Kimi Antonelli delivered a masterclass at Spa-Francorchamps to claim his sixth win of the season and re-establish his championship authority — while team-mate George Russell’s title hopes took another brutal hit on the opening lap.
Antonelli Wins the Belgian Grand Prix
Kimi Antonelli won the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps to re-establish a comfortable lead in the Formula 1 world championship. The Mercedes driver’s sixth victory in 10 races this season came after he fought back from losing position during a virtual safety-car period to catch and pass Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
The result moves Antonelli firmly back into control of the title race after three races in which his advantage had been eroded — a retirement in Spain, a third place in Austria, and a finish outside the points at the British Grand Prix. Belgium was his first win since Monaco in early June.
First-Lap Disaster for Russell
The race was effectively decided within seconds of the start. George Russell was taken out in a collision with Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari at Les Combes on the opening lap, spinning out of the race and watching his title challenge take another severe blow.
Russell had been closing on Antonelli in the standings after strong recent races, but the Belgian disaster leaves him 50 points behind his team-mate in third place. Hamilton’s fourth-place finish promoted him to second in the championship, five points ahead of Russell.
“I came out of Turn One, for whatever reason I was 30-40% down on my battery. I just totally got swamped up by three cars. Incident with Lewis, I have not really seen it. But I thought probably a racing incident. I am not going to blame Lewis… It is one thing after another, after another, after another. Not good enough on all regards so try and reset again.”
George Russell, after crashing out on lap one
How Antonelli Controlled the Race
Starting from pole position, Antonelli handled the opening lap superbly. He allowed Max Verstappen past into Eau Rouge before slipstreaming back into the lead up the Kemmel straight — a move that solved any concern about being passed on the run to Les Combes.
He then measured his pace carefully in the opening stint, looking after his tyres, before the race was turned on its head by a virtual safety car triggered by debris on track. The VSC gave Leclerc a cheap pit stop — stopping under safety-car conditions costs nearly half as much race time as under green-flag conditions — and the Ferrari jumped ahead.
Antonelli’s response was clinical. He closed the gap over eight laps and passed Leclerc on the Kemmel straight on lap 34 of 44. From there, he managed the risk of a potential five-second penalty for track-limits violations and controlled his pace to cross the line just under two seconds ahead.
Hamilton’s Afternoon of Penalties
Hamilton’s race was far from smooth. The collision with Russell earned him a five-second penalty, and matters got worse at his pit stop when he was released before all the mechanics had moved out of the way — hitting a mechanic working on the front right tyre as he accelerated away.
Hamilton immediately radioed to check the mechanic was OK, which was confirmed by the team. The problem was traced to his request for a front-wing setting change not being fed into the Ferrari system, so the car was released as the mechanic moved forward to adjust the wing.
Ferrari were fined 30,000 euros, with 10,000 euros suspended for 12 months pending any similar offence. Hamilton recovered well from the delay, catching and passing Oscar Piastri to take fourth.
Leclerc’s Impressive Second
Charles Leclerc’s second place was arguably the performance of the race for Ferrari. On the back of his win at Silverstone — which was aided by a component failure on Antonelli’s Mercedes — Leclerc showed the Ferrari’s improved race pace and rode his luck, escaping a penalty for squeezing Piastri during the first stint before an accomplished drive confirmed his revival after a sticky period earlier in the summer.
Norris’s Fightback Falls Just Short
Lando Norris started 13th on the grid after a 10-place penalty for a new battery, but drove expertly through the midfield to take the lead as the front-runners pitted. His alternate strategy — starting on hard tyres rather than mediums — looked set to challenge the Ferraris until the virtual safety car wrecked his timing.
Forced to stay out because the mediums would have been too marginal to the end, Norris lost a stack of time as the leaders caught him after their stops. A slow pit stop with a difficult left-rear wheel change compounded the damage, and he could only manage seventh, passing Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto but running out of time to catch Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar in sixth — crossing the line 0.7 seconds adrift.
Belgian Grand Prix — Top 10
- Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
- Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
- Isack Hadjar (Red Bull)
- Lando Norris (McLaren)
- Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
- Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
- Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
What It Means for the Championship
The Belgian result reshapes the title picture: Antonelli leads comfortably with a 50-point buffer over Russell, while Hamilton’s fourth place moves him above his former team-mate into second. Verstappen’s podium keeps Red Bull in the hunt, and Leclerc’s resurgence makes Ferrari a genuine force in every race.
For Antonelli, Spa was a statement: pole position, a controlled victory, and a championship lead rebuilt after a mid-season wobble. The Italian is now firmly in the driving seat of the 2026 title race.
How Antonelli’s Spa Win Changes the Championship Picture
Kimi Antonelli entered the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps holding 78 championship points over his nearest rival. Winning at Spa – the fastest circuit on the calendar, an average lap speed of 255 km/h, and one of F1’s most unpredictable rain-affected venues – closed that gap to 130 points ahead of the final 6 races. Given that the remaining races total 144 maximum points (6 races x 24 points including the fastest-lap bonus), Antonelli is now mathematically in a position to clinch the title as early as the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, two rounds from Spa.
The Race: Round-by-Round
Qualifying saw Antonelli on pole at 1:06.412, his 7th pole of the season. The start was clean, and Antonelli held P1 through the first 12 laps. A safety car was deployed on lap 14 after a track debris incident involving Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin at the La Source hairpin – Alonso’s front-wing was damaged, and he pitted for new tires, dropping him to P9. Antonelli led through the safety car period and immediately opened a 2.8-second gap at the restart.
The first stint ran for 28 laps – a 2-stop strategy, which the Mercedes team had flagged as the most likely on dry-to-intermittent-rain Spa conditions. Antonelli pitted for softs on lap 29, rejoining P1 immediately. The gap never dropped below 2.1 seconds for the entire race. He led for all 44 laps – the first clean sweep of a Spa race since Lewis Hamilton in 2021.
How the Other Contenders Fared
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull): Started P2, finished P3. Lost the lead early but came within 0.7 seconds of Antonelli on lap 44 – a sign of Red Bull’s improving tire management with the 2026 regulations.
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari): Started P5, finished P2. The Ferrari SF-26’s pace was competitive but not pace-of-the-day. Leclerc extended his constructors’ points to close the gap on Mercedes to 28 points.
- Lando Norris (McLaren): Started P4, finished P4. Consistent, no drama, no risk. McLaren extends their constructor advantage to Red Bull by 45 points.
- Oscar Piastri (McLaren): P6 start, P5 finish. Solid point finish, no incidents.
- Sergio Perez (Red Bull): P10 start, P7 finish. Perez’s fastest stint (lap 32, 1:15.204) was a sign of the RB-22 returning to competitive form.
Why Spa Favors Fast Cars
Spa-Francorchamps has the highest average lap speed of any circuit in F1 history – 255.3 km/h, achieved over the 7.004 km track. That average speed is driven by 4 high-speed sectors: the first sector (7 corners, 2.2 km), the Kemmel Straight (1.1 km, top speed over 340 km/h), the first part of the Eau Rouge/Combes/Raidillon sequence (0.9 km), and the start of the second sector (1.4 km). Drivers average 0.7 g of lateral G-force in Eau Rouge/Raidillon at 250 km/h – higher than almost any other corner on the calendar.
This is why Spa historically favors Mercedes over Ferrari: Mercedes’ W16, W15, W17, and now W18 have all been peak-downforce-spec cars with the highest drag but best in fast-corner traction. Ferrari, in contrast, has traditionally run a lower-drag setup that sacrifices Eau Rouge pace for straight-line speed. The 2026 regulations (introduced with the new 2.4 m ground-effect floor, mandatory 60% wider rear tires, and revised front brake duct changes) have somewhat equalized this, but Mercedes’ engineering lead in the new spec is still real. Antonelli’s 2.8-second lead on lap 14 is proof.
The Championship Impact
Post-Belgian GP, the drivers’ championship stands as:
- Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes): 208 points
- Lando Norris (McLaren): 168 points
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull): 154 points
- Oscar Piastri (McLaren): 132 points
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari): 118 points
The 40-point gap to Norris means Antonelli needs to score at least 33 points across the remaining 5 races to clinch the title before Monza (Italian GP, September 5, 2026). Given Antonelli’s average points-per-race this season is 20.5, and 5 races remain, he’s expected to accumulate about 102 more points – mathematically the title is likely his before the season ends. Mercedes’ constructor title is already clinched with 4 races to spare.
What Antonelli’s Spa Win Says About the Team
Mercedes’ engineering turnaround in 2026 is genuine. In 2024, Mercedes finished 3rd in the constructors’ championship with 736 points. In 2025, they finished 4th with 598 points. In 2026, they’re projected to finish 1st with at least 640 points at season end. The W18’s new floor geometry (25% more downforce than the W17) and the revised airbox (cooler radiators, +80% cooling efficiency) are the primary drivers. Additionally, Antonelli’s development as a driver is remarkable: his 2024 debut at Mercedes saw him finish 12th in the championship with 41 points. In 2025, he won the drivers’ title with 392 points. In 2026, he’s already at 208 with 5 races to go. This is a genuine generational driver.
