The British driver will start the 53-lap race from the third position, while his teammate Oscar Piastri will start from the third row in sixth place.
Although McLaren couldn’t match the speed of the Championship leaders Oracle Red Bull Racing, they seemed to have outperformed their closest rivals Scuderia Ferrari during the Qualifying session. Ferrari’s drivers, Carlos Sainz Jr. and Charles Leclerc, only managed to secure fourth and eighth places respectively.
Currently sitting in third place in the Constructors’ Championship with 55 points, the Woking-based team is behind Red Bull and Ferrari. With Norris on 28 points and Piastri on 27 after three rounds, their overall performance is promising and seems to be evenly matched between the two drivers.
Norris is hopeful that this will translate into valuable points for the team as a whole on Sunday. After Qualifying, he expressed his satisfaction, saying, “I’m very pleased with today’s performance. We had a competitive car and I was able to fight in qualifying with some good laps, especially in Q3.”
“It’s always enjoyable to be here in front of the fans, and I’m happy to have secured third place on the grid for tomorrow’s race. We’ve had a strong car throughout the weekend and we’ve made progress, which is satisfying. We’re working hard and gradually seeing the results of our efforts,” added the 24-year-old, who is aiming for his first win in Formula 1.
Piastri, who celebrated his 23rd birthday on Qualifying day in Japan, was unable to match Norris’ lap time and ended up in sixth place. The Australian driver expressed his disappointment, saying, “I just didn’t have it from Q2 onwards. I struggled to find the rhythm, which is frustrating.”
“I have a few areas to focus on with my engineers overnight, but the competition is very tight out there. Tomorrow is a great opportunity for me to improve and secure points in the race,” concluded Piastri.
McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella expressed his satisfaction with the outcome of Saturday’s Qualifying session. He said, “It was a positive qualifying session for the team. With third and sixth places, we are in a good position to score valuable points tomorrow.”
“It’s also gratifying to see that we are the second-best team behind Red Bull, although we are aware that this track suits the characteristics of our car and these are only qualifying conditions,” added the Italian.
Stella also praised both Lando and Oscar for their performance during the session, saying, “Both drivers did a great job in Q1 and Q2, putting together solid laps and allowing us to progress through those sessions with only one set of tires each, saving two new sets for Q3.”
“The drivers and the entire team have done well so far. Now we need to prepare well and capitalize on today’s performance with a strong race result,” concluded Stella.
The Japanese Grand Prix will start at 06:00 GMT (14:00 local time) on Sunday, April 7th.