race report
McLaren optimistic despite disrupted Friday as Norris shines and Piastri overcomes hydraulic setback
F1TechnicalJuly 18, 2026
Curated for Torqlytics readers — aggregated from trusted F1 publishers, not original reporting.
McLaren ended the opening day of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend cautiously optimistic after Lando Norris emerged as Mercedes closest challenger in second practice, while Oscar Piastri recovered from an early hydraulic problem to complete a productive afternoon at Spa-Francorchamps.