Lando Norris said he felt "at the mercy" of his McLaren's power unit during the Japanese Grand Prix, as he continues to struggle to come to terms with the new regulations.

Norris finished fifth at Sazuka, coming out on top in a battle with Lewis Hamilton that threw up some surprises for the drivers.

At one stage, Norris passed Hamilton into the final chicane, only to be repassed by the Ferrari before Turn 1, with the reigning world champion having depleted his battery to make a passing move.

Such instances, when the driver gets immediately repassed due to a lack of power on the straights, have been dubbed 'yo-yo racing'.

Norris has finished fifth in both of the races he has completed – he was unable to start the race in China – and he has so far had problems getting to grips with his new car.

"Honestly, some of the racing, I didn't even want to overtake Lewis, it's just my battery deploys, and I don't want it to deploy, but I can't control it," he said.

"So, I overtake him, and then I have no battery, so he just flies past.

"This is not racing, this is yo-yoing. Even though he [Hamilton] says it's not, it is yo-yoing. When you're just at the mercy of whatever the power unit delivers, the driver should be in control of it at least, and we're not.

"There's nothing I can do about it, so there's just not enough control for a driver, and that's why you're just too much at the mercy of what's behind you, and that's just not how it should be.

"Yes, the racing can look great on TV, but the racing inside the car is certainly not as authentic as it needs to be."