Lando Norris: McLaren's Baku gap is a 'knife in the heart'

Lando Norris says seeing McLaren's Baku pace deficit feels like "a little knife in the heart." The MCL40 arrived with upgrades in Azerbaijan, but Norris — the lead McLaren in FP2 — was 1.484s behind George Russell's un-upgraded Mercedes.

Why it matters:

Baku was never expected to suit McLaren. Slow-speed corners expose a long-held chassis weakness, while the calendar's longest straight highlights the car's drag. A disrupted Friday only adds to the challenge.

The details:

• Norris called the feeling "pretty pants" and admitted the car is "miles off."
• Upgrade complications: Both Norris and Oscar Piastri lost FP1 time as checks were made on the new parts.
• Chassis weakness: Slow-speed corners and the long straight are magnifying McLaren's aerodynamic and drag limitations.

"We're miles off... 1.5s off the pace is pretty pants," Norris said. "I don't really care how confident I am in the car; I just care about the pace."

What's next:

Norris hopes overnight data analysis can close some gap before Friday. McLaren will keep pushing, but Baku may be a damage-limitation weekend.