Lando Norris has received backing from former McLaren team-mate Carlos Sainz, who expects the Briton to bounce back after his latest mistake.
Norris crashed in the first sector on his opening push lap in the final part of qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, leaving him in 10th on the grid.
With Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri securing first and second on the grid, Norris faces a tough ask to keep hold of his lead in the drivers’ title.
He has made several mistakes in recent grands prix and has complained of not feeling comfortable in the MCL39, yet his 2019 and 2020 team-mate expects him to rediscover his confidence.
Sainz believes Norris is trying to understand how to get the most out of McLaren’s current car, which he has outlined as having one key detail.
“I think so, I think Lando will get on top of these things,” Sainz told media including RacingNews365.
“He’s still the championship leader, and we know from Brazil last year, how much [can change from] qualifying to a race. Everything can change, and it could well change for him, it’s only race five.
“He might be going through a similar process to me in terms of discovering his car. The McLaren looks definitely like it has a lot of front-end in mid-corner.
“And if you don’t have the confidence to throw the car in, it’s for me, it looks like the only car that turns in mid-corner, to be honest, compared to the other cars.”
The Williams driver does expect Norris to return to the top due to his talent, but raised the point that adjusting to a car that behaves differently to a predecessor takes time.
“If he’s been driving a very different car to that in the past, probably he has a lot of tendencies with his driving that probably doesn’t just suit his car.
“If he gets his head down, with the talent he has and works on his strengths and weaknesses, in this sport there’s no secrets.
“You’ll get back to where you have to be. So I back him to be back at his top level, given the fact that he’s still the championship leader.”
