Max Verstappen surged through the field after a penalty for taking new engine parts had seen him start 14th; Sergio Perez second to seal Red Bull one-two, with Carlos Sainz third for Ferrari; Lewis Hamilton suffers first retirement of season after first-lap crash with Fernando Alonso
Last Updated: 28/08/22 4:29pm
Max Verstappen tightened his grip on the Formula 1 world championship with a stunning victory from 14th on the grid, as Red Bull sealed a dominant one-two at the Belgian Grand Prix.
Despite his lowly starting position, which had been caused by a grid penalty incurred for taking new engine parts, Verstappen scythed through the field to win by 17 seconds from his team-mate Sergio Perez.
Pole-sitter Carlos Sainz held off Mercedes’ George Russell to seal third, while his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc, who started behind Verstappen after also taking a grid penalty, finished sixth after a calamitous decision to stop on the penultimate lap saw him incur a pit lane speeding penalty that dropped him below Fernando Alonso.
Lewis Hamilton made his first retirement of the season following a first-lap collision with Alonso as they fought for second place.
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Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz holds the lead in the first lap as Lewis Hamilton suffers a collision with Fernando Alonso and is out of the race at the Belgian Grand Prix
Hamilton later accepted responsibility for the incident, which saw Alonso describe him as an “idiot” over team radio, as the Spaniard claimed the seven-time world champion “only knows how to drive and start in first”.
Esteban Ocon was seventh in the other Alpine, while Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel, AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly and Williams’ Alex Albon rounded out the top 10.
Verstappen’s victory, along with an extra point for the fastest lap of the race, sees the Dutchman extend his world championship lead to 93 points, with just eight races remaining.
Perez’s second place lifts the Mexican above Leclerc into second, while Red Bull’s constructors’ championship advantage over Ferrari increases to 97 points.
Belgian GP Race Result: Top 10
1) Max Verstappen, Red Bull2) Sergio Perez, Red Bull3) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari4) George Russell, Mercedes5) Fernando Alonso, Alpine6) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari7) Esteban Ocon, Alpine8) Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martin9) Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri10) Alex Abon, Williams
‘Incredible’ speed enables Verstappen to surge through field
The speed Verstappen showed in the final race before the summer break to win from 10th on the grid in Hungary had come as somewhat of a surprise, but on the season’s resumption at Spa he was most people’s favourite despite starting further back.
The Dutchman had showed supreme pace throughout practice and qualifying, setting the fastest time in Saturday’s Q3 by a comfortable margin despite not even going for a final run.
Verstappen had been relegated to the rear of the grid for taking new engine parts earlier in the weekend, but the fact he topped the timesheet in qualifying meant the six other drivers facing the same penalty started behind him.
He was undoubtedly aided by the opening-lap drama, which also saw Valtteri Bottas retire after he went into the gravel to avoid the spinning Williams of Nicholas Latifi, but it seemed Verstappen had the pace to win under any circumstances.
He was eighth by the time the safety car emerged with Hamilton pulled up on the side of the track, and rose to sixth with two overtakes on the first lap after the resumption.
After Sainz had pitted from the lead on lap 11, Verstappen overtook Perez to take the lead for the first time. He would briefly give it up as he pitted a few laps later, but eased past Sainz on track on lap 18 and cruised into the distance from there.
Verstappen became just the second driver in F1 history to win consecutive races from 10th or lower on the grid, following Bruce McLaren achieving the feat in the final race of 1959 and first of 1960.
“It was quite a hectic first lap to try to stay out of trouble…but once we settled in after the safety car, the car was really on rails,” Verstappen said.
“Once we were in the lead, it was all about managing everything and this whole weekend has been incredible.
“It’s been a weekend I couldn’t imagine before, but we want more of them so we’ll keep on working hard.”
What’s next in F1 2022?
The action continues to come thick and fast as Formula One returns next weekend for the Dutch Grand Prix.
It promises to be a thrilling weekend in Zandvoort as Max Verstappen races in front of his home fans as a world champion for the first time.
Things get under way with first practice on Friday morning at 11:30am, with Sunday’s race starting at 2pm.