Neither Lando Norris nor Oscar Piastri has driven an F1 car at Sepang International Circuit. The Malaysian Grand Prix runs this weekend as a returning race under the current regulations, and the McLaren garage will spend Friday’s two practice sessions learning the layout in real time.

That would be an odd starting point for any front-running team. It becomes sharper coming off Baku. Norris was collected at Turn 1 on the first Safety Car restart, after Alpine’s Franco Colapinto missed the corner and hit teammate Pierre Gasly, who was knocked into Norris. All three retired.

Piastri, running third and defending from Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar, went defensive into Turn 1 on the lap after the second Safety Car restart and suffered a double lock-up on both front wheels, sent into the run-off area, dropping to P14, where he was ultimately classified.

“The lock-up I need to understand what happened because it certainly took me by surprise,” Piastri said afterwards.

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McLaren left Azerbaijan without a point, on a weekend the team had chosen to introduce a substantial upgrade package to both cars.

No new parts for Malaysia

Instead of another development step at Sepang, McLaren is going the other way.

“After the substantial upgrade package we introduced in Azerbaijan, we’re not bringing much to Malaysia, although we do expect to have some circuit-specific bodywork,” Randy Singh, McLaren’s Senior Director of Racing, said in the team’s preview.

The bet is that the data from Baku showed the Azerbaijan parts working as intended, and that the flowing sequence of a permanent circuit will give McLaren a cleaner read than a bumpy street track allowed.

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Where the team sits in the standings is the reason that matters. McLaren is third in the constructors’ championship on 306 points, 72 behind second place. Norris, the 2025 world champion, is fourth in the drivers’ standings on 186 points, 13 behind third. Piastri is seventh on 120 points, 43 off sixth.

Rain the biggest unknown

Sepang’s afternoon storms are the other complication.

“The prospect of heavy afternoon rain is also a significant part of our preparation, particularly as there have not yet been any competitive wet sessions under the current regulations and Sepang can produce rainfall of considerable intensity,” Singh said.

No team has raced this generation of F1 car in the wet.

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Norris tied to 2030

Norris signed a contract extension in August that ties him to McLaren until at least the end of 2030. Piastri is under contract too. Whatever the weekend at Sepang produces, McLaren’s driver line-up will not be part of the response.

Lights out at Sepang International Circuit is on Sunday at 3pm local time.

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