Lando Norris delivers startling McLaren verdict after 'pretty shocking' British GP

Lando Norris has described McLaren’s current challenger as one of the most difficult cars he has driven in F1 after a “pretty shocking” British Grand Prix.

McLaren lacked the pace to challenge Mercedes and Ferrari throughout the weekend, having also endured a difficult event one week earlier in Austria.

Following qualifying on Saturday, Norris admitted the team was “just slow”, believing McLaren had been out-developed by its rivals over the past few rounds.

That left the Woking-based squad on the back foot in the race, with Norris trailing the leader by more than 40 seconds before the late safety car was deployed.

Norris acknowledged his fourth-place finish owed much to McLaren’s reliability, as several rival teams encountered problems during the race.

“Everything but the result, pretty shocking,” Norris told media including RacingNews365. 

“I don't know how we finished P4 today, honestly. A big part of it nowadays is reliability. 

“I don't know what happened to Kimi [Antonelli] and Max [Verstappen] but a big part of it is just not making mistakes and reliability. We got that bit right.”

Norris conceded that the McLaren car is one of the most difficult he has driven during his stint in F1 as he insisted there are various areas that need addressing.

“The pace was pretty poor, so it's not nice,” he said. “It's not a nice car to drive.

“[It is] maybe one of the hardest cars I've ever driven in F1. So there are many things we need to do better.”