Norris confident in McLaren’s Montreal chances on a ‘track that suits us’

Lando Norris believes McLaren will carry their momentum to "a track that suits us" in Montreal, having been encouraged by the team's turnaround in performance last time out in Miami.

The Woking-based outfit endured a frustrating first three rounds of the season, facing obstacles such as Oscar Piastri’s reconnaissance lap crash on home soil in Australia, an unusual double DNS in China, and a lack of pace in comparison to pack leaders Mercedes.

However, with a five-week gap after the Japanese Grand Prix, they used the time to identify their biggest weaknesses and work on upgrade packages, the first of which was introduced at the Miami Grand Prix.

The comeback was close to immediate as Norris converted pole position into victory in the Sprint with team mate Piastri following close behind in P2. The wait for their first podiums of 2026 was over, and although they dropped behind Kimi Antonelli in the Grand Prix itself, they successfully brought home another double top-three finish.

Asked in Miami if the result helped him feel confident about McLaren’s potential in Montreal, Norris replied: “Certainly. I think you’d have to feel silly if you don’t feel confident about the future when we improved so much this weekend.

“We also know it’s a track that suits us. I’m always that guy that looks at things on the slightly more glass-half-empty side, but this is a track that suits us and in the past has not suited the Mercedes quite so well.

“Yet they were still very fast, and we’re going to go to a track that Mercedes have probably been the best at over the last five, six years. So, we have to wait and see.”

Last year’s Canadian Grand Prix, which was scheduled as Round 10, marked the first round of the season without a McLaren driver on the rostrum – Norris collided with Piastri late on, ruling himself out of the race and ending the Aussie’s challenge for the podium.

It was Mercedes that came out on top that day with George Russell, and their impressive start to 2026 has made Norris more adamant that McLaren should manage expectations by taking each race as it comes.

“I know we’re bringing upgrades, but in Formula 1 it’s too easy to judge things over one race,” he added. “You need to see how you are over a number of races and different styles of track: street circuits, hot tracks, cold tracks, tight and twisty, fast circuits.

“So, there’s no point getting ahead of ourselves. We’ve had a very good weekend, I’m very proud of the team, but I also want to make sure they keep pushing and keep trying to improve things, because we still need that.”