Kimi Antonelli took a firm step towards the Formula 1 title by winning the Belgian Grand Prix this Sunday, held at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, where he also benefited from the retirement of his Mercedes teammate, George Russell, to extend his lead at the top of the championship.
The Italian driver confirmed the dominance he showed throughout the weekend and converted his pole position into his sixth victory of the season, crossing the finish line ahead of Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) and Max Verstappen (Red Bull).
With this result, Antonelli increased his difference in the general classification to 45 points over Lewis Hamilton, who finished fourth in Belgium. Russell fell to third place in the World Championship, now 50 points behind the young Italian, after retiring in the first lap.
Russell retires after colliding with Hamilton
The race began with great intensity and the decisive moment came just in the first turn. Russell and Hamilton collided at the Combes corner, an incident that sent the Mercedes driver into the gravel and caused him to retire.
Hamilton received a five-second penalty for the contact, although he managed to recover to finish in fourth position and limit the damage in the fight for the championship.
Russell’s withdrawal represented a serious blow to his title aspirations, as he missed a valuable opportunity while Antonelli scored the 25 points of victory.
Ferrari is competitive again
Ferrari confirmed its improvement with a solid performance by Charles Leclerc, who even led the race for several laps thanks to a successful stop strategy and the appearance of a virtual safety car.
However, Antonelli regained the lead on lap 34 and controlled the rest of the race to secure another victory for Mercedes.
Oscar Piastri (McLaren) finished fifth, while Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) starred in one of the performances of the day by recovering from 21st position to finish sixth.
Bortoleto and Colapinto add points
The Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) finished in eighth position and the Argentine Franco Colapinto (Alpine) closed the points zone by finishing tenth. Between them, the British Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) finished ninth.
The day was more complicated for the Spanish-speaking pilots. Carlos Sainz (Williams) could only be sixteenth, Sergio Pérez (Cadillac) abandoned after 13 laps and Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) finished nineteenth, last among the drivers who completed the race, before the improvements that his team hopes to introduce in the next appointment on the calendar.
