2018 Belgian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Sebastian Vettel struck back after the summer break with victory at the 2018 Belgian Grand Prix. An opening-lap pass on Lewis Hamilton gave Ferrari control at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, while a spectacular first-corner accident and a new entry for Force India made this a particularly eventful return to racing.

Pole position
Driver	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Time	1:58.179
Fastest lap
Driver	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes
Time	1:46.286 on lap 32
Podium
First	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari
Second	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Third	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
24 August 2018	Practice 1	11:00 – 12:30
24 August 2018	Practice 2	15:00 – 16:30
25 August 2018	Practice 3	12:00 – 13:00
25 August 2018	Qualifying	15:00 – 16:00
26 August 2018	Race	15:10

All times are local (UTC+02:00). The race time is the scheduled start.

Championship background

Hamilton led Vettel by 24 points in the 2018 F1 World Championship. The long straights at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps suited Ferrari‘s strengths, and Vettel needed a strong result to reverse the momentum from Germany and Hungary.

Race entries

Racing Point Force India entered as a new team after the original Force India entry was excluded from the constructors’ championship. The original team’s points were forfeited, but Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon retained their drivers’ points. Lando Norris made his Grand Prix practice debut in Fernando Alonso‘s McLaren during FP1.

Free Practice

Sebastian Vettel led FP1 in 1:44.358, ahead of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. Ferrari began the weekend with competitive speed.

Kimi Räikkönen headed FP2 in 1:43.355, followed by Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. The Ferrari remained especially effective through the circuit’s fast sections.

Vettel topped FP3 with a 1:42.661, with Räikkönen only 0.063 seconds behind. Hamilton was third as dry running again favoured Ferrari.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2018 Belgian Grand Prix FP1, 24 August 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:44.358	19
2	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+0.151s	20
3	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.318s	22
4	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.360s	17
5	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	+0.366s	25
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.200s	4
7	31	Esteban Ocon	Racing Point Force India	+1.428s	22
8	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	+1.593s	19
9	11	Sergio Perez	Racing Point Force India	+1.811s	21
10	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	+1.852s	19
11	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	+1.942s	25
12	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+2.029s	20
13	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	+2.196s	20
14	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.199s	19
15	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	+2.574s	23
16	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	+2.607s	25
17	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	+2.654s	21
18	47	Lando Norris	McLaren	+3.006s	26
19	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	+3.009s	23
20	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	+3.094s	13

Free Practice 2 Classification

2018 Belgian Grand Prix FP2, 24 August 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:43.355	29
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.168s	28
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	+0.448s	29
4	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+0.691s	25
5	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.774s	31
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.895s	31
7	11	Sergio Perez	Racing Point Force India	+1.307s	27
8	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	+2.126s	29
9	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.182s	24
10	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	+2.267s	25
11	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	+2.398s	28
12	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+2.462s	29
13	31	Esteban Ocon	Racing Point Force India	+2.580s	24
14	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	+2.723s	29
15	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	+2.725s	33
16	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+2.798s	28
17	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	+2.982s	35
18	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	+3.096s	35
19	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	+3.115s	34
20	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	+3.141s	25

Free Practice 3 Classification

2018 Belgian Grand Prix FP3, 25 August 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:42.661	13
2	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.063s	15
3	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.137s	10
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	+0.803s	13
5	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+1.387s	10
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.818s	13
7	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	+2.302s	12
8	11	Sergio Perez	Racing Point Force India	+2.680s	10
9	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	+2.803s	17
10	31	Esteban Ocon	Racing Point Force India	+2.824s	13
11	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.875s	11
12	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+3.153s	12
13	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	+3.264s	13
14	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	+3.426s	12
15	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	+3.521s	16
16	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	+3.598s	17
17	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	+3.841s	10
18	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	+3.969s	11
19	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+4.281s	16
20	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	+4.400s	14

Qualifying

Rain in Q3 changed the contest, and Lewis Hamilton took pole with a 1:58.179. Sebastian Vettel joined him on the front row, while Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez secured an outstanding third and fourth for Racing Point Force India.

Several drivers were caught out by the changing conditions and timing of their runs. Valtteri Bottas, Nico Hülkenberg, Carlos Sainz and Stoffel Vandoorne carried power-unit penalties, reshaping the lower part of the grid.

Qualifying Classification

2018 Belgian Grand Prix Qualifying, 25 August 2018

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:42.977	1:41.553	1:58.179	19
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:43.035	1:41.501	1:58.905	18
3	31	Esteban Ocon	Racing Point Force India	1:44.003	1:43.302	2:01.851	16
4	11	Sergio Perez	Racing Point Force India	1:44.004	1:43.014	2:01.894	14
5	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	1:43.597	1:43.042	2:02.122	20
6	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:42.585	1:41.533	2:02.671	13
7	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:43.199	1:42.554	2:02.769	11
8	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	1:43.604	1:43.126	2:02.939	16
9	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	1:43.834	1:43.320	2:04.933	19
10	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	1:42.805	1:42.191	No time	7
11	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	1:44.221	1:43.844	—	14
12	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	1:44.153	1:43.865	—	13
13	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	1:43.654	1:44.062	—	14
14	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:43.846	1:44.301	—	11
15	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	1:44.145	No time	—	3
16	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	1:44.489	—	—	6
17	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1:44.917	—	—	6
18	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	1:44.998	—	—	6
19	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	1:45.134	—	—	6
20	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	1:45.307	—	—	8

Valtteri Bottas, Nico Hülkenberg, Carlos Sainz and Stoffel Vandoorne all were sent to the back of the grid for exceeding their quota of power unit elements.

What happened in the 2018 Belgian Grand Prix?

Hamilton initially led, but Vettel used the slipstream on the Kemmel Straight to move ahead before Les Combes. Ocon and Perez also challenged, briefly creating a four-car contest across the approach to the braking zone.

Behind them, Nico Hülkenberg misjudged his braking for La Source and hit Fernando Alonso. The McLaren was launched over Charles Leclerc‘s Sauber, with the halo taking an impact. All three drivers retired, and the safety car was deployed.

Vettel controlled the restart and began to establish a gap. Hamilton remained second but could not apply sustained pressure, while Max Verstappen passed the Racing Point Force India cars to reach third in front of a large contingent of Dutch supporters.

Valtteri Bottas recovered through the field to fourth despite first-lap contact and a time penalty. Kimi Räikkönen and Daniel Ricciardo both retired after damage from the opening-lap incidents compromised their races.

Perez and Ocon finished fifth and sixth, scoring 18 points for the new entrant on its first weekend. Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen followed, with Pierre Gasly ninth and Marcus Ericsson tenth.

Vettel’s 52nd career victory reduced Hamilton’s lead to 17 points. Ferrari had delivered the response it needed, while Racing Point Force India immediately established a place in the constructors’ standings under its new entry.

2018 Belgian Grand Prix race results

The 2018 Belgian Grand Prix was held on 26 August 2018, with a scheduled start of 15:10 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	44	1:23:34.476	25
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	44	+11.061s	18
3	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	44	+31.372s	15
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	44	+68.605s	12
5	11	Sergio Perez	Racing Point Force India	44	+71.023s	10
6	31	Esteban Ocon	Racing Point Force India	44	+79.520s	8
7	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	44	+85.953s	6
8	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	44	+87.639s	4
9	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	44	+105.892s	2
10	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	43	+1 lap	1
11	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	43	+1 lap	0
12	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	43	+1 lap	0
13	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	43	+1 lap	0
14	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	43	+1 lap	0
15	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	43	+1 lap	0
Ret	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	28	Collision damage	0
Ret	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	8	Collision damage	0
Ret	16	Charles Leclerc	Sauber	0	Collision	0
Ret	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	0	Collision	0
Ret	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Renault	0	Collision	0

Valtteri Bottas received a 5-second time penalty for causing a collision with Sergey Sirotkin.

2018 Belgian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time of Day	Time	Avg. Speed
1	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	32	16:16:42	1:46.286	237.231
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	25	16:03:10	1:46.644	236.435
3	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	23	15:59:39	1:46.721	236.264
4	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	36	16:23:18	1:46.946	235.767
5	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas	36	16:24:11	1:47.937	233.602
6	31	Esteban Ocon	Racing Point Force India	35	16:22:10	1:48.078	233.298
7	11	Sergio Perez	Racing Point Force India	38	16:27:26	1:48.080	233.293
8	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	35	16:22:16	1:48.283	232.856
9	10	Pierre Gasly	Toro Rosso	36	16:24:20	1:48.588	232.202
10	55	Carlos Sainz	Renault	32	16:17:19	1:48.670	232.027
11	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	35	16:22:39	1:48.694	231.976
12	28	Brendon Hartley	Toro Rosso	33	16:19:32	1:48.756	231.843
13	2	Stoffel Vandoorne	McLaren	38	16:28:45	1:48.956	231.418
14	35	Sergey Sirotkin	Williams	42	16:35:38	1:49.113	231.085
15	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	27	16:11:14	1:49.242	230.812
16	18	Lance Stroll	Williams	39	16:30:11	1:49.287	230.717
17	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	6	15:28:52	1:54.320	220.559

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear in this table. Time of Day is local time; average speeds are in km/h. No championship point was awarded for fastest lap in 2018.

2018 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings for drivers and teams after the 2018 Belgian Grand Prix.

2018 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Lewis Hamilton	GBR	Mercedes	231
2	Sebastian Vettel	GER	Ferrari	214
3	Kimi Räikkönen	FIN	Ferrari	146
4	Valtteri Bottas	FIN	Mercedes	144
5	Max Verstappen	NED	Red Bull Racing	120
6	Daniel Ricciardo	AUS	Red Bull Racing	118
7	Nico Hulkenberg	GER	Renault	52
8	Kevin Magnussen	DEN	Haas	49
9	Fernando Alonso	ESP	McLaren	44
10	Sergio Perez	MEX	Force India / Racing Point Force India	40
11	Esteban Ocon	FRA	Force India / Racing Point Force India	37
12	Carlos Sainz	ESP	Renault	30
13	Pierre Gasly	FRA	Toro Rosso	28
14	Romain Grosjean	FRA	Haas	27
15	Charles Leclerc	MON	Sauber	13
16	Stoffel Vandoorne	BEL	McLaren	8
17	Marcus Ericsson	SWE	Sauber	6
18	Lance Stroll	CAN	Williams	4
19	Brendon Hartley	NZL	Toro Rosso	2
20	Sergey Sirotkin	RUS	Williams	0

2018 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Mercedes	375
2	Ferrari	360
3	Red Bull Racing	238
4	Renault	82
5	Haas	76
6	McLaren	52
7	Toro Rosso	30
8	Sauber	19
9	Racing Point Force India	18
10	Williams	4
EX	Force India	0

The original Force India entry was excluded from the championship before the Belgian Grand Prix and its 59 constructors’ points were forfeited. Racing Point Force India entered as a new constructor from Belgium; the drivers retained their points.

2018 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2018 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	25 March
2	2018 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	8 April
3	2018 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	15 April
4	2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix	Baku City Circuit, Baku	29 April
5	2018 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	13 May
6	2018 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	27 May
7	2018 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	10 June
8	2018 French Grand Prix	Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet	24 June
9	2018 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	1 July
10	2018 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	8 July
11	2018 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	22 July
12	2018 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	29 July
13	2018 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	26 August
14	2018 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Monza	2 September
15	2018 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	16 September
16	2018 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	30 September
17	2018 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	7 October
18	2018 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	21 October
19	2018 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	28 October
20	2018 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	11 November
21	2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	25 November