News Summary
- Lando Norris says Monza showed Mercedes is still “on a completely different level” from McLaren in Formula 1.
- The reigning world champion identified low- and medium-speed corners, car stability and straight-line speed as key areas where McLaren needs to improve.
- McLaren had won the Hungarian and Dutch Grands Prix before failing to challenge Mercedes at Monza.
The Italian Grand Prix was a reality check for McLaren, with Lando Norris admitting that Mercedes remains “on a completely different level” in Formula 1 in 2026. According to the reigning world champion, Monza exposed several areas where the papaya team still needs to improve, particularly its straight-line speed.
After winning the Hungarian and Dutch Grands Prix in succession, McLaren appeared to have made significant progress with its 2026 car. Monza, however, provided a much clearer picture of the team’s development.
The Hungaroring and Zandvoort are both relatively slow circuits with characteristics that contrast sharply with Monza, which features long high-speed sections and had been regarded as one of McLaren’s weaknesses.
McLaren was unable to seriously challenge Mercedes in Italy, while also being beaten by Max Verstappen’s Red Bull and forced into a close battle with Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari. Norris said the weekend made it clear that McLaren still has significant work to do.
“We’ve seen in previous races that Red Bull can be very quick at this type of circuit, with good top speeds and everything, and that was proven again. But it was clear that Mercedes is still on a completely different level,” Norris said.
“We won by good margins in the last couple of races, and they were still fighting for good points at that time. Now we didn’t even come close to fighting for the top two positions,” he added.
Norris identifies McLaren’s weaknesses
Norris said the result was frustrating but not entirely unexpected, given what McLaren had anticipated before arriving at Monza.
“It’s frustrating, no doubt, but we had already said that before the weekend. We saw what our expectations were, and we still have work to do, which we already knew. So it’s not a surprise,” he explained.
The McLaren driver identified three main areas that need attention: performance through low- and medium-speed corners, car stability and straight-line speed.
“We need to work on the low- and medium-speed corners, on the stability of the car, which is still not good enough, and on straight-line speed. If we can solve those things, we will have already solved a lot,” Norris concluded.
Formula 1 returns this weekend, September 11-13, for the Spanish Grand Prix at the new Madrid street circuit. GRANDE PRÊMIO will follow all the action from the 14th round of the 2026 season.
FAQ
Why did McLaren struggle at Monza?
Monza exposed weaknesses in McLaren’s low- and medium-speed performance, car stability and straight-line speed. The team also struggled to match Mercedes over the weekend.
What did Lando Norris say about Mercedes?
Norris said Mercedes was “on a completely different level” at Monza, noting that McLaren had won the previous two Grands Prix but could not even challenge for the top two positions in Italy.
When is the next F1 race?
The 2026 Spanish Grand Prix takes place from September 11-13 at Madrid’s new circuit, the 14th round of the Formula 1 season.
