‘Nothing to smile about just yet’ – Norris ‘not completely confident’ despite topping first day of practice in Abu Dhabi

Lando Norris declared that there is “nothing to smile about just yet” after the McLaren driver’s pace-setting start to the title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend.

Norris holds a 12-point championship lead over Red Bull rival Max Verstappen and a 16-point advantage over team mate Oscar Piastri heading into the finale, meaning a podium finish would ensure that he emerges with the title.

On paper, the Briton enjoyed a strong first day at the Yas Marina Circuit by topping both FP1 and FP2 – his benchmark time in the latter, more representative evening session putting him 0.363s clear of Verstappen.

However, speaking to the media after hopping out of the car, Norris admitted that he does not yet feel as comfortable as he would like aboard his MCL39.

“I mean obviously from the times and everything, things look good at the minute, but I still want a bit more from the car,” he said. “I’m not completely happy, not completely confident.

“We’re a bit in the middle of trying some different things and trying to understand some things with the car. Hopefully there’s some more stuff we can get out of it overnight.

“It’s not been a bad day, for sure, it’s been a positive day, but we always know it gets a lot closer going into quali, so nothing to smile about just yet.”

There was a moment of drama between title rivals Norris and Verstappen early in FP2 (see in the video above), with the Red Bull darting out of the way of the McLaren exiting Turn 1, but while the stewards noted and looked into the incident, they ultimately opted against any further action.

Behind the front-running Norris and Verstappen, Piastri started the weekend back in 11th position, having only appeared in FP2 due to McLaren reserve Pato O’Ward’s outing in FP1 – as per F1’s mandatory running for rookie drivers.