Belgium - Qualifying

Qualifying for the last Grand Prix before the summer break was set to be one to remember for multiple reasons. The first, and most straightforward one, being the capricious Belgian weather. The forecasted rain, even if somewhat expected for this particular track, would bring some surprises and an unexpected frontrunner. 

The second factor that made the session particularly interesting, was that two drivers were set to take penalties for exchanging components of their engines. Max Verstappen, the championship leader, needed to take his 5th ICE (internal combustion engine), for which he was punished with a 10-place grid drop. It meant that no matter how well he would do in the qualifying, he wouldn't start the race in the top 10. Yuki Tsunoda, just like Pierre Gasly a few races before him, changed virtually all components of his engine, receiving penalties that totalled up to a 60-place grid drop. He was set to start the Grand Prix from the very back. 

Qualifying began with a long line of cars waiting to be let onto the track. With the threat of rain looming over their heads, they were all eager to get a timed lap In as quickly as they possibly could. DRS was disabled during the session, due to unfavourable conditions. The session was a challenge for both drivers and strategists, as it was crucial not only to deliver a great lap but also to do so in the best possible moment. A lot of improvement could be seen between the first and last laps of Q1, with almost 5 seconds separating some of them. The Red Bulls and McLarens established themselves as the frontrunners, while Hulkenberg, Magnussen, Tsunoda, Sargeant, and Zhou, finished at the bottom of the leaderboard. 

Q2 posed much of the same challenges as Q1 did before it, with rain drizzling from the beginning and being predicted to intensify a while after the drivers set out to start their timed laps. Verstappen managed to achieve the best time during the first wave of flyers, but it did not mean that he could be sure, he wouldn't beaten. With the track conditions ever-changing, and times ever-improving, every tenth of a second was crucial. Cars slid around the track, kissing the gravel and flirting with the runoff zones. At one point or another, most drivers found themselves in a less-than-perfect position, but in the end, it was Albon, Gasly, Ricciardo, Bottas, and Stroll who made up the elimination zone.

There were different approaches to the last session of the day. Some teams, like McLaren and Mercedes, decided to start on a fresh set of inters, while others, like Red Bull and Ferrari, did their first laps on previously used intermediates. The decision seemed to pay off for Red Bull, who saw its drivers taking a provisional 1-2 and putting in lap times that wouldn't be easy to beat. Mercedes and McLarens both tried to jump at least in front of Perez in second but failed to do so. In the end, the fate of the pole position lay in the hands of the Ferraris. Sainz was the first of them to finish his flying lap, but it wasn't good enough. The same couldn't be said for his teammate, Leclerc, who achieved the second-best lap of the session. With Verstappen being the only driver quicker than him, the Monegasque master of qualifying took his second pole in a row on the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. 

Order of the grid:

1. Max Verstappen

2. Charles Leclerc

3. Sergio Perez

4. Lewis Hamilton

5. Lando Norris

6. Oscar Piastri

7. George Russel

8. Carlos Sainz

9. Fernando Alonso

10. Esteban Ocon

11. Alex Albon

12. Pierre Gasly

13. Daniel Ricciardo

14. Valtteri Bottas

15. Lance Stroll

16. Nico Hulkenberg

17. Kevin Magnussen

18. Yuki Tsunoda

19. Logan Sargeant

20. Zhou Guanuy