Lando Norris has delivered a stark assessment of McLaren’s position following a deeply disappointing opening race of the 2026 Formula One campaign.The British driver crossed the line in fifth place at Melbourne, trailing race winner George Russell by 51.7 seconds – losing nearly a second per lap to the Mercedes driver.”We’re a long way off, a long, long way off,” Norris admitted after the race.The reigning constructors’ champions found themselves unable to compete with Mercedes and Ferrari under the sport’s new regulations, with Russell taking victory ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.”We finished where we deserved to,” a frustrated Norris conceded.McLaren’s troubles were compounded before the race even began when Oscar Piastri crashed out during reconnaissance laps.The Australian driver revealed an unexpected power surge contributed to the incident.Lando Norris has delivered a stark assessment of McLaren’s position following a deeply disappointing opening race of the 2026 Formula One campaign | GETTY”I got 100 kilowatts more power than if I had been at full throttle,” Piastri explained.The home favourite described the crash as resulting from multiple factors combining at once.”A large element of just me, cold tires, the exit curb, I also had 100 kilowatts more power than I expected, you put that together and it ends in the result we got,” he said.Mercedes are off to an impressive start! 😮💨This how our Drivers’ Standings look… ⬇️#F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/CbUP3fBPHo— Formula 1 (@F1) March 8, 2026 Piastri also disclosed the car had experienced battery problems when leaving the pits.”It’s disappointing and shouldn’t be happening,” the Australian added.”Ferrari, from what we see, have the best car, their cornering speeds are unbelievable, to match that? Zero chance.”Norris also faced a stern challenge from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen throughout the race, with the Dutchman recovering from 20th on the grid to nearly snatch fifth place.”Red Bull is clearly quicker, Max came from last and almost beat us,” Norris acknowledged.Despite the difficult circumstances, the reigning champion managed to hold off Verstappen, though the narrow margin highlighted just how far McLaren have fallen from their championship-winning form.Lando Norris could only finish fifth at the Australian Grand Prix | GETTYNorris made clear that McLaren’s struggles cannot be resolved quickly, tempering expectations for any immediate turnaround.”This is nothing that is going to happen overnight, or one, or two weeks time,” he warned.The British driver noted he finished almost a full lap behind the leaders, underscoring the scale of the deficit facing the Woking-based outfit.”I was almost a lap off. Not quite,” Norris reflected.However, he expressed a pragmatic view about extracting value from this challenging period.”We have to learn from this part of the season, the more we learn, the more we understand, the better we’ll be at the end of the season,” he said, adding that he remained satisfied with securing fifth place given the circumstances.