Racers follow behind the Safety Car in the wet conditions at the Belgian Grand Prix. Photo: @F1/Twitter.
The Belgian Grand Prix which took place at Spa-Francorchamps has ended with only a handful of laps being raced, with all of them happening behind the Safety Car.
Therefore, the grid stayed virtually the same as from qualifying, with Max Verstappen being named the winner of the Grand Prix, while George Russell came second and Lewis Hamilton third. Only half points were awarded with less than 75% of the race being completed but more than two laps raced.
With wet weather causing fog and soaking the track with water, the race was originally delayed with the hope that the conditions would improve. However, once the cars did a formation lap behind the Safety Car, it became clear that visibility was a major problem and therefore the FIA decided the conditions were still too severe, red-flagging the race, further delaying the start.
Following delays, the race was set to get back underway three hours after its original start time with the cars yet again behind the Safety Car, but visibility was too much of an issue and the race was once again red-flagged.
The FIA Formula One Race Director Michael Masi then called a stop to the race and announced that it would finish as is with half points being awarded.
The result puts Red Bull just seven points behind Mercedes in the Constructor’s Championship and Max Verstappen just three points behind Lewis Hamilton.
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For Aussie Daniel Ricciardo, the Belgium Grand Prix marked his 200th F1 start, however, the race would not be one to remember.
While Ricciardo got his best result for the season with a fourth-place finish, the result was bittersweet with him not being able to celebrate the milestone properly.
Post-race, Ricciardo immediately switched his attention to next week’s race, which is set to take place at the Circuit Zandvoort for the Dutch Grand Prix.
Delay almost saves Perez’s race
Red Bull was dealt a cruel blow before the race had even begun, with Sergio Perez crashing into the wall on the warm-up lap forcing him out of the race with damage to his suspensions.
The Mexican was making his way around the track to take his place on the starting grid when he lost control of the car on the wet surface, skidding into the barrier.
However, Red Bull and Perez were handed a lifeline due to the subsequent delay from the weather, and work was able to be done on the car to fix the suspension issue. The FIA made the decision to allow Perez to take part in the race as it was yet to officially start.
Due to having his car fixed, Perez had to start his race from the pit lane, but with the race called off, Perez ultimately finished in 20th place.
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