On a scrappy day for the championship leader, team principal Andrea Stella said the MCL39’s ‘inherent limitations’ meant Lando Norris struggled to unlock the final tenths of a second

Lando Norris revealed he was content to be second in the Chinese Grand Prix as the race provided him with “answers for my struggles” with McLaren’s Formula 1 car. Norris retained his lead in the Drivers’ Championship as he came home one spot behind his race-winning team-mate Oscar Piastri to secure McLaren’s 50th 1-2 finish.

McLaren and Lando Norris established themselves as the team to be beat after one race. McLaren's Oscar Piastri conceded that in Melbourne “the gap to our rivals surprised us." There are, after all, still 23 Grands Prix remaining in Formula 1’s season.