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Norris on expectations GP Japan 2023

Norris has tip for Piastri: 'If you emulate Senna vs Prost in Turn 1...'

23 September 2023 at 11:39
Last update 23 September 2023 at 12:01

Lando Norris will start the Japanese Grand Prix behind Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen. He does not expect to fight the leading Red Bull, but perhaps Sergio Perez's. Moreover, he has an interesting tip for his McLaren teammate's attack strategy.

"I think we would have loved to have been a bit closer to Max, but that's not to be the case," Norris said after qualifying. Speaking to F1TV, he added: "[It would be] silly to expect us to fight for pole with the Red Bull here. Of course I would have loved to have been P2, but Oscar did a very good job today."

The McLaren driver predicts a tough race, but thinks he can at least fight with one of the Red Bulls. "Not with the Red Bull of Max, maybe with the Red Bull of Perez. We can hold him up a bit, but more than likely he's going to be quicker than us."

Norris: 'If you emulate Senna vs Prost in Turn 1...'

As for his teammate's attack strategy, Norris has another special tip: "If he's leading by turn two, there's not a lot you can really do, so I don't know. If you want to emulate Prost, Oscar, into turn one, Senna into turn one, you can do that happily. It would be lovely for me," he joked towards his teammate. In a more serious tone, he continued, "I think our race pace is decent. It's definitely not going to be as good as the Red Bull, but we'll do our best."