Norris locked out of top 10 at Spa by DRS train

©McLaren

Lando Norris says the five car DRS train that formed behind Williams' Alex Albon in the second part of the Belgian Grand Prix left him locked out of a potential top-ten finish.

The McLaren driver, relying on a two-stop strategy, ran as high as P9 in the opening stages of the race but after his first pit stop, and switch from the medium to the hard tyre, he was unable to break away from P12.

As the second car in a DRS train running behind Albon that included Aston Martin's Lance Stroll, himself, Alfa's Zhou Guanyu, AlphaTauri's Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo, Norris was locked in position.

Read also: F1i's Driver Ratings for the 2022 Belgian GP

He admitted however that his midfield struggles hadn't come as a surprise.

"I think we knew the racing was going to be a lot worse here this year than it was the previous years, just because the slipstream [was] so much worse," explained the Briton.

"Apart from that, just getting stuck behind the Aston and the Williams.

"The Aston's pace was better than ours today, but the Williams is just so quick in a straight and I'm in the DRS train, so I couldn't do a lot."

©McLaren

Norris nevertheless took away some positives linked to the upgrades implemented by McLaren at Sap and that he hopes will help him fight higher up the pecking order next weekend in Zandvoort.

"The little changes we made to the car for this weekend made a bit of a difference so there’s still some positives to take from it all," he said.

"We tried but we just weren’t quick enough this time around. We’ll keep working hard, keep pushing, take a look at everything in the next few days and try and take the fight back to the Alpines in Zandvoort."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.