MONTREAL 鈥� Lando Norris is putting the pressure on Ferrari.
The McLaren driver believes Sunday鈥檚 Canadian Grand Prix could be anyone鈥檚 race with the Formula One title chase recently ignited, but he鈥檚 giving the edge to the Italian outfit after Charles Leclerc鈥檚 win in Monaco two weeks ago.
"I think they're favourites,鈥� Norris said without hesitation before acknowledging it would be a tight race.
"It's impossible for me to say if it's going to be us, Ferrari or Red Bull on top," he added. "That's why it's exciting, because none of us really know."
Led by three-time defending world champion Max Verstappen, Red Bull won 21 of 22 races to run away with the title last season. Verstappen alone earned a record-breaking 19 victories.
Red Bull still tops the constructors鈥� championship this season, but Leclerc鈥檚 win helped Ferrari move within 24 points of the lead heading into Montreal. The Canadian Grand Prix is the ninth stop of the 24-race championship.
Norris thinks Ferrari could have the upper hand again this weekend partially because curb-riding is such a factor at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Leclerc, however, downplayed his team's status as the favourite.
"Everybody doesn't want to be going into a weekend hearing that they are favourites,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou're never going to hear me (say) we are 100 per cent the favourite this weekend and the same for them, so you've got to throw the ball to your closest opponents.
鈥淚t might not be the true picture once we hit the track, the reality is we are so closely matched between those three teams.鈥�
Verstappen holds a solid 31-point lead over Leclerc in the drivers鈥� championship. Norris trails Leclerc by 25 points, equal to one race win.
But three drivers from three teams 鈥� Norris, Leclerc and Verstappen 鈥� have won the last three races for the first time since 2021.
Last season, Verstappen won his second consecutive Canadian Grand Prix amid a run of a record 10-straight victories.
The 26-year-old Dutchman said he isn鈥檛 affected by his opponents putting up more of a fight this year.
鈥淚'm not focused on what the others are doing because that's just a waste of time and energy,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e know that from our side, there are things that we can do better and that's what we'll focus on.鈥�
While Ferrari appears to thrive on courses where curb-riding is a big factor, the opposite has been true for Red Bull.
Verstappen called Monaco鈥檚 race, where he finished sixth and Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez did not finish, a reminder of that.
"This is something that we know, and we haven't been able to fix it yet. I do think that after Monaco, it gave us another wake-up call,鈥� he said. "With everyone catching up, naturally, you can't rely on your advantage anymore even though your curb-riding is bad."
Ferrari was fourth and McLaren was sixth in the constructors鈥� championship entering last year鈥檚 Canadian Grand Prix, but have bridged the gap this season.
Carlos Sainz, Leclerc鈥檚 teammate, attributes that to the cars instead of the drivers.
鈥淭he biggest differentiator is the car,鈥� Sainz said. 鈥淗aving a better car on Sunday helps a lot. A better car for tire degradation, having a better car for overtaking.鈥�
The vehicles could be put to the test with rain a possible factor this weekend, adding to the unpredictability of the race.
Norris said it鈥檚 exciting for drivers and F1 fans alike that Verstappen isn鈥檛 a slam-dunk winner before the race begins.
"For any driver on the grid, or at least the guys in the top six cars, we're all coming into it like 'Maybe this is our weekend if we can make an extra little bit of difference, if we can find that last 100th (of a second),'" he said. 鈥淚t's exciting for me, it's exciting for the team and it's exciting more so for everyone watching.
鈥淭hat's really the best part of all of it, is that people are watching, like, 鈥榃ho could win this weekend?鈥� rather than 鈥楬e's going to win again.鈥欌��
Although Leclerc doesn't like the favourite label, he likes his chances on Sunday.
"I believe that it could be an opportunity," he said. "I don't think it highlights Red Bull's strength, a track like Montreal."
Elsewhere in the grid, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton ranks eighth with Mercedes. Hamilton is set to take Sainz鈥檚 seat at Ferrari next season.
Montreal鈥檚 Lance Stroll is the lone Canadian among the 20 drivers. Stroll is 11th with 11 points this season for Aston Martin, which arrived in his hometown third in the constructors鈥� standings but dropped to fifth this year.
It鈥檚 the 53rd Canadian Grand Prix, and the 43rd in Montreal. The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, which was resurfaced this year, is a 4.361-kilometre track.
The drivers take to the track Friday afternoon and evening for practice sessions. Another practice is set for Saturday before qualifying, which determines where drivers start for Sunday鈥檚 70-lap race.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2024.
Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press
