Lando Norris laments missing out on P4 to Carlos Sainz

© PA Images Lando Norris looking upwards.

Lando Norris may have had his best qualifying performance of the season but was still disappointed with his P7 in Baku.

McLaren showed a marked improvement from the first three races of the season with both drivers able to make it to Q3 for the first time in 2023.

In the end, Norris finished two tenths off fourth placed Carlos Sainz and the young Brit found it hard to hide his disappointment.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Norris said the team did not do “the best job with making the correct decisions of what to do.”

“I think definitely before today, 100% we would have taken [P7],” Norris said. “I think it’s a great result I think with the sequence of the upgrades working well, the car working well on this circuit.

“At the same time, I feel like I did a better job of my driving and things, it should have been a lot better really. I think we should have been P4 today, so a bit disappointed honestly.

“We as a team didn’t do the best job with making the correct decisions of what to do. But apart from that, things were positive.”

As to what prompted such an upturn in form, Norris said it was a “combination” of things.

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“We’ve been pushing hard to try and get some drag off the car we were running compared to where we have been on much lower downforce. The new floor’s working well and just adding these little things here and there always adds up.

“Also just this track, I think we’re good in the braking zones and maybe this track suits us that little touch more.”

It was a good day for his team-mate Oscar Piastri who reached Q3 for the first time in his career on a circuit he has only driven on once before and he revealed that he did so despite not feeling 100%.

“I think having both of us in Q3 is a really good result for the team,” Piastri said. “Yeah, a little bit frustrating to do the same time as Lance [Stroll] but [I] think to get into Q3 is a really positive day anyway.

“[It’s] not been the easiest day for myself. I have been a little bit under the weather, but happy to be in Q3 and nice way to start the weekend.”