Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri inch closer to securing the constructors’ championship after scoring a 1-2 qualifying positions at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
With the constructors’ championship on the line and only 21 points separating them from Ferrari, McLaren entered the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying session as favourites. This was their chance to cap off a remarkable season of resurgence.
Throughout the weekend, Lando and Oscar showcased the blistering pace of their MCL38s, outshining rivals in practice sessions. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc faced a 10-place grid penalty due to a battery change, further brightening McLaren’s title hopes.
The qualifying session, as intense as it was critical, lived up to its billing. Max Verstappen initially claimed a provisional pole in Q3, but a balance issue saw him falter in his final attempt. Norris seized the moment, delivering a 1:22.595 lap to edge out teammate Piastri by 0.209 seconds.
Norris reflects on a challenging yet rewarding session
Speaking after the session, Lando admitted that despite knowing that they had pace, the team expected better, saying: “It was very good, quali was a bit of a struggle, honestly. We just expected probably to be a little bit better than where we were. The whole weekend so far has been quite straightforward from our side.”
“It just seems like everyone caught up a lot come qualifying. We had to start pushing a lot more. It was a good lap. It was not the cleanest, but sometimes when you’re close enough to the edge, and it’s just a little bit untidy, sometimes it’s actually quite a nice place to be.”
“So I had a couple of snaps and a big snap into 9th, the high speed, so I can’t say. I just made a mistake. That hurt me a touch, but otherwise it was a nice lap.”
“I put the rest of it together pretty well. It’s just not an easy circuit to do. We had a bit to gain in quality because Max was looking a little bit quicker than us through the most part of it, so I knew I had to pull something out.”
Norris talks about their speed and strategy
McLaren’s setup choices were also a point of discussion, particularly their decision to carry slightly more downforce. Norris acknowledged this made them vulnerable on straights but expressed confidence in their race-day performance, saying, “On a day like today with DRS and things, it’s probably not our biggest strength. I think on the race, things even out a little bit more.”
“Potentially, we knew we’d be a little bit on the back foot today with straight-line speed. We’re hoping tomorrow it kind of comes back to us because comparing to Ferrari, we’re a little bit down, and comparing to Red Bull, we’re quite a chunk down. It’s not necessarily just downforce.”
“We’re at the lowest of what our wing can provide. The next step for us is too big. So maybe other people are just in more of a sweet spot and more in an optimal range.”
“This weekend than we are ourselves, but the car’s been great all weekend. It’s performing well, and we’ll make sure it does the same tomorrow.”
Eyes on the prize
As McLaren prepares for the final race, the team knows the constructors’ championship is within reach. But with Ferrari determined to fight back, the race promises high drama. Lando is cautiously optimistic.
“I feel like Zak’s probably more nervous that we’re first and second than if we were not. It gives us good knowledge that the car’s great, of course.”
“I think we’ve both been driving well this weekend, and we knew the pressure was on from ourselves. So we both performed well, we both got everything out of the car. But it’s a long race, and many things can happen, so we’re definitely not going to get ahead of ourselves.”
“We know we have a little bit of a gap in terms of positions. We’re in a much more fortunate position than what Ferrari are, but he’s going to be putting up a good fight for his final race with Ferrari. He’s going to want to prove his point, and I’m excited to battle if that’s the case.”
A team on the rise
McLaren have pulled a massive feat this year, from starting on the back foot in 2023 to consistently winning races and having one of the fastest cars this season. Lando looked back at the great improvement fondly, recognizing Stella’s and Brown’s efforts in building a successful team. Speaking to the media, he said, “The difference for me probably is just being at the team for a longer period. Oscar was really fortunate not to go through those first few years that we’ve had.”
“Those were some very fun years. But, I’ve had some great times. Started off with this guy [points to Carlos Sainz] and, we made progress, step back, made progress, step back. Nothing ever clicked really and never continued to grow.”
“It was hard just to break that barrier of getting close to Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull, because for such a long period of time, they’ve been the guys who have dominated Formula 1. Now, not only have we broken that barrier over the last year and a half, we’ve risen to the top of it and to become the best team and leading and hopefully to go on to win.”
“I don’t think simply from the outside people would give McLaren and my team enough credit for what they’ve done, what they’ve turned around. Because it’s not an easy sport. It may look simple at times from the outside and things like that.”
“Even I think sometimes things are more simple than what they look. But to go from where we were to outdo Ferrari have turned things around a lot over the last couple of years and to catch Red Bull, which I’ve said a couple of times, and Max, who, one year ago dominated every race. For that to flip around so much, we can only just give a hats off to the whole team because a lot of things have changed.”
“People have come and gone and Andrea has done an incredible job. So to be part of this whole story, to be part of it, not long after Zak joined McLaren and started changing things and making McLaren into a slightly more happy place than it was prior. I’ve been, along the journey with Zak, and we’ve gone through a lot of things together, highs and lows and emotional times.”
“So it definitely has been a longer rise to get to where we are, which has been fun. And I’ve really loved it and enjoyed it. And I think the thing I’ll be proudest and most happy about is the fact I’m still here.”
“The fact I’m still in Papaya because I believed in the team for many years. I had opportunities to not be in Papaya and to maybe go on and win races at an earlier stage in my career and those kind of things. I had those opportunities, but I believed, and I wanted to simply do it with McLaren.”
“I wanted to do it with the guys who gave me my opportunity in Formula 1. As much as we didn’t think it was going to be possible this year, we were hoping for next year. And next year was our kind of in-line target, on-paper target.”
“The fact we’re doing it this year is an even bigger achievement. So, job not done. And Andrea will be happy that I say it.”
“But, I’m proud to be on this journey, to have been on it with McLaren for so many years. And I’ll be very happy when hopefully it’s all finished off.”
