All morning the rain was pounding relentlessly from the sky onto the asphalt of Spa-Francorchamps. The dark clouds, which had already settled over the forests around the route in the days before, only let the sun through in rare moments. Otherwise the water collected in the smallest bump in puddles. In the stands, where 75,000 spectators were allowed and several thousand came, there were hardly any to be seen – because they hid themselves as best they could in plastic cloaks under umbrellas.
It was the second round of qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix when a certain unrest about the conditions spread in the paddock. The seven-kilometer route was so wet that every car left a long, high tail of water. Sebastian Vettel warned of the conditions on the pit radio and demanded a red flag, i.e. the interruption of the session, but that only came when it was too late.
Lando Norris was on the pole position course and had already warned against aquaplaning by radio when he nevertheless took the risk and wanted to secure a fast lap time. With his McLaren he drove from the start-finish straight through the Eau-Rouge corner and lost control. His car spun, hit a pile of tires, then spun several times at high speed like a top. The tire suspensions broke, parts of his car flew through the air, sparks flew and when he finally came to a stop, bad fears arose because it took Norris to stir.
“What the hell did I say? What did I say?” Vettel exclaims
Only on Friday there had been a mass crash with six drivers at the same point in the W-Series, also in the Eau Rouge. After the first of them hit a pile of tires, one after the other crashed into the cars that had already had an accident at high speed. Two of them were examined in a hospital. Despite badly demolished cars, some of which had overturned, none was injured.
On Thursday, among others, Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly thought of the Formula 2 driver Anthoine Hubert, who died in 2019. They placed flowers on a wall at the end of the Eau Rouge Depression, where the French had an extremely serious accident at the time. The motorsport world was shaken. Hubert was the first fatality in formula racing since Jules Bianchi in 2015. There was also a crash in a 24-hour race in July. So now again accidents in Spa. This sparked discussions about the dangerousness of this section of the route, for which there are already plans for conversion. “That gave me a scare and reminds us of what happened here two years ago,” said Leclerc at Sky.
Vettel drove his lap by a distance behind Norris. When he heard on the radio what had happened to the 21-year-old Briton, he was beside himself: “What the hell did I say? What did I say? Red flag! This is so unnecessary! Is he okay?” While the four-time world champion was talking to his team, he passed the scene of the accident, stopped next to the McLaren and asked Norris with a show of hands whether he was okay. “He’s okay, he’s okay,” he finally radioed and then drove into the pits. Norris jumped from his car, and later his team announced that the world federation Fia had approved his race start after medical examinations.
Surprisingly on the front row on Sunday: George Russell steered his Williams so quickly across the track in the rain that only Max Verstappen could beat him.
(Photo: John Thys / AFP)
The qualification was interrupted for about three quarters of an hour. And then the rain finally had something good – at least for one. George Russell created a sensation. The 23-year-old Briton drives for Williams Racing, one of the most traditional racing teams with the most constructors’ championship titles behind Ferrari, but which in recent years has been driving a long way from once glorious times. Williams usually occupies the rear seats. But these conditions were not normal on Saturday. And obviously Russell got along with it best.
The final seconds of the final qualifying lap were running, and when it was over Russell was actually second fastest. He starts behind Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and, thanks to a 0.013 second lead, ahead of world champion Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes). “Just making it to the third qualifying round was an achievement in itself,” said Russell. “I was in the fortunate position that we had nothing to lose. I was ready to go.” Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) will start from fourth on the grid, Vettel (Aston Martin) finished fifth, Mick Schumacher eighteenth. He moved up to 17th due to a penalty against Lance Stroll (Aston Martin).
The decision on the second Mercedes cockpit is said to have been made
Williams had chosen a good strategy and a good set-up, Russell steered the car superbly over the track. “It was incredibly difficult out there, the conditions changed every lap,” said Russell. “But of course tomorrow is the important race. I have to go out there and score points. We have to be realistic, we have incredibly fast cars behind us.” A place in the top ten is the goal.
Regardless of the race result on Sunday, Russell once again demonstrated his talent. He has been promoted by Mercedes for years, now he is hoping to be promoted – in other words, after three years at Williams, he will drive with Hamilton in the future. His competitor for this cockpit is Valtteri Bottas, who has recently shown changeable performances. The 31-year-old Finn finished eighth in Spa qualification, but was downgraded by five places because of a collision in Hungary.
Today you saw a brilliant lap by a brilliant young driver, said Mercedes Motorsport Director Toto Wolff. However, this qualifying did not influence the decision about the future. Has it already been hit? “Yes. If it had been an easy decision, we would have made it sooner.” Wolff did not reveal when the public will find out who will drive with Hamilton in 2022.