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Formula 1
Belgian GP
F1 Belgian GP Live Commentary and Updates - Race
Minute-by-minute updates for the 2023 Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc will start from pole position after Max Verstappen took a five-place grid penalty for fitting a fifth gearbox of the season to his Red Bull.
The Dutchman had 'won qualifying' by setting the fastest time, a feat that he repeated on Saturday in the sprint shootout, and later converted into a sprint race victory.
A Red Bull victory today would see the team become the first to score 12 consecutive race wins in a single season.
Verstappen's penalty also promotes Sergio Perez onto the front row, with Lewis Hamilton, Carlos Sainz and Oscar Piastri also benefitting.
Nico Hulkenberg will start from the pitlane after breaching parc fermé to make changes to his Haas.
The Spa-Francorchamps race will get underway at 2pm BST.
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On fresh soft tyres, Hulkenberg sets a new fastest lap of the race with a 1m49.907s. Only five more places to pick up before that would carry a point.
Verstappen is still steadily pulling away from Perez, with the gap up to 7.3s, as he looks after his tyres aiming for a one-stop strategy.
Sun
About that rain...it didn't get heavier. It disappeared.
The slippery conditions have pretty much disappeared, while Leclerc posts his new personal best lap to refortify his advantage over Hamilton to 2.8s.
Pit stop
That's all she wrote for Sainz. Ferrari have retired the car after early contact with Perez had left him trundling around at the back.
Verstappen is properly back in the groove with a 1m52s lap, as he continues to pull away from Perez. Hamilton chips out seven-tenths in the gap to Leclerc. The top four are well clear of Alonso in fifth.
With fresh soft tyres on his Mercedes, Russell tears past Sargeant back up to P15.
In damp conditions, Norris is coming alive with the higher downforce wing on his McLaren.
Verstappen's lead is up to 5.3s on Perez, so he is pressing on regardless of that earlier wobble. Behind them Leclerc has a 3.5s gap to Hamilton in the fight for the final podium place.
Verstappen almost loses control of his Red Bull at the bottom of Eau Rouge, collecting the wobble going up the hill. It is getting slippery out there but not enough for inters yet.
But it was a slow 4.3s stop for Stroll and he falls behind Norris into P18.
Pit stop
From P11, Stroll pits but for fresh slick soft tyres. That is a bold choice!
Verstappen says "it is raining quite a lot" as his, and everyone else's, pace drops by around three seconds.
The FIA timing screen has indicated "track surface slippery in track sector 12". That's Stavelot to you and me.
Perez puts in a poor effort on lap 20, slower than Leclerc and Hamilton behind him, to see Versappen continue to build his lead to 3.8s.
It is reported that the rain will last for 10 minutes. There is now precipitation in the pitlane. Who will be the first to box for intermediates?
On such a long track, blinking early can carry a huge reward.
On such a long track, blinking early can carry a huge reward.
Verstappen puts another half a second on Perez on the next lap, but he looks able to extend the gap at will right now.
Rain
Sainz reports: "It's raining, Turn 15."
And here we go!
And here we go!
But a disaster for Norris. A second slow stop for soft tyres drops him to P19.
Stopwatch
Verstappen posts a new fastest lap of 1m50.108s - some two seconds faster than Perez - to bolt out of DRS range.
Stroll, Russell and Gasly are the three drivers yet to pit. With rain on the way, this could work out very nicely.
It is expected that intermediate tyres - at least - will be needed!
It is expected that intermediate tyres - at least - will be needed!
On lap 17, Verstappen takes the lead of the race, powering by Perez on the Kemmel straight. He had so much pace in hand that he almost came close to the rear of Perez out of La Source before his move to take the lead.
Verstappen is on the attack and has caught onto the rear of Perez. He's opted to use the start of his medium tyre stint to put the Mexican under pressure.
Rain is expected in the next seven minutes! This could make things extremely interesting!
Leclerc pitted on the same lap as Perez so he remains third, with a 2.5s gap over Hamilton.
Pit stop
Verstappen, who is squabbling with race engineer Lambiase again today on team radio, duly pits the next time around and it is a 2.5s stop. The Dutch driver comes out in second, about 2.2s behind Perez.
Pit stop
Perez pits from the lead, but it is a slow stop of 3.2s with a lot of sparks on the left-rear, so the race is on for Verstappen.
Hamilton pits at the end of lap 12, swapping his softs for fresh mediums and comes out in the same spot, keeping just ahead of Stroll. Smart move by Mercedes.
It's very difficult to follow where drivers are in the overall pit shuffle. Alonso has passed Tusnoda for P8.
At the start of lap 12, just over a quarter of the race done, Perez leads by 2.7s from Verstappen. Leclerc has already dropped three seconds back and Hamilton is 3.9s off him in fourth.
You may recall that we just mentioned Albon passing Tsunoda into Les Combes. One lap later, the positions reverse again.
Pit stop
Alonso, who made an encouraging start and profiting from McLaren and Ferrari misfortune, pits from fifth.
Albon is a man on a mission today. He uses the Williams' straight-line strength to breeze past Tsunoda, who had just stopped.
So, Perez has a three-second buffer on Verstappen to play with and now his race has really begun.
The undercut is working for Ricciardo at the moment. After starting at the back, he is up to P15.
Verstappen gains with DRS on the Kemmel straight and goes around the outside of Leclerc on the entry to Les Combes to take second on lap nine. A great move and he made it look so easy.
It's Hakkinen-Schumacher all over again! Albon and Gasly go either side of Norris and both pass the McLaren driver into Les Combes. Norris is back down to P16 in the pitstop shuffle.
Verstappen is within DRS range of Leclerc, sizing up where best to make his move. Perez has scampered to 3s clear from that pair.
Into the pits comes Sainz after dropping another two positions. Soft tyres off and mediums on. If this trial fails, you'd have to assume Ferrari would consider retiring the car.
More pit stops come as teams make their best guesses as to how the slick tyres will perform. Ocon, Bottas, Ricciardo and Magnussen have all fitted fresh boots.
By: Autosport Staff
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