Norris rues rainy weather conditions for lack of running on Friday

McLaren driver Lando Norris rued the conditions for the lack of running on the opening day of the Canadian Grand Prix after rainy weather heavily limited the data gathering in Montreal.

Lando Norris topped the opening practice, having beaten the Ferrari duo of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc with a late push lap in the dying seconds of the opening one-hour session.

The second session saw the Briton rack up a total of 20 laps, but his quickest one was over five seconds adrift of Fernando Alonso's benchmark. Norris said that the difficult conditions left teams in mystery in terms of the pecking order.

“Tricky first day on track with the conditions which meant I didn't get in as many dry laps as I wanted to. We got a good amount in the wet and took a reasonable first step this weekend but it’s hard to see where we stand.

"It’s been a difficult Friday for everyone, and the conditions here can change everything. We’ll now work hard overnight with the data we have and see where we can aim to be tomorrow going into Qualifying.”

His team-mate Oscar Piastri ended up sixth in the opening practice, but he also failed to set a competitive lap time in the second one-hour session. Despite the low-key performance, the Australian said that his team has been delighted with their form so far.

“That’s practice done. It’s been a bit of a difficult day with the weather, so it’s hard to read where we sit. I think we’re looking good, but it’s just difficult to know considering we didn’t get in all the running we wanted to, but that’s the same for everyone.

"Our pace and times on the Intermediates in P2 looked solid, so that’s a positive, but I think it’s going to be a jumbled up weekend for everybody. I’m looking forward to getting back out there tomorrow.”

“Today’s sessions were both affected by rain. It means we haven’t learned very much about tyre behaviour, car set up or even our competitive position. That said, we may have learned the most valuable information already, because conditions may be the same as this for the rest of the weekend.

"So, the running was valuable, and at least we were able to offer something to all the fans that came out today to see us. We need to stay focused, use what we took from today and be ready for an eventful weekend.”