Italian confirms the domain shown throughout the weekend, beats Verstappen by 0.144s and takes pole at Spa-Francorchamps. Gabriel Bortoleto reaches Q3 and inherits eighth position on the grid after penalties.
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Kimi Antonelli confirmed the favoritism shown throughout the weekend and secured pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix of Formula 1 this Saturday. The Mercedes driver set a time of 1min44.840 in the decisive phase of qualifying and secured the first position on the Spa-Francorchamps grid ahead of Max Verstappen. Lando Norris recorded the third best time but will lose ten grid positions due to power unit component changes. As a result, George Russell moves up to third place on the start. Gabriel Bortoleto advanced to Q3, finished qualifying ninth, and will inherit eighth position on the grid thanks to penalties for Norris and Isack Hadjar.
Qualifying started at a relaxed pace, with few cars leaving the pits in the first minutes. Due to the long lap at Spa, teams split their programs into just two runs for Q1, waiting for the best track conditions before setting their fast laps.
When the favorites began completing their first attempts, Verstappen temporarily took the lead but was soon overtaken by Norris, who set 1min45.865. Antonelli appeared only fifth at that moment, while Racing Bulls surprised again with Hadjar and Lindblad among the top positions. Gabriel Bortoleto started the session very well, setting 1min46.609 to provisionally occupy seventh place, again ahead of Nico Hülkenberg.
In the final stretch of Q1, Hamilton showed that Ferrari had fully recovered its car after the heavy crash suffered in TL3. The Briton improved to fourth position, while Bortoleto managed his last attempt and confirmed qualification to Q2 in 11th. Hülkenberg also advanced in 12th. The eliminated drivers in the first phase were Albon, Ocon, Bottas, Pérez, Alonso, and Stroll.
Q2 began with Antonelli regaining the dominance seen in free practice. The Italian set 1min45.142 on his first attempt, opening a gap over his rivals. Verstappen, Russell, Leclerc, and Hamilton remained close, while Bortoleto impressed again by setting 1min46.082 and provisionally appearing in fifth place.
As the track evolved, the Brazilian dropped to tenth, just on the edge of the qualifying zone, but maintained a wide advantage over Hülkenberg, opening almost seven tenths over his teammate. After the first round of laps, the fight for the last spot in Q3 was concentrated between Bortoleto and Liam Lawson.
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In the decisive attempt, almost no one managed to significantly change the order of the table. Bortoleto confirmed his place among the top ten in qualifying, while Hülkenberg faced a hydraulic leak and had to park his Audi at the entrance of Turn 10 just after the flag. Q2 ended with Antonelli again in first, followed by Leclerc and Norris. Eliminated were Lawson, Gasly, Colapinto, Hülkenberg, Sainz, and Bearman.
The removal of Hülkenberg’s car caused a slight delay to the start of Q3. After the track was cleared, the ten qualifiers returned to the pits to prepare for the final fight for pole. On the first attempt, Norris took the lead with 1min44.801, just 39 thousandths ahead of Antonelli. Verstappen, Leclerc, Hamilton, and Russell also remained very close, while Bortoleto set his first lap using used tires and provisionally occupied the last positions of the decisive phase.
Soon after, the race direction stopped the session with a red flag. The stoppage happened so that the marshals could remove the large amount of gravel scattered on the track after an off by Oscar Piastri, which brought dirt from the escape area onto the circuit. During the interruption, McLaren also took the opportunity to inspect Norris’s car floor.
At the restart, everyone returned to the track for a single final attempt. Hadjar used used tires only to provide a slipstream to Verstappen, as he will start from the back of the grid due to his penalty. Russell opened the lap with the best first sector, but Antonelli again showed superiority in the rest of the circuit.
The Italian exactly repeated his time of 1min44.840 and confirmed pole position. Verstappen secured second place, while Norris recorded the third best time but will drop ten positions on the grid. Russell will inherit third position on the start, followed by Hamilton and Leclerc. Bortoleto finished Q3 in ninth place but will start eighth thanks to penalties for Norris and Hadjar, crowning one of the best qualifying performances of the season for the Brazilian. Audi also placed both its cars in the top 15, although Hülkenberg was out of the fight for pole after the hydraulic problem in Q2.
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