that he wasn’t up to par. He attributed the loss of positions at the start of the race as the main reason for not being able to secure the win. Despite starting in pole position, Norris was overtaken by both Max Verstappen and George Russell, which ultimately hindered his chances of victory. Verstappen went on to build a comfortable lead, while Norris found himself stuck behind the Mercedes in the early stages of the race. Although he managed to recover and return to second place, he finished 2.2 seconds behind Verstappen. Reflecting on the race, Norris believed that McLaren had the fastest car on the track, but his poor start and inability to overtake Russell in the first part of the race cost him the win. He praised his team for their strategy and was pleased with his overall performance, except for the start. Norris admitted that his reaction time to the lights was similar to Verstappen’s, but he lost out in the second phase, allowing the Dutchman to gain the inside line. However, he acknowledged that even if he had a slightly better start, the long run to the first corner and the effect of the slipstream would still have put Russell in the lead. Norris accepted that George’s good start was a factor he couldn’t control and that it affected the outcome of the race.
McLaren chose to extend Norris’ race stints and the newer tires helped him overtake Sainz’s Ferrari, as well as the Mercedes of Hamilton and Russell.
Norris had to make an effort to overtake Russell, as their duel lasted six corners until Norris gained the advantage, and the latter acknowledged that this cost him against Verstappen.
“It was a satisfying battle,” he recalled. “It cost me some time and affected my gap to Max in the end, but yes, it was enjoyable.
“I was on the edge, it was a fierce fight, and I was very respectful.”
Norris admitted that McLaren missed an opportunity to win in the previous race in Canada, but admitted that this race bothered him more because it was his fault.
When asked if this was more frustrating than Montreal, Norris replied, “Certainly, because that was more of a decision, an incorrect decision or a lack of decision-making.
“We definitely weren’t the fastest car in Montreal. Mercedes was clearly the fastest car.
“But today we were the fastest, we had the superior car out there, and I didn’t make the most of it.
“The start is my responsibility, to follow the instructions and execute them. And without that, or with a good start, we should have easily secured the victory.”
