#‘The hard work is paying off’ – Norris encouraged by McLaren’s ‘best weekend so far’ after breaking duck in Australia

[f1]

The hard work is paying off Norris encouraged by McLarens best weekend so far after breaking duck in Australia

Lando Norris has hailed McLaren’s strongest weekend of the season so far, as the team bounced back from point-less weekends in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia to log a pair of top-10 finishes at the Australian Grand Prix. During an action-packed race, Norris and home hero team mate Oscar Piastri capitalised on the drama around them to rise from midfield grid slots to P6 and P8 respectively, lifting McLaren from the bottom of the constructors’ standings to fifth. READ MORE: Verstappen takes first-ever Australian GP win amid huge drama in Melbourne Speaking post-race, Norris said: “For sure, our best weekend so far. All my comments and my feelings [after qualifying], I didn’t have my hopes too high, but actually since Lap 1 the pace compared to some of the cars around us – like the AlphaTauri, like the Haas – was a bit closer. “I felt a little bit quicker, so I could race against them, I could actually have some fun, attack and have a bit of racing action, so [it was] a good day. P6, some reasonable points for us, same for Oscar to have him in the points at the same time. “We just stayed out of trouble, which was the biggest challenge today, which was avoiding the people locking up and causing chaos, so I’m happy; the team’s done a good job, and we deserved it.” This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences Australian Grand Prix ‘our best weekend so far’ says Norris after double points finish for McLaren Norris was then asked about the upgrade package McLaren are set to bring to the next round in Azerbaijan at the end of April, and whether it will well and truly help them kick-start their season. “The season started a while ago. I kind of hate when people say it, because it’s, you know… it’s the same for everyone. We should’ve been on it earlier and we weren’t,” he said. READ MORE: ‘What better place to do it’ – Piastri thrilled after charging his way to maiden F1 points finish on home soil “I guess we’ve kind of tried to look at it from that perspective; we’ve been a bit unlucky before and today things just went our way a little bit more and we deserved to be [there]. But we have the upgrades, we have some things… “I don’t want to get too excited about all of it because I wouldn’t say Baku is where it’s going to help us the most with all the slow speed corners, but at the same time it’s a step forward, I hope. “The team have been working very hard back [at the factory] and here [at the track] to get everything ready for Baku, so yeah, thanks to the team; they’ve done a very good job, they’re pushing hard, they’re working hard, and a day like today shows it’s paying off.” This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences Race Highlights: 2023 Australian Grand Prix via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

[f1]

ICYMI: The best social media moments from the Australian Grand Prix

It was a tremendous Australian Grand Prix weekend, with plenty of action to keep us all entertained over the weekend – both on and off-track. With so much going on, to clue you in on what you may have missed out on, we’ve rounded up the best social media from the weekend. From grandma... with love Melbourne native Oscar Piastri and his McLaren team received plenty of support at the track over the weekend. But without doubt Piastri’s biggest supporter was his grandma, who even provided the team with baked goods. How nice is that? READ MORE: ‘The hard work is paying off’ – Norris encouraged by McLaren’s ‘best weekend so far’ after breaking duck in Australia K-Mag makes a furry friend The weekend did not end in the way Kevin Magnussen would have been hoping for, but on the plus side, at least he made a new canine friend called Snowy, from Assistance Dogs Australia. READ MORE: ‘I didn’t even feel it’ says Magnussen of dramatic race-ending crash in Melbourne Mull-stappen? Valtteri Bottas’s mullet has caught the eye of many in the paddock this season, and one of those people appears to be Max Verstappen, who wanted to see what it would look like on him. Hulk and Haas embrace The Hulk is back in the points. The German took the chequered flag in seventh at this weekend's race in Melbourne, and in a video captured by Haas, you can see him being congratulated by members of the team, including his boss Guenther Steiner. READ MORE: Stewards dismiss Haas protest over provisional results of Australian Grand Prix Mercedes NSYNC George Russell has clearly aced the Mercedes crash course in posing for pictures since joining the team, because he and Lewis Hamilton are clearly in lock step here. READ MORE: Hamilton hails ‘amazing’ Melbourne podium as he says Mercedes closing gap to Red Bull will be ‘tough but not impossible’ The Great Alpine Debate There was a huge disagreement at Alpine this weekend – and it has created plenty of debate in the paddock. Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly did not agree with reserve driver Jack Doohan's views about overcooking your meat. All the carnivores out there: where do you stand on this issue? READ MORE: 'No hard feelings' – Alpine pair Gasly and Ocon reflect on their race-ending collision in Melbourne Huuuuuuuulkenberg gets a message We got to see Daniel Ricciardo back in the paddock this weekend, and he was up to his usual tricks. The Australian made a brief appearance on Haas’s Twitter feed, delivering a message to his former Renault team mate. Nyck Debris is back A part of Nyck De Vries's engine cover came off his car during practice in Melbourne, and AlphaTauri took the unmissable opportunity to remind the world of the nickname Carlos Sainz unknowingly gave him in Mexico last season... MUST-SEE: Chaos in late restart as numerous drivers collide at the end of the 2023 Australian Grand Prix Aston Martin's hit number one single With three podiums to start the season, Aston Martin have created a song in tribute to driver Fernando Alonso. Listen below and see if you can learn the lyrics. READ MORE: Alonso reflects on 'rollercoaster of emotions' race as he takes third place in Melbourne Stella embraces Piastri Piastri, no doubt fuelled by his grandmother's baking, took his first Formula 1 points this weekend, and as a reward, he received a warm embrace from his McLaren Team Principal, Andrea Stella. READ MORE: ‘What better place to do it’ – Piastri thrilled after charging his way to maiden F1 points finish on home soil A five star Albert Park review His race may have ended in the barrier, but Alex Albon was absolutely brilliant in qualifying on Saturday. So happy with his performance, it was only right that the Thai racer left a good review about the Albert Park Circuit. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com