The reigning Formula 1 world champion believes the setback does not have to ruin his weekend at Spa-Francorchamps.
“I hope it’s not the end of my weekend before it’s started,” Norris said on Thursday. “I am still confident we can have a good weekend.”
The penalty comes after McLaren exceeded the season’s allocation of three power electronics units. Under Formula 1 regulations, that automatically results in a 10-place grid drop.
The team explained that Norris has suffered a string of reliability problems this season. His first unit failed completely at the Chinese Grand Prix in March, preventing him from starting the race.
A second unit was installed for the Japanese Grand Prix but had to be removed after problems during practice. Although it was repaired and returned to service, it later suffered another terminal failure during practice for the Monaco Grand Prix in June.
McLaren said Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains has since introduced reliability improvements, but fitting the updated unit meant accepting the grid penalty.
The team chose Spa because overtaking opportunities are better than at the next two races in Hungary and the Netherlands, giving Norris a greater chance of recovering through the field.
“It won’t be made easier by the grid penalty but that is because we have been unlucky losing different bits, the engine, the power unit or the controls,” Norris said.
“I am on the back foot in terms of spare parts but that is out of my hands. That’s life, you’ve got to take it on the chin. This is a better track to take the penalty than the next two.”
McLaren intends to use the new unit for the rest of the season.
Team-mate Oscar Piastri will not face a penalty after avoiding the reliability issues that affected Norris and will race with the latest Mercedes engine specification.
Norris started last year’s Belgian Grand Prix from pole position, although Piastri went on to claim victory. McLaren arrive at Spa third in the constructors’ championship, trailing Mercedes and Ferrari, as they look to return to winning form.
