Circuit Paul Ricard, Friday 18 June

Hear from McLaren Formula 1 drivers Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo, and Executive Director, Racing, Andrea Stella after practice for the French Grand Prix.

LANDO NORRIS, #4

FP1	1m34.707s (+1.259s)	21 laps	9th
FP2	1m33.822s (+0.950s)	24 laps	10th

"Tough first day, tricky conditions playing the biggest part. The temperature made it difficult to keep the tyres in a good window. So, driving the car became a bit of a challenge especially with the wind.

“I think we’ve got a few bits we can definitely improve upon, but we still have quite a bit of work to do. It’s very close with the rest of the field so every little bit is going to help – but it’s also going to make qualifying tough going into tomorrow. Hopefully we can find a little bit extra to make our lives a little bit easier.”

DANIEL RICCIARDO, #3

FP1	1m34.644s (+1.196s)	24 laps	6th
FP2	1m34.079s (+1.207s)	24 laps	14th

“First day done, it was quite a warm one! The morning was pretty promising. We had a good start to first practice, but then in second practice, competitively, we didn’t seem as good. I’m not really sure why right now, but we’ll look into it. It didn’t feel too bad and it’s all very close. We’re probably only missing a few tenths right now. That said, I’m not too concerned, we’ll work at it tonight. Generally, the feeling isn’t too bad, so we’ll just chip away and find a bit more pace for tomorrow.”

ANDREA STELLA, Executive Director, Racing

“After racing on two street circuits, we’re back on a permanent track this week. That removes one set of challenges, but also adds some different ones.

“Today, we focused on tyre work, set-up and testing aerodynamic parts. The sessions went well, and we’ve plenty of data to study overnight. The field looks very tight at Paul Ricard this weekend and we’ll work hard this evening to ensure we maximise our opportunities for qualifying and the race.”

Sign up now

McLaren Plus is our free-to-join fan loyalty programme, bringing McLaren fans closer to the team with the most inclusive, rewarding and open-to-all fan programmes in F1 & esports.

Sign up now, or current members can amend their details in the form below if necessary.