Norris: McLaren's Azerbaijan struggles 'a little knife in the heart'

Lando Norris described McLaren's lack of performance at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as "a little knife in the heart" after a difficult opening day in Baku. The British driver ended FP1 in 14th, 1.6s off the pace, and improved to sixth in FP2 but still trailed George Russell's Mercedes by 1.5 seconds.

Why it matters:

After a strong start to the season, McLaren's sudden drop in competitiveness at a circuit where Norris has never finished on the podium raises questions about their ability to sustain a title challenge. With Mercedes looking ominous and Red Bull and Ferrari much closer, the team faces a critical test to understand its car.

The details:

• Norris was 1.6s down in FP1, with teammate Oscar Piastri only 1.0s off, but both cars suffered unusual floor damage.
• In FP2, Norris improved to sixth but aborted a faster lap; Red Bull and Ferrari were 0.8s and 1.1s behind Mercedes respectively.
• Norris said the car doesn't feel bad, but the raw pace is missing: "We're miles off... 1.5 seconds off the pace, so pretty pants."
• He insists confidence in the car doesn't matter: "I just care about the pace, and we're not very fast."

What's next:

McLaren will work overnight to find improvements, but Norris is unsure if the gap can be closed. Baku has historically been his worst circuit, and ending that streak looks unlikely this weekend.