Norris flags key element as McLaren’s best chance to battle Mercedes in Canada

The McLaren driver could only manage third on the grid with a lap time of 1:12.729, almost two tenths slower than George Russell’s benchmark effort, which claimed pole in the Mercedes. Norris admitted he expects the race to become especially challenging if rain arrives at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Speaking to the media after qualifying, Norris subtly acknowledged just how difficult it could be to challenge Mercedes around a circuit where the Brackley-based outfit has traditionally excelled. Despite remaining measured in his expectations, the reigning world champion admitted the race could become extremely tricky, especially with the current struggles teams are already facing in generating tyre temperatures even in dry conditions.

“I have no idea. We’ve never driven in the rain. I don’t think anyone knows how difficult it’s going to be to drive these cars around. Not bad, just how difficult it’s going to be. I mean, it is our job, so I think the expectation obviously should be there, but I think it could be an insanely tricky race. I mean, it’s difficult enough to get temperature into a Soft tyre, let alone when it’s 10 degrees colder tomorrow and we’re going to have Inters and Wets on the car. So yeah, excited, very excited to see how it’s going to pan out tomorrow,” Norris said.

The Canadian Grand Prix race appears poised to be one with the weather playing a part. Earlier, the FIA had opted to declare the race a rain hazard, with the chances of rain spiralling above 40%. While the current forecast has since seen the chances of rain reduce, it remains firmly in the prediction for rain to hit the Quebec event at around the time of the race start.

Earlier, Norris had compared his situation with the McLaren team in their battle with Mercedes to something similar to Max Verstappen during much of the 2025 campaign. The reigning world champion believes his shot at winning races and scoring enough points to put up a title fight would largely come from both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli taking points off each other in their internal battle at Mercedes, while he tries to stay in the mix as closely as possible.

During the earlier Sprint in Canada, both Mercedes drivers were involved in some wheel-to-wheel battles, which Norris was able to take advantage of to climb up a position and finish the race in second place. Following the conclusion of the race, Norris, in a conversation with GPblog, was asked whether he finds the current situation comparable to last year, when the Briton himself was locked in a fierce fight for the world title with his teammate Oscar Piastri.

The 26-year-old noted how he will largely remain in the fold to pick up points and capitalise on the situation with the Mercedes drivers. “We’ll be there. I think we’re still lacking a bit at the moment, probably similar to last year from Max’s position. So, we’ll see how much we can hang on for the time being. But yes, obviously, a day like today, we maximised everything we could,” Norris said.

During the 2025 season, Verstappen, who up to the summer break had a clear underdog role, was able to take full advantage of several missteps of the McLaren team, particularly when the Red Bull Racing outfit suddenly made a formidable comeback after the summer. In the end, the Dutchman missed out on the world title by just two points.