McLaren has struggled in the past two editions of the Bahrain Grand Prix following reliability issues in 2022 testing, and a late switch in car philosophy that ensured it was behind in development over 2023.
This year has started more favourably with McLaren expected to be in a similar position to where it left off last season, although team principal Andrea Stella explained during testing that the team still had more work to do to close the door on the leading Red Bull team.
Norris had previously stated over last week's test that McLaren still had a long way to go and, when asked about that pessimism over where he expected the team to be in the first race weekend of the season, the Briton stated that Bahrain was going to offer more of a struggle compared to other races on the calendar.
However, he was keen to point out that results in the opening race were not going to decide McLaren's fate over the 2024 season, given the peculiarities of the Sakhir venue.
"Bahrain has never been a good circuit for us. We've never had one of our strongest races ever in Bahrain," Norris said.
"But I think it's way too quick to judge and just say, 'okay, we're not going to be great here in Bahrain, that's the end of the season for us.
"I think for everyone, because everyone's so up and down, you have to give us two or three, four or five races to get the first honest review of where everyone stands against one another, and not just judge it off of the performance that we're going to see here in Bahrain."
Source: Autosport