Back in fourth place in the constructors’ championship in Singapore, McLaren F1 lost it again at Suzuka after scoring only one point against 18 at Alpine F1, which is now ahead of it by 13 points.
But this result did not surprise Lando Norris. The Briton, tenth at Suzuka while Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso finished fourth and seventh respectively, actually wonders how his team still manages to compete with the French structure despite a much less efficient single-seater.
« It was neither good news nor a surprise. As I have often said, they are much faster than us. I don’t know how we manage to always fight against them in the championship. It’s as if they were playing in a different division at the moment, and yet we were ahead of them before the weekend. » Norris said.
« I am happy that we have been able to fight them so far this season, it shows that we have done a good job in other areas: reliability, maximizing performance, seizing an opportunity, not make mistakes. They must have been a lot worse than us in all those areas if they are only ahead of us by a few points. »
« So I think it’s not a surprise. It’s not really a battle, because they are much faster. But we will keep trying to limit the loss of points. »
Permanently responds to Norris: Alpine cares more about Mercedes than McLaren
As for Alpine F1, sporting director Alan Permane is surprised that Norris keeps repeating the same things about the French team, which he says is more trying to beat Mercedes F1 on the track. than staying ahead of McLaren F1 in the championship.
« Lando keeps saying that, doesn’t he? I don’t know why he keeps going. We’re much more focused on Mercedes, who we’re trying to beat. That’s the level we want to reach, » Permanently said.
“And of course we suffered a big setback in Singapore, but things are back to normal and I expect the same in the next few races. The car is clearly getting faster and faster and I think she’s approaching the best. »
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https://formulaone.news/mercedes/37-year-old-lewis-hamilton-cant-help-but-laugh-at-his-rock-and-roll-modeling-process
