Lando Norris Admits Something Is Not Clicking Despite Podium

It was a fabulous display by Oscar Piastri as he dominated the Bahrain GP to give McLaren their first win in Sakhir. The Australian was over fifteen seconds clear of second-placed George Russell and closed the gap to championship leader Lando Norris. However, it was not Norris’s weekend.

Lando struggled on Saturday and could only qualify in sixth, despite showing signs he would challenge his teammate for pole position. Despite a good start off the line, Norris made many mistakes in the race, which cost him claiming second on the road. Norris has admitted he isn’t “confident” at the moment, costing him race wins.

Lando Norris says he isn’t “comfortable” at the moment

Lando Norris is currently leading the championship, but has not won a race since the opening weekend in Australia. This has seen him lead his teammate by just three points as Piastri’s fine form continues. Norris admitted it isn’t clicking for the Brit at the moment, and he needs to work on getting back to his best.

After the Bahrain GP, he said: “To finish third, to get some more points on the board, to keep the championship and just my race alive was a good thing, but I’m not happy about the result today. I’m just going to keep my head down and keep working hard, because I’m not confident, I’m not comfortable.”

🚨| Lando Norris was happy to finish third, but delt he could have done more:

“To finish third, to get some more points on the board, to keep the championship and just my race alive was a good thing, but I’m not happy about the result today. So it’s not horrendous. I think the… pic.twitter.com/RqTy0kqEBz

— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) April 13, 2025

“I know what I can do, I know what I can achieve. It’s not gone, I’ve not lost it, it’s just that things aren’t clicking, and I need to somehow look into why they’re not clicking, but it’s not proving to be too easy.”

Norris is still in good form and has finished every race on the podium so far. His car is fast and is showing good pace, but he is missing that clinical edge. In Bahrain, too many overtaking moves were sloppy. He passed Hamilton off the track at turn 4, but lost that position after a failed attempt on Charles Leclerc. He also locked up in turn 1 while trying to overtake Leclerc.

His failed attempts to pass Leclerc cost him a proper run at George Russell, leaving himself just two laps to attempt a move. The lock-up and failed attempts at passing Leclerc also took life out of Norris’ tyres, meaning he had little to play with when he caught Russell. Norris needs to refine this part of his driving to continue to lead the championship.

Lando Norris bemoans qualifying pace

Lando Norris’ main struggle this season has been qualifying. In Australia, he won from pole position. Since the opening race, he has yet to head the grid. Norris only managed P6 in qualifying for the China sprint race, costing him vital points to his rivals. He also missed out on the front row in Shanghai. Again in Bahrain, Norris qualified in sixth, costing him the chance to rival his teammate for the win.

Norris said: “My race pace is fine, my race pace is good. It’s clearly a bit more my qualifying. I guess it kind of narrowed down to a few things, not maybe clear answers and definitive answers, but a few reasons of, you know, why maybe I was just struggling a bit more here and there with my qualifying.”

McLaren Emerges as the Fastest Car but Faces Biggest Threat from Within

If Norris can improve his qualifying, he will have a real shot at winning the championship. It looks like the McLaren duo will be fighting it out for the honours. If Red Bull can provide Max Verstappen with a faster car, he might come into play, but Norris has to start beating Piastri to win the championship. That starts by outqualifying his teammate.