The National Times - Norris says McLaren does not 'suit at all' his driving style

The Englishman won a rain-hit Australian Grand Prix where the McLarens had a clear performance advantage over Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari in qualifying and the race.

Norris and teammate Oscar Piastri pulled out to a 16-second gap on the Red Bull of defending champion Max Verstappen at one stage of a race where six drivers failed to finish, before a late safety car enabled the Dutchman to put pressure on Norris on the final laps.

Early championship leader Norris said he hoped for a more comfortable outing at the Shanghai International Circuit this weekend, where the McLarens are again favourites to top the timesheets.

"I'm hoping we can do better and I'm hoping it can be a bit easier," he said ahead of a Chinese Grand Prix which will feature the first sprint race of the season on Saturday.

"It's another race. I expect a bit more competition from Ferrari this weekend and we saw how quick Red Bull have been, so clearly they're not out of it."

Norris conceded that his new 2025 McLaren did not suit his driving style, but admitted he had given up trying to get the McLaren engineers to match the car to his own preferences.

"Some of the traits are the same (as last year) but it still doesn't suit at all my driving style," Norris said.

"I've just accepted that you can't have a car that suits your driving style. It's my job to drive whatever car I get given at the end of the day.

"It doesn't suit me in terms of me wanting to push the entries (to corners) and push the braking –- it's very weak from that point of view."

Norris finished a distant second behind Verstappen's Red Bull when Formula One returned to China last April after a five-year absence, but the Englishman is now the man to beat.

"The McLaren I drive this year is very different to what the McLaren was a few years ago, clearly," said Norris.

"Because then we were at the back and now we're at the front."

A.M.Murray--TNT