Belgian Grand Prix: Antonelli braced for Verstappen start
Kimi Antonelli starts the Belgian Grand Prix from pole alongside Max Verstappen but warns the Spa race start will be "not going to be straightforward." None of the last four polesitters have won at Spa-Francorchamps, and the long run to Les Combes often flips the lead on lap one.
Key Takeaways
- Antonelli claimed his sixth pole of 2026 at Spa, beating Verstappen by three tenths.
- He starts the Belgian Grand Prix next to Verstappen and says getting ahead into Turn Five is vital.
- None of the last four Spa polesitters have converted pole into victory.
- Verstappen says Red Bull is too slow to fight Mercedes for the win even if he leads early.
- The race airs Sunday at 2pm UK on Sky Sports F1, with build-up from 12.30pm.
Why is the Belgian Grand Prix start so tricky from pole?
Mercedes' championship leader produced one of his strongest qualifying sessions of the year to lock out pole at Spa-Francorchamps. He beat Red Bull's Max Verstappen by about three tenths of a second, with team-mate George Russell third after Lando Norris' engine penalty.
Antonelli knows the front-row duel is the first problem. "With Max next to me it's not going to be straightforward," he said. "It's going to be important to get a good start and then be ahead into Turn Five."
Spa's short run to La Source is only half the story. The long uphill blast through Eau Rouge and Raidillon to Les Combes lets a chasing car use slipstream on the Kemmel Straight. The race lead has changed hands early there in each of the last three years, according to Sky Sports.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff summed up the risk: on pole is great for Saturday, but rivals will be "breathing up" Antonelli's neck through Eau Rouge.
Can Verstappen still beat Antonelli on Sunday?
Verstappen starts on the front row for only the third time in 2026 and admitted a tow from team-mate Isack Hadjar helped him to second. Even so, he does not expect to challenge Antonelli for victory on race pace.
Asked what would happen if he took the lead on lap one, Verstappen said Antonelli "would just pass me on the straights," arguing Red Bull was realistically around six tenths down in qualifying without the tow. His race, he said, will be about "looking in the mirrors" at Russell and the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton.
Hamilton qualified sixth after an FP3 crash and said his repaired Ferrari "didn't feel the same" on the rear, though he still hopes the car is strong enough for a podium fight. Antonelli, 25 points clear in the title race after three winless rounds, remains the pace favourite if he survives the opening lap.
Where can you watch the Belgian Grand Prix live?
Sunday's 44-lap contest starts at 2pm UK time, with Grand Prix Sunday build-up from 12.30pm, live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event. For more race-day streaming alerts and TV schedules, see our Streaming & TV Alerts coverage on BlasterPost.
Antonelli was also fastest in the final two practice sessions and said Friday race pace "seemed to be in a good place," even with high tyre degradation on the left side. Get a clean start into Les Combes, and the Belgian Grand Prix may still be his to lose.