Lando Norris will start the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from 17th place after a yellow flag in qualifying dealt a significant blow to his title hopes.

The McLaren driver was eliminated in the first qualifying session (Q1) after he saw a yellow flag on his second flying lap and had to abort his lap.

The yellow flag, which requires drivers to reduce their speed as they approach it, was caused by Esteban Ocon moving slowly on the track after glancing at the wall.

Unable to complete his qualifying lap, Norris was forced to rely on his first attempt in Q1, which only managed 17th place.

“Everyone was just doing their second lap, I wasn’t,” Norris told Sky Sports after the session. “Just unlucky, that’s all. Ocon was on the left side. I had to lift.”

When asked if he could make progress in the race, Norris said: “I have to hope so, don’t I? It is what it is. We have a long race ahead of us. We still have some good tires in stock.”

“Yeah, just try to get ahead… That’s what tonight is for. I still hope we can get a good result. I think the car is fast. On the lap I was on, I would have easily been second. But there’s nothing I can do.”

The last five drivers were eliminated from qualifying in Q1 and Norris therefore did not make it to Q2 or Q3 to fight for the top starting positions.

Norris is 62 points behind Max Verstappen in the drivers’ championship after making up 16 points from the Red Bull driver in the last two rounds.

He will need to maintain a similar lead over Verstappen over the remaining eight laps to catch his title rival’s lead, but as he starts from 17th place, it will be very difficult for him to achieve that this weekend in Azerbaijan.

The Q1 elimination was Norris’ first of the season and his first since the Las Vegas Grand Prix last year.