Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
Belgian Grand Prix
Is the Belgian Grand Prix Good for Racing?
Yes, because every lap hands the chasing car one long chance. Out of La Source the cars drop through Eau Rouge, climb Raidillon and stay flat out along Kemmel, so a driver in the slipstream has plenty of road to line up a move into Les Combes.
The pole lap on the right is at full throttle for 69% of its distance and brakes only seven times. F1 counted 49 overtakes over 44 laps in 2025, more than one a lap. Kimi Antonelli won in 2026 with exactly that move, passing Charles Leclerc on Kemmel with ten laps left.
Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
Strategy Factors
2026 Belgian Grand Prix
What to Look Out for at the Belgian Grand Prix
Pole is only 165m from the La Source braking point, one of the shortest runs to a first corner in F1, so the start fight really begins after the hairpin. In 2026 Max Verstappen got the better run to Eau Rouge and briefly led.
A pit stop costs around 18.5s. The Safety Car came out in half of the eight races before 2026 and the Virtual Safety Car in none, yet 2026 had one Safety Car and two VSC periods by about lap 20. Rain can also soak one end of the 7.004km lap and miss the other.
Official event page with the circuit length, race distance, lap count and race lap record.
Race summary covering the start, Verstappen's brief lead, the Safety Car and both Virtual Safety Car periods.
2026 Belgian Grand Prix Results and Pay
Select A Row To Explore Details
22 Drivers
| # | Details | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Kimi Antonelli Mercedes | Mercedes | $3.4m | $15.4m | $18m | 25 | |
Kimi Antonelli Salary
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| 2 |  Charles Leclerc Ferrari | Ferrari | $34m | $46m | $70m | 18 | |
Charles Leclerc Salary
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| 3 |  Max Verstappen Red Bull | Red Bull | $70m | $90m | $200m | 15 | |
Max Verstappen Salary
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| 4 |  Lewis HamiltonFerrari | Ferrari | $60m | $70m | $580m | 12 | |
Lewis Hamilton Salary
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| 5 |  Oscar Piastri McLaren | McLaren | $13m | $40.5m | $50m | 10 | |
Oscar Piastri Salary
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| 6 |  Isack HadjarRed Bull | Red Bull | $7.5m | $9.5m | $1m | 8 | |
Isack Hadjar Salary
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| 7 |  Lando NorrisMcLaren | McLaren | $30m | $69.5m | $80m | 6 | |
Lando Norris Salary
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| 8 |  Gabriel Bortoleto Audi | Audi | $2m | $3m | $3m | 4 | |
Gabriel Bortoleto Salary
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| 9 |  Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls | Racing Bulls | $500k-1m | $1m-1.5m | $1m | 2 | |
Arvid Lindblad Salary
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| 10 |  Franco Colapinto Alpine | Alpine | $500k-1m | $1.5m-2m | $5m | 1 | |
Franco Colapinto Salary
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| 11 |  Pierre GaslyAlpine | Alpine | $18.2m | $29.6m | $33m | 0 | |
Pierre Gasly Salary
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| 12 |  Liam LawsonRacing Bulls | Racing Bulls | $1m | $2m | $2m | 0 | |
Liam Lawson Salary
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| 13 |  Nico HülkenbergAudi | Audi | $7m | $9.9m | $10m | 0 | |
Nico Hülkenberg Salary
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| 14 |  Oliver Bearman Haas | Haas | $1m | $1.5m | $1m | 0 | |
Oliver Bearman Salary
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| 15 |  Alex Albon Williams | Williams | $12m | $15m | $15m | 0 | |
Alex Albon Salary
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| 16 |  Carlos SainzWilliams | Williams | $13m | $16m | $50m | 0 | |
Carlos Sainz Salary
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| 17 |  Esteban OconHaas | Haas | $7m | $9m | $21m | 0 | |
Esteban Ocon Salary
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| 18 |  Valtteri Bottas Cadillac | Cadillac | $5m | $7m | $40m | 0 | |
Valtteri Bottas Salary
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| 19 |  Fernando Alonso Aston Martin | Aston Martin | $20m | $22.5m | $260m | 0 | |
Fernando Alonso Salary
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| 20 |  Lance StrollAston Martin | Aston Martin | $12m | $13.5m | $50m | 0 | |
Lance Stroll Salary
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| 21 |  Sergio PérezCadillac | Cadillac | $10m | $11.5m | $50m | 0 | |
Sergio Pérez Salary
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| 22 |  George RussellMercedes | Mercedes | $34m | $50m | $40m | 0 | |
George Russell Salary
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Select A Row To Explore Details
11 Teams
| # | Details | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FerrariLeclerc, Hamilton | Leclerc, Hamilton | $7.1bn | $670m | $94m | 30 | |
Ferrari F1 Team Value
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| 2 | MercedesAntonelli, Russell | Antonelli, Russell | $6.4bn | $839m | $37.4m | 25 | |
Mercedes F1 Team Value
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| 3 | Red BullVerstappen, Hadjar | Verstappen, Hadjar | $4.9bn | $618m | $77.5m | 23 | |
Red Bull F1 Team Value
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| 4 | McLarenPiastri, Norris | Piastri, Norris | $5.2bn | $647m | $43m | 16 | |
McLaren F1 Team Value
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| 5 | AudiBortoleto, Hülkenberg | Bortoleto, Hülkenberg | $2.6bn | $240m | $9m | 4 | |
Audi F1 Team Value
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| 6 | Racing BullsLindblad, Lawson | Lindblad, Lawson | $2.4bn | $318m | $1.5m-2m | 2 | |
Racing Bulls F1 Team Value
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| 7 | AlpineColapinto, Gasly | Colapinto, Gasly | $2.6bn | $316m | $18.7m-19.2m | 1 | |
Alpine F1 Team Value
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| 8 | HaasBearman, Ocon | Bearman, Ocon | $1.9bn | $150m | $8m | 0 | |
Haas F1 Team Value
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| 9 | WilliamsAlbon, Sainz | Albon, Sainz | $2.7bn | $323m | $25m | 0 | |
Williams F1 Team Value
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| 10 | CadillacBottas, Pérez | Bottas, Pérez | $1.6bn | Not Yet Filed | $15m | 0 | |
Cadillac F1 Team Value
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| 11 | Aston MartinAlonso, Stroll | Alonso, Stroll | $3.5bn | $353m | $32m | 0 | |
Aston Martin F1 Team Value
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Belgian Grand Prix Tire Strategy
Almost everyone one-stopped in 2026. Eight of the top 10, the winner included, started on mediums and switched to hards between laps 15 and 20.
Lando Norris ran it the other way round. He did 30 laps on hards, finished on mediums and set the fastest lap on the last lap, yet only placed seventh. Isack Hadjar stopped at the end of each of the first two laps and still took sixth.
Pirelli brought the C2, C3 and C4. Spa puts heavy loads through the tires, and a hot track can raise wear enough to make two stops quicker.
Stint lengths and compounds for the top 10 finishers of the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix, used for the tire chart.
Spa-Francorchamps Sector by Sector and Corner by Corner
Speeds, gears and braking points below come from Kimi Antonelli‘s 1:44.361 pole lap in 2026 qualifying. He spent 69% of the lap at full throttle and 9.8 seconds on the brakes, and reached 336 km/h on the flat-out run through Blanchimont. The slowest point was 75 km/h at the Bus Stop chicane.
FastF1 timing data for Kimi Antonelli's 1:44.361 pole lap, used for the speeds, gears, braking points and sector figures
La Source as Brembo's hardest braking point in 2023, with 4.2 g and 133 kg on the pedal
The barrier and run-off changes at Raidillon for 2022 after Anthoine Hubert's crash
Jolyon Palmer's quotes on Pouhon and the Bus Stop
History of Spa-Francorchamps
Spa has held car races since 1922, and the modern lap still uses Eau Rouge, Raidillon, and Blanchimont from the original 14.1km course that Formula 1 left after 1970.
Circuit history including the 1921 race that never ran, the 1939 Raidillon sweep, the 1979 shortening and the 2022 gravel traps.
Timeline from the 1922 opening through the last race on the old course in 1970 and the 2007 pit rebuild.
Official turn numbers and corner names used in the lap guide, from La Source to the Bus Stop.
How Much Does Spa-Francorchamps Cost?
There's no reliable build cost for Spa-Francorchamps, which grew out of public roads in the Ardennes. The biggest investment is an €80m ($91.1m) ten-year upgrade plan from 2020, and about €25m ($28.5m) of it was spent before the 2022 race. The hosting fee has never been published, but Belgian reports put the cost of the race at €23.5m-28m ($26.8m-31.9m) a year from 2023 to 2025, and the Walloon government covers the promoter's losses.
How Much Did Spa-Francorchamps Cost to Build?
There's no reliable published figure for the original road circuit or for the shorter permanent layout of 1979. The biggest published spending dates from 2020, when the circuit announced an €80m ($91.1m) ten-year plan funded by €21m ($23.9m) of its own money, a €29.5m ($33.6m) bank loan and €29.5m ($33.6m) from Sogepa, the Walloon government's investment company. About €25m ($28.5m) went on work finished before the 2022 race, including more run-off at Raidillon and gravel at La Source, Les Combes and Blanchimont. A €40m ($45.6m) plan for 2024-2028 is funded by the circuit itself. The 2024 resurfacing of almost half the track had no published cost.
How Much Is the Belgian Grand Prix Hosting Fee?
No official figure has been published. The Belga news agency put the "price of the stage" at €23m-25m ($26.2m-28.5m), and in January 2024 it reported the cost of the race rising from €23.5m ($26.8m) in 2023 to €28m ($31.9m) in 2025. GPblog reported those figures as the hosting fee, and GPFans had put the fee at about €20m ($22.8m) a year in 2019. The promoter, Spa Grand Prix, is wholly owned by the Walloon regional government, which covers its losses, €3.2m ($3.6m) in 2023, and says it wants to cut that support by 2029. The fee in the rotation deal to 2031 hasn't been disclosed. Spa sits out 2028 and 2030.
The €23.5m, €25m and €28m race costs, Walloon ownership of the promoter and the €3.2m loss cover in 2023
Belga's €23m-25m price of the stage
The €23.5m-28m series reported as the hosting fee
The fee of about €20m a year reported in 2019
The Walloon plan to reduce public support by 2029
The rotation deal, with races in 2026, 2027, 2029 and 2031
The deal to 2031 and the years Spa sits out, 2028 and 2030
The €80m ten-year plan and its €21m, €29.5m and €29.5m funding split
About €25m of work before the 2022 race, including run-off and gravel
The €40m five-year plan funded by the circuit
The 2024 resurfacing of almost half the track
How Much Are Belgian Grand Prix Tickets?
A three-day Bronze general admission ticket for the 2027 race costs €215 ($245), and numbered grandstand seats start at €365 ($416) in Silver 5. The top regular grandstands are the covered Gold 1 opposite the pits and Gold 8 over the start at €895 ($1,021), while Gold 2 Premium at Eau Rouge reaches €1,182 ($1,348). Hospitality starts at €2,095 ($2,389) for Campus Automobile. On 2027 prices Spa is the 11th cheapest of the 23 races in our ticket price table.
Spa-Francorchamps and Belgian Grand Prix Questions
At Spa-Francorchamps, Eau Rouge is the kink at the bottom of the valley where the track crosses the stream of the same name, and Raidillon is the steep climb that follows it. Most fans call the whole left-right-left sequence Eau Rouge, but only the first part really carries that name.
Spa-Francorchamps mixes long full-throttle stretches with a technical middle sector, so no single wing level suits the whole lap. More downforce helps through Pouhon and Fagnes but costs speed on Kemmel and the run to the Bus Stop. Teams settle somewhere in between, and the 2026 pole car still reached 336km/h.
The Spa-Francorchamps lap is 7.004km long and runs up and down a valley, so rain can hit one sector while another stays dry. A forecast for one town doesn’t describe every corner. Rain was reported approaching during the 2026 formation lap, yet the race itself stayed dry and nobody needed wet tires.
Yes, the Belgian Grand Prix is on the 2027 calendar for July 23-25, a week before Hungary. It’s a standard weekend without a Sprint, so qualifying on Saturday sets the grid for the 44-lap race on Sunday. Belgian Grand Prix tickets for that weekend are already on sale.
Spa-Francorchamps measures 7.004km, the longest lap in Formula 1, and the Belgian Grand Prix covers 308.054km over 44 laps. Sergio Perez holds the race lap record with 1:44.701 from 2024. The 2026 fastest lap, by Lando Norris, was more than four seconds slower.
The Belgian Grand Prix has no published hosting fee, but Belgian reports put the cost of the race at €23.5m ($26.8m) in 2023, rising to €28m ($31.9m) in 2025. The promoter is owned by the Walloon regional government, which covers its losses, and the current rotation deal runs to 2031.
There’s no published build cost for Spa-Francorchamps, which began on public roads in the Ardennes and switched to its shorter permanent layout in 1979. The biggest recent spend is an €80m ($91.1m) ten-year upgrade plan from 2020, with about €25m ($28.5m) of work finished before the 2022 Belgian Grand Prix.