Lando Norris has dismissed suggestions McLaren now has a car for all circuits following his qualifying performance ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Norris frustratingly came within 0.085secs of landing pole position at the Hungaroring but starts third behind Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, the duo renewing their front-row rivalry following their epic 2021 showdowns.
After equally strong performances in the last two races in Austria and Britain following the delivery of a two-part upgrade package, McLaren tempered expectations for Hungary given the nature of the tight, twisty circuit.
The fact Norris came so close to landing the top spot on the grid, and with team-mate Oscar Piastri behind him in fourth, appeared to underline the fact the MCL60 is an all-rounder.
Asked whether the performance suggested McLaren would now be competitive at every track for the remainder of this year, a dismissive Norris said: “No, no, definitely not.
“Everyone says Budapest is a slow-speed circuit, but really I’d say it’s a lot closer to medium speed. You never even use second gear around the whole circuit.
“The slower speed is where we struggle, and where we’re the worst is in the chicane, Turn 1 and Turn 12. That’s where we lose a lot of our time.
“We knew the upgrade was a step but to be three races on the trot in this position, I’ll make the most of it because I don’t know how long it’s going to last.
“It’s still clear we’ve got some weaknesses, and those weaknesses are going to show in certain places. Even in Spa (Belgian GP next weekend) we’re going to struggle in certain places even more, like Turn 1. I’m already scared of Turn 1 in Spa.
“But there are many other things which are obviously very positive, and if we’re still here and under a tenth off pole position, I’m happy, the team is doing a great job. I’m very proud of the progress we’ve made.”
Norris was naturally gutted to miss out on pole position by such a narrow margin, knowing that was within the car.
“When you’re under a tenth off pole, or eight-hundredths off pole, you feel like that was within your driving,” said Norris.
“If you just did something slightly differently, just got on throttle a little bit earlier, like eight hundredths, you feel is in it.
“So I guess that’s a little bit frustrating, to be so close, but at the same time, P3, we’re also happy.”
Referencing Hamilton’s comment about his issues over the last 18 months ahead of clinching his first pole since the end of 2021, Norris put that into perspective.
“Lewis said he’s been struggling, but if you look at where we’ve been in the last few years, I think we’re even happier, and we’ve gone through an even tougher time,” he said.
“We were fighting for 18th, 19th, 20th for the last year, and in certain times. So, for us to be consistent now three races in a row, competitive, and to be so close to pole position is still a very good sign for us.
“I’m happy, like mixed. I guess I’m happy, but also frustrated to miss out on what could have been an even better position.”
Discussion about this post