Max Verstappen steals the victory from Oscar at F1 2025 Spa Sprint

Despite Oscar Piastri, the current leader leader on driver's standings, starting from pole position, Max Verstappen made a crucial move on the opening lap, utilising the slipstream down the Kemmel Straight in Belgium to snatch the lead from Piastri at Turn 5 (Les Combes). This proved to be the decisive moment of the race. But yet, Oscar was not surprised because he did mention this very concern earlier during qualifying and knew that the driver on the pole has very less advantage.

Super Max maintained his lead throughout the race, expertly managing his lower-downforce Red Bull to counter McLaren's superior cornering ability. He faced consistent pressure from both Piastri and his McLaren teammate Lando Norris but held on for a comfortable win, finishing 0.753 seconds ahead of Piastri.

The McLarens were often within a second of the Red Bull, but Piastri was unable to find a way past despite multiple attempts to use DRS. In their case, the slipstream proved of no use when trying to get past the reigning champion. Verstappen highlighted that the race was a "cat and mouse" game with DRS and battery usage, indicating a finely balanced strategic battle. He emphasised the need to avoid mistakes, having only a "tiny hiccup" at the last corner. Yes this does change things up a bit because now the points tally adds 8 points to Max Verstappen (Red Bull), 7 points to Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and 6 to Lando Norris as well.

Notable Performances

Haas had a strong showing with Ocon and Bearman both in the points. Esteban Ocon scored 4 points while the rookie Oliver Bearman brought home 2 points. Lewis Hamilton had a difficult Sprint, starting from 18th after a spin in Sprint Qualifying and finishing 15th. Pierre Gasly's Alpine suffered a water system issue and was unable to start the race from the grid, eventually joining two laps down.

Williams however, had a mixed reaction to race. In a long time coming, Sainz delivered a very impressive performance, finishing P6 in the Sprint Race and securing 3 points for Williams. This was Williams' best-ever Sprint result since its introduction in 2021. This was also Sainz's first points finish since Canada and his biggest points haul since Imola, indicating a positive step for him and the team. While Alex Albon didn't score points in the Sprint (finishing P16), he did manage to gain a place at the start due to Pierre Gasly's DNS.

For more updates, join/follow our WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube channels.