Scathing Norris' highest hopes for the race: 'Don't expect more than that'

14:35, 20 Apr

byNorberto Mujica

It happened again. In what is understood to be the best car on the grid, Lando Norris will start out of position due to a mistake. Ahead of the F1 race in Jeddah, the Briton outlines his chances and they aren't the best, he claims.

When asked by Viaplay if he could talk them through the crash, Norris replied: "Can't remember, so I don't know," he said. When pressed further, the McLaren driver's response was harsher. "It just happened too quickly. I've not looked at anything. I just got changed, just came back from the medical center. Not thought of any of it."

Norris' cautious expectations for the F1 race Jeddah

McLaren's MCL39 has won 3 out 4 races this season, but given the pace and the potential in the car, it is the feeling around the paddock that they should have won them all. With machinery of that level at his disposal, there's plenty to be achieved during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

However, such is not the outlook for Norris, who rathers take on a more tempered approach ahead of the race. "It's pretty difficult to overtake, so I don't expect a lot. This is a track where you just want to be in the lead and things are easy when you're in the lead."

"I'm hopeful. We have a good car. We should at least aim for a top five tomorrow, I probably don't expect a lot more than that. We'll just wait and see. We'll put a plan in place tonight and then see what we can achieve, but I don't think it's going to be a very easy race."

What was the reason the crash happened, Norris is then asked: "I think you know what happened, but anyway. I just pushed too much."

His assessment is shared by McLaren team principal, Andrea Stella who held McLaren's development of the MCL39 and the track's kerbing out of Turn 4 as the responsible elements in Norris' Q3 shunt.