Kimi Antonelli, the current championship leader, secured pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, but he anticipates a challenging race start alongside Max Verstappen. Antonelli achieved his sixth pole position of the season, outpacing Verstappen by three-tenths of a second. Despite his strong qualifying performance, Antonelli acknowledged that starting next to Verstappen would not be straightforward, especially at a circuit where the pole position holder has not always gone on to win the race.
Antonelli’s final lap in qualifying was a 1 minute 44.361 seconds, which was enough to secure the top spot. His advantage over his Mercedes teammate George Russell was half a second. Red Bull‘s Verstappen, who will start second, admitted that a slipstream from teammate Isack Hadjar was crucial for his front-row qualification. Hadjar, along with Lando Norris, will face grid penalties for the race.
Navigating the Race Start
The layout of the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, particularly the long uphill run to Turn Five, often makes the leading driver vulnerable early in the race. This section, known as the Kemmel Straight, allows trailing cars to use a slipstream to gain speed, creating overtaking opportunities on the approach to the Les Combes chicane. In fact, the race lead has changed hands early on in the last three years at this part of the circuit.
For instance, Oscar Piastri won last season after passing his McLaren teammate Norris on the first racing lap. In a previous year, a pole-sitting Charles Leclerc was overtaken by Lewis Hamilton on lap three, and in another instance, Sergio Perez passed poleman Leclerc on the first lap. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff noted that while pole position is good for Saturday, being on pole through Eau Rouge for the first time in the race can be a disadvantage.
Antonelli emphasised the importance of a strong start. He stated that getting a good start and being ahead into Turn Five would be crucial. Despite his recent run of five consecutive race wins earlier in the season, Antonelli has gone three races without a victory, failing to score points in two of those events. This period saw his championship lead reduce to 25 points.
Verstappen’s Outlook and Russell’s Challenge
Verstappen will start on the front row for the third time this season. Following a difficult weekend at Silverstone, Red Bull showed improved performance in Belgium. However, Verstappen does not expect to challenge Antonelli for the victory, regardless of what happens on the first lap. He indicated that Antonelli’s pace would likely allow him to regain the lead on the straights even if Verstappen were to get ahead initially.
Verstappen anticipates his race will involve defending his position from Russell and the two Ferraris of Leclerc and Hamilton, who are likely rivals for at least second place. Russell, meanwhile, continues to experience a straight-line speed deficit compared to his teammate. Despite this, he hopes for a better Sunday result compared to his qualifying performance, similar to what he achieved at Silverstone.
The Belgian Grand Prix race is scheduled for Sunday, with build-up starting at 12:30 PM and the race commencing at 2:00 PM.
Read Also
Source: skysports.com
