F1 Belgian GP: Max Verstappen fends off Oscar Piastri…

Max Verstappen has conquered the sprint race at Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix to start Red Bull's new era with a win.

On the first lap of the 15-lap contest, Verstappen used his Red Bull's superior top speed to draft past polesitter Oscar Piastri at Les Combes, much like the championship leader had feared before the start.

In Verstappen's wake Charles Leclerc made a similar move to nick third from the second McLaren of Lando Norris, while Esteban Ocon led the midfield battle in fifth ahead of Williams' Carlos Sainz and Haas team-mate Oliver Bearman.

With Leclerc failing to keep up with the two leaders, Norris reclaimed third on the fourth lap on the Kemmel Straight and soon caught up to the lead battle between Verstappen and Piastri.

Starting on used mediums compared to new tyres for Piastri and Norris, Verstappen couldn't escape DRS range but used his straightline speed to hold off Piastri, who continued to draft up to the Red Bull's gearbox towards Les Combes without asking significant questions of the Dutchman's resolve.

On lap 11 Piastri came closest at Turn 5's main overtaking opportunity, with McLaren still the quickest car overall and Verstappen starting to report brake issues. But that was as close as he would get, with Verstappen taking the chequered flag to start Red Bull's new era without Christian Horner with a win.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing (Photo by: Steven Tee / LAT Images via Getty Images)

Norris too was angling for an opening to attack his championship rival Piastri, but was forced to sit back and watch Verstappen and his team-mate cross the finish line. The result means Piastri adds a single point to his championship lead on Norris, which now amounts to nine points.

Leclerc was a distant fourth as his Ferrari was easily dropped by the leaders, while Ocon and Sainz finished fifth and sixth uncontested. Bearman secured a double points finish for Haas in seventh, with Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar easily defeating Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto and his team-mate Liam Lawson or the final point in eighth.

Mercedes' George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli failed to significantly move up in the DRS train after a poor qualifying session, Russell crossing the line down in 12th and Antonelli in 17th. Lewis Hamilton moved up from 17th to 15th in his Ferrari after an equally difficult race.

Meanwhile, Pierre Gasly lost out on a points-scoring opportunity with Alpine as a water leak meant he couldn't take up his eighth grid spot. Gasly eventually joined the race two laps down for what turned out to be a test session.

Qualifying for Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix is at 16:00 local time.

F1 Belgian GP - Sprint race results

1 - 2
Cla	Driver	#	Laps	Time	Interval	km/h	Pits	Points	Retirement	Chassis	Engine
1	M. Verstappen Red Bull Racing	1	15	-				8		Red Bull	Red Bull
2	O. Piastri McLaren	81	15	+0.753 0.753	0.753			7		McLaren	Mercedes
3	L. Norris McLaren	4	15	+1.414 1.414	0.661			6		McLaren	Mercedes
4	C. Leclerc Ferrari	16	15	+10.176 10.176	8.762			5		Ferrari	Ferrari
5	E. Ocon Haas F1 Team	31	15	+13.789 13.789	3.613			4		Haas	Ferrari
6	C. Sainz Williams	55	15	+14.964 14.964	1.175			3		Williams	Mercedes
7	O. Bearman Haas F1 Team	87	15	+18.610 18.610	3.646			2		Haas	Ferrari
8	I. Hadjar Racing Bulls	6	15	+19.119 19.119	0.509			1		RB	Honda
9	G. Bortoleto Sauber	5	15	+22.183 22.183	3.064					Sauber	Ferrari
10	L. Lawson Racing Bulls	30	15	+22.897 22.897	0.714					RB	Honda
11	Y. Tsunoda Red Bull Racing	22	15	+24.551 24.551	1.654					Red Bull	Red Bull
12	G. Russell Mercedes	63	15	+25.969 25.969	1.418					Mercedes	Mercedes
13	L. Stroll Aston Martin Racing	18	15	+26.595 26.595	0.626					Aston Martin	Mercedes
14	F. Alonso Aston Martin Racing	14	15	+29.046 29.046	2.451					Aston Martin	Mercedes
15	L. Hamilton Ferrari	44	15	+30.175 30.175	1.129					Ferrari	Ferrari
16	A. Albon Williams	23	15	+30.941 30.941	0.766					Williams	Mercedes
17	A. Antonelli Mercedes	12	15	+31.981 31.981	1.040					Mercedes	Mercedes
18	N. Hulkenberg Sauber	27	15	+32.867 32.867	0.886					Sauber	Ferrari
19	F. Colapinto Alpine	43	15	+38.072 38.072	5.205					Alpine	Renault
nc	P. Gasly Alpine	10	12				1			Alpine	Renault
View full results