Norris concerned by McLaren’s large gap to Red Bull

Lando Norris is concerned by what he describes as a large gap between McLaren and Red Bull after the recent races. He says his team must wait to see how the picture develops. McLaren is set to bring upgrades during the upcoming Austin-Mexico-Brazil triple-header, but Norris says new parts do not always work immediately or deliver their full potential straight away.

The changing form is part of a broader 2026 development battle under the new regulations, visible across several teams. Around the 2026 summer break, McLaren appeared to have established itself as a consistent front-runner, but fell back a few races later. Ferrari had encountered similar difficulties earlier in 2026. Red Bull won the two most recent races, although whether it can sustain that upward trend remains an open question.

Norris sees a difference between Red Bull’s position now and McLaren’s several months earlier in 2026. He describes the McLaren as harder to drive and says he cannot consistently extract its maximum. McLaren had won twice and taken pole several times, he noted, but the gaps were small and the car could not deliver at that level consistently.

Norris says McLaren must make the car easier to drive and its performance easier to access, rather than automatically matching rivals’ upgrades. The team is still working hard on 2026, he says, without shifting its full attention to 2027; development for next year can also bring improvements during the 2026 season.