Even though Formula 1 has been on its summer shutdown, it feels like a lot has happened since Hungary! I’m pleased to finally confirm my decision for 2019, but that doesn’t in any way deter from what me or the team will be focusing on for the rest of the year. We still have a lot of work to do and I’m really looking forward to being back in the car from FP2. Although I’ve raced more recently that anyone else on the grid, at Silverstone in WEC last weekend, I still can’t wait to get behind the wheel at Spa. It’s one of the best circuits on the calendar and usually a lot of fun. Spa is the longest track we race on and a lot of it is at full throttle, so it will be a challenging weekend for us. But, I feel fresh, motivated and ready to attack the weekend and the second half of the season.

I’ve never felt more ready to come back after the summer break! I’ve really enjoyed the time away, being able to switch off and spend time with friends and family that I don’t often get to see much between races, but I’m definitely looking forward to getting back in the car. My home race is always one of the key highlights of the season, and every year I go there we see more and more passionate fans in the grandstands. The feeling is incredible and the whole team always receives a very warm welcome everywhere we go. Although the DNF was hugely disappointing in Hungary, I had a much more positive feeling in the car and my main objective is to carry this momentum forward to Spa and these back-to-back races. Spa is also my favourite track – as it is for many other drivers – and I’ve raced there all through my junior career, so it feels like a second home for me and I hope we can put on a good show for the Belgian fans.

The Belgian Grand Prix is a significant one for McLaren for a number of reasons. It’s a legendary track on the calendar and one where we’ve had a great history. Next weekend we’ll be celebrating a very special milestone – the 50th anniversary of our first win, by Bruce McLaren back in 1968, and we’ll all be wearing special t-shirts to mark the occasion on Sunday. Secondly, this weekend will be the first time that our reserve driver Lando will drive the MCL33 during a race weekend, as he steps into Fernando’s car for FP1 on Friday. This is not only part of his ongoing development, but also the evaluation and performance evolution of the car. We’ll be taking a strategic view race-by-race at where else this might be beneficial for us over the coming grands prix. Spa-Francorchamps has a well-deserved reputation as a racers’ circuit due to its historic significance and popularity among the drivers. We’ll be head down and pushing hard as usual to aim for points for both cars in front of our Belgian fans at Stoffel’s home race.