Oscar Piastri eases away from Norris to win rain-hit Belgian Grand Prix
After a delayed start of almost an hour and a half due to heavy rain in the Ardennes mountains, when racing finally began in earnest Piastri pounced to take the lead from Norris with an opportunistic and decisive move into Les Combes. Having hit the front he was absolutely relentless in grinding out a victory and even a counter-tyre strategy from Norris could not bring him quite back into contention.
The victory was another combative statement of intent from Piastri, demonstrating that even when he is on the back foot he retains a steely determination. He was outpaced in qualifying by Norris, but once he had retaken the lead from second on the grid he was in assured control from the front, with the same measured, calm confidence that is almost disarming as it becomes ominously clear to his rivals that the 24-year-old Australian has all the traits of a world champion in waiting.
Piastri was untouchable to take his sixth win from 13 races this season. No other driver has come close to matching his consistency and a season that began in Australia with a win for Norris has since been bossed by Piastri, who has laid down another marker that it will be remarkably hard to pass him this season. He leads Norris by 16 points with 11 meetings to go in a fight increasingly looking like it will go down to the wire.
With rain having swept across the circuit on and off all day, another deluge began just before the start and the race was delayed after one formation lap, because of the poor visibility caused by the spray. The cars returned to the pit lane for over an hour as the rain eased. At 4.20pm the race officially began with the field circulating behind the safety car for the opening four laps, before they were finally let off the leash in a rolling start.
Norris led them away and just held his lead from Piastri but the Australian was charging, right on his tail through Eau Rouge and, enjoying a slipstream on the Kemmel straight, he took the lead into Les Combes. It was the decisive moment as Leclerc and Verstappen followed them through in third and fourth.
Hamilton, who had taken a new power unit and was thus starting from the pit lane was able to set his car up for the wet conditions and moved swiftly up to 13th by lap 10, with a series of decisive passes, including three cars in one lap. He then took a chance on an early stop for slick tyres as the track dried on lap 12, the first driver to do so and he emerged in 17th but his instincts were spot on.
Piastri duly followed him into the pits a lap later as did Verstappen and Leclerc, all for the medium rubber, while Norris had to stay out for the extra lap and he opted to take the hard tyre in an effort to make it to the end without another stop. It was the slower compound but more durable.
Hamilton had made great gains with his early stop and the quick laps that immediately followed on slicks and as the stops played out he had moved up to seventh.
McLaren informed Norris that Piastri too was going to try and reach the flag on the medium tyres but would have to ease his pace to do so. Piastri maintained an eight-second lead as the race settled into what was very much a procession as the laps came down, the only real jeopardy over whether the medium rubber would make the finish.
Piastri duly eased his tyres on, however, and was comfortable as heapproached the end. Norris did close the gap down to five seconds and he pushed hard but a couple of minor errors at La Source and Pouhon cost him and the Australian remained in control to the flag for another consummate win.
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George Russell was fifth for Mercedes, Alex Albon sixth for Williams, Liam Lawson eighth for Racing Bulls, Gabriel Bortoleto ninth for Sauber and Pierre Gasly 10th for Alpine.
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