Lando Norris admits McLaren are "in a pickle" after qualifying sixth for the British Grand Prix

Both Norris and teammate Oscar Piastri struggled at Silverstone with their MCL40 all over the place, and as gusts of wind took over the classic British track in Qualifying, their problems were amplified.

Norris was almost eight tenths off the pace in sixth, while Piastri was eighth fastest, over one second too slow.

Speaking after Qualifying, Norris said: "It's pretty poor, really, in terms ​of gap to the cars ahead. It ​was a good lap. I got, I think, everything out of ⁠it. So we're just slow.

"I thought we improved the car in some areas, ​but we need to understand, like, we're just slow in the straight, we're slow ​in every corner. It's just that the car is not very efficient.

"We lack downforce and we have too much drag. So, yeah, we're in a pickle," the reigning Formula 1 Champion admitted.

The nature of the Silverstone track manifested the weaknesses of the 2026 McLaren F1 car; Norris added: "There's a lot of straights here and ‌just ⁠high speed.

"We're not very good in high speed, and we lose a lot in that. And slow speed, like it's just… this shows who has a good car and who doesn't. And it's clear that we don't."

And while Norris managed to finish third in the Sprint Race, he credited that for a good that catapulted him up the order.

"Obviously, ​what made my race ​this morning was ⁠a good start," he said. "I don't know how I finished P3 this morning when you're seven-tenths a lap off... So we ​have to wait and see. Just try to get a ​good start, ⁠get in the mix. I think realistically, a P5 should be best.

"We'll try and beat the Red Bulls. That's the main thing we can ask for. I think ⁠to beat ​the cars that are seven-tenths quicker, both the ​Ferrari and the Mercedes, it's just a bit stupid," Norris concluded. (Reporting by Agnes Carlier)