Life after Christian Horner begins with sprint win for Max Verstappen
Eighteen days after Horner was told his two-decade reign was over, Verstappen claimed the Red Bull's first win of any sort since he raced to victory in Imola on May 18th.
Advertisement
Verstappen started second, but batted aside pole-sitter Oscar Piastri on the opening lap before keeping the world championship leader at bay.
Oscar Piastri was edged out (Bradley Collyer/PA)
Verstappen crossed the line in Spa-Francorchamps just 0.753 seconds clear of Piastri. Lando Norris started third and finished in the same position to allow Piastri to extend his title lead from eight points to nine ahead of qualifying later today for Sunday's main event.
Horner's dramatic exit from Red Bull after 20 years in charge stunned the sporting world, and the Belgian Grand Prix marks the first F1 event in 406 races where he has been watching on from his sofa rather than from the Red Bull pit wall.
Verstappen split the McLaren drivers in qualifying to join Piastri on the front row. Piastri started well to keep Verstappen behind on the short run to La Source only for the Dutchman – armed with a low-downforce rear wing to provide greater speed up through Eau Rouge and on to the Kemmel Straight – to jink to his left and sail past Piastri under braking for Les Combes.
Advertisement
Further back and Norris – a distant six tenths behind Piastri in qualifying – was perhaps too timid on his brakes into the same corner, and lost out to Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, relegating him to fourth.
On lap four, Norris cleared Leclerc to regain third spot, and by lap 10 he was within half-a-second of team-mate Piastri – the top three covered by a little more than a second.
With four laps to go, Piastri was closer than he had ever been and Verstappen was forced to cover off the racing line under braking for Les Combes.
It was Verstappen's first race without Christian Horner (Bradley Collyer/PA)
However, that would be the closest Piastri would get to the Red Bull as the four-time world champion delivered Laurent Mekies' first win in charge of Red Bull with Norris only six tenths back from his McLaren team-mate.
Advertisement
'Well done Max,' said Mekies. 'Very, very impressive defence, and very well controlled. You didn't leave anything on the table there.'
Verstappen said: 'It worked out really well. The only opportunity was the first lap and we got them. We were playing cat and mouse and I could not afford to make a mistake.
'You are keeping faster cars behind so you have to drive beyond your limit and replicate 15 qualifying laps. It was not easy but we managed to do it.
'The team can count on me that I will give my very best whoever is in charge. They know that. And that is what they pay me for. It is positive. We need positive energy, and this is a great start for us.'
Advertisement
Norris said: 'I was not going to pass anyone unless Oscar got past Max. There was not a lot we could do today.
A winning start for Laurent Mekies! 💪
#F1Sprint
#BelgianGP
@redbullracing
pic.twitter.com/1BheRYnPhw
— Formula 1 (@F1)
July 26, 2025
'It was tough. I hoped to have a battle, but the Red Bull was too quick in the straight for us to catch up. Maybe we need to make some tweaks to qualifying. I am not too fussed about sprint races and the plan is to win the Grand Prix.'
Leclerc took fourth spot, one place ahead of Haas' Esteban Ocon with Williams driver Carlos Sainz sixth and British rookie Ollie Bearman an impressive seventh.
George Russell started a lowly 13th and improved one place to 12th, while Lewis Hamilton finished 15th of the 19 who took the flag – making up just three positions after he spun in qualifying.
Advertisement
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
4 minutes ago
- The Sun
Prince William tells Lionesses the nation is behind them as they go for glory in Euros 2025 final
PRINCE William last night told the Lionesses the nation was behind them in their quest for Euros 2025 glory today — and hailed their stunning fightbacks. He delivered a stirring message to Sarina Wiegman 's warriors as they aim to become the first England team to win a tournament on foreign soil. 5 5 Wills, who will be in the stands in Basel for the final against Spain, said: 'Good luck to the Lionesses tomorrow. "The nation is so proud you are through to the final, after some stunning comebacks! We are all cheering you on!' He will be hoping England avenge their World Cup final defeat to Spain two years ago — though he will be joined by Spanish heir to the throne Princess Leonor and younger sister Infanta Sofía. Spain are the favourites today but fans believe England can pull off a stunning upset to land their second Euros in a row. They nearly lost in the quarters to Sweden and the semi against Italy before supersub Michelle Agyemang, 19, helped haul us through in both. Wills' show of support was echoed yesterday by the Band of the Grenadier Guards, who played footie anthem Three Lions outside Buckingham Palace. Basel's 38,000 St Jakob-Park is a sell-out for the 5pm kick-off, while an estimated 16million people will watch live on BBC or ITV. Celebrities also roared on the Lionesses last night, including BGT star Amanda Holden who said: 'You can do it girls! The whole country is behind you and we are so proud. Bring it home.' Loose Women's Katie Piper added: 'Good luck Lionesses! You've already inspired so many with your passion, teamwork and fight.' England skipper Leah Williamson revealed the players know about the weight of expectation from home. Supersub Chloe Kelly's late winner sends England into Euro 2025 final She said: 'We're very connected to what it means to the nation because it means the same to us. "The opportunity of tomorrow and what's on offer is the best thing in football — we have a chance to fight for the trophy. 'We recognise the opportunity and we'll do everything we can to take it.' Manager Sarina is the first female or male coach to reach five consecutive major tournament finals — two with the Netherlands and now three with England. 5 5 Sarina, who guided the Lionesses to their first-ever major tournament win when they beat Germany at Wembley in 2022, said: 'We are happy we're in the final and really want to win it. "And we're going to do everything to make that happen.' Supporters back home are estimated to spend a staggering £183million on drinks, food and party items while pubs can stay open to 1am. Fans have also been swarming into the Swiss city of Basel all weekend, including sports shop worker Kiri-Teegan Shirley-Smyth, 20, from London. She said: 'I'm going to party till Wednesday when we win.' Aimee Jones, 16, from Portsmouth, arriving with her friend and their dads, said: 'The players have been brilliant with their 'Proper England' attitude pulling them through. I'm sure they can do it again.'
BBC News
4 minutes ago
- BBC News
Gibbs-White signs new Forest contract
Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White has signed a new three-year contract with the Premier League side until the summer of 2028. More to follow.
The Guardian
31 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Red Bull go full throttle for Laurent Mekies as enthralling new era begins at Spa
Amid a turbulent period for Red Bull, their new team principal, Laurent Mekies, is bearing the responsibility and the scrutiny, for the moment at least, with a smile. After not quite two weeks in charge since the dismissal of Christian Horner, Mekies and Red Bull are adjusting to a new era with a business as usual attitude even as the circumstances suggest it can be anything but, before this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix. At Spa, Mekies faced the press for the first time in his new role and was presented with a barrage of questions, which he fielded with the light touch and good humour of a man enjoying his position in what might be considered its honeymoon period at the Red Bull helm. The weather in the Ardennes forests demonstrated its usual capricious sweep from mist and rain to hazy sunshine, playing as the backdrop to the attention in the paddock centred on the Red Bull motorhome, where the atmosphere around the team has been febrile. Oliver Mintzlaff, the managing director of Red Bull's parent company, Red Bull GmbH, was in attendance, a relatively rare occurrence and indicative of the sea change that has taken place, with Mintzlaff the ultimate victor in his power struggle with Horner. Mintzlaff, for such a key player, is anonymous enough to slip in and out of the paddock all but unnoticed. Not so Max Verstappen's father, Jos, and his manager, Raymond Vermeulen, who arrived flanked by photographers who caught the relaxed and contented air emanating from both men, with Verstappen Sr in particular having long-lobbied against Horner. Helmut Marko, the head of motor sport and a Verstappen ally, duly took his place too as all of Red Bull's power players came to oversee Mekies's first race in charge and Red Bull's first without Horner in control. Inside the team the personnel are without doubt undergoing a period of adjustment; for all the politicking Horner was well liked and sadness at his departure had been expressed by many. Paul Monaghan, Red Bull's chief engineer, whom Horner recruited in his first year in charge in 2005, reflected what many were feeling about both past and future. 'It was a shock to me and it was sad, Christian's put a large chunk of his working life into the team,' Monaghan said. 'Laurent has got quite a difficult situation to be dropped in. So now it's up to us to pull together as a team because nine other teams can't wait to fight us. So if we're going to stand up to them, we have to stand as a team.' The business as usual approach is intended to steady the ship and the management that ousted Horner are backing Mekies to do so. It is understood he is, as team principal and chief executive, being given full rein to do as he sees fit and is not considered in any way a caretaker manager, while Mintzlaff is expected to remain hands-off, although whether that remains the case might depend on quite how Mekies performs. Certainly in one key area, that of the relationship between the team and the Verstappen camp, tensions have eased after Horner's dismissal. Whether Verstappen stays with Red Bull, however, still remains up in the air and he and his father's attitude will surely be tempered by performance; the pressure is on Mekies from the off. The Frenchman said in Spa that he had been given no reason for Horner's dismissal but that the former team principal had been in touch and offered his support to Mekies, who felt morale remained strong at Red Bull despite the upheaval. 'The first 24 hours was a big adjustment, because nobody was expecting it,' he said. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion 'No question, the first few hours after the announcement was a surprise and certainly a digestion phase for everyone. After that, I've only found a huge amount of support from everyone, they just want to go racing.' The task facing him is immense not least in taking over the project of next year's car being built to the biggest regulation change in over a decade and Red Bull's first foray into building their own engines. These are long-term considerations around which he can still exert an influence, but for the moment the focus is narrow which may be to the Frenchman's advantage. The nature of Formula One and its relentless march forward means a win for Verstappen would go an enormously long way to easing the pressure and beginning the process of putting the past to bed and building anew. Certainly Verstappen has fine form here, Spa is a circuit he enjoys and with a host of upgrades for this race including a revised front wing he might be hopeful of making a decent fist of things under the new management but it is the dominant McLarens that look likely to once more hold the advantage. In qualifying for Saturday's sprint race Oscar Piastri claimed pole with a mighty lap, a full half a second clear of Verstappen in second and his McLaren teammate Lando Norris in third. Lewis Hamilton finished in 18th having spun off on his hot lap in Q3.
