Italian motorsports fans at Spa were in for a treat. The Belgian Grand Prix saw Kimi Antonelli return to victory after a three-race drought. The Mercedes talent set a new, long list of personal bests: the first Italian to win the challenging and celebrated Ardennes circuit in 73 years (the same period as Alberto Ascari; Michele Alboreto won in 1984, but at Zolder), he also tied Riccardo Patrese for second place among the most successful Italian drivers in Formula 1. Ferrari, too, had a chance to smile: Charles Leclerc finished second, battling to the finish line for the lead, which he missed by less than two seconds. Not bad, considering that before the race, the Reds looked set to trail the Silver Arrows by 6-8 tenths per lap. Max Verstappen rounded out the podium, ahead of an unlucky Lewis Hamilton. George Russell immediately retired, further excellent news for the young Bolognese driver in his championship hopes.
Spa, a proper track not surprisingly known as the "university of Formula 1," showed its difficulties from the very first meters. Verstappen stunned everyone by taking the lead with a sensational pass on Antonelli at Eau Rouge, but had to give him back the position after the Kemmel straight, where a very inspired Leclerc also slipped in. Russell's other Mercedes was in tears, with Hamilton alongside him at Les Combes, who rammed him. The stern stewards handed the number 44 a 5-second penalty that even his compatriot and former teammate deemed disproportionate. The action continued to be numerous, including another hair-raising maneuver, also at Eau Rouge, by Piastri on Hamilton. Piastri himself was then rudely closed down by Leclerc on lap eight before entering Les Combes: he flew for a while, but this time the race officials were lenient with the Monegasque.
This isn't the only moment Sunday when good fortune, for once, kisses Leclerc on the forehead, even though he still has a long credit against bad luck. The most important moment comes on lap 21, when excessive debris on the track triggers a Virtual Safety Car, facilitating his only scheduled tire change for the Belgian Grand Prix. His Ferrari can then rejoin the track ahead of everyone, including Antonelli's Mercedes, who quickly sets out to chase him. Having regained the lead with ten laps to go—excessively long laps considering the Spa configuration—it's logical that his Mercedes should pull away. Instead, somewhat surprisingly, the SF-26 stays in the slipstream even on the long, feared straights: the counter-overtake doesn't come due to a matter of detail. Hamilton, who is holding his breath after the penalty, partly because he violently bumped one of the tire change mechanics, also manages to pull away with another spectacular outside pass on Piastri. But above all, in the standings, he remains 45 points behind Kimi, having now overtaken Russell, who has fallen to 50 points behind. Leclerc, after months of chasing, is now fourth, 78 points behind. And now hopes of seeing a Ferrari finally back on track are growing enormously, especially considering that Sunday's race is finally on a circuit that is friendly even on paper, like the Hungaroring.
