Lando Norris believes that McLaren had the necessary speed to win the Belgian Grand Prix. A series of setbacks, however, ruined his chances of victory.
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Lando Norris left the Belgian Grand Prix with many regrets. The McLaren driver is convinced that his car had the potential to fight for victory at Spa-Francorchamps, but a succession of unfavorable events completely compromised his race.
Punished on the grid, poorly served by the neutralizations and victim of a too slow pit stop, the Briton believes he missed an opportunity to play a leading role.
A penalty that complicates everything from the start
Initially qualified in third position, Norris finally had to start from 13th place after receiving a ten-place grid penalty for exceeding his allowed engine component quota.
Forced to climb back through the field, the McLaren driver then saw the Virtual Safety Car intervene at the worst moment for his strategy.
While several of his competitors were able to take advantage of this neutralization to make their stop, Norris stayed on track before losing valuable time during his later pit stop.
“The pace was incredible, to be honest. We had more than enough speed to get on the podium.”
A costly strategy and pit stop
Norris believes that race circumstances cost him considerable time.
“The Virtual Safety Cars came at the worst time for us. They perfectly favored those who stayed out longer. We will review whether we should have stopped at that moment.”
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According to the Briton, these strategic choices, combined with a too slow pit stop, heavily weighed on his final result.
“I lost about ten seconds because of the strategy, then another five or six seconds during my stop. That adds up to sixteen seconds added to my race time, which obviously makes things extremely complicated.”
“We had the car to win”
Despite a difficult season for McLaren, still seeking its first win of the year, Norris remains convinced that the potential was definitely there in Belgium.
“I don’t think we could have made our race more complicated than it was today.”
For the Briton, without the grid penalty, unfavorable neutralizations, and problems during the pit stop, McLaren could have fought for victory fairly.
“Our pace was enough to finish on the podium, or even to win. It’s really a shame not to have been able to fight for that goal.”
Despite this frustration, Norris takes a positive point from his weekend: the pure performance of his McLaren, which makes him think that the British team could soon return to victory if it manages to avoid this type of setback.
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