Lando Norris has admitted that poor decisions undermined his Singapore Grand Prix weekend, with McLaren facing a growing threat from Red Bull after Max Verstappen’s consecutive victories narrowed the gap in the constructors’ championship to seven points.
The reigning world champion finished fourth at Marina Bay on Sunday after missing an opportunity to claim a podium in a late battle with Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton. The result followed a costly sprint collision with McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri, for which Norris apologised.
Norris had looked capable of passing Hamilton, who was struggling with tyre degradation, but a poorly judged move allowed Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli to overtake him.
“I should have done a better job battling Lewis,” Norris said. “It was inevitable that I was going to pass him at some point, I just shouldn’t have tried to overtake him when I did.”
He added: “A bit unnecessary from me. Not a good weekend for me in terms of making decisions like that.”
The admission came after Saturday’s sprint, when Norris collided with Piastri while attempting to pass his team-mate on the final lap. Both cars spun, Piastri retired and Norris recovered to finish eighth.
Yet the McLaren driver believes individual mistakes are only part of the problem. Verstappen’s victories in Sepang and Singapore have brought Red Bull within seven points of McLaren, increasing the pressure on the team to improve its car.
“We can’t [catch up] unless we bring upgrades and we don’t have anything for a little bit,” Norris said, describing McLaren as the slowest of the leading four teams.
Team principal Andrea Stella acknowledged that Red Bull had benefited from recent upgrades, describing the shifting competitive order as a seasonal “ping pong” between teams introducing new parts.
For McLaren, the concern is that better execution may not be enough. Norris’s Singapore struggles exposed costly errors, but the team’s development programme could prove decisive in determining whether it can withstand Red Bull’s renewed challenge.
