Global (Commonwealth Union) _ Oscar Piastri swept P1 at the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, mastering the changing weather conditions to finish just ahead of McLaren teammate Lando Norris, extending his World Drivers’ Championship (WDC) lead to 16 points.
Following an 80-minute delay due to heavy rain, the race began with British McLaren racer Lando Norris taking pole position, followed by his Australian teammate Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The defining moment of the race came almost immediately, with Piastri using the slipstream to surge past pole-sitter Norris through Eau Rouge and onto the Kemmel Straight, completing the move well before hitting the braking zone for Les Combes.
The Australian managed to hold a one-second lead in the early laps, keeping the gap steady as the track dried. Tire strategy became critical with the drying circuit, prompting Piastri to pit on Lap 12 for medium tires, gaining priority over Norris, who was forced to do an extra lap on worn intermediate tires.
Norris opted for hard tires, intending to attempt a long final stint, rejoining the race 9.1 seconds behind his teammate. The gap between the two McLarens was momentarily widened due to the combination of a slightly slower pit stop, having difficulty fitting the left-front wheel, and the additional lap done on deteriorating tires.
Initially, Piastri maintained a lead of around eight seconds, but the pressure mounted during the final ten laps. The McLaren team stuck with the strategy despite being told it would be “tough” to finish. Norris pushed hard in the closing stages, cutting Piastri’s lead to just over four seconds with just three laps to go.
However, a wide moment at Pouhon and two lock-ups at La Source disrupted Norris’s momentum. Piastri, unable to close the gap in the final stretch, crossed the checkered flag 3.415 seconds ahead, securing his sixth win of the season.
Charles Leclerc secured the remaining podium position for Ferrari, just 20.185 seconds shy of Piastri. However, the Monegasque fended off Red Bull’s 4xWDC Max Verstappen, who had closely tailed him throughout the race but hadn’t been able to overtake.
Britain’s George Russell finished fifth in his Mercedes after a clean, uneventful race, having overtaken Alex Albon early on, while Verstappen secured fourth place. The Williams racer was able to hold off a charging Lewis Hamilton to claim sixth, despite the Ferrari driver being the standout mover of the race.
Starting out at the pit lane following a disappointing qualifying, Hamilton delivered a series of bold overtakes to climb through the field. The first driver to switch to slicks on Lap 11, he eventually finished seventh, less than a second behind Alex Albon.
Liam Lawson, driving for Racing Bulls, finished in 8th place, ahead of Gabriel Bortoleto from Kick Sauber, while Pierre Gasly secured the final point for Alpine by leading a DRS train for most of the race and successfully keeping faster cars behind him.
Standing just outside the top ten, Oliver Bearman finished ahead of Kick Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg, who had been briefly running in the points before having to pit a second time. Yuki Tsunoda, racing for Red Bull, fell back in the closing stages and finished 13th, followed by Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Esteban Ocon (Haas), and Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes).
Further back, Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) and Carlos Sainz (Williams) struggled for pace, having also started from the pit lane alongside Hamilton. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) and Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) pulled through as the final finishers, bringing home their cars without incident in a race that, despite the delayed start, ran without any caution periods once green-flag action began.
The Belgian GP victory leaves Oscar Piastri at the top of the WDC standings, at 266 points, with the other McLaren driver, Lando Norris, following closely at 250 points. The race left Verstappen just 81 points behind Piastri as the championship moves forward, bringing up questions about whether the reigning WDC will be able to push forward in the title race during the remaining races.
