Piastri storms to sprint pole at Spa despite 'a little scare' in qualifying

Piastri had topped the timesheets in Friday's practice session, finishing 0.404 seconds quicker than Max Verstappen, and continued that domination during the sprint qualifying.

The drivers' championship leader finished almost half a second quicker than Verstappen, who will line up alongside Piastri on the front row, with Lando Norris taking third.

Charles Leclerc will start fourth for Ferrari, but there was no such luck for his team-mate Lewis Hamilton, who spun out in SQ1 and will start Saturday's race in 18th.

The Haas of Esteban Ocon took a surprise fifth, with Carlos Sainz, Oliver Bearman, Pierre Gasly, Isack Hadjar and Gabriel Bortoleto rounding out the top 10 in Spa.

After an action-packed first session that saw Hamilton and Kimi Antonelli eliminated, the drama continued in SQ2 as the Mercedes of George Russell failed to make it through.

Piastri also survived an early exit after seeing his first lap deleted for a track-limit violation, while his second lap, set before the majority of the field had laid down a representative time, was bumped down to tenth by the time all cars had completed their runs.

"It was a good lap. A little scare in SQ2 with the lap deletion, but the car has been mega all day," Piastri said of his struggles in the second session.

"I feel like I was able to put in a lot of good laps. Thanks to the team, the car has been great.

"This is a track I love. It's my favourite one of the year. Maybe that gave me an extra couple of tenths. When the car is handling as well as it was, it's a pleasure."

OSCARRRR!A superb Sprint Qualifying session from OP81! #McLaren | #BelgianGP pic.twitter.com/tlj6RUrsUi

— McLaren (@McLarenF1) July 25, 2025

Norris was the first driver to put down a marker in SQ3, but his effort was quickly eclipsed by Verstappen, who was gaining time on the McLarens in the final two sectors.

But there was no stopping Piastri as the championship leader marched to his first sprint pole of the season in a commanding fashion.

The Australian did, however, acknowledge the difficulty of converting his pole position into a victory, especially given Red Bull's straight-line pace.

"Red Bull are quick in a straight line. That will make life difficult, and Spa is probably the worst track to have pole at," Piastri added.

"I think the pace in the car is really strong, and I felt good today, so hopefully we can have a good day tomorrow."

For Piastri's team-mate Norris, while disappointed by only managing third, he said his focus remained on improving for Sunday's race.

After his maiden victory at Silverstone last time out, the Brit is now just eight points behind Piastri in the drivers' championship.

"Not quick enough, I guess. It wasn't the cleanest of laps, but still quite a big gap to the top," Norris said.

"Not too disappointed, it's just for the sprint, so not the biggest worry, but some things to work on.

"It's only Friday, so I'm not too fussed. Not the happiest, of course, but I just need to do some more work tonight, that's all."

1. Oscar Pisatri (McLaren)

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

3. Lando Norris (McLaren)

4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

5. Esteban Ocon (Haas)

6. Carlos Sainz (Williams)

7. Oliver Bearman (Haas)

8. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

9. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)