Fernando Alonso has poked fun at McLaren's accumulative 105 places of grid penalties in Belgium, joking that the record-breaking penalty is so severe it deserves a cake to mark the occasion.
McLaren has made a double engine change in both cars this weekend, moving Alonso and Jenson Button 55 and 50 places back respectively. The scale of the penalty is actually misleading as the regulations were tweaked after the Austrian Grand Prix to say grid penalties could no longer carry over to the race - meaning McLaren's penalty is effectively just a back row start.
Alonso saw the funny side, saying after qualifying: "We should have a cake or something - I think it is a world record!"
The former double world champion said the new rule is much fairer on teams relegated to the back of the grid.
"It is 105 but it is just a number because we start at the back of the grid. It doesn't mean anything. I think the regulation is fair that if you have the penalties you start at the back, because starting at the back is a bigger penalty for us than it is for the cars at the front if they start at the back. So it is fair for everyone the way the regulation is now."