George Russell, Mercedes in the Spa gravel
Kimi Antonelli returned to winning ways at the Belgian Grand Prix, passing Charles Leclerc for the win.
A Virtual Safety Car was timed perfectly to boost Leclerc into the lead, but Antonelli caught and re-passed the Ferrari to score maximum points, on a day where George Russell in the sister Mercedes failed to score.
Kimi Antonelli wins Belgian Grand Prix
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The Belgian Grand Prix began amid a threat of incoming rain. There had been no wet session yet in this era of Formula 1. A feeling of trepidation widely exists across the grid when it comes to driving these cars in the rain.
Antonelli led from Leclerc on Lap 1. Russell and Hamilton collided at Les Combes, sending Russell spinning out of the race. Hamilton got a five-second penalty.
The rain proved to be insignificant light drops.
By Lap 10, Antonelli led by a second and a half from Verstappen. Leclerc was third.
Both Ferraris pitted under the second quick fire Virtual Safety Car, taking the ‘cheap’ pit stop. Hamilton knocked a mechanic down exiting his pit box. The mechanic thankfully was fine. The FIA announced a post-race investigation.
Leclerc was now the net leader of the Belgian Grand Prix.
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Antonelli caught and passed Leclerc, who kept the Mercedes in sight, but could not deny Antonelli victory number six of the season.
2026 Belgian Grand Prix results
1 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes
2 Charles Leclerc Ferrari +1.952
3 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing +11.586
4 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +17.245
5 Oscar Piastri McLaren +18.988
6 Isack Hadjar Red Bull Racing +23.307
7 Lando Norris McLaren +24.014
8 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +49.140
9 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls +50.406
10 Franco Colapinto Alpine +76.037
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Originally published by Planet F1 —
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