Norris says he’s improving after McLaren’s upturn as Azerbaijan GP arrives

Lando Norris arrived in Baku with a confidence boost after taking two wins from the last four Grands Prix, as McLaren have found more performance in recent rounds. The McLaren driver, speaking during Wednesday’s media day ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, said he believes his own approach has improved since last season, adding that he is extracting more from a “tricky car” and feels “more relaxed” compared with this point last year.

Norris referenced his view that he is doing “some things better than last year,” while stressing it is not simply a dramatic step-change in performance. He suggested that parts of his race results last season were already comparable to this year’s, but had not been credited to the same extent. He also pointed to what he described as increased consistency and greater trust in his abilities, saying this has helped at times.

On the subject of the title fight, Norris dismissed any notion of challenging Kimi Antonelli for the drivers’ championship. According to the report, Norris sits 106 points behind with nine Grands Prix remaining.

Norris also acknowledged the specific demands of the Azerbaijan circuit as a potential challenge for McLaren. He said Baku features “not one high speed corner,” and that the track lacks even medium-speed corners, which he expects will make it more of a “Monaco spec” test similar to where McLaren struggled last time.

Finally, while he reiterated the team’s intent to target victory, Norris framed Azerbaijan as a weekend he personally has been “not been looking forward to the most,” given the recent history at the venue.

Written by Vancouver Television Sports Desk