Piastri Takes Sprint Pole; Verstappen Second at Spa

Oscar Piastri secured pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix sprint race with a record-breaking lap, finishing 0.477 seconds ahead of Max Verstappen and extending his championship lead to eight points over McLaren teammate Lando Norris. Piastri narrowly advanced from SQ2 after a deleted lap but dominated in the final segment with a 1:40.510 lap. Norris qualified third, while Charles Leclerc and Haas's Esteban Ocon completed the top five. Lewis Hamilton, now driving for Ferrari, spun and qualified 18th, with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli also failing to reach the top ten. This marked Verstappen and Red Bull's first race weekend without former team boss Christian Horner, though no replacement was named. The session was notable for both major upsets and strong performances from midfield teams like Haas and Alpine.