F1 Fantasy: Kimi Antonelli wins, but beaten on points at the Belgian Grand Prix

Instead, it was Lando Norris who fought back from P13 to P7 and picked up 40 fantasy points. The world champ was unlucky with the timing of the VSC and a sticky left rear tyre during his solitary pitstop, which halted his charge through the field. However, he still made six places, earning him the top spot in F1 Fantasy. 

With 39 points, Charles Leclerc also had an excellent race. Okay, he was fortunate not to get a penalty for contact with Oscar Piastri, and he benefited from pitting under the VSC. But he did manage to pressure Antonelli, even after losing track position in the closing laps. 

Another contender for driver of the day, Isack Hadjar had an impressive afternoon. In the run-up to the race, he sounded downbeat. But the Frenchman fought brilliantly from P21 to P6 and even cleared Norris in the end. Without an engine penalty, it could’ve been so much better. He got 38 points for his efforts. 

Antonelli matched him on 38 points. Arguably this did him a disservice. He won’t care though! He's now 50 points ahead of his teammate and 45 points clear of Lewis Hamilton, who tangled with Russell on the opening lap. At the moment, Antonelli is the class of the field. Another statement win for the young Italian.  

Outside the big four teams, there were some great performances. Gabriel Bortoleto grabbed another P8, earning eight fantasy points. Arvid Lindblad didn’t replicate his rapid qualifying pace in-race, but he still managed P9 for five in-game points. Franco Colapinto then rounded off the top ten, also taking eight points. 

En route, the Argentinian pulled an incredible double overtake on Pierre Gasly and Liam Lawson into Les Combes. There were shades of Hakkinen, Schumacher, and Zonta! So, he merited those points in the end. Even if Alpine were generally way off the pace (and only really scored thanks to Russell). 

Other high midfield scorers include Carlos Sainz. Considering that he came home P16, it will be of little comfort, but he did earn ten fantasy points for overtakes. Ollie Bearman was anonymous in P14, although he did beat teammate Esteban Ocon in P17. In truth, it was a troubling day for the Frenchman. Ocon tagged Sainz early on, then clipped Bearman. It’s not the showing he needed, but he did get eight in-game points. 

The ever-popular Nico Hulkenberg brought four points home for P13. Fernando Alonso also earned himself a handful of in-game points for P19. Not bad for a guy driving with a GP2 engine (and car)!

No doubt, the biggest loser at Spa was Russell. Over the last few rounds, he’d closed the gap at the top to just 25 points. However, his weekend came undone on the opening lap. Russell later labeled a failed move on Hamilton as “a racing incident.” But it cost him big time. Retirement earned him -11 fantasy points. 

Considering how much they cost in F1 Fantasy, Verstappen and Hamilton didn’t deliver the best returns either, earning 26 points & 22 points. Piastri, who suffered damage in a clash with Leclerc, scored the worst of the frontrunners with 19 points. 

Looking further back, 32% of players chose Liam Lawson. He managed just three fantasy points for P12. Alex Albon also had a fairly disappointing weekend. In the end, he finished one place ahead of Sainz. But he missed out on Q2 by a couple of thousandths and this stranded him in the lower midfield. 

Cadillac’s struggles continued as Valtteri Bottas finished P18 for a single fantasy point, and Sergio Perez was hit with a 17-point penalty for retiring with a suspension issue. Lance Stroll also retired due to a gearbox failure, scoring -19 points. At this point, the Aston Martin boys must be desperate for that Hungary upgrade. 

The Belgian Grand Prix did little to change the status quo in the GP247 F1 Fantasy league. Sammyed F1 Racing stays at the top of the pile after using in-game boosts to gain 3x more points than Antonelli. Choosing Hadjar over Hamilton was also an inspired choice, as one racked up overtakes while the other struggled. 

In terms of value for money, Alpine are starting to pick up decent fantasy results (although their real points total leaves something to be desired). On the flipside, Bortoleto has had two great races but not scored well. In F1 Fantasy, Racing Bulls still offer the best balance between value and performance, but there’s still time for this to change. If you’d like to take part in our F1 Fantasy league, it’s free to join here. 

Veering back to the real world for a moment. Antonelli looks almost unbeatable, he's on a generational run. Just when Russell looked to be reeling him back in, the youngster doubled his lead once again. The battle for the title resumes this weekend in Hungary. But it’s going to take something special to beat this kid!