16:04 – Giro 32/44 Verstappen extends on Perez
Verstappen at 11” on Perez, behind Leclerc he maintains the margin of 2” on Hamilton.
4.02 pm – Lap 31/44 The top 5 after the last pit stops
Verstappen, Perez, Leclerc, Hamilton, Alonso.
Ore 16:00 – Giro 30/44 Pit-stop Verstappen
Verstappen also switched to red tyres, tire change in 2”3. The situation behind. Perez has a 3”6 lead over Leclerc who in turn has a 2”3 lead over Hamilton.
3.58 pm – Lap 30/44 Leclerc in front of Hamilton
He went out ahead of Hamilton and was able to push to get the gap over second out of the Drs area. He has an advantage of almost two seconds. Perez and Alonso also stop.
Ore 15:57 – Giro 29/44 Pit-stop Leclerc
Charles Leclerc stops immediately, stops in 2”7. Hamilton is behind it, Charles has to hold on. They are on the same tires.
3.55 pm – Lap 28/44 Hamilton pit stop, Mercedes tries the undercut
Mercedes is playing the early stop card. Hamilton mounted the reds.
3.53 pm – Lap 27/44 Leclerc-Hamilton question and answer
Long distance duel, one lap goes faster Charles and the other Lewis. The Ferrari driver has an advantage of 3”4.
3.51 pm – Lap 26/44 The rain is lessening
Rain decreasing, the first two positions are not in question. To follow the fight for the podium between Leclerc and Hamilton.
3.48 pm – Lap 25/55 Pickup for Sainz
Sainz called back to the pits, is forced to retire due to the damage sustained at the start in the impact with Piastri.
– The damage on the side of Sainz
3.47 pm – Lap 24/44 The top 5
Verstappen, Perez, Leclerc, Hamilton, Alonso.
Ore 15:45 – Giro 23/44 Pit-stop Russell
First stop for Russell who switches to red tyres. In these conditions it is the easiest to use because it heats up immediately.
3.43 pm – Lap 22/44 Verstappen risks going out
At the Eau Rouge he skidded but managed to get his car back: “I almost lost it”.
3.42 pm – Lap 21/44 Stroll puts on dry tyres
Tire change for the Canadian, put on soft tyres. A risk.
3.40 pm – Lap 20/44 Difficult conditions now
In some places the asphalt is quickly getting wet. It’s tough to be able to control the cars in the traction corners. Leclerc is going very fast in these conditions.
3.39 pm – Giro 19/44 It’s raining now
Light rain at Spa, but not enough for now to switch to wet tyres.
3.38 pm – Lap 18/44 The top 10
Verstappen, Perez, Leclerc, Hamilton, Alonso, Russell, Stroll, Gasly, Tsunoda, Ocon
3.36 pm – Giro 18/44 Rain expected in a few minutes
Riccardo Adami warns Sainz: “The rain will come in four minutes”. The race can change completely.
3.34 pm – Giro 17/44 Verstappen takes the lead
After exerting crazy pressure on Perez, Verstappen passes his partner to Eau Rouge. He is leader of the race.
3.32 pm – Giro 16/44 Verstappen very close to Perez
Fly after the Verstappen tire change to pick up his partner.
Ore 15:30 – Giro 15/44 Verstappen al pit-stop
Verstappen criticized the decision to stop Perez first, now he stops and puts on yellow tyres. He returns in front of Leclerc.
Ore 15:28 – Turn 14/44 Pit-stop Perez and Leclerc
Perez and Leclerc stop, Charles’ stop is good in 2”4. Both have yellow tyres.
3.26 pm – Lap 13/44 Hamilton pit stop, early stop for Mercedes
Hamilton returns to the pits to mount the averages. Leclerc continues and will have to be careful to watch his back from Lewis.
3.25 pm – Lap 12/44 The top 5
Perez, Verstappen, Leclerc, Hamilton, Stroll.
Ore 15:23 – Turn 11/ 44 Pit-stop Alonso
Alonso has switched to hard tyres, Leclerc continues in front. For now, he has a good margin over Hamilton.
3.22 pm – Lap 10/44 Sainz at the bottom
After the pit stop Sainz is 17th, Ferrari didn’t let him retire. Perhaps they are hoping for the arrival of the rain which can completely change the scenarios. Pit stop for Norris who mounts the hard tyres.
3.20 pm – Tour 10/44 Verstappen chasing Perez
Max after passing Leclerc is 3” from Perez, the race for first place begins. Leclerc defends the third.
3.19 pm – Lap 9/44 Verstappen passes Leclerc
With Red Bull’s powerful Drs, Max devours Leclerc to take second place.
Ore 15:17 – Giro 8/44 Pit-stop per Sainz
Sainz changes the tires but continues, for now there is no retirement for the Ferrari driver. Verstappen is now very close to Leclerc.
3.15 pm – Lap 7/44 Sainz slips to tenth
With the damaged car Sainz loses positions, he is tenth but wants to continue. We’ll see how far he can go.
3.14 pm – Lap 6/44 Verstappen passes Hamilton
Verstappen passes Hamilton on the Kemmel and takes third place.
3.13 pm – Lap 5/44 The top 5
Perez, Leclerc, Hamilton, Verstappen, Alonso.
Ore 15:10 – Turn 4/44 Alonso passes Sainz
Alonso takes fifth place. Up front, the situation does not change: Perez ahead of Leclerc and Hamilton, Verstappen fourth.
3.08 pm – Lap 3/44 Sainz asks for information on the damage
Sainz collided with Piastri, asks the wall for information. Answer: «Loss of 5% of balance». It will be difficult for Carlos to resist Alonso, for now he can.
3.06 pm – Round 2/44 Retirement for Piastri
The McLaren Australian stopped at the side of the track, yellow flags.
3.05 pm – Lap 1/44 Damages for Sainz
Sainz suffered damage in the contact, they still tell him to continue. Here are the top 5: Perez, Leclerc, Hamilton, Verstappen, Sainz.
Perez tries to attack Leclerc who resists at the start but then has to give in. Perez leads the Belgian GP. Contact at the start between Piastri, Hamilton and Sainz.
3.01 pm – Choice of tyres
Seven kilometers around the Ardennes, then the cars will line up on the grid for the start of the Belgian GP. It will be 44 laps. Both Leclerc and Sainz have chosen to mount the red tires at the start. Among the top 6, only Piastri has middle school.
2.55 pm – The Piastri surprise
This weekend all eyes will be on the McLaren rookie, a confidently talented driver. He has already demonstrated it in the youth series. Australian of distant Italian origins (his great-great-grandfather emigrated from Tuscany), next to Norris he has shown that he has the right credentials to grow.
2.50 pm – All ready for the formation lap
In Belgium the weather is holding up for now, in a few minutes the formation lap and then the start of the GP. There will be 44 laps on one of the most beautiful and complicated tracks in Formula 1.
2.40 pm – Ferrari’s strategy
Leclerc has to keep the first position after the first lap. But then he can’t afford to push too much because he would ruin the tyres. Ferrari’s goal is the podium, however when you start up front there’s always an opportunity to exploit, also to achieve something more. Sainz, on the other hand, can attack immediately from the second row taking into account that Verstappen is behind him.
2.36 pm – The teams are waiting for the rain
The internal forecasts of the teams speak of possible rain during the race. The alternative plans are therefore ready to be ready when the water arrives.
2.27 pm – Verstappen’s incredible numbers
Seven victories in the last seven races, nine in total this season out of 11 GPs. Max is demolishing his opponents and his teammate Sergio Perez, 118 points behind in the standings with the same car. Forty-four successes in his career for the Dutchman, fifth in the absolute ranking of F1 behind Prost (51).
2.18 pm – Warm-up laps, the weather unknown
Cars on track for warm up laps. The sky is overcast, it’s not raining yet. But here the weather is always unpredictable, Ferrari is hoping for a dry race. Not the McLaren, on the other hand, Piastri has a more aerodynamically loaded set-up which performs better in the wet. Also watch out for Hamilton, Mercedes is growing: this week it has paid for strategic confusion and traffic in the pit lane during the Sprint Race.
2.13 pm – Leclerc’s first victory in Spa
2.09 pm – The starting grid
1 . Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 2. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) 3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 4. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 5. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 7. Lando Norris (McLaren) 8. George Russell (Mercedes) 9. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) 10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) 11. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) 12. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 13. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) 14. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) 15. Alexander Albon (Williams) 16. Guanyu Zhou (Alfa Romeo) 17. Logan Sargeant (Williams) 18. Daniel Ricciardo (AlphaTauri) 19. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas). Hulkenberg (Haas) parte dalla corsia dei box.
2.05 pm – Possible strategies
Net of the rain that can arrive here at any moment, here are the possible strategies envisaged by Pirelli in the event of a dry race. Two stops are expected.
2.00 pm – The interview with Leclerc
Charles Leclerc: «Verstappen is not unbeatable. With Sainz so much rivalry ». «At the beginning of this season we had to almost reset our expectations but we are very clear on how we need to improve». And on his future at Ferrari: «I know what I want. But I still don’t know what Ferrari wants from me» Read the complete interview.
1.42 pm – Saturday’s sprint
1.23 pm – Friday’s qualifying
The sun comes out at Spa, Ferrari lights up with Leclerc: a breath of fresh air after the bitter trips to Silverstone and Budapest, he will start in front of everyone in the Belgian GP on Sunday, he earned pole thanks to Verstappen’s penalty (-5 positions at the start for having fitted a new gearbox). In the finale, the Dutchman set off a monstrous time, 8 tenths faster than the Ferrari driver, and without the handicap he would have been impregnable. The complete report of the qualifying sessions held on Friday.
1.00 pm – Where to see the race
2023-07-30 13:52:30
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