Like the sprint race at Spa-Francorchamps, it all came down to the first real lap of racing. And though the expectations at the Belgian Grand Prix were wet conditions, that was only true at the beginning, when McLaren ace Oscar Piastri overtook his teammate, Lando Norris. Norris had overall momentum — two straight first-place finishes, and pole at Spa — yet it’s Piastri who saw the checkered flag first.
Following losing his pole after a 90-minute delayed start, Norris tried a different strategy to his teammate, going on hard tires compared to Piastri’s mediums. And though he made up a bit of the eight-second gap, it wasn’t enough.
“Oscar did a good job, nothing more to say,” Norris said after the race. “Committed a bit more through Eau Rouge and had the slipstream and got the run. Nothing to complain of. Did a better job in the beginning and that was it. So yeah, nothing more I could do after that point. So yes, we love to be on top and Oscar deserved it today.”
The rest of the grid
It was a race that didn’t have a lot of drama (outside of the lower midfield and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton’s torrid start) as Piastri’s overtake set the standard that he pushed and pushed until he finished first.
Speaking of Hamilton, he looked to be back in championship mode after a rough few days in Belgium. After starting 18th, he sped through much of the midfield, and then was the first to pit and on slicks, he moved up even more. He got up to seventh and challenged Williams’ Alexander Albon, but never quite got the opportunity to overtake.
Max Verstappen stayed within relative striking distance of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, but remained in fourth.
Belgian Grand Prix results
- Oscar Piastri, McLaren
- Lando Norris, McLaren
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull
- George Russell, Mercedes
- Alexander Albon, Williams
- Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
- Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls
- Gabriel Bortoleto, Kick Sauber
- Pierre Gasly, Alpine
- Oliver Bearman, Haas
- Nico Hülkenberg, Kick Sauber
- Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
- Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
- Esteban Ocon, Haas
- Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
- Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
- Carlos Sainz, Williams
- Franco Colapinto, Alpine
- Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls
