Although Lando Norris started his second season in Formula 1 excellently with his first podium finish, he initially struggled to understand his McLaren MCL35.
Turning it into something positive
With the chassis remaining largely the same in 2021, Norris has the chance to learn even more about the car to deliver even better performance. "With the tricky car we had, there are still many things we need to work on in 2021 with the MCL35M," Norris told Motorsport.com.
So not everything has been got out of the McLaren yet, according to the British driver. "I guess the good thing with having bad things with the car or negatives is that you can try and work on them and try and turn them into positives, and it will make the car quicker. That's a good thing.”
Knowing the direction
"It's not like we have an amazing car which is slow, and we don't know how to work on it. It's just very difficult to unlock it and find those things", Norris continued. "Everyone in the factory to continue working hard and developing the car into next year."
That it is difficult to improve the car on often minute points, Norris also sees from the rest of the field. "That's probably why you see in the last two or three years, teams have been very similar - I guess apart from Ferrari. Although you're spending however much money, it's just not easy for engineers to figure out these exact things which can be millimetres of difference with all these different parts.”