Lando Norris rejects McLaren 'breakthrough' after Monaco pole

Lando Norris has denied he has reached a “breakthrough” point with his McLaren car after taking pole position for the Monaco Grand Prix.

Norris started the current season in strong fashion, bagging a pole and the race victory at the opening round from Australia.

However, he failed to repeat the result at the following six rounds as he struggled to extract pace from the car in comparison to team-mate Oscar Piastri.

Piastri took three poles and four race wins after the opening round, however Norris returned to the top spot in Monaco with the fastest lap in Q3 - putting him in a favourable spot to win the race given the venue's lack of overtaking opportunities.

While the result marked his best effort since the Melbourne round two months ago, Norris played down the suggestion he has now overcome the car's difficulties.

“I think to classify it as a breakthrough, you also need consistency of results,” Norris told media including RacingNews365. 

“So I can look at it both ways. I can see, easily, the positive – it’s a breakthrough in that I had a good Saturday. 

“And for me, that’s at least a step in the right direction, which I’m very, very happy about. 

“But it's still one weekend. And like I said, consistency is a big part of it too. 

“I’ll be happier if I know and I can get to that point where I’m confident into every session that I can perform like I did today because I think my performance was at a very, very strong level. 

Norris outlined he will not stop to celebrate his steps forward in Monaco, but rather move to ensure they can continue for the following rounds.

“So if we go into Barcelona, Canada, and the next few tracks and I can consistently perform at this level, then that’s our goal,” he said. 

“That’s my goal – I say 'our goal' because it's me and my team. But certainly, today was a step in the right direction. 

“And whether that’s a small step or a big step, it’s a step. And that's all I need for now.”