Lando Norris
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Both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri find themselves beyond frustrated with how poorly McLaren have started the 2026 season.
Yet another race weekend has gone by, and McLaren have failed to deliver a strong performance, with Oscar Piastri earning a P4 finish and Lando Norris settling for P7.
It appears Norris and McLaren’s success in 2025 has set them back this season, as they have not looked competitive at any point this season.
Your championship standings after the Austrian GP! What has this win done for George Russell’s title chances?
Coming into the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, McLaren were forced into an upgrade they were not intending to make due to issues with the car.
But for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, this has now become a regular occurrence for them, with both drivers in full agreement that their current situation with McLaren is untenable.
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Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are both trying to ‘maximise’ MCL40 performance
Speaking to Sky Sports after the race, Lando Norris reflected on his difficult outing at the Austrian Grand Prix, and how it was more of the same for him.
Norris admitted that both he and Piastri have the same complaints with the car, and have to work incredibly hard to get the most out of their cars each weekend.
“A lot of it was done in strategy today, but I also didn’t have the best lap one. My start was very strong, but I struggled afterwards.
“I chose the wrong place to put the car a couple of times and lost out because of it. A bit unfortunate, but still a good race. Not a bad day.
“We have the same complaints between drivers. I maximised last weekend, Oscar maximised this weekend. It’s clearly not an easy car to nail every weekend, but we are making small progress.”
READ MORE: Lando Norris penalty situation sees McLaren give only Oscar Piastri upgrade at Austrian Grand Prix
Does George Russell’s Austrian GP win earn him Driver of the Day honours, or were you more impressed by one of his rivals?
Andrea Stella hints Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri’s complaints can’t be fixed in the short term
When speaking to Sky Sports, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella admitted that neither Norris nor Piastri should expect to be competing for race wins any time soon.
“We have to accept that our competitiveness is not such that we can fight for the podium, unless there are situations like the reliability problems for some competitors in Barcelona.
“The mission is clear. We need to add performance to the car, and we have upgrades coming. We need to deliver them.”
For Piastri in particular, this race marked the end of a frustrating week. Piastri was linked to a McLaren exit as rumours of the team’s interest in Max Verstappen began circulating.
Even if the rumours played no part in his result on the night, Piastri’s future must be weighing on him. Unfortunately for him, neither he nor Lando Norris can distract themselves from these rumours with strong performances on the track just yet.
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