Oscar Piastri had a comfortable victory in qualifying for the Belgian sprint, which reaffirms a great moment for the driver in the competition. With a nearly flawless performance, the driver surprised the public and the competitors by taking pole position with a large advantage over the other drivers, reinforcing his leading role in the 2025 season.
Piastri impresses with his performance at Spa
Formula One leader Oscar Piastri secured pole position for the Saturday sprint by nearly half a second at the Belgian Grand Prix while McLaren teammate and title rival Lando Norris qualified third. Red Bull’s reigning champion Max Verstappen will join the Australian on the front row for the first race since Christian Horner was dismissed as team boss and replaced with Laurent Mekies.
The Australian, eight points clear of Norris at the top after 12 of 24 rounds, apologised over the radio for the scare of almost going out in the second phase when he had a lap deleted for exceeding track limits at Raidillon and was 10th. “Sorry for the heart attack. That wasn’t in the plan,” he said. “But that was mega. Nicely done, very nicely done.” Piastri later described it as “a little scare” and attributed his speed to a simple love of the Spa-Francorchamps circuit.
“It’s my favourite one of the year. Maybe that gave me a couple of extra tenths,” he added. “When the car is handling as well as it is today, it’s a pleasure. I’ve had good confidence. I feel like the last few weekends have been good from a pace perspective but not so much from a results perspective.”
Verstappen acknowledges McLaren’s advantage, Norris aims for a comeback
Norris has won the last two races, at Silverstone because Piastri collected a 10-second penalty, but the Australian was quickest in Friday’s sole practice at Spa. Verstappen said the lap was fine, but the gap big, and doubted his Red Bull’s straight line speed could match the McLaren over the 100km distance at the longest track on the calendar.
“When you’re almost five tenths off, I don’t think going faster or slower on the straight is going to matter a lot. We just have to do our own race and see what we can do,” said Max Verstappen, the four-times world champion.
The Spa circuit confirmed Piastri’s maturity, demonstrating admirable car control on a demanding circuit like Spa. Max also utilized his experience, but by adopting a more cautious strategy due to the limitations of his car at the time, admitting that race pace will be crucial in trying to reverse the sprint gap.
Leclerc remains stable and Hamilton does not finish the race happy
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc starts fourth but teammate Lewis Hamilton will line up 18th after a difficult afternoon for the seven-times world champion, whose most recent win came at the same circuit last year with Mercedes. The Briton spun on his last flying lap while on course to go through, with the suspicion falling on a failure of the car’s rear axle. “Obviously I’m massively frustrated,” he said.
Despite not reaching the podium, Charles Leclerc remains a consistent presence at the front, even with Ferrari’s race pace still fluctuating. Hamilton faces another difficult weekend, with 18th on the grid symbolizing Mercedes’ struggles to deliver a balanced car.
Renewed favoritism: Piastri confirms leadership and puts pressure on rivals
Piastri’s dominant pole position reinforces his position as a favorite not only for the sprint but also as a leading contender for the 2025 title. His familiarity with the car and his recent strong performance contrast with Verstappen’s inconsistent form and Hamilton’s challenges. If he maintains this pace, the young Australian could solidify his lead in the championship standings.