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Max Verstappen won his eighth race in a row. From sixth on the grid, the reigning two-time champion took victory in the Belgian Grand Prix by over 22s from teammate Sergio Perez.
F1 Belgian GP Results: Who Won the Race?
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Max Verstappen won the Belgian Grand Prix. The Belgium-born Dutchman won for the third consecutive year at Spa. Starting down in sixth place following a penalty for changing his gearbox, Verstappen methodically climbed up the order to take the lead at the start of his second stint. He led home teammate Sergio Perez, with polesitter Charles Leclerc crossing the line third.
Perez Overtakes Leclerc, Verstappen Climbs Up the Order
Leclerc had a good launch and retained the lead into La Source, followed by Perez. Carlos Sainz attempted a bold dive down the inside of La Source and ended up touching the McLaren of Oscar Piastri. Both cars picked up damage, with Piastri slowing down into Raidillon. Sainz was able to continue, but the Australian was forced to retire. Verstappen got around the pair and up to fourth, behind Lewis Hamilton.
Perez got a good tow down Kemmel Straight and completed the move on Leclerc well before Les Combes to take the lead. Further down the order, Alexander Albon had a lightning start to move up to eighth, from 15th on the grid.
Sainz went the other way, dropping positions to Fernando Alonso, Yuki Tsunoda, Albon, Lance Stroll and George Russell in quick sucession.
On lap 6, Hamilton dropped out of Leclerc’s DRS range. Verstappen took advantage and pulled a move down the inside into Les Combes to move into third place. The reigning two-time champion then set off in pursuit of Leclerc. Three laps later, Verstappen overtook the Ferrari for second place with a nice move around the outside of Les Combes.
Verstappen Takes the Lead
The Red Bull pair pitted on laps 13 and 14, with Perez going in ahead of Verstappen. Despite a slightly slower stop, the Mexican driver retained his lead by just over two seconds from his teammate.
Verstappen set off in pursuit of Perez. The Dutchman slashed the gap, taking two seconds out of Perez’s lead in two laps to get within DRS range. At the start of lap 17, the two-time champion got a huge two down Kemmel and used DRS to complete the move well before the braking zone.
Down the order, Sainz endured a miserable race. The Ferrari driver dropped like a stone as a result of the opening lap collision with Piastri, and ultimately decided to retire on lap 25.
Red Bull Secures a 1-2
The threat of rain, which had been around since the start of the race, never really materialized. There was some drizzle around the halfway mark, and the slippery conditions nearly caught Verstappen out. The Dutchman had to correct a massive oversteer up Raidillon, but showed plenty of skill to keep his car on the gray and pointing in the right direction.
Hamilton was the first among the front runners to go for a second stop, pitting on lap 27. Leclerc followed suit a lap later. Crucially, the Mercedes driver exited just behind Alonso and lost time in the undercut, which allowed Leclerc to retain the final spot on the podium.
Perez and Verstappen pitted on laps 29 and 30. The Dutchman continued to extend his lead, crossing the line 22.4s ahead of his teammate. Hamilton pitted on the penultimate lap for a new set of mediums and managed to snatch the extra point for the fastest lap.
Leclerc completed the podium, with Hamilton, Alonso, Russell, Lando Norris, Ocon, Stroll and Yuki Tsunoda. It was Red Bull’s first 1-2 finish since Miami, in May.
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