McLaren has clarified that Lando Norris‘s “cheeky” tow during the qualifying session of the Spanish Grand Prix was not a planned team strategy. The brief slipstream Norris gained behind teammate Oscar Piastri occurred by chance, not by design, during their final qualifying runs.
Unplanned Slipstream Between McLaren Teammates in Q3
During the last segment of qualifying, Norris followed Piastri out of the pits and stayed behind him on his initial warm-up lap. Piastri had a slightly different run plan and nearly came to a halt after completing his flying lap. Despite this, Norris caught a brief slipstream from Piastri as he exited the final corner onto the long start-finish straight while beginning his own timed lap.
Team communications captured Piastri noticing Norris closely trailing him, describing the moment as “cheeky” in a light-hearted exchange with his engineer. Norris managed to post a time only 0.017 seconds quicker than the championship leader on his first Q3 run, leading to speculation that the tow helped him gain those crucial hundredths of a second.
Both Drivers Improve on a Second Attempt
After switching to fresh tyres, both drivers found more speed on their subsequent laps. Piastri ultimately beat Norris by two-tenths of a second to claim pole position. Despite the proximity of their runs, the McLaren driver revealed there was no coordinated attempt to assist with slipstreaming during qualifying.
Oscar Piastri said,
“I went out very early for the first run of Q3 and it was just a coincidence that Lando ended up behind me opening the lap,”
clarifying the incident.
“Of course, when you cross the line to start your lap, it’s maybe not the nicest feeling, but we’ll discuss it. There was nothing untoward going on. Unless Lando’s going to spill his master plan that him and [race engineer] Will [Joseph] had! But I think it was just a coincidence.”
Norris Denies Any Pre-Planned Strategy Behind the Tow
Norris also weighed in on the matter humorously, saying
“we planned it the whole weekend,”
before revealing the reality of the situation. He explained he was unaware Piastri would go out first and that he was simply looking for any possible slipstream.
“I tried to get a slipstream from someone. I think I was unlucky that it was Oscar. It was just a coincidence. I was tenth or something in the queue. I don’t know who I’m going to get a slipstream from because you’re waiting two minutes in the pit lane. So yeah, just coincidence.”
When asked whether the tow had a measurable effect on his lap time during Q3, Norris responded cautiously:
“[It is] Hard to say. It was short-lived, but rightly so. So no, don’t think so.”
Implications for McLaren’s Qualifying Approach
This unexpected overlap during qualifying highlights the challenges of managing two drivers’ runs in close succession without formal team orders intervening. McLaren’s clarification distances the team from any accusations of deliberate team tactics, reinforcing that the close running was incidental. Going forward, this explanation may ease tensions among fans and competitors speculating about strategic cooperation during qualifying sessions. How McLaren navigates these fine margins between teammates in future qualifying rounds will remain a point of interest for the Formula 1 community.
