Movement in the championships, big names out of position and a tight midfield battle: What to expect in the Belgian Grand Prix

Kimi Antonelli took his sixth pole of the season in Spa | Credit: Formula One

Following a cinematic round in Silverstone that saw Charles Leclerc take his first win since 2024, we head to another iconic motorsport venue for the Belgian Grand Prix, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.

Following three chaotic practice sessions, plenty of penalties up and down the field, and a closely contested fight for pole, the grid is set for the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix.  

Kimi Antonelli took his sixth pole of the season ahead of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, the McLaren driver however dropping to 13th due to a grid penalty for exceeding his power unit components allocation. George Russell now starts third, completing a tantalising top three for the race start.

Here are five exciting stories to keep an eye on for what’s certain to be another Spa special.

Antonelli back to his winning ways

After enjoying five consecutive wins and stretching out his championship lead over the early rounds, Antonelli’s purple patch has begun to fade away lately as he conceded wins to his championship rivals — and now finds himself within Russell’s striking distance with just 25 points between the Mercedes pair.

Over the past three rounds, Antonelli has faced his fair share of misfortune: an engine failure in Barcelona, lack of pace in Austria, and a heartbreaking car issue in Silverstone that dropped him well out of the points after starting on pole.

Antonelli will be keen to extend his championship lead once more | Credit: Formula One

Starting on pole once more, Antonelli has another shot at rebuilding his championship advantage. Starting on pole in Spa is however more challenging, due to the short run to La Source followed by a flat-out section that’s perfect for slipstreaming.

With Verstappen and Russell right on his tail, there’s no telling whether Antonelli will be able to hang on to his lead at the start, but if there’s one thing we learnt from the British Grand Prix, it’s that the young Italian driver will seize any opportunity that comes his way to stay ahead of his rivals.

A Drivers’ Championship battle that’s quickly heating up

With Russell and Hamilton slowly chipping away at Antonelli’s buffer over the last few rounds, heading into the Belgian Grand Prix, Russell is in race win-points of Antonelli while Lewis Hamilton is just a further seven points behind.

It’s highly likely that following this round, in the event of shock retirements or redeeming wins, we could see some serious movement in the top three of the Drivers’ standings.

Lewis Hamilton is currently third in the Drivers' Champion ship | Credit: Formula One

With Russell starting third and Hamilton in fifth, Antonelli will be feeling the pressure throughout the race with his championship lead on the line.

Never rule out Ferrari

Though both Ferrari drivers start outside the top three, Leclerc lining up ahead of his teammate in fourth with both drivers moving up the order following Norris’ penalty, we have seen time and time again that the Scuderia is rapid at the start.

Their powerful launches off the grid helped Leclerc pounce on Antonelli at the start in Silverstone, and recent races have proven that Ferrari have a more reliable package than Mercedes, despite the latter team being quicker on performance.

Ferrari has been picking up the pieces as Mercedes struggles with reliability | Credit: Formula One

Both Hamilton and Leclerc have one win each this season, the only non-Mercedes drivers to have tasted victory in 2026. With Hamilton warming up to the possibility of fighting for an eighth title and Leclerc with an agenda of his own, expect both Ferrari drivers to be in the fight for the top places and join Verstappen in continuing to mount pressure on Mercedes.

Norris and Hadjar climbing their way up the ranks

Ahead of the weekend, it was confirmed that Norris and Isack Hadjar would be taking grid penalties due to exceeding their power unit allocations.

The McLaren driver who looked rapid throughout qualifying and was even on provisional pole eventually bagged third and dropped down to 13th for the race. Meanwhile, knowing he would be starting at the back of the grid, Hadjar’s role during qualifying was to assist his teammate Verstappen with strategically executed tows.

Lando Norris starts 13th for the Belgian Grand Prix | Credit: Formula One

In Q3, Hadjar gave the Dutch driver a tow through the final chicane on both his push laps after backing off through Stavelot, helping Verstappen secure a front-row start. 

With two competitive drivers starting out of position, expect a flurry of overtakes from Norris from 13th and Hadjar from 21st throughout the opening stages of the race.

Alpine and Racing Bulls’ private battle

Just one point separates Alpine and Racing Bulls’ in the Constructors’ Championship, Alpine ahead in fifth on 60 points.

Alpine’s biggest haul of points came at the Monaco Grand Prix following contentious penalties that initially denied Pierre Gasly a podium, but following Alpine’s Right of Review, the French driver secured third place at the iconic venue.

Yet since then, Alpine have only had flashes of performance and are struggling to maintain their standards. This is where Racing Bulls’ is the stronger team. Week in, week out, the Red Bull junior team has been consistently collecting points and are now on a healthy streak of four double-points finishes that began in Monaco.

Racing Bulls will be eager to jump Alpine in the Constructors' standings | Credit: Formula One

Arvid Lindblad came with a freshly upgraded car and took his third consecutive Q3 entry, while Liam Lawson without the upgrades missed out on the top ten and had to settle for 11th. With all the penalties applied, Lindblad moves up to seventh while Lawson is set to start ninth.

Gasly and Franco Colapinto line up right behind the Kiwi driver in 10th and 11th respectively, setting us up nicely for a straight out battle between the three drivers for the final points.