Norris admits McLaren simply ‘not quick enough’ in Qatar GP qualifying after losing out to Verstappen and Russell

Lando Norris gave credit to Max Verstappen and George Russell after the McLaren driver settled for third position in Saturday night’s qualifying session at the Qatar Grand Prix.

Norris took pole for the earlier Sprint and led the majority of the 100-kilometre dash before handing the win to team mate Oscar Piastri, but this time had no answer to the lead Red Bull and Mercedes racers.

READ MORE: Verstappen beats Russell to surprise pole position in Qatar by just 0.055s

He was seen running wildly over the kerbs during his first Q3 run, piling the pressure on for run two, which yielded a time some two-and-a-half tenths down on surprise pole-sitter Verstappen, though the Red Bull man was later hit with a one-place demotion post-qualifying meaning Russell will start the Grand Prix in P1.

Asked about that moment, and how the session unfolded, Norris said: “Oh, I went in the gravel a little bit. We weren’t quick enough today and I had to push too much to get something out of the car, which we didn’t have. Just pushing the limits, nothing more.

“It didn’t cost me anything after. I still feel like I got everything out of the car today. I’m happy, I feel like I couldn’t have done a much better lap, just the car was not quick enough comparing to the other two [ahead].”

Asked if he’s hopeful of taking the fight to Russell and Verstappen in the race, he added: “I think so. I think George has been quicker probably the whole weekend. I think they were quicker even today in the Sprint. It’s tough.

AS IT HAPPENED: Follow all the action from qualifying for the Qatar Grand Prix

“I think today probably showed a little bit that we are very strong at getting everything out of the car very early on in the weekend. The car was quick already in FP1 and in [Sprint] qualifying and in the race we were good.

“What’s clear is that others did a bad job and they amended some of their wrongdoings and managed to get a lot more potential out of the car. We were just not able to, we got everything out of the car already.”

Piastri shared a similar assessment as he took fourth in the other McLaren, which nonetheless ensures that both papaya cars start ahead of the Ferraris in their quest for the constructors’ title.

Asked to reflect on his session, and whether he sustained any damage in a Q1 off-track moment, the Australian said: “Not 100% sure. I haven’t heard either way. Honestly, I was happy with my qualifying. I think Q3 went well. There wasn’t really much left in it at all, certainly not enough to get to pole, or even second.”

READ MORE: ‘I don’t have an answer’ – Hamilton reflects on his ‘not fast anymore’ comments as issues continue in Qatar

As for the constructors’ situation, with McLaren leading Ferrari by 30 points, he commented: “Yeah, of course it’s important to stay ahead [in the race]. While we’re probably disappointed with third and fourth, we are still ahead of Ferrari.

“We at least have that and hopefully we can score some good points tomorrow. It would be perfect if we could seal the deal tomorrow, but we’ll focus on ourselves and see where we end up at the end of the race.”

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