F1 LIVE: Toto Wolff says Mercedes are in a ‘dungeon’ after another frustrating weekend in Belgium
Follow all the reaction after Max Verstappen stormed to victory at the Belgian Grand Prix
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Your support makes all the difference.Max Verstappen continued his emphatic march towards his second world championship in as many years as the Dutchman produced a stunning drive from 14th on the grid to win the Belgian Grand Prix and extend his lead at the top of the championship standings.
Verstappen is now closing in on a second triumph after he claimed his ninth win from 14 races. The Red Bull driver is 98 points clear of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc with just 216 remaining. Verstappen qualified almost seven tenths faster than anyone else, but started in the lower echelons of the grid after taking on his fourth engine of his title defence - one more than is permitted under the rules.
But such was Verstappen’s speed, he was up to eighth by the end of the first lap, and then third by lap eight. At the end of lap 11, Carlos Sainz stopped from the lead for new tyres, and moments later, Verstappen sailed past Sergio Perez for first. Verstappen briefly dropped to second when he changed tyres, but a few laps later he was back ahead of Sainz and that was that.
Lewis Hamilton retired for the first time in 2022 after a first lap collision with Fernando Alonso, which Hamilton took responsibility for. His Mercedes team-mate George Russell finished fourth, while Leclerc finished sixth after a five-second time penalty for speeding in the pit lane.
F1 news: Lewis Hamilton was ‘dragging a parachute behind him’ at Belgian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton told Toto Wolff he feels like he is dragging a parachute behind him as the Mercedes boss labelled his team’s abject qualifying for Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix as “unacceptable”.
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz will line up from the front of the grid after he was able to take advantage of Max Verstappen’s grid sanction for exceeding his number of allocated engine parts.
The world champion lines up 15th, but such is his jaw-dropping speed in Spa-Francorchamps – he finished almost seven tenths faster than anyone else – a ninth victory of his championship defence should not be ruled out.
Verstappen is one of seven drivers to be hit by grid penalties here, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – a distant second in the championship race – also thrown down the order for taking on his fourth power unit of the year.
Prior to qualifying, Hamilton could be forgiven for thinking that the plethora of grid punishments would provide him with his best shot of ending a losing streak which stretches back to the penultimate round of last season in Saudi Arabia – a run of 14 races and 266 days. But Hamilton finished a staggering 1.8 seconds behind Verstappen on Saturday, with team-mate George Russell three tenths back. They will start fourth and fifth respectively.
Lewis Hamilton is ‘dragging a parachute behind him’ at Belgian Grand Prix
The Mercedes driver will start fourth on in the race after an “unacceptable” qualifying, where Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz secured pole
F1 news: Toto Wolff says Mercedes are in a ‘dungeon’ after another frustrating weekend in Belgium
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says his team have arrived in a “dungeon” this season after another weekend of disappointment in Belgium. With hopes high that the Silver Arrows could land their first victory of the season at Spa-Francorchamps, having secured their first pole position in Hungary last month, the pace of both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell was nowhere compared to the Red Bull of Max Verstappen.
Come race day, Hamilton’s streak of five podiums in a row came to an end as he retired during the first lap following a collision with Fernando Alonso while Russell could not haul in Carlos Sainz in third and had to settle for fourth.
Mercedes have won the Constructors’ Championship in the last eight years but currently lie third in the standings, a mammoth 159 points behind Red Bull out in front with eight races to go.
Hamilton has already noted that focus needs to switch to next year’s car and while Wolff echoed those thoughts, the Mercedes team principal described how difficult 2022 has been for the team.
“They say you never lose you learn, I can tell you it is f****** difficult,” Wolff said. “All these nice Instagram posts and everything we have talked about over the eight years, about how we are going to take this when you arrive in the dungeon.”
Wolff says Mercedes are in a ‘dungeon’ after another frustrating weekend in Belgium
Lewis Hamilton retired after the first lap of the Belgian Grand Prix while George Russell could only finish fourth
F1 news: Lewis Hamilton refuses to talk to Fernando Alonso after ‘idiot’ jibe at Belgian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton said he would refuse to speak to Fernando Alonso after the Spaniard called him an “idiot” following their opening-lap crash at the Belgian Grand Prix.
As Max Verstappen continued his unstoppable march towards taking his second world championship by winning from 14th on the grid, Hamilton’s afternoon at Spa-Francorchamps was over inside five corners following an accident in which the British driver claimed he almost broke his back and said he was grateful to be alive.
Sergio Perez took second with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz third. George Russell finished fourth for Mercedes. Hamilton started fourth, one position behind Alonso, on Formula One’s return to action following its traditional summer shutdown.
He followed Alonso through the opening La Source, up the fearsome uphill Eau Rouge corner, and then on the ensuing Kemmel Straight at 200mph. Hamilton jinked to the left of Alonso under braking at Les Combes, and was marginally ahead as they approached the right-left-right run of corners.
But when the Briton turned in for the bend, his right-rear tyre made contact with Alonso’s left-front wheel. Hamilton was launched into the air and landed forcefully on the belly of his Mercedes. He ran over the rumble strips, and attempted to soldier on, but water was pouring out of his terminally-wounded machine. Hamilton was ordered by his team to stop.
Lewis Hamilton refuses to talk to Fernando Alonso after ‘idiot’ jibe
Championship leader Max Verstappen was victorious at Spa-Francorchamps
F1 news - Sergio Perez: Max Verstappen was ‘on another planet’ in Belgian Grand Prix triumph
Max Verstappen was hailed as being in a “league of his own” and “on another planet” after he raced from 14th to victory at the Belgian Grand Prix. The Red Bull driver is closing in on his second world championship after moving 98 points clear of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – the equivalent of nearly four victories with eight fixtures remaining.
Verstappen was stripped of pole position and demoted down the grid after taking on his fourth engine of the season at Spa-Francorchamps, one more than is allocated for the season. But the 24-year-old was able to take advantage of a chaotic opening lap after Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso tangled at Les Combes to move up five positions. He was then third by the end of lap eight before he usurped team-mate Sergio Perez for the lead on lap 12.
Despite briefly losing first place to Carlos Sainz when he made his first stop, Verstappen was back ahead on lap 18, taking the chequered flag 17.8 seconds clear of Perez – the driver now second in the championship standings, albeit 93 points back.
“Max was flying,” concluded Perez, the Mexican using the same machinery as Verstappen. “He was on another planet.” Verstappen’s superb comeback triumph was his third in a row and ninth from 14 appearances this term.
“Max was quite simply in a league of his own today,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner. “Not just today, but all weekend. He has excelled here in the past and today he has smashed it out of the park. Since the first lap in practice on Friday, Max has just been in phenomenal form.
“Strategically, we chose to take the penalty here, but of course, Max still had to navigate his way through the pack. He did that very efficiently over the first couple of laps and he hit the front far quicker than we could have ever expected. It was one of the most dominant performances that we have had as a team.”
Sergio Perez: Max Verstappen was ‘on another planet’ in Belgian GP triumph
The reigning world champion is closing in on another title after a dominant performance at Spa-Francorchamps
F1 news: Lewis Hamilton was ‘dragging a parachute behind him’ at Belgian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton told Toto Wolff he feels like he is dragging a parachute behind him as the Mercedes boss labelled his team’s abject qualifying for Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix as “unacceptable”.
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz will line up from the front of the grid after he was able to take advantage of Max Verstappen’s grid sanction for exceeding his number of allocated engine parts.
The world champion lines up 15th, but such is his jaw-dropping speed in Spa-Francorchamps – he finished almost seven tenths faster than anyone else – a ninth victory of his championship defence should not be ruled out.
Verstappen is one of seven drivers to be hit by grid penalties here, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – a distant second in the championship race – also thrown down the order for taking on his fourth power unit of the year.
Prior to qualifying, Hamilton could be forgiven for thinking that the plethora of grid punishments would provide him with his best shot of ending a losing streak which stretches back to the penultimate round of last season in Saudi Arabia – a run of 14 races and 266 days. But Hamilton finished a staggering 1.8 seconds behind Verstappen on Saturday, with team-mate George Russell three tenths back. They will start fourth and fifth respectively.
Lewis Hamilton is ‘dragging a parachute behind him’ at Belgian Grand Prix
The Mercedes driver will start fourth on in the race after an “unacceptable” qualifying, where Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz secured pole
F1 news - Sergio Perez: Max Verstappen was ‘on another planet’ in Belgian Grand Prix triumph
Max Verstappen was hailed as being in a “league of his own” and “on another planet” after he raced from 14th to victory at the Belgian Grand Prix. The Red Bull driver is closing in on his second world championship after moving 98 points clear of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – the equivalent of nearly four victories with eight fixtures remaining.
Verstappen was stripped of pole position and demoted down the grid after taking on his fourth engine of the season at Spa-Francorchamps, one more than is allocated for the season. But the 24-year-old was able to take advantage of a chaotic opening lap after Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso tangled at Les Combes to move up five positions. He was then third by the end of lap eight before he usurped team-mate Sergio Perez for the lead on lap 12.
Despite briefly losing first place to Carlos Sainz when he made his first stop, Verstappen was back ahead on lap 18, taking the chequered flag 17.8 seconds clear of Perez – the driver now second in the championship standings, albeit 93 points back.
“Max was flying,” concluded Perez, the Mexican using the same machinery as Verstappen. “He was on another planet.” Verstappen’s superb comeback triumph was his third in a row and ninth from 14 appearances this term.
“Max was quite simply in a league of his own today,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner. “Not just today, but all weekend. He has excelled here in the past and today he has smashed it out of the park. Since the first lap in practice on Friday, Max has just been in phenomenal form.
“Strategically, we chose to take the penalty here, but of course, Max still had to navigate his way through the pack. He did that very efficiently over the first couple of laps and he hit the front far quicker than we could have ever expected. It was one of the most dominant performances that we have had as a team.”
F1 news: Lewis Hamilton refuses to talk to Fernando Alonso after ‘idiot’ jibe at Belgian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton said he would refuse to speak to Fernando Alonso after the Spaniard called him an “idiot” following their opening-lap crash at the Belgian Grand Prix.
As Max Verstappen continued his unstoppable march towards taking his second world championship by winning from 14th on the grid, Hamilton’s afternoon at Spa-Francorchamps was over inside five corners following an accident in which the British driver claimed he almost broke his back and said he was grateful to be alive.
Sergio Perez took second with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz third. George Russell finished fourth for Mercedes. Hamilton started fourth, one position behind Alonso, on Formula One’s return to action following its traditional summer shutdown.
He followed Alonso through the opening La Source, up the fearsome uphill Eau Rouge corner, and then on the ensuing Kemmel Straight at 200mph. Hamilton jinked to the left of Alonso under braking at Les Combes, and was marginally ahead as they approached the right-left-right run of corners.
But when the Briton turned in for the bend, his right-rear tyre made contact with Alonso’s left-front wheel. Hamilton was launched into the air and landed forcefully on the belly of his Mercedes. He ran over the rumble strips, and attempted to soldier on, but water was pouring out of his terminally-wounded machine. Hamilton was ordered by his team to stop.
Lewis Hamilton refuses to talk to Fernando Alonso after ‘idiot’ jibe
Championship leader Max Verstappen was victorious at Spa-Francorchamps
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