Piastri on Top:Sprint Pole in Belgium
Spa Hosts Third Sprint Weekend of the 2025 Season.
The Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps marked the third and final Sprint-format weekend of the 2025 Formula 1 season — and the only event to feature this format at this iconic circuit. The previous Sprint took place five months ago in Miami, with the next set to take place later in the season at Austin.
Pirelli supplied the C1, C3, and C4 compounds for the weekend, designated as Hard, Medium, and Soft, respectively.
In the opening segment of Sprint Qualifying (SQ1), Oscar Piastri posted the fastest lap with a time of 1:41.769. Five drivers from five different teams were eliminated at this stage: Alexander Albon, Nico Hülkenberg, Lewis Hamilton, Franco Colapinto, and Kimi Antonelli.
The start of SQ2 was delayed by five minutes to allow marshals to clear the track. All drivers resumed the session on Medium tyres, with Lando Norris, Piastri’s McLaren teammate, leading the timesheets with a lap of 1:41.412.
Liam Lawson, Yuki Tsunoda, George Russell, Fernando Alonso, and Lance Stroll did not advance to the final segment. Lewis Hamilton, meanwhile, suffered a spin at the Bus Stop chicane due to technical issues and was unable to complete a timed lap.
SQ3 was also slightly delayed to allow for additional track maintenance. All remaining drivers ran on Soft tyres, and lap times improved significantly. Oscar Piastri delivered a commanding performance, setting the fastest time of the session — 1:40.510 — finishing nearly half a second clear of the competition.
The result secured Piastri’s third career Sprint Qualifying pole position in Formula 1.
For Saturday’s Sprint, Max Verstappen will line up alongside Piastri on the front row, with Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc sharing row two, and Esteban Ocon and Carlos Sainz occupying the third row.
