Lando Norris defends McLaren strategy after Canadian GP gamble backfires

Lando Norris has defended McLaren’s gamble to start the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix on intermediate tyres, insisting the decision was based on valid reasoning despite ultimately backfiring.

With Circuit Gilles Villeneuve hit by unpredictable showers in the build-up to lights out, tyre selection proved to be tricky. While the majority of the grid opted for slick rubber, the Woking outfit chose intermediate tyres.

The Briton capitalised immediately, surging into an early lead and carving out a two-second advantage by the end of the opening lap. But as the track quickly dried, Norris was left at a severe disadvantage and was forced to pit.

While speaking to the media after he ultimately retired from the race, Norris discussed the decision to start on intermediates and at what point he realised it was the wrong choice.

“Probably just on the warm-up lap,” he said. “I think the rain already stopped a little bit by then, so, yeah, it was the wrong decision in hindsight. Obviously, it was good for a lap and kept me out of trouble, and so easily things could have happened behind, and I would have looked much better, but it was the wrong decision in the end.

“But I don’t think through any bad decision-making. There were valid reasons for doing what we did. I’m happy we went for something and stuck to it. It doesn’t work out sometimes, that’s the way it is, so we take it on the chin, and we learn from it.”

Norris argued that his strong start demonstrated the drivers on slick tyres were struggling more with grip.

Lando Norris, McLaren

Photo by: Alastair Staley / LAT Images via Getty Images

“I just had a lot more grip, as simple as that, honestly,” Norris explained. “It shows how slippery it was for them in the beginning, and I had a two-second gap after one lap, so it wasn’t like it was stupid to be on that tyre… It was just drying out, and of course, when they got a bit of temperature into the tyres, it worked out for them.

“Like 1% more rain or a few little bits of drizzle here or there, and it really would have suited us a lot more. So, that happens sometimes and nothing really went our way today. I don’t think our pace was going to be exceptional either way with the temperatures we had, and we ended with a DNF, so just a bit unlucky.”

Clarifying he realised on the warm-up lap that the choice was likely the wrong one, the 2025 champion added: “Already on the warm-up lap, we thought there would still be a very high chance of a safety car and things like that.

“So, even with staying out on track, a safety car loss is 10 seconds. I was leading by two, and if a safety car came out, and everyone would be on their delta, I still could have come out on a new slick, probably inside the top 10, even better. I probably would have been better than that even.

“There were a lot of positive things that could have come from it, just none of those things came our way. So, it was a shame, apart from the very first lap and a good start and a good lap one, then we were just unlucky today.”

Photos from Canadian GP – Sunday