Kimi Antonelli leads practice at Belgian Grand Prix amid driver penalties

Italian driver Kimi Antonelli showed strong form in practice for the Belgian Grand Prix, topping the timesheets after a challenging sixteenth-place finish in the previous race in Great Britain. Antonelli, the current Formula 1 World Championship leader, set the fastest lap with a time of 1:45.944 on the Spa circuit, the longest of the season at 7.004 km. He was the only driver to lap under the 1 minute 46-second mark.

Antonelli's performance put him ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris by nearly two-tenths of a second and Red Bull's Max Verstappen by four-tenths. Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton secured fourth place, with the team aiming to challenge Mercedes' dominance this season after recent victories. However, Ferrari's performance in Spa's practice sessions was mixed, with Hamilton placing fourth and Charles Leclerc only eleventh in the second, more representative, session.

The second practice session was interrupted by two red flags. The first occurred when gravel was scattered onto the track after a car took a corner too wide, and the second followed an off-track excursion by Pierre Gasly, whose Alpine sustained rear wing damage. Notable disparities were also observed between teammates, with Antonelli significantly outperforming George Russell (8th) by over 1.2 seconds, and Norris showing a considerable advantage over Oscar Piastri (6th).

Other notable performances included Isack Hadjar of Red Bull in fifth place and Argentinian driver Franco Colapinto in seventh. However, Hadjar will start last due to a penalty for an engine change. Lando Norris also faces a ten-place grid penalty for installing a fourth battery unit, exceeding the season's limit of three.