A Sprint before the Summer
This weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix plays host to the third Sprint Weekend of the Season meaning Qualifying takes place on Friday to set the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix whilst Saturday is all about the Sprint. It’s also worth mentioning that this is the last race before the Summer Break so teams and drivers will be aiming to take some momentum with them into the Summer.
Can Charles Leclerc keep up his positive record on Sprint Weekends?
It’s fair to say that the 2023 Season hasn’t gone the way either Ferrari or Charles Leclerc would’ve wanted. Ferrari are currently 4th in the Constructors’ Championship whilst Charles Leclerc is only 7th in the Drivers’ Standings. Leclerc has also only scored two Podiums this season, but it’s worth mentioning that they’ve both come on weekends when the Sprint has taken place. Charles got P3 in Azerbaijan and P2 in Austria whilst he also managed to get Pole in both Qualifying and the Sprint Shootout in Baku. Ferrari will be hoping that Leclerc can fight for another Podium this weekend.
Kevin Magnussen needs to step up
Haas currently find themselves in 8th place in the Constructors’ Standings and a lot of that has to do with the good work that Nico Hulkenberg has been doing. The same cannot be said for his teammate Kevin Magnussen who’s really been underperforming recently. K-Mag is currently 18th in the Drivers’ Championship with just 2 points to his name (P10 in Saudi and Miami) and since his positive weekend in Miami (he qualified 4th), Magnussen hasn’t recorded a finish of any higher than P17 and he’s only made it out of Q1 in proper Qualifying once. I’ll be very honest and say that in my opinion, K-Mag deserves to lose his seat if he keeps performing like this because it hasn’t been good at all!
Can Oscar Piastri get his first-ever Formula 1 Podium this Weekend?
After an ok start in Formula 1, Oscar Piastri has really shown in the last couple of races why McLaren fought so hard to get him last year. Oscar had a brilliant British Grand Prix Weekend where he qualified third and came home 4th and let’s be honest, Piastri deserved to be on the Podium alongside his teammate Lando Norris. In Hungary last weekend, Oscar again qualified right behind his teammate and whilst he eventually dropped off in the race and finished 5th, it was still another positive showing for the former F2 and F3 Champion. By the looks of it and going off previous history, McLaren should be pretty strong this weekend so there’s no reason why Oscar Piastri can’t get his maiden Formula 1 Podium.
Could Williams have their best Weekend of the Season in Spa?
Williams currently find themselves in a very positive 7th place in the Constructors’ Championship, but they are also only 2 points ahead of 9th. The Williams car very much goes well through high-speed corners and it’s also very slippy down the straights and both of those characteristics are very much found at Spa-Francorchamps. Also, over the past couple of years, Williams have gone well here with both drivers scoring points in 2021 (including a George Russell Podium) whilst Alex Albon came home in the points last year. With extra points up for grabs due to it being a Sprint Weekend, there’s no reason why Williams and Alex Albon can’t have another good weekend whilst Logan Sargeant could well score his maiden Formula 1 Points.
My Predictions for Spa Qualifying
Max Verstappen
Lando Norris
Oscar Piastri
Charles Leclerc
Sergio Perez
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