Lando Norris has a clear goal in mind for the sprint race in Qatar. Although the McLaren driver only needs to score two more points in Doha to secure the world title, he is also keen to triumph in the shortened race session. “It would be foolish not to try to win,” says the championship leader, who starts the sprint race from P3.
Lando Norris can secure his first world title this race weekend in Qatar. To do this, the McLaren driver needs to score two more points during the entire Grand Prix than both Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri. Because the Qatar GP is a sprint weekend, Norris has a chance to earn points on Saturday. However, the Brit starts the shortened race session behind teammate and sprint pole sitter Piastri, but he has no intention of adjusting his goal for Saturday because of this.
Foolish
“It would be foolish not to try to win,” Norris tells the media in Qatar. “I’m here to try to win, so I’m going to see what I can find and what we can do on Saturday.” However, the Brit does not have the confidence that he can easily prevent his teammate from winning. “It’s impossible to overtake here, so I think I’ll finish in P3, but if I can at least get George off the line or something, that’s probably the best I can hope for.” George Russell split the two McLarens during the sprint qualification and therefore starts the sprint race from the first starting row.
Norris himself starts the shortened session from position three, after a mistake in the last corner of his fast lap. Therefore, the McLaren driver is not worried about his race pace. “The pace was there. I just made a mistake in the last corner of my first lap and couldn’t get it together,” Norris explains his starting position for the Saturday race.
