He started from the back of the grid, after making changes to the engine, but even so Max Verstappen did not see his hegemony threatened at the mythical Spa-Francorchamps circuit, where the Dutchman won the Formula Belgian Grand Prix with great authority 1, his ninth win of the year, and took another step to retain the world title, now with a 93-point lead with eight races to go. Carlos Sainz, who started first, held on to the lead in the opening laps until the Red Bulls, with 'Checo' Pérez finally second, made him settle for a meritorious third place, his seventh podium this season.
"It was harder than expected. I thought we would have a chance to defend ourselves. We started well, but we didn't have the pace. Our tires were overheating. The Red Bulls were playing in another league and we had to survive because we weren't competitive. Sainz lamented just before leaving the microphone to Verstappen. "In the first lap I kept away from problems, but then the car went on rails. Once in the lead we managed it well. I couldn't imagine this weekend, but we want more," said 'Mad max', that next weekend he will have the opportunity to repeat his victory at home, at the Dutch circuit of Zandvoort.
The start was ideal for the two Spanish drivers, with the Ferrari driver maintaining the privileged position and even opening a gap, while Fernando Alonso, third before the lights went out, overtook Sergio Pérez and placed second. However, the joy for the Asturian was short-lived, until in turn five he was literally run over by Lewis Hamilton, who in his attempt to overtake on the outside closed the gap for Alpine. "What an idiot closing the door from the outside. We had made a mega start but this guy only knows how to drive when he starts first," complained about the maneuver of the Englishman from Oviedo, who came out unscathed from the blow and finished in a great fifth place.
The spectacular accident only had consequences for Hamilton, out of the race after traveling several meters with his Mercedes taking out smoke. It was only the first of several incidents in the first two laps. Leclerc had to pit prematurely with a tire problem and Latifi spun, sending Bottas into the gravel. The safety car came on the scene, which hurt Sainz, neutralizing his advantage with the second, at that time Pérez.
Behind, Verstappen galloped freely, the great beneficiary of all the incidents in the early stages of the race. The Dutchman, who started fourteenth, had already climbed to fourth position on lap seven, after outrunning Alonso like a plane, and on the next lap he just as easily passed Russell. Ahead of him, only his teammate Pérez and Sainz remained. The race was where he wanted.
The current champion and Sainz had been the only ones who opted for soft tires from the start with the aim of having more grip and speed than the rest of the grid, but in the end only Verstappen profited from that strategy, which better negotiated the degradation of the gums. Sainz made his first pit stop on lap 12 already with the two Red Bulls threatening his lead.
The man from Madrid still led the race after Pérez and Verstappen stopped. They were his last attempts at resistance before succumbing to the unattainable pace of the energy drink single-seaters. Sainz waved the white flag on lap 18, at which point 'Mad Max' overtook him and settled the fight for victory. The rest of the race, with half the laps still to go, was a triumphant ride for the Dutchman. His advantage did not stop increasing, fast lap after fast lap, while in the stands the staunch pilot, a numerous orange tide, lived his own party.
His superiority was so great that he did not even suffer from losing the lead when he went through the box for the second time on lap 31, with nine seconds still ahead of Pérez. With the two Red Bulls confirming the predictions, the fastest all weekend, the excitement moved to the last step of the podium, with Sainz defending third position against the stalking Russell. With both drivers riding hard tyres, the Ferrari's difficulties at Spa were noticeable, losing the lead to the Mercedes until the times of both stabilized with just five laps to go.
Behind, Alonso rode with some calm in sixth place, the threat of his teammate Ocon far away and without expectations ahead, until at the last breath he received an unexpected gift from Leclerc. The Monegasque stopped on the last lap to fit soft tires with the aim of snatching the fastest lap point from Verstappen, but he was unsuccessful and also took a five-second penalty for exceeding speed limits in the pit lane. Alonso, whom the Ferrari driver used to win a few tenths with the slipstream, climbed to fifth place, a position that this year had only been achieved at Silverstone.
