Charles Leclerc Believed He Could Win the Belgian Grand Prix Until Kimi Antonelli Passed Him With Ten Laps Left

• Charles Leclerc finished second at the Belgian Grand Prix after briefly leading, saying afterward that he believed in the win until Kimi Antonelli passed him with ten laps remaining
• Leclerc’s podium came one week after his Silverstone victory, tightening the championship battle as he moved to within 28 points of George Russell
• Team principal Fred Vasseur said Ferrari was not expecting such a strong result at a circuit that does not suit the car, and defended Lewis Hamilton against his penalty for the collision with Russell

Charles Leclerc has conceded that he “believed in the win until the end” of the Belgian Grand Prix, a race that saw him surge into contention before finishing close behind Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli.

Coming off the back of victory last time out at Silverstone, Leclerc had faith that Ferrari could take the fight to Mercedes again at Spa-Francorchamps, even after a frustrating setback in qualifying, when a yellow flag slowed his final lap and left him starting fourth.

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A Late Yellow Flag, Then a Fight Back Through the Field

Leclerc shook off his qualifying disappointment by passing George Russell on the opening lap to move into third, then chased down Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to take another position. Verstappen fought his way back through, leaving Leclerc in a nervy scrap with Oscar Piastri’s McLaren that left the McLaren with damage.

Leclerc escaped the incident without punishment, and Ferrari made the most of a Virtual Safety Car by calling him into the pits and sending him back out in front of Antonelli.

‘I Believed in the Win Until the End’

“I believed in the win until the end,” Leclerc said after eventually losing the lead to Antonelli with ten laps remaining. “We had a little bit of luck obviously with the VSC at the right time for us but the pace was relatively strong.”

Leclerc pointed to a specific handling issue that cost him time in the closing stages. “There’s been some five, six laps on the hard where I’ve been struggling with the front axle and then it came back a little bit,” he explained. “I felt better with the car, there’s still some work to do but surely it’s a step forward.”

A Podium That Reshapes the Championship Fight

Russell failed to score after his race-ending collision with Hamilton, and Leclerc’s podium tightened the battle in the Drivers’ standings. He now sits 28 points behind Russell and 33 off his own teammate, having climbed from fourth on the grid to second at the flag one week after taking his first win of the season at Silverstone.

The result arrived even as Ferrari chose not to introduce any upgrades for the weekend, a rare call for a team pushing to close the gap to Mercedes.

Vasseur Sees Progress, and Defends His Other Driver

Team principal Fred Vasseur said the result had exceeded expectations at a circuit that historically has not suited Ferrari’s car. “I think overall, it’s a very strong result for the team. We were not expecting this kind of result at Silverstone and Spa due to the layout of the track,” Vasseur told F1 TV.

“We had good results. I think overall as a team, we did a good job with execution, good strategy, good pit stop,” he said. “I think on the chassis side we are doing a strong job, we are bringing upgrades. It’s paying off, small steps but small step by small step, we are catching up.”

Vasseur also spoke up for Hamilton, who was handed a five-second penalty for his opening-lap collision with Russell. “I think it’s a bit harsh because it’s Lap 1, so far into the season there was no penalty [for similar],” Vasseur said. “If you have a look on the corner at Russell, he had space on the left-hand side. It’s not that he was close to the wall. I think it’s more a racing incident for me.”

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More F1 Reading

• Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar Give Red Bull Its Strongest Weekend Yet as Team Boss Says the Car Keeps Getting Better
• Lewis Hamilton Reveals the 2018 Memory That Made His Heart Sink After Hitting a Ferrari Mechanic in Belgium
• George Russell Blames a Mercedes Power Failure, Not Lewis Hamilton, for His Belgian Grand Prix Title Blow
• Antonelli Holds Off Leclerc to Win 2026 Belgian Grand Prix

Written by

Jack Renn

Jack Renn is an editor at F1 Chronicle and a veteran motorsport journalist with 25 years of experience covering Formula 1 and international motorsport. A member of the Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS), the global body representing accredited sports journalists, Jack has spent his career reporting from paddocks and press rooms across the F1 calendar. His work spans race analysis, technical insight, and in-depth features, giving readers authoritative coverage grounded in decades of firsthand experience at the highest level of the sport.

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