The Latest Breaking News from Esteban Ocon

Runaway F1 championship leader Max Verstappen had the fastest time in qualifying for the rain-hit Belgian Grand Prix on Friday, but Charles Leclerc will start the race from pole position because of Verstappen’s five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change.

Leclerc will start ahead of Sergio Perez (Red Bull) and Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) after the one-hour qualifying session, which is split into three segments with five cars each being knocked out in Q1 and Q2 before the top 10 shootout of Q3.

There are 20 drivers on the current Formula 1 grid, and some of them have been at the top of the sport for a very long time.

Over half of the F1 grid have their contracts expiring at the end of 2024 with some teams already making moves on the 2025 driver line-up. The 2024 pre-season saw both Ferrari and McLaren lock down their drivers by extending their contracts with Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris respectively, while…

The number was announced as the timeline for Alpine to work its way to the front of the F1 field after Szafnauer was put in charge of the Enstone team at the start of 2022.

The number was announced as the timeline for Alpine to work its way to the front of the F1 field after Szafnauer was put in charge of the Enstone team at the start of 2022.

Verstappen made a better start than poleman Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), who lost further spots to both McLarens. Oscar Piastri profited from hugging the inside of Turn 1, while Lando Norris drove around the outside of Hamilton at Turn 2.

Verstappen made a better start than poleman Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), who lost further spots to both McLarens of Oscar Piastri, who profited from hugging the inside of Turn 1, and Lando Norris, who drove around the outside of him at Turn 2.

Verstappen crossed the line with a whopping 33.7s lead over Lando Norris, who had to deal with a late fright from Sergio Perez for second before the Mexican was challenged by Hamilton for third at the end.