Antonelli on Pole at 2026 Belgian GP — Spa Preview

Kimi Antonelli lines up on pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, leading the field into what could be a chaotic afternoon as threatening cloud cover builds over the Ardennes. The Mercedes driver took pole by setting a scorching qualifying pace, with Max Verstappen slotting into second courtesy of a tow from Red Bull team-mate Isack Hadjar — who reached Q3 but carries a back-of-the-grid penalty. George Russell and Charles Leclerc occupy the second row.

The grid shuffle runs deep. Lando Norris qualified third but drops to 13th after taking a fourth set of control electronics for the season. Hadjar, Sainz, Alonso and Stroll also carry penalties, reshuffling the order before a wheel has turned in anger. It is a painful day for Aston Martin in particular, who are one round away from a much-needed upgrade package.

Antonelli leads the championship standings on 179 points, with Russell second on 154 and Lewis Hamilton third on 147 for Ferrari. That Ferrari pressure is real — the Scuderia have taken two wins from the last three weekends and are firmly in the title conversation. Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has acknowledged the team must resolve their reliability concerns before that gap narrows further.

Red Bull arrive in Belgium on the back foot. Following Verstappen's Silverstone crash, the team have swapped to a more conventional rear wing after the Dutchman branded the previous specification super-dangerous. A full investigation is ongoing. McLaren, meanwhile, tested a new rear wing on Friday along the Kemmel Straight, though their so-called Macarena wing — trialled but unused in Austria — did not make the trip.

Rain probability sits at just 10 percent officially, but the skies above Spa suggest otherwise. With 44 laps to run and deployment strategy likely to define the race, follow all the action in our race centre. Round 11, the Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring, is next on the F1 calendar.

First reported by Crash.net F1.