Belgian Grand Prix Sunday: Teams & Drivers report from Spa

The Belgian Grand Prix was delayed as heavy rain hit Spa Francorchamps, and after a few laps behind the Safety Car racing was given the green light.

Formula 1 championship leader, Piastri passed polesitter Norris as soon as the racing started and never looked back and as conditions dried up and the drivers shifted to slick tyres, the racing became a bit of a concession.

Let's have a look at what teams and drivers had to say about their Sunday at Spa Francorchamps in the aftermath of the 2025 Belgian Grand Prix.

George Russell (P5): "P5 was the maximum we could have achieved today. Our pace was not strong compared to our usual competitors and that left us in a lonely race to P5. It is frustrating to be in that position but that was the reality of our weekend.

"It has been an underwhelming weekend for us, so we need to quickly analyse what's happened here in Spa. We have some on ideas as to where we have lost out to our rivals in recent races. We still have one more Grand Prix before the summer break to put things right and that will be our focus in Budapest next weekend."

Kimi Antonelli (P16): "We opted to change the set-up in anticipation of a wet race today and, during those first few laps, that proved beneficial. The car felt good, and I was able to make some overtakes and progress up the field. Unfortunately, the track dried quickly and for the rest of the race we were losing out on the straights to some of the cars we were racing. Despite being able to stick close to those we were racing, we were unable to get any overtakes done. That meant we opted to try something different and went to the two-stop, but the result was similar as we got stuck behind the Haas of Esteban Ocon.

"It's been a difficult weekend here in Spa, but we have the chance to reset and come back stronger straight away in Budapest. We want to go into the summer shutdown with some momentum and I, and the team, are focused on doing that."

Toto Wolff, Team Principal & CEO: "There are not many positives we can take from the weekend here in Spa. Our pace has not been good enough to compete with our usual rivals and that has been frustrating. We need to quickly understand why that has been. We also need to ensure we execute the race weekend more cleanly, getting the car in a better place from the first session on track.

"Today, George delivered what was the maximum with the car in P5. It was a race all about damage limitation and he did a good job to secure some points. For Kimi, starting from the back, it was always going to be challenging to fight through. In the wetter conditions, his set-up was useful but that hindered him once it transitioned to the dry. He attempted something different with the two-stop in the closing stages, but his straight-line deficit held him back."

Pierre Gasly (P10): "It was a very intense race and I am pleased that we were able to make the right calls to come away with one point, which we can be satisfied with today. We made some very good decisions like opting for an aggressive, low downforce set-up, which allowed us to attack and defend on the straights and also pitting at the right time for dry tyres as the track dried up early on. So, I am very happy with that and that hard work has paid off today. It is only a point but, after a race like that, defending from a number of cars for so long, we can be pleased. Every year, Spa is a special weekend for me for many reasons so it was nice to have my family here alongside Anthoine's mum too. We take a point away and we go into Hungary next week ready to go again for the final one before the summer break."

Franco Colapinto (P19): "It was a tough and long race for us. With the conditions, there was always likely to be some opportunity even starting from fifteenth after some cars started from the Pit Lane. It was very wet to begin and the conditions probably came to us as it dried as we opted for a low downforce wing to prioritise straight line speed. The start was good, we caught up the cars in front, before pitting for dry tyres. We seemed to struggle for pace on the Medium in traffic. We then pitted again to cover Carlos [Sainz] but, in the end, we could not make any progress towards him. Well done to Pierre for finishing in tenth and scoring a point for the team. On our side, it was a tricky weekend and I know we will continue to work hard in the week to prepare for the next race in Hungary."

Flavio Briatore: "The conditions were typical of Spa today, as I have seen on many occasions over the years and it made for an interesting race from the pit wall. A big thank you to the fans in the grandstands who waited patiently for the race to start. It was a tough weekend for the team at a track that we know doesn't play to the strengths of our package. We tried something different by running less wing, which wasn't easy in those conditions. So, it's good to at least come away with a point and Pierre did well to keep the Red Bull, Haas and others behind in the closing stages. We pitted Franco to cover Carlos at the end but in the position they were in, it was unlikely to alter the outcome of the race."

Liam Lawson (P8): "I really enjoyed today. Often in those conditions you just want to survive, so I'm very happy for the team and how everything came together. It's always tricky when you cross over to a dry tyre when it's damp, but the car was fast and in clean air we had great pace. A lot of work goes into little details each weekend when the Championship is this tight, so now we need to keep the momentum rolling forward and make sure we enter the summer break on a high."

Isack Hadjar (P20): "Unfortunately, we had an issue with the car for almost the whole race and that made me lose quite a lot of lap time. We'll review the reasons why, but I was aware of it whilst I was driving, so I just tried to make the most out of it, doing my best. It was very frustrating, as I felt like the car underneath me was working really well. It's a shame for the team, as everyone has done an amazing job, and I think it could have been a double-points finish today after Liam's result. I'm confident going to Budapest, so we'll bounce back next week."

Alan Permane, Team Principal: "First of all, we have to apologise to Isack, he had a problem with his car that we could see from around lap 8, causing him a loss of straight-line speed and costing him a lot of time over the course of the race. It's a shame because he had a great car all weekend and great pace so if it wasn't for that, I'm sure it would have been a very different result. Liam had a near-perfect race, he managed his tyres exceptionally well, both on the intermediates and on the dry tyre. He was strong and able to comfortably pull away from Bortoleto behind and was very happy with the car overall.

"There are only a few days to reflect on this race as we're quickly onto Budapest with a very different track and a very different downforce level. It'll be much hotter, and we've got different tyres, but we expect our car to perform well there, and we will have our usual target of getting both our cars into Q3 and in the points."

Fernando Alonso (P17): "Unfortunately, things haven't gone our way this weekend in Belgium. We committed to a wet set-up, but the race ended up being mostly dry and sunny. We managed to make up a few places to finish P17, but our pace still wasn't there. We brought a new package to the circuit, but it hasn't delivered the improvements we were hoping for. We will now go back and look at the data to try and find some performance in Hungary."

Lance Stroll (P14): "It's been a tough weekend for us. We did what we could and it was probably the most we could achieve today. We made all the right strategy calls during the race but ultimately we want to finish in the points. I'm now looking forward to Budapest in a week's time, it's a very different track and hopefully there will be more opportunities for us."

Andy Cowell, CEO & Team Principal: "The Belgian Grand Prix comes to a close after a challenging weekend. We opted to split strategies between the two cars. Lance ran a one-stop race, managing his tyres well to make up six places and finish in P14.

"With Fernando, we opted for a two-stop approach, knowing we had little to lose. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off as we'd hoped. We were planning on a wet race, but the long delay in restarting meant it dried out very quickly, and we were also banking on greater tyre degradation from cars around us.

"Despite the outcome, this weekend has provided valuable learning. We're now focused on the Hungarian Grand Prix next weekend, the final race before the summer break."

Ollie Bearman (P11): "I think we were a little bit late in the first stop going onto medium tires, which put me just out of the points in P11. Unfortunately, I had an engine issue and lost three positions from it, as I was actually ahead of Gasly before that and with Hulkenberg boxing twice, I would've been net P10, and I was managing that for the whole race. The car felt fantastic, I was just unable to overtake, it really sucked as the car was good. I think we can still be positive looking ahead to Hungary, we've been strong, we've been fast this weekend, and I think the Hungaroring is a track that will suit us quite well."

Esteban Ocon (P15): "I think we got today completely wrong, sadly. We need to put everything together as a team, as we had decent pace in the car, especially later on when it was dry. We stayed two laps too long on the inters and then I went on to used mediums, which we need to review as it was obviously a performance loss."

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: "Today has been frustrating, as especially with Ollie we should've scored points. He had lots of pace with the downforce level he had, he was really happy with the car, and he had so much confidence. We knew however if you have that set-up and you're in traffic, you're not going to overtake, which is unfortunately exactly what happened. On top of that, we had an issue with the car so we couldn't optimize it, as with his starting position we could've scored points.

"On Esteban's side, we had an operational error and the pit stop timing wasn't right. The speed is there though, I think we may have the fifth fastest car out there – which is amazing and hats off to the team who delivered it – but we just failed to execute. We have one more race before the shutdown, so we need to focus on the basics, and if we do that extremely well, I honestly have no doubt that we can score with both cars."

Alex Albon (P6): "I'm really happy; we're top of the midfield so that's always nice and I managed to hold off Lewis, which is never easy. I struggled a little bit in the rain, which is to be expected, so I lost that position to George early on but after that, we settled in and were able to maintain position and finish strong. It was important to not make mistakes with Lewis behind, but I think his downforce worked in our favour. As a team we did a great job as it's not easy beating those top teams, so it's good to see our package is working well."

Carlos Sainz (P18): "Following a costly set-up change yesterday before Qualifying, our starting position meant we had little to lose, so we took a gamble to start from the pit lane, changing the car to a wet configuration. Unfortunately, with the Red Flag during the worst of the weather, the race was dry, and it clearly didn't work in our favour. We also had an issue with my pit stop, so it was a bit of a disappointing race all together. However, on the positive side, the Sprint was very strong and today the new package worked well on Alex's car, so I look forward to next week."

James Vowles, Team Principal: "A strong weekend for us, with Alex finishing P6 in today's Race and Carlos finishing P6 in the Sprint Race yesterday. It was difficult conditions all round. With Alex, he drove a focused race. Didn't put a foot wrong. We did a good pitstop and a good strategy helping him to hold on to that P6, despite having to defend against Lewis for most of the race.

"In the case of Carlos, we took a gamble this morning that the race would be wet for longer. We, like a number of other teams, fitted a slightly larger rear wing at the end. We only did around about ten laps in those wet conditions, and that car set-up is quite a bit slower in drier conditions. So that did not pay off today. But from where we were starting, it was a sensible choice to try and provide some learning, understanding and opportunity to Carlos later in the race.

"We did not execute Carlos' pitstop well. We'll review this and make sure that we progress across the season, operating at the highest level possible.

"Going forward though, what I'm encouraged by is that this package is working. It was a strong weekend, yet it's still a tight midfield, but I'm looking forward to these next races where we'll also deliver."

Nico Hulkenberg (P12): "It turned out to be quite an unusual race right from the beginning – waiting over an hour after the first formation lap for the weather conditions to improve. Missing out on points at the end by just a second is obviously disappointing. We had to make a second stop with around 11 laps to go – my front tyres were dropping off significantly, and I was struggling with front locking and understeer. Staying out wasn’t really an option, especially with our higher downforce setup compared to Pierre Gasly behind, who was running lower downforce. We therefore opted for the stop and tried to fight back, but unfortunately it didn’t quite work out. That said, our pace was decent and we made progress. Gabi picked up some valuable points, which is important for the Constructors’ standings. Once again, we showed we’re competitive in the midfield, and that’s a positive takeaway as we head to Budapest next weekend."

Gabriel Bortoleto (P9): "I'm happy to have made it back into the top ten today. The conditions were quite challenging – a wet start and then the track drying up always make things unpredictable – but we stayed focused, made the right calls, and managed to bring the car home in P9. Overall, I'm happy with how the race went: I feel we extracted everything we could from our package. Our pace has been solid all weekend, and that’s a credit to the whole team for giving me a car that felt good in every session. Of course, as a driver, you always want to be fighting higher up the grid, but this was a solid result and another decent step forward. We scored two more points, and that gives me an extra confidence boost heading into the next round in Budapest in just a few days. I feel we are moving in the right direction, and I’m excited to keep pushing and wrap up the first half of my rookie season on a high."

Jonathan Wheatley, Team Principal: “The race was significantly delayed following heavy rain before the start, which created a lot of debate around tyre choice. In the end, once we got going, the conditions made things relatively straightforward. Both drivers got away cleanly and managed their opening laps well.

“Gabi once again delivered a flawless performance. He was rock solid throughout the weekend – in every practice session, the sprint, and during today's race. Finishing P9 means points for the fifth consecutive race, which is a great achievement and a credit to the hard work from everyone at the factory and trackside.

“Nico’s race turned out to be more challenging. As his pace began to drop off in the second half of the race, it became clear that the original one-stop strategy would leave him exposed, so we made the call to box him a second time. Unfortunately, he rejoined behind Ocon which meant time was lost in traffic, and we weren’t able to maximise the strategy as planned. These are the kinds of calls that are always easier to assess in hindsight, and we’ll review it carefully back at the factory. Overall, it’s been another encouraging weekend for the team, and we’ll look to carry this momentum into Hungary.”