Norris 'Gave Up On Guessing' Pace For Las Vegas After So Many Missed Predictions For Brazil
F1Saturday, 11 November 2023 at 05:00
Updated at Saturday, 11 November 2023 at 11:13
McLaren F1 driver Lando Norris "gave up" on guessing how his car's performance would be ahead of the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Lando Norris achieved five podiums in the previous six races. It is no longer a surprise to anybody when they see a McLaren driver stand on the podium after a Grand Prix race in 2023.
McLaren managed to bounce back from a very bad beginning of the season to regular podiums and even challenged Verstappen for the lead of the race in Sao Paulo.
Norris started from sixth place on the grid and finished second in the 2023 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, but as he said, the team did not expect to be so competitive at Interlagos Circuit. As reported by speedcafe.com, he said:
"I don’t think we were expecting to be as competitive (in São Paulo) as we have been, so we’re still surprising ourselves."
It has become a regular question for the drivers to ask how they expect to perform during the upcoming Grand Prix. After being asked about expectations for Las Vegas, Norris said he gave up on guessing.
"I gave up on guessing where we are going to be nowadays. I mean, probably after Bahrain, I didn’t want to think of where we’re going to be. But it comes and goes."
Mercedes team achieved a one-two finish during the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix and was expected to perform well in 2023, which did not happen. Norris points to how all the estimates were wrong.
"I think everyone expected Mercedes to be extremely strong (around Interlagos) and they were nowhere. Everyone expected Ferrari to be a bit more competitive, and they weren’t."
In the end, the 23-year-old did not give any indication of how he thinks the circuit might or might not suit McLaren as "no one really knows." Norris concluded:
"So I think no one really knows. Everyone just guesses and presumes but no one knows until we just get on track. So just let’s wait and see."
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