Lando Norris has revealed that both he and Oscar Piastri are struggling in the 2026 season, pointing to McLaren’s focus on last year’s championship run as a key reason.
The scale of the regulatory changes between 2025 and 2026 has been highlighted by the slow starts from all three title contenders from last season.
Norris’ chances of repeating as champion already look slim, while Piastri has only featured in one of the opening three races. Max Verstappen has had more track time than both but Red Bull have also faced setbacks after putting extra effort into developing their 2025 car late into last season.
Last year’s title fight went down to the final round in Abu Dhabi, leaving little room for any team involved to look ahead. With so much at stake, McLaren chose not to divert attention away from their current campaign until it was over. The decision paid off with a championship win but left them behind on preparations for the new regulations.
Meanwhile, Verstappen’s Red Bull also put everything into chasing a fifth straight Drivers’ crown. That approach meant less focus on their 2026 car development, something that became clear when they hit the track this year.
In a recent interview with The Guardian, Norris shared highlights from his title-winning season and spoke about the issues that have surfaced early in his 2026 campaign.
He finished fifth in the season opener in Australia, but an electrical issue with the MCL40 kept both him and Piastri out of the Chinese Grand Prix. Another fifth-place finish at Suzuka leaves Norris fifth in the drivers’ standings, already 47 points behind leader Kimi Antonelli.
Norris said: “It’s been a difficult start. That’s the price you pay for winning the world championship and throwing all your eggs in one basket. But [now] is a time to work on developments and upgrades without races.”
Norris was also asked if he believes McLaren can turn things around soon.
“It’s very difficult to say because you never know when other people are going to bring upgrades,” he replied. “I’ve given up trying to guess what’s going to happen in Formula 1. But we’re confident we can have a much more competitive car over the next month or two.”
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