Max Verstappen third in Belgian Grand Prix: 'A good result'

Published on 19 July 2026 by Misha van der Kroon

Max Verstappen finished third in the Belgian Grand Prix. At the iconic Spa-Francorchamps circuit, the Oracle Red Bull Racing driver had a strong start from second on the grid. Verstappen briefly took the lead on the opening lap, but lost out to Kimi Antonelli on the Kemmel Straight before also being passed by Charles Leclerc. Although Verstappen looked capable of challenging for second in the opening stages, a virtual safety car worked in Leclerc's favour during the pit stops, allowing the Ferrari driver to rejoin ahead of the Dutchman. Verstappen ultimately finished third and secured his third podium finish of the season, while Antonelli claimed his sixth Grand Prix victory of the year to extend his championship lead. Two seconds behind Antonelli, Leclerc crossed the line and claimed second place.

After the race, Verstappen reflected: “It was actually one of the easiest weekends we've had. Everything was quite straight forward, the car was straight away in a decent window. In that respect, it was quite a normal weekend, which is a positive. I tried everything I could during the race. The first stint wasn't too bad. The second stint was a little bit worse. On the hard tyres I couldn't really push and I had a lot of understeer. That means you have to adapt your driving style, and you simply can't match the pace of the cars ahead. At the same time, Kimi and I were both a little unlucky with the virtual safety car. Otherwise, I could have potentially fought with Leclerc for P2. In the end, we're on the podium, so we can't complain too much. To be on the podium here is a very good result for us. I gave everything I had, and P3 is a good result.”

Next up is the Hungarian Grand Prix, a circuit that is very different from Spa. However, Max doesn't want to make any predictions about his chances: “It depends on who brings upgrades. This weekend the balance was good, but I have no idea what next weekend will be like. It makes a big difference how you start your weekend, so it's difficult to predict where we’ll be.”

Rain threatens ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, but the track is dry as the drivers head out for the formation lap. The entire top twelve starts on the medium compound tyres. Lando Norris the first driver on the hard compound, starting from thirteenth on the grid. Max has a good start and gets away well from second. He gets behind polesitter Antonelli through the opening corner. A strong run towards Eau Rouge allows Verstappen to pass the Italian and claim the lead. However, Antonelli fights back on the long Kemmel Straight and reclaims first place. Charles Leclerc also slips past the Dutchman. Behind this battle, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell make contact at turn five. Russell spins backwards into the gravel and is unable to continue, becoming the race's first retirement, while Hamilton escapes without damage. At the back of the field, Esteban Ocon clips teammate Oliver Bearman, resulting in a puncture. After the eventful opening lap, the safety car is deployed.

Racing resumes on lap five with Antonelli leading Leclerc and Verstappen. Behind them, Hamilton passes Oscar Piastri for fourth, but the Australian immediately retakes the position at the next corner. One lap later, Verstappen overtakes Leclerc for P2 on the Kemmel Straight. On lap eight, Piastri also attacks Leclerc, but the two make contact under braking and debris flies from both cars. Although they are able to continue, Piastri loses out a lap later as Hamilton passes him in Ferrari's second car.

The gap between Antonelli and Verstappen stays around two seconds until Verstappen pits on lap eighteen for the hard compound. He rejoins in sixth place, with the drivers ahead of him still yet to stop. Antonelli pits a lap later and rejoins ahead of Verstappen, once again with a lead of around two seconds.

On lap 20, a virtual safety car is deployed due to debris on the circuit. It allows Leclerc to make his pit stop and rejoin ahead of both Antonelli and Verstappen. Race leader Norris is the only driver at the front yet to pit after starting on the hard tyres. On lap 23, Leclerc, who is armed with fresher rubber, comfortably takes the lead from Norris, while Antonelli has to wait until lap 26 to pass the McLaren driver for second. By then, the Italian trails Leclerc by three seconds. Verstappen then turns his attention to Norris. On lap 29, the four-time World Champion passes the reigning champion. Norris pits two laps later and, after a slow stop, rejoins in eighth place.

At the front, Antonelli steadily closes the gap to Leclerc before making the decisive move on lap 34. Leclerc initially tries to stay with the Mercedes driver, but in the closing laps Antonelli gradually pulls away to claim his sixth Grand Prix victory of the season by 1.9 seconds. Leclerc finishes second, with Verstappen taking third, almost ten seconds behind the race winner. The result marks Red Bull Racing's 300th podium finish in Formula One. Lewis Hamilton finishes in fourth place, ahead of Oscar Piastri and Isack Hadjar, who had an impressive recovery drive from the back row of the grid to finish sixth. Lando Norris takes seventh, and Gabriel Bortoleto finishes eighth for the second race in a row in the Audi. Rookie Arvid Lindblad, Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly complete the top ten.

Results Grand Prix Belgium: