McLaren left the Belgian Grand Prix of Formula 1 with the feeling of having wasted a great opportunity. Despite the strong pace shown by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri at Spa-Francorchamps, the team saw operational problems, car damage, and race circumstances compromise a result that could have included two cars on the podium.
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Norris, who started 13th after losing ten grid positions for exceeding the allowed number of electronic power unit components, finished seventh. Piastri crossed the line in fifth, after suffering damage to his car following contact with Charles Leclerc.
The Briton stated that the car’s performance was one of the most positive points of the weekend. According to him, there was enough confidence to fight for the top positions, but a series of factors ended up preventing a better result.
“I have mixed feelings today. The potential was extremely high this weekend, both because of my feeling with the car and the pace, which was probably enough to fight for the podium. Everything that could make our race difficult ended up happening,” said Norris.
Among the problems faced by the British driver were the unfavorable timing of the Virtual Safety Car periods and a technical failure during his pit stop, which lasted 7.8 seconds: “When you have the pace to achieve a great result and are harmed by factors like this, it’s frustrating,” he added.
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Piastri also believes that the podium was a real possibility. The Australian highlighted the good performance in the first stint but explained that the contact with Leclerc caused damage that cost a few tenths per lap during much of the race.
“We had good pace today, especially in the first stint, and the podium was not out of the question. The damage after contact with Charles made everything much harder because we were losing a few tenths per lap,” said the Australian, who also called for more car performance to reduce the gap to rivals.
The team principal, Andrea Stella, shared the same assessment and stated that McLaren left Spa with fewer points than their potential allowed. According to him, Norris would have fought at the front without the grid penalty, the pit stop problem, and the strategy compromised by the timing of the Safety Car.
Stella also confirmed that the team is working on updates for the second half of the season: “We know we need to improve braking and cornering to challenge our main competitors on tracks like Hungary and the Netherlands. Our goal is clear: we want to consistently fight for podiums and, ultimately, for wins,” he concluded.
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