"The car is operating in a very different window," claims Norris after a stron Friday for McLaren at Barcelona
McLaren delivered one of the strongest opening‑day performances of any team at the Barcelona‑Catalunya Grand Prix following a very difficult run of races in Montreal and Monaco.
After a promising FP1 in which Oscar Piastri finished second and rookie Leonardo Fornaroli stunned with a top‑five result, the team underlined its competitiveness in FP2 as Lando Norris topped the timesheets and Piastri secured third. With just 0.057 seconds separating the top three in the afternoon session, McLaren emerged as a clear contender at a circuit that appears to suit the MCL40’s characteristics.
The day began with Piastri immediately on the pace in FP1, despite reporting a vibration on his brakes early in the session. The issue did not prevent him from running, and the Australian consistently matched the benchmark set by George Russell, finishing two tenths behind the Mercedes on both the medium and soft compounds.
Reflecting on the day, Piastri was encouraged by the team’s progress. “It was a pretty good Friday for us. We're pleased with the progress we've made, and the pace is a lot better than last week, which is a positive step.
"We seem to be in the fight at the front, which is a much more satisfying position to be in. The key now is to maintain this momentum into tomorrow. While the initial signs are encouraging, there's still plenty to learn and a lot more performance to find. We will keep working hard to see what more we can extract overnight ahead of Quali.”
Fornaroli, last year’s Formula 2 champion and now McLaren’s reserve driver, made a highly assured FP1 debut. He completed the team’s aero programme cleanly and delivered a composed performance that placed him fifth overall, an eye‑catching result even if outright lap time was not the priority. “It was an incredible feeling to complete my first official session in Formula 1,” he said.
“I felt good in the car and fully focused on the job ahead, looking to deliver clean runs and execute the aero program. The pure lap time wasn’t our target today, even though we finished P5. The priority was to give the team all the data they needed, and I’m really happy with the work we did together.
"From here, I’ll keep supporting the team in my Reserve Driver role, continue the sim work throughout the season, and look forward to more TPC running ahead of further FP1 opportunities later in the year.”
The momentum carried into FP2, where Norris — returning to the car after sitting out FP1 — immediately demonstrated the McLaren’s potential. His 1:15.426 lap placed him at the top of the standings, narrowly ahead of Russell and Piastri in what became one of the closest sessions of the season so far. Norris described the day as a meaningful step forward.
“Today was a reasonable Friday, not perfect, but a step in the right direction. The heat and wind made it tough for everyone, so no one’s feeling completely comfortable out there, but our baseline is stronger than it has been at previous events. We’ve come to a circuit that certainly suits us better, and the car is operating in a very different window, which is encouraging.
"Going into Qualifying tomorrow, we feel we’re up there with the teams we want to fight. It’s hard to read others’ fuel loads and run plans, and there are still areas of the car I’m not happy with, so we need to keep improving. We’ll work hard overnight to find more, and if we do, we should be in a good place to maximise tomorrow.”
