The orange flares were already drifting across the grandstands when Max Verstappen rolled out of the pits for the first time this weekend. Sixty minutes later, the four-time world champion had given his travelling army exactly what it came for: top spot in opening practice at the Belgian Grand Prix, a 1:47.070 around the 7.004-kilometre (4.352-mile) Spa-Francorchamps circuit. Behind him, however, the timesheets told a more layered story — one of Ferrari menace, Mercedes unease and midfield misfortune.

The Session in Numbers

Verstappen’s benchmark stood through the final runs, but the margin was slender. Lewis Hamilton slotted his Ferrari into second, just 0.145 seconds adrift, with team-mate Charles Leclerc two tenths from the top in third — a statement of intent from the Scuderia, fresh from victory at Silverstone a fortnight ago. Isack Hadjar made it two Red Bulls in the top four, half a tenth behind Leclerc, despite carrying a reported 20-place grid penalty into the weekend.

• Oscar Piastri (P5) — recovered to fifth for McLaren before a late hydraulic problem cut his session short.
• Kimi Antonelli (P6) — an eventful hour for the championship leader, including a near-miss with Carlos Sainz’s Williams.
• Lando Norris (P7) and George Russell (P8) — McLaren and Mercedes both nearly nine tenths off the pace, with setup work clearly prioritised over glory runs.
• Arvid Lindblad (P9) — an encouraging morning for the Racing Bulls rookie, ahead of Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto.
• Aston Martin (P21–P22) — a sobering session: Lance Stroll over 5.7 seconds down, with Formula 2 driver Jak Crawford standing in for Fernando Alonso and acclimatising at the back.

A Statement in the Middle of a Storm

Context makes Verstappen’s morning more than a routine P1. The Dutchman arrived in Belgium off the back of consecutive retirements — a technical failure at Silverstone extending a bruising run — and with the rumour mill at full throttle following reports that his camp has held exploratory talks with McLaren about his long-term future. Spa, a short hop from the Dutch border, has always felt like a second home race; topping the opening hour was the most eloquent answer available to him.

It was also an answer delivered against his own prediction. Before the weekend, Verstappen had braced himself for a rough ride with the 2026 cars’ energy demands on the longest lap of the year.

“I love Spa, but Spa is going to be another painful one just because of the energy.”

— Max Verstappen, ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix

Painful or not, the Red Bull looked the most complete package through the opening hour — with Hadjar’s presence in fourth suggesting genuine depth, not a one-lap flourish.

Ferrari Keep the Pressure On

If Red Bull drew first blood, Ferrari drew the longer glance. Hamilton’s second place continues his quiet resurgence in red, while Leclerc — winner at Silverstone, Ferrari’s second victory in three races — sits within touching distance of the championship fight. The Scuderia was comfortably Red Bull’s closest challenger across the session, both cars lapping within two tenths of the benchmark on a circuit that punishes any imbalance.

The wider standings sharpen the stakes. Antonelli still leads the championship for Mercedes, but his advantage has been whittled to 25 points over team-mate Russell, with Hamilton only seven points further back. On a weekend where Mercedes looked half a step behind on outright pace, Friday offered the first hint that the pre-summer momentum may be shifting again.

What the Timesheets Don’t Say

First practice at Spa in the 2026 era is less a pecking-order reveal than an energy audit. With the battery drained in seconds along the full-throttle climbs and a one-minute middle sector to manage, teams spent the hour calibrating deployment maps as much as chasing laptime — one reason the usual suspects sit further down the order than expected, and why the 3.7-second gap to Sainz’s Williams or Aston Martin’s wilderness at the foot of the sheet should be read with caution.

Even so, some signals are hard to discount: Red Bull’s balance through the fast stuff, Ferrari’s one-lap edge, and McLaren’s uncharacteristically low-key morning with Piastri’s late hydraulic failure the one genuine reliability flag of the session. The true reading comes this evening — second practice follows at 17:00 local time, when fuel loads drop and the energy games begin in earnest.