Taking a step again from the immediacy of the drama, the larger concern could also be what it says about Norris and his frame of mind – and lift questions as to what to do about it.
This has not been a simple season for Norris to date. He was very a lot McLaren’s main driver final 12 months. He was the one who took a semblance of a title combat to Verstappen within the closing phases of the season.
Within the expectation that McLaren would proceed their robust type within the second half of final 12 months into this, Norris was the championship favorite going into the season.
As a substitute, the shape between the 2 McLaren drivers has switched. Piastri has been the extra convincing. He has 5 wins to Norris’ two. He’s forward 8-4 on their qualifying head-to-head. And Norris has been making errors, notably in qualifying.
Norris has been saying all 12 months {that a} lack of really feel from the entrance axle of the automotive has been affecting his potential to foretell its behaviour when taking it to the restrict on one lap.
In Canada, McLaren launched a small tweak to the suspension geometry, round the place the higher wishbone meets the entrance wheel, in an try improve really feel. Stella mentioned there have been “no downsides from Lando’s standpoint”, and Norris ran all of it weekend. Piastri felt he did not want it and continued with the unique specification.
Norris was in all probability the faster McLaren driver in Montreal – he did a shocking lap on used tyres to progress past the primary a part of qualifying. However he once more over-drove when it mattered, making errors on each of his laps within the last session, and ending up seventh on the grid.
Stella mentioned after qualifying that Norris had “simply tried too laborious”, and identified that on his last lap he was heading in the right direction for pole earlier than brushing the wall at Flip Seven.
“The velocity is there,” Stella mentioned on Saturday night. “We simply have to shine the truth that typically you kind of have to just accept that you may’t at all times go 100%, particularly when a bit of mistake could be so pricey.”
Stella has emphasised that McLaren have been working with Norris on his difficulties this 12 months.
After the race, he was requested what extra they may do to get him into the fitting headspace, if that was certainly the issue. However he mentioned he didn’t see a connection between Norris’ wider points and the specifics of the collision in Canada.
“For the time being I would not say that that is the explanation why there was a misjudgment immediately,” Stella mentioned. “I believe that is too lengthy a shot by way of correlating these two occasions.
“Undoubtedly there shall be good conversations, however they are going to occur as soon as we’re all rested and calm.
“Lando himself should present his character to beat this type of episode, ensure that he solely takes the learnings, he solely takes what is going to make him a stronger driver.”
