There was a change of date in store for the Belgian Grand Prix weekend in 2023, with the event taking place at the end of July, rather than the end of August - something we've become very accustomed to over the years. However, despite this, the rain still fell, making it a proper Belgian Grand Prix weekend. And, with the addition of the Sprint for this year, there was hope for a lot of on track action.
Saturday was Sprint Day and Max Verstappen and Red Bull graced pole position, yet again. Oscar Piastri would start 2nd, with the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz in 3rd. And, with it raining cats and dogs at the supposed "lights out" time, the race start was delayed, eventually getting underway with some formation laps behind the Safety Car.
During the formation laps, it's quickly evident that visibility will be an issue here, with Mercedes' George Russell complaining that he can't see a thing on the straights. Elsewhere, Verstappen is told over team radio that the Safety Car will be out for 4 laps - a decision he thinks is wise.
With a track that's quickly drying, after the 4 laps, the Safety Car peels into the pits and with a rolling start, the now 12 lap race, gets fully underway. Piastri, Sainz, Pierre Gasly, Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez all jump into the pits for a change of tyre compound. Verstappen stays out with Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Esteban Ocon and George Russell following him across the line. By the start of the following lap, the rest of the field peel in.
Things have worked out like a charm for Piastri, who finds himself in the lead after Verstappen's stop. The latter rejoins the track in 2nd. Gasly, in the Alpine, is 3rd. Hamilton, however, is stuck in the pits as traffic continuously flows in and out. Eventually, he's back out in 5th, losing a spot to Perez.
Fernando Alonso, in the Aston Martin, started the race in a lonely 15th. He's now stuck in the gravel at Pouhon. Replays show that he was attempting an attack on Haas' Nico Hulkenberg before spinning out as the back end of his car stepped out. Thankfully, he missed the barrier and is ok. The safety car is deployed while the Aston Martin is recovered.
With 5 laps remaining, the safety car returns to the pits. Some drivers consider switching to the slick tyre but no one makes the jump. Pisatri leads across the line but down the Kemmel Straight Verstappen is all over the McLaren driver and blasts past him without a second thought. Further back, Williams driver; Logan Sargeant, receives a 5 second time penalty for speeding in the pit lane.
The second Red Bull of Sergio Perez is now under attack from Hamilton who makes contact with him on the exit of Stavelot. The Red Bull falls down the order before taking a trip through the gravel. He rejoins in 16th but is eventually told by the team to "box and retire." The incident is noted by Race Control and is later investigated by the Stewards with the Mercedes driver being handed a 5 second time penalty.
The track is looking close to slicks. However, Verstappen starts his final lap, storming to victory by over 6 seconds to second place man, Piastri. Gasly holds onto third with the Ferraris in 4th and 5th. Norris is 6th and, after his penalty, Hamilton comes home 7th. The top 10 is rounded out by Russell, Ocon and Daniel Ricciardo.
Dawn broke on Sunday with a 40% chance of rain for the race. A complete contrast to what was experienced less than 24 hours before. A 5-place grid penalty, due to a new gearbox, had Championship leader; Verstappen, starting down in 6th. But, it would be Ferrari and Charles Leclerc on pole with Sergio Perez alongside him. Nico Hulkenberg would start for Haas from the pitlane.
Leclerc leads the drivers away for the formation lap. The majority of cars are starting on softs bar the McLarens, Russell, the Aston Martins, Tsunoda and Hulkenberg, who are all on mediums. Everyone manages to get back into their grid slots with no fuss and the race begins.
It's a decent get away for Leclerc in the Ferrari with Perez right on his tail. Sainz locks up at La Source and with no where to go, squeezes Piastri who clips the wall and starts to fall down the order. However, back at the front, on the Kemmel Straight, Perez takes the lead from Leclerc. As for the second Red Bull, Verstappen is up to 4th by the end of the opening lap.
The yellow flag is now out to warn drivers of the stationary Piastri at the Fagnes chicane. The car is quickly recovered and the race goes green once again. Sainz is also struggling since his first lap tussle with the McLaren. He is told that he's lost "5% of aero balance,", which suggests that he is carrying extensive damage as the race progresses. It isn't long before he starts to tumble down the order.
Verstappen now has Hamilton in his sights, with the latter complaining about the car in front's (Leclerc) track limits at turn 9. On lap 6, Verstappen makes his move, taking the final podium spot from the Mercedes driver. With clear air ahead of him, Verstappen sets the fastest lap of the race so far with a 1:52.130.
There is movement in the pitlane with Norris coming in for fresh tyres. He switches to hards. Ocon, Bottas, Ricciardo and Magnussen join him. Sainz, who has dropped to the back of the field, also pits. But he's not retiring. He joins the track once again on medium tyres.
Back on the race track, McLaren's day gets worse when Norris is passed by a Williams and Alpine, demoting him to 16th. However, it's the complete opposite at Red Bull. Perez still leads from Leclerc but, with the help of DRS on the Kemmel Straight, Verstappen blasts past the Ferrari making it a Red Bull 1-2. The race is on.
In the mid-field, a battle is brewing between the Williams of Albon and the Alpha Tauri of Tsunoda. Using Williams' incredible straight line speed, Albon quickly makes his way past the Alpha Tauri, but Tsunoda isn't letting this one go. Just one lap later, Tsunoda repays the favour, taking his position back once again.
Perez pits from the lead but it's a slow stop. Unusual for Red Bull. Verstappen then comes in the next time around and it's back to business as usual. He's back on track 2 seconds behind Perez. It isn't long, however, until the reining World Champion is right behind his teammate. On lap 17, he makes the move, taking the lead on the Kemmel Straight.
The talk of rain starts to do the rounds over team radio. Three drivers; Stroll, Russell and Gasly, are yet to pit. If the rain is intense enough, this could work out well for them. Just like how it's all working well out front for Verstappen who has raced of into the distance, leaving Perez behind. The Dutch driver posts another new fastest lap of the race.
Sainz quickly reports that it's raining at turn 15. It also begins in the pitlane and is due to last for 10 minutes. Verstappen's pace drops as he tells the team "it's raining, quite a lot." Aston Martin call Stroll in for his first pitstop of the race. It's quite a bold move for the team who fit him with slicks, rather than inters. At the same time, the track isn't quite ready for that wetter weather tyre.
With the wetter conditions, Norris and his McLaren are starting to come alive. The higher downforce that they've set the car up with is paying off, for now. At the bottom of Eau Rouge, there's nail biting action for Verstappen who has a wobble going up the hill. He manages to save it. Despite this, he still manages to further widen the gap to Perez, which is now up to over 5 seconds.
With the sprinkling of rain dying out, Ferrari decide to call it a day for Sainz, who is still at the back of the pack. A new fastest lap of the race is also set, but not by Verstappen. This time it's Hulkenberg on a new set of soft tyres. Talking of new tyres, with the rain gone, round two of pit stops begin. Hamilton pits, setting off a chain reaction that sees Alonso, Leclerc, Perez and Verstappen also dive into the pitlane for fresh rubber to see them to the end.
Things start to seem a bit tense over team radio at Red Bull with Verstappen's engineer not overly impressed with how his driver handled the out-lap after pitting. "You used a lot of the tyre on the out-lap Max, I am not sure that was sensible," Verstappen is told. His lead to Perez is nearing 10 seconds now. He then sets another fastest lap. Over one second quicker than anyone else. "I'd ask you to use your head a bit more," Verstappen is later told. But, he wants to go faster and suggests that the team could do with a bit more "pitstop training."
There's a battle down in the mid-field for the final point between Gasly and Albon. With the help of DRS, Albon tries a move but is unsuccessful, with Gasly staying ahead. The squabbling gives Bottas in the Alfa Romeo a chance to join in on the fight. However, Albon bails and pulls into the pits for his final stop. Tsunoda is currently sitting nicely in 9th with Ocon not far behind. However, the Alpine overtakes the Alpha Tauri going into Les Combes. Gasly, in the second Alpine, is also now on the hunt.
The stewards have been relatively quiet today but, with only a handful of laps to go, Sargeant is shown the black and white flag for track limits. One more and it will be a penalty. Russell, who has only made one stop, is starting the struggle on his tyres, dropping back from Alonso in 5th. Norris is 7 seconds behind Russell, with the McLaren making plenty of gains during the wetter weather.
Hamilton is starting to close in on Leclerc but decides to abandon the hunt, instead pitting for his final set of tyres. Is he going for the fastest lap and that all important extra point?
It's Verstappen that wins the Belgian Grand Prix. His 8th consecutive win this season. Perez crosses the line in 2nd, giving Red Bull another 1-2 finish. Leclerc is 3rd and Hamilton, with the new fastest lap, in 4th. Then comes Alonso, Russell and Norris. With Ocon, Stroll and Tsunoda holding on to the final point positions.
Is there anything or anyone that can stop Verstappen this year? Only time will tell. Until then, it's time for the Summer Break. *Boooooo* See you guys in a few weeks for Zandvoort!
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