Lando Norris has conceded he is feeling “dreadful” following his difficult sprint race in China on Saturday.
The McLaren driver endured a difficult qualifying session for the sprint on Friday and took the start in sixth place.
However, Norris dropped to ninth and out of the points following a mistake at Turn 6 on the opening lap, which saw him dip a wheel onto the grass.
In the late stages, he successfully overtook Lance Stroll to claim eighth place and a solitary point.
When asked if his difficult qualifying set the tone for how his race would play out, Norris told Sky F1: “It certainly didn’t help. The further back you start, the harder it is. I just had a bad first lap.
“I just had to run into the grass a bit into Turn 6 and then lost a couple of positions. It was just difficult to do a lot.
“Quali [on Friday] didn’t help but I wasn’t very good today either.”
Norris has retained his lead in the drivers’ championship, although the gap to Verstappen has shrunk to just two points.
The 25-year-old asserted he will be in a better frame of mind when he jumps behind the wheel for the second qualifying outing of the weekend.
“It’s another session, it’s qualifying, so I’ll be a bit more confident.
“At the minute, I just feel dreadful. So a lot of work to do, but it is what it is.”
