Sprint Shootout: Max Verstappen secures the pole position

The F1 is in Spa for the last race weekend before the summer break. This historic circuit hosts the third sprint format of the season. While Max Verstappen set the fastest time in qualifying for Sunday’s race, the Dutchman has been given a five-place grid penalty for changing his gearbox. Therefore, it is the Monegasque, Charles Leclerc, who will start in pole position tomorrow. Just eight tenths behind the world champion’s time, the Ferrari driver can attempt to secure pole for Saturday’s sprint.

Q1

(This is a heading in French)

The Belgian Grand Prix is known for its rainy conditions, and this 2023 edition is no exception. Just like yesterday, the weather prevented the session from starting on time, and it was with over 30 minutes of delay that the drivers took to the track.

With intermediate tires, everyone quickly took to the track in order to seek shelter and set an initial lap time just in case an accident were to disrupt the session on a damp track.

After the first fast laps from each driver, the best time, unsurprisingly, goes to Max Verstappen with a time of 1:58.958. Haas is struggling. Both cars make pit stops and end the session without setting any fast laps. After struggling yesterday, Alpine performs well and places both cars in Q2.

List of eliminated drivers: Nico Hülkenberg (20th), Guanyu Zhou (19th), Kevin Magnussen (18th), Valtteri Bottas (17th), Yuki Tsunoda (16th)

Q2

On a drying track, the lap times go crazy. Lando Norris sets a first lap time in 1:56.828, improving by two seconds on Max Verstappen’s time in Q1. A time that was then beaten by Hamilton in 1:55.200.

Sargeant makes a mistake, but luckily for the Williams driver, it’s more scare than harm as he narrowly escapes. Ultimately, the first red flag of the weekend is triggered by Lance Stroll, who wedges his car into the wall. The front of his car is heavily damaged, leaving it stuck in the gravel trap and requiring the intervention of the recovery teams. With less than a minute remaining, the session will not resume, penalizing both Williams drivers and both Aston Martin drivers, as they were unable to set a time.

Alpine, on the other hand, confirms good form as Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly both make it to Q3.

List of eliminated drivers: Daniel Ricciardo (15th), Alex Albon (14th), Logan Sargeant (13th), Lance Stroll (12th), Fernando Alonso (11th)

Q3

The last ten remaining drivers abandon intermediates and come out with soft tires, as required by the sprint shootout regulations. Be careful not to be caught off guard, like Lance Stroll earlier. The lap times continue to improve. The Ferraris are the first to go out. Leclerc sets the fastest time, quickly beaten by Verstappen, who is then surpassed by Hamilton. It’s very close! The final lap will separate everyone. Max Verstappen takes pole position by just one hundredth ahead of Oscar Piastri. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc will start on the second row.

The results table