Kimi Antonelli put in a controlled drive to take victory at Spa. Starting from Pole, Antonelli lost the lead to Max Verstappen at Eau Rouge on the opening lap, only to repass the Red Bull driver down the Kemmel Straight. Despite losing the lead to Charles Leclerc thanks to a virtual safety car on lap 20, Antonelli’s pace was clear for all to see. He systematically ate into Leclerc’s advantage, passed him down the Kemmel Straight on lap 34 and, despite the Ferrari driver’s best efforts, held on to take his sixth victory of the season, one that has enlarged his championship lead to 45 points.
Fresh off his emphatic win at Silverstone, Leclerc continued to build momentum in Spa. After starting fourth, Leclerc got an astonishing burst of pace down the Kemmel Straight and leapt from fourth to second. He may have lacked the pace to contend with Antonelli in the closing stages, but second place will have done his confidence a power of good.
Behind him, Max Verstappen lost out to both Antonelli and Leclerc off the start and, despite voicing his frustration with the Red Bull’s instability, ended up a comfortable third. Things were not so straightforward for Verstappen’s old sparring partner Lewis Hamilton. After suffering a major crash in FP3, Hamilton found himself alongside George Russell going into Les Combes on the opening lap. The two former teammates made contact at the apex, which caused Russell to spin into the gravel and out of the race. Russell later lamented the power unit issues that had plagued him all weekend.
Both drivers later deemed the collision a racing incident; even so, Hamilton was given a controversial five-second penalty before later suffering a slow stop. He eventually finished fourth, one place ahead of Oscar Piastri. Isack Hadjar came into this weekend with a 30-place grid penalty having exceeded his power unit quota. He therefore started 21st and completed a commendable recovery drive to sixth in the race, securing yet more valuable points for himself and Red Bull. Lando Norris had an identical penalty in qualifying and, after opting for a lengthy first stint, was able to finish seventh.
Gabriel Bortoleto capped off a very strong weekend for both himself and Audi in eighth ahead of Franco Colapinto. The Alpine driver pulled off a sensational double overtake on both his teammate Pierre Gasly and Liam Lawson on the Kemmel Straight, one that had many harking back to Mika Hakkinen’s legendary move on Michael Schumacher in 2000.
Behind them, Nico Hülkenberg finished 13th ahead of Ollie Bearman, Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz. The two Williams drivers were far from happy with their machinery.
Ten years on from his debut at this very circuit, Esteban Ocon finished 17th ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Fernando Alonso. Lance Stroll was forced to retire with gearbox problems, while suspension trouble marked the end of Sergio Perez’s afternoon.
After failing to score in two of the previous three races, Kimi Antonelli’s title hopes suffered a major scare. Having put in yet another commanding performance in Belgium, all while his two nearest rivals hit trouble, Antonelli has reasserted his dominance at the top of the championship table. However, with 12 races left to run and his pursuers hungrier than ever, it's safe to say Antonelli is unlikely to have it all his own way going forward.
