Lando Norris once again failed to convert Pole Position to victory in Monza. The British driver lost the race lead to teammate Oscar Piastri on lap 1, setting the tone for another near-miss in Italy. With crucial points once escaping Norris, he believes McLaren were unnecessarily close to disaster.
Norris frustrated after missing out on victory in Italy
Before today’s Grand Prix, the narrative surrounding McLaren has been overwhelmingly positive. The papaya team were riding the momentum of a dominant Zandvoort win and convincing 1-2 in qualifying.
However, Andrea Stella’s team are being criticised for familiar shortcomings.
McLaren committed another strategy blunder, putting both drivers on the two-stop strategy. Their decision to pit Piastri was especially confusing, given that covering Leclerc was the only necessary step to victory.
The Woking team are also under criticism for failing to establish a clear ‘number 1’ driver.
Whether these claims are valid or not, McLaren will continue facing these questions if victories continue to slip away.
Speaking to Sky Sports post-race, Lando Norris gave his reflections:
“Obviously, I would have just braked a bit later if I needed to. We had a big gap behind and, between us two cars, there’s no risk.
“I feel like he got way too close for comfort. We both easily could have been out in that corner if I braked one metre later.
“Obviously, if I could rewind, I would do stuff slightly differently. But it is what it is. Oscar drove a good race, and so did Charles.”
When asked about the team’s general approach, Norris was more positive:
“Hindsight’s a wonderful thing. We always review things – we’re doing a very good job.
“Of course, today was not our day, and we didn’t get things correct. But I wouldn’t say we got them wrong today either.”
McLaren must rectify their shortcomings
Operational mistakes, from poor strategy to sloppy pit stops, have been costly for McLaren since the beginning of the season. With that said, the regularity of their unforced errors is increasingly concerning.
Given their obvious performance advantage, McLaren should be comfortably ahead in both standings.
Even at a circuit that isn’t necessarily friendly to the MCL38, it was the fastest machine in both qualifying and race trim. Claiming a 1-2 in Monza, which was certainly achievable, would have been a huge statement.
Of course, with eight rounds left in the year, there will be more opportunities. Red Bull’s struggles have not gone away, so Andrea Stella’s team can close the gap in both Championships.
Still, McLaren should not assume their performance advantage cannot be challenged. Ferrari and Mercedes are within touching distance, and all it takes is one bad race for Red Bull to claw back points.
While the MCL38 reigns supreme in the timing sheets, it is imperative that Norris and Piastri secure the results to match.
