2016 Belgian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Nico Rosberg won in Belgium after an incident-packed opening phase, while Lewis Hamilton recovered from the back of the grid to third. Daniel Ricciardo split the Mercedes drivers, and Esteban Ocon made his Formula 1 debut for Manor.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Pole time	1:46.744
Fastest lap	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Fastest-lap time	1:51.583 on lap 40
First	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Second	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing
Third	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
26 August 2016	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
26 August 2016	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
27 August 2016	Practice 3	11:00 – 12:00
27 August 2016	Qualifying	14:00
28 August 2016	Race	14:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Lewis Hamilton arrived at round 13 leading the 2016 F1 World Championship on 217 points, with Nico Rosberg on 198. Mercedes headed the constructors’ standings with 415 points.

Race entries

Esteban Ocon replaced Rio Haryanto at Manor, joining Pascal Wehrlein for his first Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso faced major grid penalties after their teams introduced replacement power-unit components.

Free Practice

Nico Rosberg led a hot, dry FP1 as several teams tested prototype Pirelli tyres. Force India showed encouraging pace, but Fernando Alonso managed only three laps before a water leak required power-unit work. That left McLaren facing both lost preparation and grid penalties as the weekend began.

Max Verstappen led FP2 to the delight of the nearby travelling support, while Lewis Hamilton concentrated on longer medium-tyre runs with a back-of-grid start expected. Jolyon Palmer stopped after losing power, causing a brief virtual safety car. Fernando Alonso returned with a replacement power unit, using the session to recover some of his lost mileage.

Kimi Räikkönen led FP3 on supersofts while Lewis Hamilton continued prioritising race setup over qualifying because of his penalties. Max Verstappen’s car needed repairs, frustrating supporters hoping to see more of him. The different tyre and fuel programmes made the order less representative than a conventional final qualifying rehearsal.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2016 Belgian Grand Prix FP1, 26 August 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:48.348	27
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.730s	25
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.799s	24
4	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+0.926s	23
5	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+1.420s	19
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.434s	24
7	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+1.517s	24
8	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.740s	21
9	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+2.046s	31
10	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	+2.235s	21
11	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+2.551s	18
12	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+2.774s	28
13	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.777s	16
14	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+3.076s	17
15	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+3.420s	19
16	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	+3.439s	26
17	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+3.960s	19
18	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+4.059s	18
19	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	+4.489s	23
20	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	+4.705s	20
21	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	+4.741s	20
22	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	No time	3

Free Practice 2 Classification

2016 Belgian Grand Prix FP2, 26 August 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:48.085	27
2	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.256s	27
3	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+0.572s	30
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.938s	27
5	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+1.015s	27
6	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.076s	33
7	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+1.159s	30
8	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+1.334s	20
9	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.334s	23
10	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	+1.563s	23
11	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	+1.631s	31
12	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+1.687s	30
13	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+1.697s	33
14	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+1.831s	25
15	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+1.998s	27
16	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+2.066s	19
17	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+2.072s	29
18	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+2.109s	25
19	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	+2.290s	34
20	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	+2.477s	32
21	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	+2.574s	25
22	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+2.634s	24

Free Practice 3 Classification

2016 Belgian Grand Prix FP3, 27 August 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:47.974	11
2	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.215s	18
3	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.323s	12
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+0.530s	17
5	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.661s	20
6	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+0.765s	12
7	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.768s	19
8	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+0.809s	21
9	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+0.941s	12
10	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+1.298s	16
11	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+1.479s	9
12	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	+1.657s	16
13	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.691s	10
14	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	+1.742s	11
15	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	+1.787s	15
16	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+2.049s	9
17	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+2.104s	9
18	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	+2.267s	11
19	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+2.446s	13
20	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	+2.719s	18
21	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+3.345s	5
22	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	No time	2

Qualifying

Nico Rosberg headed qualifying for Mercedes, with Max Verstappen second and Kimi Räikkönen third.

Nico Rosberg took pole ahead of Max Verstappen. Large power-unit penalties put Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso at the back, while Alonso also failed to set a qualifying time and needed the stewards’ permission to race.

Qualifying Classification

2016 Belgian Grand Prix Qualifying, 27 August 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:48.019	1:46.999	1:46.744	12
2	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:48.407	1:47.163	1:46.893	12
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:47.912	1:47.664	1:46.910	13
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:47.802	1:47.944	1:47.108	14
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	1:48.407	1:48.027	1:47.216	12
6	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	1:48.106	1:47.485	1:47.407	12
7	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:48.080	1:47.317	1:47.543	12
8	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	1:48.655	1:47.918	1:47.612	12
9	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:48.700	1:48.051	1:48.114	15
10	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	1:47.738	1:47.667	1:48.263	12
11	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	1:48.751	1:48.316	—	12
12	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	1:48.800	1:48.485	—	12
13	21	Esteban Gutiérrez	Haas	1:48.748	1:48.598	—	12
14	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	1:48.901	1:48.888	—	12
15	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	1:48.876	1:49.038	—	9
16	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	1:48.554	1:49.320	—	11
17	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	1:48.949	—	—	6
18	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	1:49.050	—	—	7
19	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	1:49.058	—	—	6
20	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:49.071	—	—	6
21	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:50.033	—	—	4
22	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	No time	—	—	1

Esteban Gutiérrez received a five-place grid penalty for impeding Pascal Wehrlein during the final practice session on Saturday.

Marcus Ericsson was penalised 10 grid places for unscheduled power unit element changes.

Lewis Hamilton received a 60-place grid penalty after Mercedes opted to replace several elements on his power unit, then remove a seal from his gearbox.

Fernando Alonso received a 60-place grid penalty after McLaren opted to replace several elements on his power unit. As Alonso also failed to set a qualifying time, his participation in the race came at the stewards’ discretion.

What happened in the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix?

Rosberg led cleanly away, but Sebastian Vettel, Kimi Räikkönen and Max Verstappen collided at La Source. All three needed repairs, while a separate clash between Pascal Wehrlein and Jenson Button ended both their races.

Kevin Magnussen then crashed heavily at Raidillon. The safety car was followed by a red flag so the barriers could be repaired; Magnussen required medical attention after escaping the car with an ankle injury.

The interruption helped Hamilton and Alonso consolidate their progress through the disrupted field. Hamilton passed Alonso after the restart and then worked past Nico Hülkenberg to reach the podium positions.

Rosberg remained in command and won from Ricciardo, with Hamilton third. Hülkenberg and Sergio Pérez gave Force India fourth and fifth, while Alonso finished seventh after starting at the back.

Further down the points places, Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas, Kimi Räikkönen and Felipe Massa completed the scoring positions. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2016 rules.

After the race, Lewis Hamilton headed the drivers’ standings with 232 points, followed by Nico Rosberg on 223. Mercedes led the constructors’ table on 455, with Red Bull Racing on 274.

2016 Belgian Grand Prix race results

The 2016 Belgian Grand Prix was held on 28 August 2016, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	44	1:44:51.058	25
2	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	44	+14.113	18
3	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	44	+27.634	15
4	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	44	+35.907	12
5	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	44	+40.660	10
6	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	44	+45.394	8
7	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	44	+59.445	6
8	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	44	+1:00.151	4
9	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	44	+1:01.109	2
10	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	44	+1:05.873	1
11	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	44	+1:11.138	0
12	21	Esteban Gutiérrez	Haas	44	+1:13.877	0
13	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	44	+1:16.474	0
14	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	44	+1:27.097	0
15	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	44	+1:33.165	0
16	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	43	+1 Lap	0
17	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	43	+1 Lap	0
Ret	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	5	Accident	0
Ret	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	3	Gearbox	0
Ret	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	1	Puncture damage	0
Ret	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	1	Collision damage	0
Ret	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	0	Collision	0

2016 Belgian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time of Day	Time	Avg. Speed
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	40	15:41:20	1:51.583	225.969
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	11	14:45:46	1:51.746	225.640
3	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	37	15:36:41	1:52.081	224.965
4	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	11	14:45:48	1:52.461	224.205
5	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	35	15:32:13	1:52.728	223.674
6	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	41	15:44:23	1:53.251	222.641
7	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	32	15:26:48	1:53.281	222.582
8	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	34	15:30:12	1:53.414	222.321
9	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	27	15:17:04	1:53.498	222.157
10	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	41	15:43:25	1:53.530	222.094
11	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	25	15:13:27	1:53.803	221.561
12	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	31	15:24:38	1:54.120	220.946
13	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	26	15:15:15	1:54.335	220.530
14	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	25	15:13:05	1:54.342	220.517
15	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	43	15:47:36	1:54.484	220.243
16	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	26	15:15:35	1:55.734	217.865
17	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	31	15:25:19	1:56.152	217.081
18	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	4	14:11:52	1:56.588	216.269
19	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	2	14:08:06	2:15.255	186.421

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded. Time of Day is local.

2016 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix.

2016 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Lewis Hamilton	British	Mercedes	232
2	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	223
3	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Red Bull Racing	151
4	Sebastian Vettel	German	Ferrari	128
5	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Ferrari	124
6	Max Verstappen	Dutch	Toro Rosso / Red Bull Racing	115
7	Valtteri Bottas	Finnish	Williams	62
8	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Force India	58
9	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	45
10	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Williams	39
11	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	McLaren	30
12	Carlos Sainz	Spanish	Toro Rosso	30
13	Romain Grosjean	French	Haas	28
14	Daniil Kvyat	Russian	Red Bull Racing / Toro Rosso	23
15	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	17
16	Kevin Magnussen	Danish	Renault	6
17	Pascal Wehrlein	German	Manor Racing	1
18	Stoffel Vandoorne	Belgian	McLaren	1
19	Esteban Gutiérrez	Mexican	Haas	0
20	Jolyon Palmer	British	Renault	0
21	Marcus Ericsson	Swedish	Sauber	0
22	Felipe Nasr	Brazilian	Sauber	0
23	Rio Haryanto	Indonesian	Manor Racing	0
24	Esteban Ocon	French	Manor Racing	0

2016 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Mercedes	455
2	Red Bull Racing	274
3	Ferrari	252
4	Force India	103
5	Williams	101
6	McLaren	48
7	Toro Rosso	45
8	Haas	28
9	Renault	6
10	Manor Racing	1
11	Sauber	0

2016 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2016 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	20 March
2	2016 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	3 April
3	2016 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	17 April
4	2016 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	1 May
5	2016 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	15 May
6	2016 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	29 May
7	2016 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	12 June
8	2016 European Grand Prix	Baku City Circuit, Baku	19 June
9	2016 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	3 July
10	2016 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	10 July
11	2016 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	24 July
12	2016 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	31 July
13	2016 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	28 August
14	2016 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	4 September
15	2016 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	18 September
16	2016 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	2 October
17	2016 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	9 October
18	2016 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	23 October
19	2016 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	30 October
20	2016 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	13 November
21	2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	27 November