McLaren: Two cars in Q3 is positive but plenty of work to do

After Melbourne, the McLaren MCL60 had to be worked on to get back into the heart, if not the front, of a very tight midfield, so much so that Norris revealed that this is the version of the car they should've started the season with. And, as far as qualifying goes, they were happy with the progress, thanks to the folks at Woking, with team boss Andrea Stella reporting: “Two cars in Q3 is a positive result for us.

"One which comes courtesy of the upgrade that we have at this race. First of all, I would like to thank everyone in the team – factory and trackside – for pushing relentlessly to bring this development, which is the first step in an upgrade plan for the MCL60 that will continue through the course of the season. We know we still have plenty of hard work ahead in order to achieve our goals, but we can be encouraged that we’re moving in the right direction.

“Today’s Grand Prix qualifying session was good. We were managing a small issue on Lando’s car, but the team operated very well, and we could complete the sessions. We’re looking forward to fighting for good points in the Sprint and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix," added Stella.

Norris, who was seventh fastest at the end of a tense session on Friday late afternoon in Baku, had the better of an out-of-sorts Piastri who told reporters "I've felt better before ... but I'll be fine for tomorrow."

In the team report, Norris said of his qualy: "A reasonable qualifying – it was great to get two cars in Q3. I think we could have got a bit more out of it and could have been a few positions higher, we just didn't quite get it right in Q3. We didn't get out when we wanted to, and so missed a tow. It was a bit unfortunate, but the team still did a good job otherwise.

"Thanks to all of the team here and back at the factory for getting the upgrades out, we still have some optimisation to do, but it’s been positive so far. We’re in a good position for Sunday, hopefully, we can do a bit better tomorrow," concluded Norris.

Despite not feeling 100% fit, Piastri was upbeat with tenth: “Tenth in qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix, I'm pretty happy with that. It’s great to have both of us in Q3. I’ve been feeling a little under the weather today and I struggled to maximise every corner, so to still be in Q3 is a good result. We were really close to P8 and tied with Stroll in P9, which is a bit annoying, but otherwise, I’m happy with the session.

“A big thanks goes to the team for their hard work in getting the new parts ready. We’ll now focus on another qualifying session in the morning and a lot more action to come," added Piastri, who could allow himself a knowing smile as he contemplates the fate of Alpine and their drivers, the former team he deserted to join McLaren.