There was no surprise in Friday practice proceedings at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in terms of who was setting the pace. Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris once again led McLaren’s charge to establish that they continue to be the favorites this weekend to take the top step of the podium.
Norris, in particular, looked quick across both practice sessions, and essentially topped FP2 in representative conditions when qualifying and the Grand Prix will happen on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. However, the Briton hasn’t made any confident statements to assert that he is going to dominate the weekend by clinching pole and converting it into a win.
Being clear of Piastri by over a tenth and a half and nearly three tenths clear of Max Verstappen in FP2, it is strange to hear Norris state that he is “not as comfortable” as he would want. “I was probably hoping for a bigger gap than we had today. We know we’re fast, we know we have a great car,” he said per Motorsport-Total.
Norris has been struggling with maximizing the potential of McLaren’s car this season—something he wasn’t consistently doing in 2024 as well. That is why, he stated how he needs to work on his confidence, especially around Jeddah, where the track is quite narrow and fast, and drivers can easily lose lap time if they don’t believe in their ability.
“Today was a day where I tried to work on my driving style, work more on myself than on the car, and gain more confidence,” the #4 driver added.
The final top 3️⃣ from FP2
McLaren take the top two positions in second practice #F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/XvQY67SHDZ
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 18, 2025
Now, this isn’t Norris being self-critical, which has been a hot topic of discussion over the past week. But it does indicate how the 25-year-old doesn’t seem to possess the belief that he can dominate the field with the fastest package that he has at his disposal.
On the other hand, his teammate Piastri has been quite comfortably doing so and has racked up two Grand Prix poles and wins already in the first four rounds. In Jeddah, he again looked more comfortable with the MCL39, even though his quickest lap times were a tad slower than Norris’.
“I think the pace was good, and I felt reasonably comfortable. There were a few corners I need to try to improve a bit tomorrow, but overall it was a good day,” the Aussie said about his Friday practice performance in Jeddah.
Overall, Piastri sounds a lot more positive about his potential to win than his teammate. This may be a matter of confidence as the Melbourne-born driver has performed relatively better in 2025. But it could also be a mentality difference that separates Piastri from Norris.
Lando Norris knows McLaren is ahead after Friday’s running – but maybe not as far ahead as the team hoped.
Can anyone challenge them tomorrow? pic.twitter.com/vvanuzSbs9
— The Race (@wearetherace) April 18, 2025
Heading into qualifying, both McLaren drivers seem to be on level pegging as to who could take pole. With all pole-sitters so far converting their P1 starts to victories, they would be keen on topping qualifying again. However, with Verstappen just three tenths away—and given what he did in Japan—Norris and Piastri would be wary of the Dutchman.
Verstappen has always gone well in Jeddah, and so he cannot be ruled out for pole position and even the race win if his good form around the track continues.
