Verstappen gets two setbacks on his 'Favorite Track'
Lando Norris sets the fastest lap time for the Belgian Grand Prix, with Max Verstappen in pursuit. McLaren duo beats Red Bull's Verstappen.
McLaren pair Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri outperformed Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen in the second free practice session for the Belgian Grand Prix. Norris completed a lap of Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in 1:42.260 minutes, securing the fastest time. His Australian teammate followed closely behind (+ 0.215 seconds). Verstappen (+ 0.217) finished third on his declared "favorite track."
In the opening session, Verstappen led with a narrow 0.5-second advantage over Piastri. This confirmed Verstappen's expectations. He had anticipated being "behind" compared to the strengthened McLarens.
Due to a strategic engine change, Verstappen will start ten places back in the grid - regardless of his qualifying position. Therefore, he doesn't believe he "has a chance for the win," said the Dutch-born driver from Hasselt, Belgium. However, he has been penalized and won the last two years in similar situations.
Behind Verstappen, Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Team colleague Sergio Perez, who is reportedly fighting for his future at Red Bull, finished ninth. Nico Hülkenberg remained in sixteenth place after placing seventeenth in the first free practice session, despite a new low-downforce rear wing. "We have a special low-downforce rear wing that we didn't have last year. On paper, it looks quite positive," said the Emmerich native.
Despite Nico Hülkenberg's efforts with his new low-downforce rear wing, he continued to struggle, remaining in the lower midfield positions. In the qualifying session, Hülkenberg represented the Alpine F1 Team, while former Red Bull Racing driver Nico Hülkenberg participated in the Belgian Grand Prix with the Haas F1 Team.
McLaren's impressive performance continued, with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri challenging even the top teams. In the Belgian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing faced a setback after Verstappen was required to change his engine, causing him to start from a lower grid position.
As Nico Hülkenberg raced for Haas in Belgium, the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri continued to perform well, demonstrating their strong form on the challenging Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, ultimately outperforming Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing in practice sessions.
