Milestone weekend begins badly for McLaren

McLaren's milestone 1,000th Grand Prix weekend began poorly, with both drivers struggling for pace during practice for the Monaco Grand Prix. The team sported a special orange livery to mark the occasion, but their performance on track did not match the celebratory colors.

Formula One world champion Lando Norris finished sixth in the opening session. His second session was significantly curtailed when his car suffered an apparent electrical fault, forcing marshals to wheel it off the track. Norris managed only eight laps before the breakdown.

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Tricky day, we're clearly off the pace and need to find time across the lap. Frustrating to lose track time today as that's always important in Monaco. The car simply turned off so we need to investigate.

Teammate Oscar Piastri, the Australian driver, placed eighth fastest in the first session and improved only one position in the second. It was a disappointing day overall for the team, leaving them with much to address before Saturday's qualifying session.

"Tricky day, we're clearly off the pace and need to find time across the lap," Norris stated. "Frustrating to lose track time today as that's always important in Monaco. The car simply turned off so we need to investigate." McLaren's Chief Technical Officer Rob Marshall admitted the car was struggling. "We have a few things to look at, whether it's tyre related, temperature or set-up, to unlock some more performance," he said. "Lando's session was unfortunately cut short by an electrical fault which caused the car to shut down. The team is working hard to diagnose the root cause so we can ensure it doesn't happen again."

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We have a few things to look at, whether it's tyre related, temperature or set-up, to unlock some more performance. Lando's session was unfortunately cut short by an electrical fault which caused the car to shut down. The team is working hard to diagnose the root cause so we can ensure it doesn't happen again.