Antonelli on pole at Spa-Francorchamps

Kimi Antonelli was the fastest driver of the day, securing pole position at Spa-Francorchamps. The young Italian lapped more than three tenths quicker than Max Verstappen in second place, while Lando Norris finished third.

Antonelli completed 15 laps, stopping the clock at 1:44.361. Verstappen recorded a best time of 1:44.678 across 12 laps, while Norris set a 1:44.801 after 11 laps in qualifying. All drivers used the Soft C4 compound exclusively. The top three each used four sets of tyres.

The Italian driver had already impressed in the third free practice session, finishing fastest with a time of 1:45.990 ahead of Norris and Verstappen. Among the top three, the McLaren driver was the only one to use the Medium compound as well, a choice also made by Hadjar and both Alpine drivers.

Track conditions were slightly warmer in qualifying compared to FP3. Track temperature reached 38.5°C, compared to 36°C recorded in the morning session. Ambient temperature remained stable at around 21°C throughout the day.

The Pirelli Pole Position Award was presented by Barry Baltus. The Belgian Moto2 rider competes for the REDS Fantic Racing team, the reigning world champions in the category.

DARIO MARRAFUSCHI – PIRELLI MOTORSPORT DIRECTOR

“Everything suggests that tomorrow’s race will be a one-stop, with strategy mainly determined by the new tyre sets available to each team. The opening stint could be completed on either the Medium or the Soft, depending on which new sets teams have chosen to keep.

“The top teams may start on the C3 before switching to the Hard between laps 17 and 23. Those who have saved a new set of C4 could instead use it at the start, bringing their stop forward into the 14 to 20 lap window.

“The Soft was extensively tested during the first hour of free practice and, on some cars, appears to give drivers better feedback under braking. For this reason, it could be preferred, also thanks to the grip advantage it offers.

“Two-stop strategies are approximately eight to ten seconds slower. Possible options include Soft-Hard-Hard and Soft-Hard-Medium. As already noted yesterday, some teams have kept an additional set of C2 as a precaution, which could prove useful to have a fresh tyre available in the event of a neutralisation.

“Tyre behaviour is in line with our expectations. Lap times are also now close to simulations, with just a one tenth gap between the pole time and our projections. The track has evolved quickly and thermal degradation on the rear axle is now the only factor that will need to be taken into account during the race.”

FORMULA 2

Joshua Duerksen won the Sprint race at Spa-Francorchamps. Martinius Stenshorne finished second, just six tenths behind, while Dino Beganovic completed the podium in third place. Championship leader Nikola Tsolov crossed the line in fourth. With the exception of Noel Leon, who opted for the Supersoft compound, all drivers started on Medium tyres. The Feature race is scheduled for tomorrow, with Rafael Camara starting from pole position.

FORMULA 3

The Formula 3 Sprint race was won by Jin Nakamura. The Hitech driver managed to hold off Brando Badoer and Pedro Clerot at Spa-Francorchamps. Badoer had started from pole position but had to give way to the Japanese driver during the sprint race. He finished less than one second behind the winner. The Feature race is scheduled for Sunday.