Hungarian Grand Prix: Piastri and Norris surprised by Leclerc in qualifying
Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris were in the lead in the early stages of qualifying, but were eventually beaten by Charles Leclerc in Q3. The wind complicated the conditions and disrupted their bearings. Despite this, McLaren remains confident for Sunday's race.
After dominating the first two phases of qualifying, McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris ended the session with some disappointment, beaten by Charles Leclerc in Q3 at the Hungaroring. Second and third on the grid, the two teammates pointed to the changing conditions and the wind to explain their final underperformance.
Piastri points out the changing conditions
Oscar Piastri had nonetheless started the qualifying session perfectly. The fastest in Q1 with nearly four-tenths of a second ahead of Norris, the Australian confirmed in Q2 by only conceding five thousandths to his teammate. But in Q3, it was impossible to replicate this performance.
« I think the wind has changed a lot. It always seems a bit ridiculous to say that, but it literally turned 180° between Q1 and Q3, so many corners felt completely different », he explained after the session.
The changing conditions visibly disrupted the Australian’s bearings: “My first lap in Q3 felt really bad because I wasn’t used to these conditions. And I thought the second was better… but it was even slower. Not easy to handle in such conditions, and maybe we didn’t execute everything well. I was a bit surprised that we couldn’t go faster. That said, starting second is still a good position. We’ll see what we can do tomorrow,” he indicated, undoubtedly hoping to regain the advantage during the race.
Despite this relative disappointment, Piastri praised Leclerc’s performance: « Charles was fast all weekend, and even this morning, he was closer than we thought. Things changed a bit, and I guess he really did a great job. Congratulations to him, but I didn’t expect to find myself second behind a Ferrari this weekend. He managed well, and the race looks promising tomorrow. », he concluded.
Leclerc managed better, according to Norris
Lando Norris, who starts third, also emphasized the impact of the wind change on McLaren’s performance. The Briton, now trailing Piastri by 16 points in the championship, acknowledged that Leclerc was simply stronger at the crucial moment: “I think Charles managed his last lap well. He probably took a bit more risk in these conditions,” he analyzed, before adding, “The wind changed a lot and really seemed to penalize us more, but well, nothing really to criticize. We both felt like we did good laps at the end, we were just slow, nothing to say.”
The 25-year-old driver explained how the wind affected his driving: It’s a long lap with lots of corners, so it’s tricky. In Q2, we showed how fast we could be and our advantage, but as soon as the wind changed, everything was lost, and the last sector became even more complicated. A sudden change that left little room to improve performance.
On mastering his last lap, Norris acknowledged his difficulties: « It wasn’t an easy lap to master, but when you manage it, it’s gratifying. And when you don’t, like for me in Q3, it’s less satisfying. ». Nevertheless, his ambitions for the race remain intact.
McLaren remains confident for the race
Even if the result was not up to expectations, Norris remains optimistic and determined for Sunday. He believes that McLaren still has a pace advantage over Ferrari that could prove decisive over the race distance: « I want to move forward and I want to win. If I succeed, I score points. I think it’s going to be an exciting race, and I expect to have a bit more pace than Charles, so I’m looking forward to it », he stated.
Andrea Stella, McLaren’s team director, also provided his technical analysis of this underperformance. He notably confirmed that the team was aiming for a front-row lockout but lamented that the wind came to compromise their ambitions: « After noting the car’s performance in practice sessions, as well as in Q1 and Q2, our objective was clearly to lock the front row of the grid. But today, the conditions were very particular and highly dependent on the wind. We paid a small price. »
Stella also pointed out an excess of caution among his drivers, which may have affected their performances: « I think our drivers were a bit cautious, as we didn’t know what level of grip the track would have, and it cost us about four tenths, while Leclerc managed to improve his time. He deserved the pole position. » Indeed, this overly cautious approach may have cost precious time, allowing Leclerc to snatch the pole from them.
Piastri and Norris ready for the battle
McLaren nevertheless places its drivers in a good hunting position for Sunday: Piastri, lined up on the front row alongside Leclerc, starts with a strategic advantage, while Norris, in third position alongside George Russell, will have to fight a bit to move up.
The battle for the title between the two teammates takes on a new dimension after this “mixed” qualifying. Piastri is ahead but will have to manage the pressure of a Norris determined to regain the advantage before the summer break. However, the Briton must not repeat the mistakes made in Belgium if he wants to gain the upper hand over his teammate.
