After winning the last race and being able to savour it during the two-week summer break, the team is ready for this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix

What’s the mood in the team heading into Belgium?

We head to Spa on the back of winning the last Grand Prix before the summer break, which, clearly, was not something we were expecting! It wasn’t a win based on full, outright performance as some external circumstances contributed, but the opportunity came to us and we were there to grab it – in style - as we led 67 of the 70 laps of the race. Even though a few weeks have passed since the Hungarian Grand Prix, there is still a good buzz within the team as we are heading to Belgium. It was also fantastic to see Esteban bounce back after a few difficult races and score his first Grand Prix win. It’s a very important milestone for the Team and a huge morale boost for everybody in Enstone and Viry. Now we know how good victory tastes, we will work even harder to achieve our goals and become a regular contender in the future.

What are the expectations for Spa?

We remain realistic for Spa as we know it’s a circuit that is less suited to our package. Even if we stopped the A521 development a while ago, we will still bring specific low downforce wings for Spa and Monza, which are high speed circuits. Spa is one of those places where the weather can bring some unpredictability and the weather forecast for this weekend seems to confirm this. This could create good opportunities to shine for our drivers, as Esteban has shown his ability in the wet in the past, and Fernando’s racecraft and experience is an asset in tricky conditions. We aim to be in a position where we can capitalise on any opportunity.

How intense will the second half of the season be for the team?

The summer shutdown allowed team members to rest and disconnect, which was well deserved after an intense first half of the season but also necessary to cope with the second half, which looks even busier. With a triple header across Belgium-Netherlands-Italy to start with, the factory has been busy either side of the break to get everything prepared. There is still some uncertainty on the calendar with race cancellations and Covid restrictions, so we have to remain flexible and ready for any race sequence.

Marcin Budkowski, Executive Director: After winning the last race and being able to savour it during the two-week summer break, the team is ready for this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix. Executive Director Marcin Budkowski outlines the plan of action for taking on the legendary Spa-Francorchamps.

Esteban Ocon: We enjoyed the moment in Hungary and, of course, repeating that feeling would be fantastic, but we will remain realistic and do our best for a strong result.

Fernando Alonso: Our aim is to score as many points as possible and build on the momentum and team spirit that we have shown from Hungary.