McLaren detail costly problem that derailed Norris’ FP1 running in Melbourne

The reigning world champion had reported “shocking” downshifts just minutes into the session, though he managed to bring his MCL40 back to the pits, where McLaren mechanics immediately began working on the car.

The issue that affected Norris’ car was gearbox-related, McLaren confirmed to GPblog, and as a precaution the team decided to stop the car and work on it in the garage.

In the end, the Briton completed just seven laps and finished the session in nineteenth place, while his teammate wrapped up FP1 with the sixth-fastest time.

The Australian had also encountered issues at the start of the session, reporting a loss of power, but was still able to take part in the running without any further significant problems.

Ferrari and Red Bull emerged as the main protagonists of the opening FP1 of the season in Melbourne, in a session heavily disrupted by technical issues. Alongside the two McLarens mentioned earlier, problems also affected Arvid Lindblad’s Racing Bulls and Alexander Albon’s Williams.

In the closing minutes, Hamilton briefly surged to the top of the timesheets with a 1:20.736 on soft tyres. However, in the final moments Leclerc responded with a blistering lap of 1:20.267, nearly half a second quicker than his teammate, securing a Ferrari one-two in FP1.