While McLaren appeared to have a relatively strong weekend in Monaco, taking home double points with a P9 finish for Lando Norris and P10 for Oscar Piastri, the team is not happy with where they have found themselves in the rankings.
Although taking home points, McLaren only managed to get into that position thanks to a reliability issue in Yuki Tsunoda’s AlphaTauri, as the Japanese driver experienced brake issues near the end of the race.
The situation in Monaco was a much-needed recovery after McLaren failed to take home any points in Miami, reflecting their mixed season so far.
“I wouldn’t say it was anything special, honestly,” Norris told reporters when discussing his race.
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“The AlphaTauri was a lot quicker. How much quicker [Tsunoda] was, he should have been quicker [in qualifying]. I don’t believe we had a quicker car on either day.
“Mixed feelings I guess. There are five or six teams that are quicker than us, AlphaTauri might be a little more on par with us but were a little quicker this weekend.
“Alpine are considerably ahead of where we are.
“Little things to take away. I wouldn’t say any big positives, I wouldn’t say the car was mega.”
McLaren has been far out of contention for the title for a number of seasons now, resulting in the decision to swap Daniel Ricciardo for Oscar Piastri at the start of this season.
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Unfortunately, the change in driver hasn’t fixed McLaren’s woes, as their design fails to compete against some of the more aerodynamic set ups.
Leaving Monaco, McLaren has dropped down to sixth in the Constructors’ Standings, falling behind Alpine who secured a podium through an impressive drive from Esteban Ocon.
The Drivers’ Standings are more painful, as Norris sits in 11th and Piastri in 13th, both with little hope of competing against the top of the grid, as Max Verstappen leads the pack with 144 points.