Kimi Antonelli, a 19-year-old Mercedes driver from Bologna, secured pole position at the Belgian Grand Prix on the Spa-Francorchamps circuit with a lap time of 1'44"361. His lap was 0"317 faster than Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and 0"440 faster than Lando Norris (McLaren). Norris, however, served a ten-place grid penalty and started thirteenth. George Russell (Mercedes) recorded the fourth-fastest time, 0"508 behind his teammate, followed by Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) in fifth and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) in sixth, both over half a second behind Antonelli. Thanks to Norris's penalty, Leclerc and Hamilton each gained one position on the starting grid. Completing the Q3 top 10 were Oscar Piastri (McLaren), Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls), Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi), and Isack Hadjar (Red Bull), with Hadjar however forced to start from the back of the grid. After qualifying, Leclerc stated that he had slowed down on his final lap because he spotted a yellow flag ahead of him.

For Antonelli, this was his sixth pole position of the season, a tally that draws him closer to historic figures of Italian motorsport such as Alberto Ascari.

The race, held the following day, was won by Antonelli, his sixth career victory, ahead of Leclerc in second and Verstappen in third. Hamilton finished fourth despite a five-second penalty served at the first pit stop, ahead of Piastri, Hadjar, Norris, and Bortoleto. Russell retired in the early stages of the race. Hamilton was also placed under investigation by the race stewards after the event.

With this result, Antonelli consolidates his lead in the overall championship standings, 45 points ahead of Hamilton in second place. The sixth career win brings him level with Riccardo Patrese as the second most successful Italian driver of all time, behind Ascari on 13. The same number of wins also places him alongside Jacques Laffite, Jochen Rindt, and Gilles Villeneuve in 46th position on the all-time wins list.

After the race, Antonelli said it was wonderful to return to the podium after a series of difficult rounds and described the race as a hard battle with Leclerc. He added that he had always had the right momentum but had been unable to deliver results for various reasons, and that he intends to seize every opportunity while continuing to maintain his performance level through the end of the year.