Arvid Lindblad believes that qualifying P8 for the Belgian Grand Prix produced “one of the best feelings” he’s experienced in his rookie season, with the result marking his highest grid position so far.
The 18-year-old has put in a number of eye-catching drives this season, including starting ninth on his debut in Australia, as well as in Canada and Great Britain, but his 1m 45.143s lap was enough to earn him a new achievement of eighth at Spa-Francorchamps.
That will become seventh on the grid due to Lando Norris dropping down the order with a 10-place penalty, helping Lindblad to further enjoy the impressive pace he has unlocked in his newly upgraded Racing Bulls car.
“It was a really good session,” Lindblad said. “You know, from FP1 I felt good with the car. Honestly, it has been one of the best feelings I have had this year, with Barcelona and Canada, and Melbourne.
“So, I don’t know, the team have done a really good job to give us a good package and yeah, from the beginning of Qualifying I felt good, I felt on it. Even to the point I don’t think we needed to put on a second set in Q2 which is quite an achievement for us.
“In the end it is really good. Part of me is a little bit gutted because I think if I did a perfect job, I could have maybe just pipped Oscar [Piastri]. But even so, I think I was driving really, really well out there and this is just kind of where we are at at the moment.”
Team Principal Alan Permane confirmed earlier in the weekend that Lindblad would be their sole driver to receive a cooling update, which includes a new sidepod, roll hoop, and brake drum all designed to target better airflow.
He was chosen over team mate Liam Lawson – who finished P11 in Saturday’s session with the older components – after he outqualified the New Zealander at Silverstone, and he has quickly made the most of the upgrades.
Asked whether he will be able to convert his starting position to a fifth consecutive points finish, Lindblad said: “That’s what we are all focused on now, I think Lando has some grid penalties, Isack [Hadjar] as well. So we should start a little bit further up.
“We will focus on our race and see what we can do. Yeah, the car is fast, the team is doing a good job so it is just about doing our job well, focusing on the basics and we should be fine.”
