Belgian Grand Prix 2026:Antonelli Leads Qualifying, Hamilton Crashes and Norris Faces Grid Penalty

The 2026 Belgian Grand Prix was held in the traditional format without a sprint race. In front of packed grandstands and under warm conditions at Spa-Francorchamps, Kimi Antonelli set the pace in both Friday practice and Saturday's final practice session.Qualifying featured several dramatic moments. Lewis Hamilton crashed his Ferrari during practice, forcing the team to replace several components, including the gearbox. Pirelli supplied the C2, C3,and C4 tyre compounds for the weekend.Lando Norris topped Q1, while Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon, Valtteri Bottas, Sergio Pérez, Fernando Alonso, and Lance Stroll were eliminated. Antonelli then went fastest in Q2, and the start of Q3 was delayed after Nico Hullkenberg's car stopped on track with a mechanical issue.The final session was interrupted by a red flag after Oscar Piastri ran into the gravel. In the decisive runs, Antonelli secured pole position with a lap of 1:44.361, finishing ahead of Max Verstappen and Norris. However, Norris will drop ten places on the grid due to a penalty, while Charles Leclerc and Hamilton recorded almost identical lap times.