Oscar Piastri delivered a superb lap in the final moments of Friday’s Sprint Qualifying session to secure pole position for Saturday’s Sprint ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix. The McLaren driver stunned the field at Spa-Francorchamps, beating reigning World Champion Max Verstappen by nearly half a second, as team-mate Lando Norris could only manage third.
With teams restricted to using just one set of soft Pirelli tyres in SQ3, all ten remaining drivers opted to leave their runs late for a one-lap shootout. Norris was the first to post a time, setting a 1m 41.128s, but was swiftly usurped by Verstappen, who clocked a 1m 40.987s. However, neither could match Piastri’s blistering 1m 40.510s, which proved untouchable.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finished as best of the rest, albeit almost eight tenths behind the pace-setting McLaren. Esteban Ocon impressed for Haas to take fifth, just ahead of team-mate Oliver Bearman, who secured seventh. Carlos Sainz, driving for Williams, split the two Haas drivers in sixth.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly finished eighth following a strong SQ2 showing, while Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar and Kick Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto rounded out the top ten ahead of Saturday’s Sprint.
Despite topping SQ2 with a 1m 41.412s, Norris was unable to convert that form into pole. Piastri, meanwhile, came dangerously close to missing out on SQ3 altogether. His initial flying lap in SQ2 was deleted for exceeding track limits at the top of Eau Rouge. His second effort of 1m 42.169s was just enough, edging Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson by 0.041s to scrape through in tenth.
Yuki Tsunoda in the second Red Bull also failed to make the final cut, along with George Russell in the Mercedes. The two Aston Martins of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll could only manage 14th and 15th respectively.
There was a major shock in SQ1 as Lewis Hamilton was eliminated early after a high-speed spin into the final chicane, leaving the Ferrari driver 18th on the timesheets. Williams’ Alex Albon also missed the cut by a slender 0.041s, as did Kick Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg and Alpine rookie Franco Colapinto.
At the back of the grid was Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli, who suffered a spin through the gravel at Stavelot on his first flying lap. The young Italian was forced to continue with flat-spotted medium tyres and ultimately ended his session several seconds adrift of the rest of the field.
With Piastri on Sprint pole and both McLarens showing strong pace, all eyes will be on Saturday’s short-format race as the battle for supremacy at Spa continues.