Charles Leclerc takes pole at Spa with Max Verstappen fastest despite qualifying HEADACHE

Max Verstappen tijdens kwalificatie op Spa-Francorchamps — Photo: © LAT Images

Belgian Grand Prix

Leclerc takes pole at Spa with Verstappen fastest despite qualifying HEADACHE

Verstappen will start sixth at the Belgian Grand Prix due to his five-place grid penalty

Dan Davis

Friday 28 July 2023 18:30 Updated: 23:09

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will start on pole for the Belgian Grand Prix despite Max Verstappen running fastest, with the world champion hit with a grid penalty.

Despite edging into Q3 in 10th place as tension mounted, the Red Bull hotshot set a scintillating time of 1:46.988, moving him eight-tenths quicker than Leclerc.

He will begin the race in P6, however, following his gearbox change.

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Sergio Perez will therefore join Leclerc on the front row after finishing third.

Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton took fourth and will line up third, while Leclerc's team-mate, Carlos Sainz, rounded off the second row.

But the seven-time world champion now faces a nervy wait for his position to be confirmed with a trip to the stewards looming after he unsafely re-joined in Q2.

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris continued their impressive resurgence in sixth and seventh respectively, though the latter was boosted up to fifth.

Further down the grid, George Russell was made to settle for eighth.

Aston Martin duo Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll rounded off the top 10.

Verstappen squeezes through

With the track ramping up dramatically during the final knocking of Q2, Verstappen was almost caught short and dumped out before the shootout for pole.

At serious risk of elimination, Verstappen endured a horror middle sector and squeezed through in 10th place after Pierre Gasly failed to improve his time.

Back in the garage, Verstappen then endured a heated discussion with race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, lambasting his two previous efforts.

Due to his grid penalty, qualifying near the front took on increased importance.

Changing conditions

Intermediate rubber was the tyre of choice for Q2, though the circuit, which had begun to dry out, became increasingly difficult to read as the action unfolded.

Hamilton and Russell visibly ailed on used inters while Kevin Magnussen and Valtteri Bottas enjoyed superb laps, pushing them to the top of the chart.

But normal service promptly resumed, with Verstappen setting the fastest time after finishing his lap almost half a second quicker than Perez.

Bottas became the first to move to the slicks, with numerous other drivers then following suit. As a result, the times began to tumble once again.

Norris on the gravel

With the rain mercifully easing up ahead of the delayed session, Mercedes duo Russell and Hamilton had ventured out to set the first lap times in Q1.

Hamilton moved to the top of the timesheet, bettering his team-mate's effort with a 2:02.280 - 0.080s faster - before Norris and Piastri both leapt ahead.

The lead continued to change hands as drivers began to find confidence and grip, although Norris' bid to continue his scintillating form took a sizeable blow.

With nine minutes of Q1 remaining, Norris moved wide through turn 16 and skidded across the gravel before correcting himself and battling on.

He was then informed by his engineer that he may have sustained front wing damage after bumping and sliding across the stones, forcing him back to the pits.