Qualifying at Spa produced a familiar face on top of the timesheets, as Kimi Antonelli pipped Max Verstappen and Lando Norris to take pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix. It continues Mercedes’ unbeaten qualifying run in 2026, though the final grid will look rather different once several grid penalties are factored in. Below is the full qualifying report.
Q1 Report:
The opening segment was tight throughout the midfield, with Isack Hadjar again showing strong one-lap pace and Antonelli setting an early benchmark that nobody could match. Esteban Ocon endured more misery for Haas, going out in Q1 on the tenth anniversary of his F1 debut, while Alex Albon also failed to progress in what continues to be a torrid weekend for the second Williams. The two Cadillacs and both Aston Martins locked out the bottom of the order behind them.
All drivers eliminated in Q1 were Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon, Valtteri Bottas, Sergio Perez, Fernando Alonso, and Lance Stroll.
Q2 Report:
Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto pulled off a surprise, using a tow to sneak into the top ten and pip Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson by just 0.038 seconds. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto had looked promising after their showing in Q1 but could not carry that form through to the end of Q2, eventually falling in twelfth and thirteenth. Nico Hulkenberg’s session ended in frustration, as a hydraulic leak brought his Audi to a stop just after the chequered flag fell, delaying the start of Q3. Carlos Sainz and Oliver Bearman were the final two drivers eliminated.
The drivers who will not be continuing to Q3 are Liam Lawson, Pierre Gasly, Franco Colapinto, Nico Hulkenberg, Carlos Sainz, and Oliver Bearman.
Q3 Report:
Antonelli had topped every session so far, but a red flag caused by gravel on track after Oscar Piastri’s excursion at Stavelot added late tension to the top-ten shootout. When the session resumed, Antonelli produced a flawless final lap of 1:44.361 to seal pole by over three tenths from Verstappen, who benefited from a useful tow off teammate Hadjar. Norris completed the top three ahead of Russell, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton rounding out the top six for Ferrari. Piastri took seventh, Arvid Lindblad impressed again in eighth, and Bortoleto capped his strong session in tenth behind Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Hadjar in ninth.
Grid penalties will shuffle much of that order for Sunday’s race. Norris takes the biggest hit among the front-runners, dropping ten places after McLaren fitted a new control electronics unit outside his seasonal allocation, his fourth of the year. Stroll picks up a ten-place penalty of his own for an additional MGU-K, while Sainz was hit with a matching ten-place drop after Williams swapped his energy store and control electronics unit following qualifying. The heaviest penalties belong to Alonso, sent to the back of the grid after Aston Martin fitted a new energy store, control electronics unit and ancillary component all outside his allowance, and Hadjar, whose fresh ICE, turbocharger and exhaust push his cumulative penalty beyond fifteen places and send him to the back as well. With those drops applied, Verstappen will line up alongside Antonelli on the front row, with Russell and Leclerc promoted to row two ahead of Hamilton and Piastri.
