Lando Norris secured an excellent third place in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix, but his engine penalty will prevent him from starting from this position. The McLaren driver regrets a missed opportunity.
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Lando Norris could smile after qualifying at Spa-Francorchamps. The McLaren driver delivered a solid performance by securing third place, confirming his team’s resurgence on the Belgian track.
But this satisfaction was quickly accompanied by some frustration. Due to an engine component change exceeding the allowed quota this season, the Briton will receive a ten-place grid penalty.
Thus, despite his excellent time, Norris will not start from the second row on Sunday. He will drop back to thirteenth position, turning a great opportunity into a major challenge for the race.
A lap that confirms McLaren’s progress
After several more difficult weekends, McLaren has regained momentum at Spa. Norris believes, however, that this improvement does not come from significant technical upgrades, but rather from a better adaptation to the characteristics of the Belgian circuit.
“We haven’t really changed anything, we’re just a bit faster here.”
The Briton was particularly pleased with his flying lap, which allowed him to join the fight with Mercedes and Red Bull.
“It’s nice to be here, but it’s less nice to know we have to drop ten places tomorrow. It’s a shame not to start in this position, because I would have liked to fight with those guys.”
Despite this disappointment, Norris prefers to focus on the positive from his performance.
“We did our best. It was still a very good qualifying and a very good lap from me.”
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Confidence regained before the race
This third place represents only the second qualifying of the season where Norris manages to break into the top 3. An encouraging result after a tougher period for McLaren.
The Briton now hopes to turn this regained speed into a strong comeback on Sunday, especially since he considers Spa a special venue.
“I’m quite happy with the whole weekend. It’s almost a home race for me, so it always brings a little extra motivation.”
Thanks to this regained confidence and a car that seems to work better on the Ardennes circuit, Norris still believes in a strong performance despite his grid drop.
“I hope we can still have a good race and enjoy it.”
A major challenge at the start
Starting from thirteenth place will force Norris to take risks from the first laps. The McLaren driver will notably have to deal with heavy traffic and take advantage of the opportunities offered by Spa’s long straights to climb up the standings.
With a car performing well enough to fight for the podium in qualifying, the reigning world champion nevertheless has a major asset to limit the damage. The question now is how far he can climb in a race where strategy and weather conditions could also play a decisive role.
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