Lando Norris has revealed that his choice of a high-downforce rear wing for the Belgian Grand Prix is costing him as much as eight tenths of a second per lap on straights alone at Spa this weekend. The McLaren driver and his teammate Oscar Piastri have taken different car setup approaches, with Piastri opting for a low-downforce rear wing, while Norris went with more rear downforce.
While the high-downforce setup provides better performance through the corners, Norris is concerned about the significant impact it could have on his top speed, potentially putting him at a disadvantage in the race. During qualifying on Friday, Norris was beaten by Piastri, and the trend continued in the Saturday Sprint at Spa, where Piastri secured a fine second-place finish behind Max Verstappen.
However, with cars going into parc fermé conditions after qualifying on Friday, major setup changes are not allowed without incurring substantial grid penalties or starting from the pit lane on Sunday. Norris acknowledged that he will have to make the best of what he has, even if it means sacrificing some top speed compared to his rivals.
When asked if McLaren’s encouraging performance at Spa indicates continued improvement for the team, Norris mentioned that they have struggled a bit more with pace compared to the leaders this time. He attributed this to their choice of a higher downforce setup, which is likely costing them close to six to eight tenths of a second on straights alone.
Norris further explained that adding in clipping and battery harvest factors during the race could result in losing nearly a second per lap on the straights. Despite this penalty in straight-line speed, Norris acknowledged that the higher downforce setup offers advantages in the corners, creating a delicate balance for the team.
The limited track time at Spa due to FP1 and qualifying on Friday limited their ability to optimize the setup, leaving them with a compromise between cornering performance and straight-line speed. Norris believes they may not have found the optimal balance, given the constraints of the weekend format.
In conclusion, Norris remains optimistic about the overall performance of McLaren but acknowledges the challenges posed by the chosen setup at Spa. As the team continues to develop their car and adapt to different circuits, they will strive to find the right balance for optimal performance in future races.
