Lando Norris
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Lando Norris experienced what it’s like to fail to start a Formula 1 race for the first time in his career at the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix.
McLaren had a Sunday to forget in Shanghai, as both of their drivers recorded Did Not Starts, with Lando Norris’ car unable to leave the garage.
Oscar Piastri at least made it onto the grid, but watched as his car was rolled back into the pit lane minutes before the formation lap started, meaning he’s yet to complete a lap under Grand Prix conditions in 2026.
Some sensational performances in Shanghai 🔥 Who is your pick for Driver of the Day at the Chinese Grand Prix?
The reigning drivers’ champion is already 36 points behind George Russell and sits a place below Haas’ Oliver Bearman in the standings.
Zak Brown was left very frustrated with McLaren’s lack of action at the Chinese Grand Prix, and both David Coulthard and Naomi Schiff have sensed that the 26-year-old is far from happy with what’s going on in Formula 1 right now.
READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration
David Coulthard senses Lando Norris’ ‘simmering’ unhappiness with new Formula 1 rules
Coulthard was speaking on the Up To Speed Podcast about the frustration among some drivers about Formula 1’s new regulations.
Max Verstappen has spoken out against F1’s new regulations, suggesting those who have enjoyed the action from the first two weekends aren’t true racing fans.
Coulthard went on to say: “But I think that you do raise an interesting point because it was Max who was probably the most vocal on it.
“But, I don’t know if you picked up as well that simmering below was Lando.
“Lando’s not really enjoying [this season]. You would expect Oscar to be speaking out because he hasn’t done even a lap of Grand Prix racing yet.
“But, I wonder if it’s just a case of they need the results to start feeling this new set of regulations.”
Is Lando Norris’ championship title defence already over?
Schiff replied: “I mean, yes, maybe as a purist, you think that where we’re at with Formula 1 and the way that they go racing doesn’t necessarily give an advantage to the best driver who’s pushing the car to its absolute limit.
“So, I can understand why there’s a level of frustration there. But I, for one, was already relieved at what we saw in Australia, but even more so now that we’ve seen racing in Shanghai, where there wasn’t as much of an issue in terms of being able to recharge the battery.
“I found that the racing was a little bit more balanced. I get that it’s a bit challenging, but I think that those drivers, particularly the McLarens and Max, who obviously are here to win, are frustrated anyway.
“And I think that once they get into the conversation at the front of the grid where they’ve got the equipment that they can go racing, maybe the experience for them will be slightly different as well, and they might change their tune a little bit.”
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McLaren frustrated by ‘strange’ issues that led to double Chinese Grand Prix DNS
When news emerged that both Norris and Piastri were among the four cars that wouldn’t start the Chinese Grand Prix, Ted Kravitz described the ‘strange’ situation at McLaren that led to their exclusions.
Team principal Andrea Stella admitted that both drivers had different power unit problems, but neither could be diagnosed quickly enough to get them out on track.
Norris will be worried that his title defence could be over before it even started.
He would have known that retaining the championship across different regulations was going to be difficult, but McLaren look very short of challenging Mercedes and Ferrari at the front of the grid.
What doesn’t help is that Norris and Piastri appear to disagree on where McLaren are going wrong.
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