Carlos Sainz P3, Charles Leclerc P4 in wet Spa Sprint Shootout

It was another very wet morning at Spa-Francorchamps so were confident we would see another thrilling qualifying session if the cars were able to head off. Friday’s qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix saw plenty of action in changing conditions as the session started on intermediates and ended on slicks, with Max Verstappen fastest in the session, but with Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc who will start from P1 tomorrow as a result of the Dutchman’s penalty.

In a bit of a reverse of the perfect timing of the weather clearing up before yesterday’s Qualifying, the rain was relentlessly coming down for the with 25 minutes before the official start of the Sprint Shootout. And right on cue, we then had confirmation that the start of the Sprint Shootout would be delayed. No timeframe was initially given, which was a reflection of the deluge that was continuing. It would be a while until the track could be ready for a qualifying session, and that was assuming the rain would stop at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Stavelot.

ky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz reported from a sodden pit lane and explained what the teams would have to do should the session be able to start:

“That is absolutely no surprise to me. It is properly chucking it down. What teams will do if they do go out, on fuel they will probably fuel the car for the whole session – that is five laps plus an in lap and an out lap. That’s about 15kg of fuel, and when you consider in the dry cars are only carrying enough fuel for an out lap, hot lap and in lap, that’s about 7.5kg. Around here, carrying that weight costs you two tenths of a second per lap and after Max (yesterday), five drivers were split by about that margin. This amount of fuel has a big effect on lap time.”

The FIA then confirmed hat the most likely scenario was that if the Sprint Shootout could not take place, then Friday’s Qualifying result would set the grid for the Sprint at 3.30pm.

Max Verstappen was set to be on pole in that case, as his grid penalty only applies to Sunday’s Grand Prix. The FIA added: ‘This would all be pending decision from stewards so is subject to change.’ But soon after the info from the FIA, blue sky was beginning to appear at Spa and a number of drivers were climbing into their cars.

Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection! Click here to enter the F1 online Store and shop securely! And also get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!

The Sprint Shootout follows the same three-session knockout format as usual qualifying, but each Q1, Q2 and Q3 segment has been shortened to address engine and tyre concerns the teams had.

SQ1 has been shortened from 18 minutes to 12 minutes.

SQ2 has been shortened from 15 minutes to 10 minutes.

SQ3 has been shortened from 12 minutes to eight minutes.

Normally there would be tyre restrictions for each segment, however the wet weather at Spa means all the drivers had a free choice today.

Green light on at the end of the pit lane and SQ1 was finally under way. Lewis Hamilton led the drivers out with George Russell following his team-mate. Verstappen’s first flying lap was a 2:00:352 and puts him at the top of the timesheet. Russell moved to second quickest, seven tenths slower with Perez just behind. An incident between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton at Turn 8 has been noted by the stewards for possible impeding. Lots of drivers were heading out for another flying lap on a drying track, but Nico Hulkenberg didn’t make it round in time to beat the chequered flag. The Haas driver was out of the Sprint Shootout without setting a time. Fernando Alonso was sitting in P16 but his final lap saw him jump to P2 and he is safely through to SQ2. Lewis Hamilton then crossed the line with an even quicker time to snatch P2 (but still seven tenths behind Verstappen).

Daniel Ricciardo made it through to SQ2 in his first Sprint Shootout and outqualified Yuki Tsunoda. The green light was back on and cars were heading out for the second part of the shootout.

No surprises as Max Verstappen went six tenths quicker than Hamilton on his first flying lap. Sergio Perez, in the other Red Bull, moved into P3, a tenth slower than the Brit. Lance Stroll put the medium tyres on. “It’s too early,” Stroll said on team radio. Alex Albon and Fernando Alonso finally ventured out for their first efforts but they were on inters. Aston Martin tried the gamble of slick tyres but it did not pay off as Lance Stroll crashed into the barrier at the corner with no name. SQ2 was not be restarted with 30 seconds left in the session. And it was double disaster for Aston Martin with Stroll’s team-mate Fernando Alonso having not set a lap time so it is a double exit for the team. Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz both made it to SQ3.

The final segment was only eight minutes long so teams had to immediately decide what tyre they were going out on. Green light on and the battle for Sprint pole was under way. And slick tyres were the tyre of choice for all 10 drivers, with soft tyres bolted on everybody heading out. Charles Leclerc, tomorrow’s pole sitter, was the first driver to begin his flying lap. The Monegasque posted a 1:52.525 to be the time to beat. Norris was next to cross the line and went even quicker, but then Hamilton jumped ahead of him by four tenths. Max Verstappen couldn’t beat Hamilton’s time: the Dutchman was 0.088s slower than his rival. Sergio Perez was only eighth with his first timed effort

Sergio Perez jumped to the top with a 1:50.303 after navigating a load of traffic at the bus stop chicane. Everyone else was on their final laps, as Max Verstappen just made it over the line in time to start his final run. Chequered flag and Max Verstappen pipped Oscar Piastri by 0.011s to take Sprint Pole. What a tremendous effort by the McLaren driver, who led until Verstappen’s late charge. The Ferrari cars of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc will start third and fourth respectively with Lewis Hamilton seventh and George Russell 10th.