Five things to look out for at the F1 Belgian GP

Formula 1 is back after a week off with a fan favourite in Spa-Francorchamps for the Belgian Grand Prix.

This will be the 10th round of the 2026 campaign and the first as part of a double header before the Hungarian Grand Prix leads F1 into its annual summer break.

So, here are five things to look out for at the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix.

Will driver fears over energy management at Spa come true?

Those who exist purely to post “Formula Battery Management” under the YouTube highlights reels of F1 races might be granted an opportunity to copy-paste their comments underneath this year’s Spa-Francorchamps video. Many of the drivers have suggested that the Belgian Grand Prix might shape up in a similar way to Silverstone, in which energy management will once again play a factor through the lap.

Here’s the reason why. On the exit of La Source, we have the long acceleration zone through Eau Rouge, Raidillon, and the Kemmel Straight, with no let up until the cars reach Les Combes. There’s a small opportunity to recharge here, but it’s likely that we’ll see deployment through Pouhon, then a bit of respite, then more through Blanchimont. Given the medium-to-high speed nature of many of the corners, it’ll be hard to fully recharge through the lap, as was the case at Silverstone. They’ll have to wait for the chicane and for La Source to do any meaningful energy recuperation.

So, you’ll see drivers picking and choosing where they deploy and where they hold off. Expect most to save their energy for the Kemmel Straight and Blanchimont, which might make the rest of the lap seem a bit tame.

That’s the worst-case scenario, at least. If anything’s clear, it’s that the drivers like to paint the worst picture and be surprised that the energy levels weren’t all that bad.

Silverstone was largely fine and sure, a few cars did run aground with low battery, but it wasn’t as heinous as it was made out to be. It won’t be easy for the drivers, granted, but I don’t think it’s going to be anywhere near as excessive as Fernando Alonso’s claim that F2 cars will be faster. But maybe they’ll be faster than the Aston Martin…

– Jake Boxall-Legge

Kimi Antonelli must bounce back where it all went wrong last year

A little over a month ago, Kimi Antonelli was on a high, claiming a fifth grand prix victory in a row at the Monaco Grand Prix and leading the world championship by 66 points. But over the last three rounds, Antonelli has scored fewer points than all seven other drivers in the top four teams.

Of course, this was largely down to misfortune, with mechanical faults at Barcelona and Silverstone, but the Italian’s advantage over Mercedes team-mate George Russell has nonetheless dwindled to 25 points.

Antonelli therefore needs to bounce back this weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, a track where he collected so much success in junior formulae and yet experienced such a tough weekend in his rookie season.

One year ago in Belgium, the youngster failed to emerge from Q1 in both qualifying sessions, finishing the sprint 17th and the main race 16th. 2026-spec Antonelli, however, is a more confident, more complete product, so there is no reason why he couldn’t leave this unwanted memory behind.

– Ben Vinel

Another test for Red Bull at Max Verstappen’s favourite F1 circuit

Normally, the Belgian Grand Prix would be one of the races Max Verstappen looks forward to the most. The Nordschleife holds a special place for him, but of the current F1 calendar, Spa-Francorchamps sits right at the top of his ranking – just as it does for many other drivers.

This year, however, two things are different. Firstly, the Ardennes circuit is once again expected to prove a painful experience for the drivers in terms of energy management. Like Silverstone, Spa is what McLaren team principal Andrea Stella typically describes as an “energy-starved circuit”.

As a result, Spa is set to feel different from previous years, while it also promises to be another stern test for Red Bull.

Team boss Laurent Mekies admitted at Silverstone that his team struggles whenever energy management becomes even more important than usual, and that will once again be the case in Belgium. Red Bull appears to be lacking on the electrical side of its power unit, but without an ADUO token there is nothing the team can do to address it.

Finally, there is the ongoing scrutiny surrounding Red Bull’s rotating rear wing. Both the team and the FIA are looking into the concept to ensure it fully complies with all safety requirements, something that will matter more than ever at a high-speed track such as Spa.

Spa has all the ingredients to become another frustrating weekend for Red Bull, which is exactly what the Milton Keynes-based team will want to avoid with Verstappen’s future still far from certain.

– Ronald Vording

Can Ferrari prove its progress is real and challenge Mercedes?

Ferrari may look at its recent results and point to the fact it has won two of the last three grands prix, but there is always more to consider than simply looking at the classification sheet.

Lewis Hamilton was a deserved winner in Barcelona, but just one race later he finished 26 seconds behind Russell in Austria, with Charles Leclerc a further 45s back. At Silverstone, the Scuderia bounced back, with Leclerc taking a well-earned victory. However, questions remain over what might have happened had Antonelli’s wheel shield not failed.

The encouraging sign for Ferrari is that Spa is arguably more similar to Silverstone than the Red Bull Ring, although it presents a very different challenge of its own. The key question will be whether Ferrari can once again find ways to offset its power deficit, with the Italian squad planning specific changes to the rear of its SF-26 for the Belgian Grand Prix.

On the other hand, while Toto Wolff has said he would rather have a fast but unreliable car than the opposite, Mercedes cannot afford to continue suffering from mechanical issues. It remains to be seen whether solving those problems comes at any cost to the performance of Antonelli and Russell.

After Silverstone, Wolff and Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur effectively passed the pressure back and forth when discussing Ferrari’s chances of regularly taking the fight to Mercedes in 2026. Spa should provide a much clearer indication of where the Scuderia truly stands.

– Federico Faturos

Racing Bulls seek confirmation as Alpine looks to bounce back

Things can change quickly in F1. It was not long ago that Alpine appeared to have the upper hand in the midfield, with Franco Colapinto leading the fight behind the top teams in Miami and Canada, finishing 14 seconds ahead of Liam Lawson in the latter.

That was followed by Pierre Gasly’s brilliant – and opportunistic – podium in Monaco, one that remains under scrutiny, leaving Alpine with a 15-point cushion over Racing Bulls in fifth place in the constructors’ championship.

Three grands prix later, that advantage has been reduced to just a single point after a string of strong performances from the Faenza-based squad, whose upgrade package introduced in Montreal has delivered exactly the step forward it had hoped for.

By contrast, Alpine’s latest developments have failed to deliver. Silverstone was particularly concerning, with Colapinto describing the A526 as “just too slow” after the team even slipped behind Audi on outright pace, while Lawson noted that everything brought to the car “has been positive and working well”.

With several of the leading teams still battling reliability concerns, being the best of the rest has become increasingly valuable. The question now is whether Racing Bulls can maintain that momentum at Spa, or if Alpine has an answer ready.

– Federico Faturos

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– The Motorsport.com Team