Verstappen dominated the rain-affected qualifying with a brutal lead! Who will start from the front row on Sunday?

The twelfth qualifying of the season fell on the sprint weekend in Spa, and therefore on Friday. Championship leader Max Verstappen was fastest on the drying track. However, his path to victory on Sunday was hampered by a penalty for a gearbox change.

One thing was clear before the start of qualifying – Max Verstappen would not start Sunday’s Grand Prix from pole position. In fact, the Dutchman received a five-place grid penalty for an over-the-limit gearbox change.

More than six minutes through the start of qualifying, the first drivers had already queued up at the end of pit lane. Already this early dispatch had set up two curious situations. Lewis Hamilton was unhappy with the set-up of his right mirror, and due to the rules regarding working on the car in the fast lane, none of the mechanics could help him.

Even so, one of the Mercedes mechanics rushed to Hamilton, but only brought the seven-time champion a pair of gloves, which he wanted to change for some reason. Not long afterwards, a mechanic from Alfa Romeo came running to Zhou Guanyu’s car with a tank cap that the team had forgotten to fit in the garage.

Great work by the Williams team, who managed to repair Logan Sargeant’s car after his accident in the first free practice. The American rookie took to the track ten minutes after the start of qualifying.

First part of qualifying (Q1)

After a rain-affected practice session, the sun shone over the track at Spa-Francorchamps. But the circuit was far from dry before the first part of qualifying, which was delayed by 10 minutes. All teams therefore opted for intermediate tyre compounds for the start.

The first off-track outing was taken care of by Lando Norris. The British driver failed to tame his car’s oversteer in a fast corner at the start of the last sector and drove through the gravel before returning to the track. He had to pit shortly afterwards due to suspected damage to the front wing and floor, but the team sent him back out on track after a quick check.

For the full 18 minutes, both Haas and Williams struggled. Before the last attempts, they were well below the grid. Nico Hülkenberg was held up in the pits by a hydraulic failure, leaving him in last place.

Both Williams drivers were also unable to get out of their non-advancing positions. Alexander Albon will start in 16th place. Sargeant will start eighteenth.

Daniel Ricciardo recorded the second slowest time. His last fast attempt would have been enough to advance, but his time was wiped out due to exceeding the track limits. The aforementioned Chinese Alfa Romeo driver completed the non-advancing five.

Second part of qualifying (Q2)

At the start of the second qualifying segment, a dry track was already evident over almost the entire length of the track. The teams decided to switch to dry tyres with just 7 minutes remaining.

Until then, Red Bull had traditionally set the pace. Surprisingly slow laps were put in by both Mercedes drivers. Before the tyre change, they were in non-advancing positions along with Carlos Sainz, Norris and Lance Stroll.

Norris didn’t take to the track until the final minutes of Q2. His two quick attempts were enough to advance even with the reserve.

On a day when Alpine decided to change more than just the team boss, neither of its drivers made it through to Q3. Esteban Ocon failed to clear his car on the wet track and damaged his front wing by colliding with the barrier. He will start the race in 15th place, with his teammate Pierre Gasly in 12th.

Also saying an early goodbye to qualifying were Júki Cunoda, Valtteri Bottas and Kevin Magnussen, who narrowly escaped a collision at the same point where Ocon collided with the barrier.

Q3

Only the drivers of the five fastest teams made it through to Q3. Surprisingly, Charles Leclerc appeared on provisional pole position after the first attempts. The Monegasque was separated from teammate Verstappen, but his penalty would mean both Ferrari drivers would start from the front row.

The Italian stable’s final laps didn’t look too bad at all. Both McLarens were no match for them, as were Fernando Alonso and Stroll in the Aston Martin. But Verstappen again showed his great form, beating Leclerc’s time by more than 8 tenths.

A brutal lead indeed. Squeezed in between the two Ferraris were Pérez and Hamilton. George Russell was 8 tenths behind his teammate and had to settle for eighth place.

For the second year in a row, Ferrari will start from pole position at Spa. As last year, however, only thanks to a penalty to the faster Red Bull.

Belgian Grand Prix starting grid (Top 10):

1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
2. Sergio Pérez (Red Bull)
3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
4. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
5. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
7. Lando Norris (McLaren)
8. Goerge Russell (Mercedes)
9. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

Source: F1TV