McLaren boss backs Lando Norris after disappointing result in Baku

McLaren star Lando Norris finished P7 at the 2025 Azerbaijan GP after being stuck behind Yuki Tsunoda for the majority of the race. Team Principal Andrea Stella came out after the race in Baku and backed Norris after the disappointing result, suggesting the Briton wrung out the most out of the MCL39.

Coming into the Azerbaijan GP, the McLaren duo looked strong, with both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finishing FP3 inside the Top 3. Both cars easily made the Q3, but that's when things went south. Piastri crashed out in Q3 and only started P9, whereas Norris' final lap in the rain affected Q3 was only good for P7.

While Oscar Piastri jumped the start and ended up in the barriers just a few turns into the race, Norris lost a few spots. With the championship leader retiring, it was an opportunity for the Briton to make up the gap. Given that McLaren had strong pace in practice, many expected Norris to move up the grid. Alas, that was not the case.

Lando Norris was stuck behind traffic most of the race and wasn't able to overtake the drivers. The Briton ran long into the first stint, but a slow pitstop prevented him the opportunity to pass the likes of Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda.

F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan - Source: Getty

McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella came out and detailed how Lando Norris extracted the most out of the car, while pointing fingers at the setup being the limiting factor, which prevented the #4 driver from overtaking the rivals. He said,

“I think Lando had a strong race. He raced to the limit of the potential that was available in the car. I think no other driver in Lando's car could have scored more.” (via Motorsport)

“We were hoping to have a car that was in condition to overtake, but the reality is that the car wasn't fast enough to stay close to the car ahead out of last corner, to then be able to overtake down the straight. This means that Lando spent the entire race in traffic, despite feeling that the car had more to offer,” added Stella

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“Did everything I can”: Lando Norris reflects on the 2025 Azerbaijan GP

After settling into the race, Lando Norris was unable to pass Yuki Tsunoda, but once the Japanese driver pitted, the Briton ran good pace in clean air, and had enough of a gap to make the overcut work before a slow pitstop put Lando's efforts to waste.

Reflecting on the race, Norris explained that it wasn't easy to follow through the corners, which made overtaking difficult down the main straight.

“It was just too difficult to follow and overtake, so it didn’t really matter how quick the car was.We couldn’t really do anything with strategy, so I don’t think we could have done anything more today,” said Lando Norris (via F1)

“I did everything I can. The opportunities were there. I maximise every single weekend like I can. It’s not a missed opportunity. Every race is an opportunity. Today we just weren’t good enough and made too many mistakes yesterday,” he added

Regardless, the Briton scored 6 points while Piastri retired, and cut down the Australian’s championship lead to just 25 points.