Lando Norris hopes McLaren fixed straight-line speed issue before Singapore
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 8, 2026
Norris fix update
Lando Norris says McLaren believes it has found and fixed a straight-line speed problem that has been hurting his pace. The team made changes to auxiliary components on Norris’s Mercedes power unit and also worked on the fuel system to address a recurring fuel injection issue. That problem has cost Norris speed on the straights. He is hopeful the work done by the team has finally dealt with the issue, but he also made clear that the only real answer will come once the car runs on track. McLaren hopes the changes will improve the situation before Singapore FP1, and Norris knows the team will not have a full read until he gets back behind the wheel in practice. The driver said the straight-line weakness has been a recurring frustration.
McLaren repairs work
Norris said the straight-line-speed issue has carried a real cost. He said it may have been worth two or three grid places in qualifying and that it had also been costing him about two-tenths of a second per lap. Norris also said the issue has cost him time to Oscar Piastri in recent races, a sign that the problem has not just been about one lap in isolation but about how the car has performed across a broader stretch of race weekends. McLaren’s response has centered on the hardware and the fuel system, with the team looking to remove the recurring fuel injection problem that has dragged down straight-line speed. Singapore gives McLaren another clear checkpoint. If the fixes work, the team can move forward with more confidence. If they do not, the problem remains one of the key performance questions hanging over Norris’s weekend.
Singapore test ahead
Singapore offers Norris and McLaren a useful test because the circuit should soften the impact of any straight-line weakness. He said the problem should be less pronounced there because the track is a tight street circuit where outright speed down the straights carries less weight than it does at faster venues. That does not make the issue irrelevant. It just changes where the time matters most. Norris’s view is straightforward. He wants proof, and he knows practice will provide the first real clue. Until then, McLaren can only hope the changes to the power unit and fuel system have moved the car in the right direction. The weekend also matters for a broader reason, since McLaren sees Singapore as an important test of whether the straight-line problem and the recent dip in performance were one-offs. That makes the opening session more than a routine shakedown. It becomes the first chance to judge whether the team has closed the gap that has been costing Norris speed, grid position and lap time.
