Lando Norris has issued a warning that McLaren will not have an easy path to victory in Qatar despite its strong form in the sprint race. The Woking-based squad captured a one-two finish in the sprint race on Saturday as Norris handed the win to team-mate Oscar Piastri as payback for the switch that occurred in Brazil last month. McLaren was unable to challenge for the front row of the grid for the Qatar Grand Prix, with George Russell and Max Verstappen setting the two fastest times. Norris and Piastri are due to start in third and fourth respectively as it looks to seal the constructors' championship for McLaren, its first in 26 years. However, Norris is not expecting a miracle regarding its pace as he suggested his pace in the sprint was flattered by the fact he was in clear air. “I hope we're way quicker than them [in the race],” Norris told media including RacingNews365 . “So I don't expect anything special. I think the clean air that I had earlier today made us look probably a bit better than we were.” Norris moved to assert McLaren does not possess the fastest challenger in Qatar - but has nevertheless firmly set his sights on the top step of the podium. “I don't think we've necessarily been the quickest to be honest this weekend, I think Mercedes have - so [I'm] expecting a tough battle and excited to see what we can do,” he said. “I would like to give the guys ahead a little battle tomorrow and of course go forward. “Our target would be to try and win the race but these two guys have probably going to make my life pretty tough tomorrow.”
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