Lando Norris says there is no added importance for McLaren to convert its front-row lockout at the Hungarian Grand Prix into victory.
McLaren secured its first one-two in qualifying since the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix, with Norris edging out teammate Oscar Piastri by just 0.022s. The team looked quickest throughout the weekend as it tried to bounce back from the last race at Silverstone where strategic calls cost it a chance of victory with both cars, but Norris says that doesn’t increase the pressure to take the opportunity at the Hungaroring.
“Every single [qualifying] is important, every race is important,” Norris said. “It’s not [like] all of a sudden I need to do it and I need to prove my point; I don’t. We’ve done the best we could in every race. I think we’ve shown great pace and great opportunities, and I know we’ve missed out on some. We don’t need to get back into all of that stuff, but I would love to have a clean, strong weekend.
“From yesterday, already, we were very strong at the beginning in FP2, FP3, qualy now, so it would be nice just to have a nice Turn 1 and see what happens from there, but I’m not expecting it. I’m [still] expecting a difficult race with Oscar and Max [Verstappen] behind.
“Every one is important. Every time we’re trying to maximize every place, every point, and, yeah, the more we can try to get back on Max, the more we as a team can get on Red Bull and other constructors, the better. [There’s] no point or emphasis on trying to beat a particular someone or something. It’s just go out and do what we do because we’re doing a good job.”
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Norris believes the lower temperatures and light rain on Saturday actually played into McLaren’s hands despite its strong performance in the heat of Friday, but he feels the race pace will be competitive regardless of conditions.
“As confident, I think, as we have been for a while, like both qualy and races, we’ve been strong,” he said. “I think our bad one has been third or fourth, but our good ones have been chances to win. Definitely, once again, a good opportunity for that, for both of us and for us as a team to score some big points, and that’s our target tomorrow.”
Teammate Piastri says McLaren can make big ground in the constructors’ championship with a one-two result in the race, but is confident the two drivers can work effectively together while still fighting each other for the win.
“It’s cool to be here, especially when you get a result like this,” Piastri said. “I think [it’s] the first one-two in qualifying for McLaren for a very long time, so very happy. Of course, when I miss out by two hundredths, you think of all the little things you can do a bit better, but an amazing result for the team.
“We had a bit of a tricky day on my side yesterday, so it was nice to bounce back this morning, and then obviously this afternoon in qualy, it wasn’t easy. A lot of decisions on the fly, and to end up with both cars on the front row is an amazing result.
“Of course I want to get into the lead, but we have both cars on the front row. We’ve got a big task ahead of us trying to win this championship as a team, and we’ll be smart. We’ve got a very quick car. It’s been working extremely well this weekend, and we want to keep it one-two, and I think we’ll fight amongst ourselves for who gets one.”