Lando Norris Wary of Need ‘to try and turn every opportunity into an advantage’

Lando Norris has warned that McLaren need ‘to try and turn every opportunity into an advantage’ if he is to achieve further podiums this season.

Norris benefitted from a red flag at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix after a crash involving Valtteri Bottas and George Russell, putting on the soft tyre for the final 30 laps which saw him finish third at the flag.

The 21 year-old however has refused to get complacent despite claiming his second F1 podium last time out, saying; “The result shows the progress we’re making to compete closer towards the front of the grid, but we know not every race will go in our favour.”

Norris though has iterated that McLaren need to keep focused and look for further improvements and has learned a huge lesson from Imola, adding; “I think Imola really showed us that we need to try to turn every opportunity into an advantage with the fight being so close.”

Looking ahead to this weekend’s Portuguese GP, Norris is “glad” to return to Portimao and is keen to see how the car fares this weekend, having finished 13th at last year’s race in which everyone “was struggling for grip” throughout that weekend.

Norris’ teammate, Daniel Ricciardo meanwhile is looking to make further improvements after finishing seventh and sixth in the first two rounds, with the Aussie feeling that Portimao has many “unique elements” that makes you “feel your stomach drop” on a lap.

Ricciardo however is focused on consolidating the progress that he has made and putting valuable lessons gathered at Imola into practice on track, despite struggling with certain aspects of the car but admitted that Norris’ podium is “super motivating” for the team.

Explaining how he hopes to overcome those issues, Ricciardo said; “There are a few elements I’m still trying to get to grips with which is only going to get better with more time behind the wheel.”

Team Principal, Andreas Seidl meanwhile wants to maintain McLaren’s “positive momentum” heading into this race, which marks the first of a double-header with Spain which take places from 7-9 May.

Seidl though is wary that further improvement is needed with more upgrades on the way, although he has iterated that McLaren should “continue to maximise any opportunities that present themselves and make the right decisions to stay in the mix.”