Lando Norris concedes pole fight is out of reach as Monza exposes McLaren weakness

Lando Norris gave a blunt assessment of McLaren's opening day at Monza, admitting he does not feel in the fight for pole as his run of consecutive victories comes under threat. The F1 drivers' champion arrived in Italy on the back of successive poles and wins at the Hungaroring and Zandvoort, but the MCL40's low-downforce weakness was exposed on Friday.

Why it matters:

Norris's hot streak faces its toughest test at a circuit that punishes aerodynamic drag and rewards straight-line speed — two areas where McLaren has acknowledged weaknesses. Ferrari and Mercedes both look strong, meaning McLaren's recent dominance could be halted at the Temple of Speed.

The details:

• Norris finished sixth in FP1, seven tenths adrift of Leclerc, then fourth in FP2 behind Russell, Leclerc and Antonelli.
• "Not very decent," Norris flatly replied. "Just struggling a lot more with pace... we're still off, so not in a great place at the minute."
• Technical director Neil Houldey confirmed the team is roughly three tenths off its target, with energy management the focus overnight.
• Ferrari locked out the top two in FP1, while Russell topped FP2. Red Bull and Racing Bulls also lurk.

What's next:

"I definitely don't feel we're in the fight for pole at all," Norris said. "But we just need to focus on getting a decent result." McLaren will work overnight on energy management, but Houldey described the team as "hopeful rather than expectant" about a pole challenge. Monza has always been an outlier — the pecking order can shift dramatically.