Norris and Piastri have combined to win two of the last three F1 races for McLaren, while Verstappen hasn't won since the Spanish Grand Prix on June 23. While the team has said it wants Norris to dethrone Verstappen, Brown knows it is a longshot unless Norris can start sledgehammering-away large chunks of Verstappen's lead every race.

Charles Leclerc took pole and led the first half of the race in Azerbaijan, while Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz Jr won in Singapore last year. Both the Baku circuit and the Marina Bay layout suit Ferrari’s car best but McLaren have proven they have the pace to win on tracks which are far from tailor-made for the MCL38.