Aussie glory: Men's relay team clinches gold
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Sydney Morning Herald
26 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Belgian Grand Prix LIVE: Championship leader Oscar Piastri wins Belgian Grand Prix, Norris settles for second
Go to latest Piastri wins Belgian Grand Prix and cements championship lead By Hannah Kennelly Australian Oscar Piastri has won the Belgian Grand Prix and furthered his championship lead, while his teammate Lando Norris had to settle for second during a rain-interrupted race at Spa. Spa-Francorchamps is the longest track on the F1 calendar and Sunday's drenched conditions made the sweeping turns and sharp chicanes even trickier. Poor weather and visibility triggered a red flag and a delayed start with grandstands of poncho-clad spectators waiting for nearly 80 minutes. Piastri started second on the grid but quickly capitalised on Norris' uncertainty and battery trouble, using the slipstream to swoop on the outside of turn 5 of the opening lap. It was a move the Briton never quite recovered from. Norris began the nail-biting hunt and fiercely pursued his teammate, but the calm and collected Australian was untouchable. Two different tyre strategies for the McLaren-duo meant Piastri had to nurse his medium-compound tyres for more than 30 laps, while Norris tried to catch him on hard tyres. Piastri voiced his concerns around tyre degradation, telling his engineer: 'I think it will be tough to get to the end.' Despite narrowing the gap to 3.414 seconds on the final lap, Norris made several blunders during the race and was never able to catch his teammate. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc completed the podium with Red Bull's Verstappen finishing in fourth – his first race without recently dismissed team principal Christian Horner. Fellow Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton had an impressive race, finishing in seventh after starting in 18th place. The seven-time world champion carved his way through the field and managed to overtake three cars in one lap. Piastri was all smiles in the post-race interview and said he was very proud of his opening lap. 'I knew lap one was going to be my best chance of winning the race,' he said during the post-race interview. 'I got a good exit out of turn one, lifted as little as I dared out of Eau Rouge. The rest of the race we managed really well.' A gracious Norris said it was a well-deserved result for Piastri and McLaren. 'Oscar just did a good job, nothing more to say,' he said. 'Committed a bit more through Eau Rouge, and had the slipstream and got the run, so nothing to complain of. He did a better job in the beginning, and that was it. Nothing more I could do after that point. I would love to be up top, but Oscar deserved it today.' Piastri's victory in Belgium brings his grand prix tally to eight – the same number as former Red Bull and McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo. Piastri now leads Norris by 16 points with 11 races to go in a rivalry that will likely last until December. Sky Sports commentator Martin Brundle summarised the rest of the season succinctly, saying 'This race confirms, it's Piastri versus Norris for the world championship.' The next race will be the Hungarian Grand Prix on August 3. 2.43am Piastri wins Belgian Grand Prix and cements championship lead By Hannah Kennelly Australian Oscar Piastri has won the Belgian Grand Prix and furthered his championship lead, while his teammate Lando Norris had to settle for second during a rain-interrupted race at Spa. Spa-Francorchamps is the longest track on the F1 calendar and Sunday's drenched conditions made the sweeping turns and sharp chicanes even trickier. Poor weather and visibility triggered a red flag and a delayed start with grandstands of poncho-clad spectators waiting for nearly 80 minutes. Piastri started second on the grid but quickly capitalised on Norris' uncertainty and battery trouble, using the slipstream to swoop on the outside of turn 5 of the opening lap. It was a move the Briton never quite recovered from. Norris began the nail-biting hunt and fiercely pursued his teammate, but the calm and collected Australian was untouchable. Two different tyre strategies for the McLaren-duo meant Piastri had to nurse his medium-compound tyres for more than 30 laps, while Norris tried to catch him on hard tyres. Piastri voiced his concerns around tyre degradation, telling his engineer: 'I think it will be tough to get to the end.' Despite narrowing the gap to 3.414 seconds on the final lap, Norris made several blunders during the race and was never able to catch his teammate. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc completed the podium with Red Bull's Verstappen finishing in fourth – his first race without recently dismissed team principal Christian Horner. Fellow Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton had an impressive race, finishing in seventh after starting in 18th place. The seven-time world champion carved his way through the field and managed to overtake three cars in one lap. Piastri was all smiles in the post-race interview and said he was very proud of his opening lap. 'I knew lap one was going to be my best chance of winning the race,' he said during the post-race interview. 'I got a good exit out of turn one, lifted as little as I dared out of Eau Rouge. The rest of the race we managed really well.' A gracious Norris said it was a well-deserved result for Piastri and McLaren. 'Oscar just did a good job, nothing more to say,' he said. 'Committed a bit more through Eau Rouge, and had the slipstream and got the run, so nothing to complain of. He did a better job in the beginning, and that was it. Nothing more I could do after that point. I would love to be up top, but Oscar deserved it today.' Piastri's victory in Belgium brings his grand prix tally to eight – the same number as former Red Bull and McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo. Piastri now leads Norris by 16 points with 11 races to go in a rivalry that will likely last until December. Sky Sports commentator Martin Brundle summarised the rest of the season succinctly, saying 'This race confirms, it's Piastri versus Norris for the world championship.' The next race will be the Hungarian Grand Prix on August 3.
7NEWS
2 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Aussie teens help mastermind ‘mind-boggling' upset to win 4x100m freestyle gold as Kyle Chalmers leads men to victory
Australian swimming legend Ian Thorpe has praised the country's rebuilding 4x100m women's freestyle relay team after they pulled off a shock victory over the US at the world championships in Singapore. Mollie O'Callaghan, Meg Harris, Milla Jansen and Olivia Wunsch entered Sunday night's final in Singapore with a nothing-to-lose approach against hot favourites the US. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Aussie teens mastermind 'mind-boggling' upset to win gold. Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today The tactic worked a treat, with Wunsch reeling in star American Torri Huske in the final 50m to produce a huge upset victory and a first gold medal for Australia at the 2025 world championships. Thorpe praised Australia's efforts, especially considering they did it without retired star Emma McKeon. Wunsch (19 years old) and Jansen (18) are still teenagers, leaving Harris (23) and O'Callaghan is (21) as the relay team's leaders in Singapore. 'It is really difficult to be able to find someone to match our most successful Olympian we've ever seen (in) Emma McKeon. She's not there,' Thorpe said. 'Cate Campbell's not there. Bronte Campbell's not there. 'But what we do have in Australia is the consistency in this race, that it's tough to make this team. 'And what I'm most impressed with is ... how they could lift for the entire team in this race. Amazing stuff.' Thorpe heaped special praise on Olympic gold medallist Harris, who produced 50m splits of 24.34s and 27.53s across her 100m leg to be the fastest Australian. 'Her split was mind-boggling,' Thorpe said on Nine. O'Callaghan said the win came as a shock given how young the team is. 'I knew it was going be a very tough year, like we've had so many rookies come through, and it's great to see them,' she said. 'They're trying to gain experience, and it's amazing to see them step up and perform. 'We didn't really have expectations on this meet, especially for this 4x100m. 'It was just about gaining experience, setting up for the next four years. But I'm incredibly proud of these three amazing women, and the two others who swam in the heats.' The Australian men were just as impressive, with the quartet of Kyle Chalmers, Flynn Southam, Kai Taylor and Maximillian Giuliani posting a world championship-record time of 3:08.97 to defeat Italy (3:09.58) and the fading US (3:09.64). Chalmers started from behind in the final leg before producing a powerful swim to lift Australia to victory. 'We've all been able to swim really well individually or split great times at different points, but it's been a matter of doing it all together at the same time, which I think we were able to do tonight,' Chalmers said. 'And like I said to the boys, it's all about now just getting it right in LA in three years time, and standing on the top of the podium there. 'It'd be really nice to be able to do that.' Monday's early action will feature 16-year-old Sienna Toohey and Ella Ramsay in the women's 100m breaststroke heats, Kaylee McKeown in the 100m backstroke heats, Josh Edwards-Smith in the men's 100m backstroke, and Lani Pallister in the women's 1500m freestyle.
7NEWS
2 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Oscar Piastri flips script on first racing lap to win famous Belgian Grand Prix after rain delay
Oscar Piastri has been hailed by title rival Lando Norris after taking a major step towards a first world championship title by defying wet conditions to win a rain-delayed Belgian Grand Prix. Heading home McLaren teammate Norris, who had started on pole, means Australian driver Piastri's lead has jumped from nine to 16 points. It also halted his English rival's gathering momentum — Norris had won the previous two races to slash Piastri's overall lead to single figures. Norris, who was passed by Piastri on the first racing lap at Spa-Francorchamps on Sunday, said: 'Shoulda, woulda, coulda. Oscar deserved it.' 'Oscar just did a good job. Nothing more to say. Committed a bit more through Eau Rouge, and had the slipstream and got the run. 'So nothing to complain of. He did a better job in the beginning, and that was it. Nothing more I could do after that point. I would love to be up top, but Oscar deserved it today.' The decisive moment of the afternoon came moments after the race finally got underway. Piastri charged through the spray to slipstream Norris through the daunting Eau Rouge and scythed past on the uphill straight, with his overtaken teammate complaining of a possible battery issue. Piastri then proceeded largely untroubled as he powered on to finish 3.415 seconds clear of his arch-rival, flipping the script from Saturday's sprint race when he started on pole but lost out to Max Verstappen. Norris reduced Piastri's lead toward the end of Sunday's grand prix but the Australian held on with worn tires with his teammate unable to get close enough to challenge. 'I knew Lap 1 (after the safety car) would probably be my best chance of winning the race. I got a good exit out of Turn 1, lifted as little as I dared and yeah, we had it mostly under control,' Piastri said after his eighth Formula One career win and sixth of this season. Piastri had been disappointed to qualify second for the race behind Norris, but it 'turns out starting second at Spa is not so bad after all'. The world title initiative has suddenly swung back to Piastri, who heads to Hungary for next Sunday's grand prix having won his first race in Budapest last season. Norris added: 'I'll review my things but still happy for the team, another 1-2 and our first 1-2 here for many, many years.' The race had been red-flagged after an initial formation lap due to standing water and heavy spray affecting visibility. That resulted in a delay of an hour and 20 minutes as officials waited for conditions at the notoriously weather-prone circuit to improve. Charles Leclerc was a distant third for Ferrari as dominant champions McLaren celebrated their sixth one-two finish in 13 races and the third in a row. Titleholder Max Verstappen, in his first full race under a new Red Bull chief following the departure of Christian Horner, finished fourth. George Russell, of Mercedes, who crossed the line first in Spa last year but was disqualified due to his car being underweight, was fifth this time and Williams' Alex Albon came home sixth. With agencies
