Contrasting Sundays for McLaren in Azerbaijan
McLaren left Baku with a mixed verdict. Oscar Piastri, who leads the championship, endured a bruising Sunday after a lap-one crash ended a weekend the team acknowledged simply as a bad day at the office. As one senior voice put it, even the greatest — “even Michael Schumacher” — had poor weekends.
Stella defends Norris
Team principal Andrea Stella strongly defended Lando Norris, insisting he “maximized McLaren’s potential” in a race where the package’s limitations were exposed on the Baku streets. While the headline results did not sparkle, Stella emphasised execution and damage limitation, pointing to a car that was short of outright pace on this layout.
Looking ahead
With Piastri’s setback framed as an outlier and Norris praised for extracting the maximum, McLaren’s focus turns to circuits that should better suit its strengths. The team remains confident in its trajectory despite a difficult Azerbaijan GP.
