Kimi Antonelli returned to glory with victory at a closely contested Belgian Grand Prix, narrowly beating Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc as Max Verstappen settled for his third podium of the season in P3.
The Dutchman got off to a sublime start as he stormed past Antonelli on the opening lap at Eau Rouge, but couldn’t quite stay ahead of the Mercedes driver and quickly gave up the lead.
While Antonelli clung on at the front, there was heartbreak for his team mate who fell behind both Ferraris and made early contact with Lewis Hamilton, spinning George Russell into the gravel and bringing his race to an end, with far-reaching implications in the title battle.
The Italian resisted the pressure of a Safety Car restart as well as a late challenge from Leclerc after retaking the lead to take the chequered flag by 1.9s, securing his sixth race win of the 2026 season and first since the Monaco Grand Prix.
Leclerc missed out on claiming consecutive victories but confidently held onto second place ahead of Verstappen, who crossed the line ahead of the second Ferrari of Hamilton – who had to serve a five-second time penalty for the collision with Russell and will also be investigated after the race for an unsafe release – and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.
The top five were followed by Isack Hadjar, the Frenchman charging from the back of the grid to a mighty points haul in P6, with Lando Norris similarly improving from P13 to P7. Gabriel Bortoleto scored for Audi in eighth, while Arvid Lindblad and Franco Colapinto rounded out the top 10.
There was an exhilarating contest for the final point that saw Pierre Gasly, Liam Lawson and Nico Hulkenberg just miss out, with Haas’ Ollie Bearman finishing significantly further back in P14.
The Williams pair of Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz were 15th and 16th respectively, leading Esteban Ocon, Valtteri Bottas and Fernando Alonso. The latter two were the sole finishers for their respective teams as Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez retired with car issues, joined by the damaged Mercedes of Russell.
More to follow…
