Formula One headed into the Ardennes Forest this weekend to one of the most iconic and demanding motorsport venues – the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps for the Belgian Grand Prix. First used for the inaugural Formula One World Championship in 1950, Spa remains the longest circuit on the calendar, at just over 7km, and is widely regarded by drivers of all motor automotive genres as one of the greatest challenges in motorsport. The circuit combines everything that makes Formula One unique: the gravity defying climb through Eau Rouge and Raidillon, up the long Kemmel Straight, the high-speed commitment of Pouhon and the ever-present possibility of unpredictable Ardennes weather. Although overtaking opportunities remain among the best on the calendar, Spa also presents one of the biggest engineering compromises of the season. The opening and final sectors reward low drag and high straight-line speed, while the twisting middle sector demands significantly more downforce, forcing teams to sacrifice outright lap time in favour of achieving the best overall balance. Under Formula One's 2026 regulations the challenge is even greater, as the circuit's long full-throttle sections place enormous demands on battery management and energy deployment, making efficient harvesting throughout the lap a crucial factor in race performance. For Aston Martin, however, expectations remained deliberately modest. The team arrived at Spa fully aware that the characteristics of the AMR26 are poorly suited to the circuit's long straights and emphasis on top speed. Lance Stroll had already described Spa as likely to be Aston Martin's most difficult race of the season, a view echoed by Chief Trackside Officer Mike Krack, who admitted the team expected to struggle before the long-awaited B-spec AMR26 makes its debut at next weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix. For that reason, the team was actually smiling – believing that this weekend would mark the end of their poor performance record this season and despite knowing that Stroll would serve a 10-place grid penalty for taking a fourth MGU-K (battery) of the season for this race, triggering an automatic grid drop for exceeding his pool of engine components.
Free Practice
Round 10 of the 2026 F1 Championship got underway beneath warm, dry skies with reserve driver Jak Crawford taking over Alonso's AMR26 for Free Practice One as part of Formula One's mandatory rookie driver programme. He was among the first drivers to head out when the pit lane opened, with Stroll joining him shortly afterwards, both beginning their programmes on medium compound tyres. The familiar pattern of recent race weekends soon emerged. After the opening 15 minutes Stroll occupied P20, 5.8 seconds adrift of Verstappen's benchmark time, while Crawford was P21, a further 1.8 seconds behind his teammate – Norris being the only driver not to have recorded a representative lap at that stage. As the session reached its halfway point the Aston Martins slipped to the foot of the timesheets – Stroll to P21, 6.6 seconds slower than Verstappen, while Crawford occupied the final position, 8 seconds off the leader’s time. More concerning was the straight-line speed deficit - through Spa's speed trap Stroll was measured at approximately 58km/h slower than the fastest car, due to ‘superclipping’ – completely exhausting its hybrid energy deployment on the long uphill Kimmel straight. In the final quarter of an hour Aston Martin switched both cars onto soft compound tyres in search of improved pace. Although the softer rubber reduced the gap slightly, the overall picture remained unchanged. Stroll was still P21 and more than 1.5 seconds slower than Ocon's Haas in P20. Crawford was anchored in P22. In the closing minutes there was minor angst when Stroll ran through the gravel, dislodging the television camera mounted on the nose of his AMR26, which flapped loose for the remainder of his lap before the car returned to the garage for a quick fix. When the chequered flag fell Verstappen headed the session, while Stroll finished P21after completing 18 laps and Crawford P22 after 21 laps, leaving the team's engineers with another volume of data but little encouragement from the timing screens.
Alonso returned to the cockpit for the afternoon's second practice session, with both Aston Martins again beginning their programmes on medium compound tyres. However, after only 12 minutes the session was interrupted when several drivers dragged gravel onto the racing line after running wide, forcing Race Control to display red flags to allow marshals to clear the track. Those cars still on track headed back into the pits, Stroll in 18th place and Alonso 19th, slightly flattered by the fact that Lawson, Hülkenberg and Piastri had yet to set representative lap times. Once the circuit reopened, with 42 minutes remaining, both Aston Martins immediately returned to the track to resume their programmes. As representative lap times from all drivers were set, Alonso and Stroll found themselves slipping backwards, such that midway through the session Stroll, in P21 was 6.3 seconds slower than Antonelli's leading Mercedes, while Alonso occupied the final position, 6.8 seconds slower. A switch onto soft compound tyres for the final 15 minutes brought modest improvement, reducing the deficits to just over 5 seconds, but there was little opportunity to build on that as a minute later the session was halted for a second time after Gasly lost the rear of his Alpine and crashed heavily into the barriers, scattering debris across the track. The red flags remained out while marshals recovered the damaged car and repaired the barriers, with the clock continuing to count down throughout the stoppage and the cars having to stay in their garages. The session eventually resumed with barely 2 minutes remaining, leaving insufficient time for any meaningful continuation. Most drivers only just managed to complete installation laps before the chequered flag brought proceedings to an end. Antonelli remained fastest, while Aston Martin finished another practice session anchored at foot of the order - Stroll 21st and Alonso 22nd.
Saturday morning dawned with unusually warm, sunny conditions in the Ardennes, a welcome contrast to Spa-Francorchamps' reputation for unpredictable weather. Following Friday's two practice sessions, there seemed little urgency among the teams to head out early for Free Practice 3, most believing they had already gathered sufficient data to prepare for Qualifying later in the afternoon. Eventually an Alpine and the two Cadillacs ventured on track while the rest remained in their garages carrying out final setup checks. 10 minutes in and Alonso was the first Aston Martin driver to head down the pit lane, with Stroll following a few minutes later, both on medium compound tyres. After the opening quarter of an hour Alonso was P14 and Stroll P15, although again, several of the leading teams had yet to record representative lap times. As they did the Aston Martins steadily slipped down the order, with their time deficit already more than 5 seconds slower than Hamilton's fastest time set in a Ferrari. The session was briefly disrupted when Hadjar came to a halt at the pit exit, temporarily blocking cars from leaving the pit lane until marshals quickly moved the stranded Racing Bull clear. By the halfway stage, after all the drivers had completed their representative runs, Alonso was P21, 5.7 seconds slower than the leading driver, who was Antonelli - Stroll was in P22, 6.3 seconds slower than Antonelli. Some improvement was gained when both drivers were switched onto soft compound tyres shortly afterwards, with Alonso trimming the gap to 4.8 seconds and Stroll to 5.3 seconds, both having completed 8 laps each. One slight ray of hope on the horizon was that the Aston Martin pair were less than a second slower than Colapinto's Alpine ahead of them. As the session entered the closing stages Stroll inadvertently impeded Hadjar, who was forced to abandon a flying lap after encountering the Aston Martin at speed, although the incident had little bearing on either driver's final position. Both Aston Martins returned to the track for their final qualifying simulation runs. Their lap times improved again, reducing the gap to Antonelli's pace to 4.1 seconds for Alonso and 4.6 seconds for Stroll and Alonso being only three-tenths of a second behind Colapinto in P20, suggesting Aston Martin had at least narrowed the gap to the rear of the midfield, even if it remained insufficient to escape the final row. The final moments of the session produced the day's biggest incident when Hamilton lost control of his Ferrari and crashed heavily into the advertising boards, sustaining significant rear suspension damage and immediately bringing out the yellow flags. With only seconds remaining there was no opportunity to resume running, leaving Ferrari's mechanics with a major rebuild ahead of Qualifying. Antonelli completed the session fastest ahead of Norris and Verstappen, while Aston Martin once again finished at the bottom of the order, Alonso in P21 and Stroll P22.
Qualifying
When the lights turned green at the end of the pit lane to start Qualifying Stroll was the first driver to venture on track. He completed an initial installation run before returning to his garage, just as Alonso drove his AMR26, fitted with soft compound tyres, out of his garage and headed on track, with Stroll rejoining the circuit a few minutes later. Alonso's opening representative lap briefly lifted him to P8 but he tumbled down the order as other drivers completed their installation laps. Once every driver had recorded a competitive time the familiar picture returned - Alonso was 21st and Stroll was 22nd, while Norris had put his McLaren at the head of the timesheets. With just 5 minutes remaining Aston Martin fitted fresh soft tyres to both AMR26s for one final attempt to rescue their afternoon. Alonso was released first and Stroll was one of the last to get on track for the decisive lap, as track conditions continued to improve. Neither driver, however, could find the significant improvement required. When the chequered flag fell both Aston Martins were eliminated. Alonso finished in P21, 4.1 seconds slower than Norris' benchmark lap, while Stroll occupied the final position, a further two-tenths behind his teammate. In the second round of Qualifying, Antonelli, Leclerc and Norris headed the field after the opening runs by the remaining 16 drivers. Several of the leading drivers elected not to complete a final attempt, feeling they were safe, and the top 3 order remained unchanged as the combat to decide which of the 7 other drivers would set a sufficient time in order to progress into the final round ensued. The start of Q3 was briefly delayed after Hülkenberg's Audi stopped on track at the conclusion of Q2, requiring marshals to recover the stranded car before the contest for pole position could begin. Once underway Norris initially set the provisional fastest time before Antonelli and Leclerc displaced him. However, the decisive phase was interrupted when excessive gravel was spread onto the racing line, bringing out the red flags with just over 6 minutes remaining. Following a short delay the session resumed and Antonelli produced another outstanding lap to secure pole position ahead of Verstappen and Norris. However, Norris was carrying a 10 place grid penalty, as he had taken a fourth battery of the season (the same reason as Stroll) and meant the McLaren driver would start the Grand Prix from 13th position.
Race
Prior to the start of the 44-lap Belgian Grand Prix some historical and meteorological jeopardy was being revealed. Firstly, although Antonelli had secured pole position, polesitters were not usually leading the race at the end of the first lap due to the effects of slipstreaming up the long Kemmel straight. Also, a short rain shower was in the forecast 10-15 minutes into the race. As the scene was setting for the race the final starting positions were established which would also impact Aston Martin negatively. We already knew that Stroll was taking a penalty, to which Alonso would be added - the latest to have to take a back-of-the-grid penalty drop for taking on new power unit components that exceeded the permitted allocation. He would start from the back row, behind Hadjar, while Stroll would line up 20th, behind Sainz, who also received a penalty. Finally there was Norris, who despite qualifying P3, would start 13th following his aforementioned 10-place grid drop. The formation lap proceeded without incident, although Antonelli was forced to wait a long time while Alonso completed the long lap and got into position at the back of the grid before the 5 red lights went out and off they launched. Verstappen immediately exploited the slipstream to sweep into the lead, bravely, through Eau Rouge, only for Antonelli and Leclerc to pass the former World Champion under braking at top of the long Kimmel straight. At the Les Combes corner Hamilton and Russell collided after Russell lost momentum and attempted to recover ground into the braking zone and tried to come back at Hamilton and ultimately stranded his Mercedes in the gravel trap after the impact, bringing out the Safety Car before the opening lap had been completed. Ocon also sustained damage after getting tapped by Sainz. Several teams took advantage of the neutralisation to make early pit stops, especially if they thought they might be on the wrong tyres. During this safety car period the order at the front was Antonelli, Leclerc, Verstappen. Alonso had managed to get up to P15 and Stroll to P16, both on hard tyres. When the Safety Car came in at end of lap 4 and racing resumed the Aston Martins soon found themselves under threat. Bearman overtook Stroll immediately after the restart, while Alonso slipped three places in a single lap as quicker cars began working their way through the field. Hadjar passed Stroll on lap 6 and Pérez and Ocon passed Alonso on the same lap and Stroll on the next, after which Bottas also found a way through on lap 8, leaving Alonso in P21, the last of the cars running, as Russell was out, and Stroll in P20. Towards the front, Piastri and Leclerc were having a titanic battle, with bits flying off the McLaren, and Hamilton overtaking Piastri on lap 9. At the back the two Aston Martins had settled into a familiar, lonely pattern. Although Alonso moved up a place by overtaking his team-mate on lap 10, he was already more than 7 seconds behind Bottas in P19, illustrating again the AMR26's lack of outright pace around Spa's long, power-sensitive layout. On lap 15 the Aston Martin pair brief improved their positions, to P18 for Alonso and P20 for Stroll, when Pérez and Sainz made their scheduled pit stops. However, Sainz quickly recovered his position, on fresher tyres, while Pérez spent a long time stopped and eventually had to retire his car out of the race. This secured P19 for Alonso and P20 for Stroll. Shorty after, on lap 18 the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) was deployed to allow marshals to clear debris from the track, prompting another round of strategic decisions. Antonelli surrendered the lead to make his pit stop and he came out 5th, while Stroll came in for a set of new soft compound tyres - 2 laps later Alonso did the same. Once the race resumed properly, Norris had inherited the lead by not stopping, although that left him vulnerable to those drivers on fresher tyres. At the half distance point Alonso was P19 and Stroll P20, the final two cars still running. Leclerc soon reclaimed the lead by chasing down and sweeping past Norris on the Kemmel Straight before Antonelli also overtook the McLaren 4 laps later. Stroll's afternoon then unravelled when the team instructed him to ‘Box’ (return to the pits) after a clutch problem had been reported. The Canadian remained in the garage for an extended period while mechanics attempted repairs before Aston Martin officially retired the car 10 laps from the end of the race, marking another reliability setback for the team. Alonso's race became increasingly lonely during the closing stages – his only respite being a second pitstop at the end of Lap 32 and having hard tyres fitted which took him to the end of the race. Both Leclerc and Antonelli lapped the Spaniard as the battle for victory intensified at the front, as did other leading drivers, and on lap 34 Antonelli passed Leclerc and retook the lead of the race. Although Leclerc tried to hang on to the Mercedes driver for the rest of the race, Antonelli went on to secure victory, finishing ahead of Leclerc by 1.9 seconds, and Verstappen in P3. Alonso brought his AMR26 to the chequered flag in P19.
Reaction and Comment
As expected, the Belgian Grand Prix represented another difficult race weekend for Aston Martin. Spa's long straights and emphasis on top speed brutally exposed the AMR26's continuing lack of competitiveness, especially due to the drainage of its hybrid energy deployment. After the race the driver’s reactions were very brief and forward-looking. Alonso said, "We did our best today, but we knew our limitations this weekend. We are now focused on Budapest. We will need to maximise all of our practice sessions next weekend and learn as much as we can about the new package." Stroll was similarly hopeful, "Our pace was pretty much where we expected it to be today. We knew this track was always going to be difficult for us and it was a tough race from the start. Towards the end I started to feel something with the gearbox, so we retired the car to investigate it. Hopefully we can be a bit more competitive in Hungary and have a stronger weekend there." Attention now turns to next weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix, where Aston Martin is targeting to introduce its long-awaited and much anticipated B-spec upgrade package, offering renewed hope that the second half of the season may finally mark the beginning of a more competitive chapter. Let’s hope we’re all smiling this time next weekend! 😊