Lando Norris has spotted an “opportunity” to interrupt Mercedes’ winning streak in the build up to the 2026 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix Sprint Race.
The German marque has looked in impenetrable form in the opening phases of the 2026 campaign.
At the season-opening Australian GP, last weekend, the Silver Arrows secured its 83rd front-row start, backing it up with a 1-2 finish during the 58-lap race.
Heading into the Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit, Mercedes has picked right up from where they left Melbourne.
George Russell, who leads the F1 drivers’ standings for the first time in his career, secured 2026’s first Sprint Pole as team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli made it back-to-back Qualifying 1-2s for the Brackley-based team.
McLaren, on the other hand, have endured a difficult start to the sport’s latest era. The Woking-based team has failed to recapture the dominant form they showed towards the end of the ground effects era.
At the Albert Park Circuit, Oscar Piastri crashed out on the installation lap before his home crowd, and Norris could only muster a fifth-placed finish.
But Sprint Qualifying in Shanghai brought a better result for the reigning World Champion. Norris is slated to start the Sprint Race, tomorrow, from the second-row of the grid in third.
Reflecting on the session, Norris revealed he was elated, and that McLaren have started finding its feet with the MCL40.
“I’m just happy with the result,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “I’m not seeing what I lost, or gained, or whatever.
“P3 is as good as we can do for the time being. I’m pretty happy to beat both Ferraris, they seemed pretty good all day.
“I’m satisfied, it’s a good position for tomorrow. Things have been better this weekend just because the track is a lot simpler from a power unit side of things.
“Everyone falls in line a bit more, we certainly seemed to get a good amount out of it at the end. It was a good lap, it puts me in a good position.”
Lando Norris sees “good opportunity” to exploit Mercedes weakness
While Mercedes has the outright fastest package under its belts, gremlins have impeded them from extracting the absolute maximum from the W17.
Pre-season testing exposed a critical weakness for the Silver Arrows, with Russell struggling with the latest start procedures.
At Melbourne, both Russell and Antonelli suffered from slow launches off the line, and Norris is hoping to capitalise on this if it becomes a recurring theme at Shanghai, too.
“I don’t expect them to get bad starts,” Norris clarified. “For years, they’ve been one of the best starters.
“It’s an opportunity, for sure, they know what they did wrong last weekend in Melbourne.
“They’ll probably be fine tomorrow, but you never know. It’s a good opportunity, it’s the easiest place to overtake, off the line.
“We’ll see what we can do.”
Mercedes certainly got itself in a tangle off the line in Melbourne, with Ferrari capitalising. But it was able to overcome the challenge.
If McLaren can produce better race pace, and launch off the grid, it will still be unlikely, but Norris’ confidence must not be faulted.
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