Championship Contenders Fail in Spa, Wehrlein Wins Again

Qualifying:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Q1	Q2	Diff.
1	57	Dean Stoneman		2:03.906	1:48.156
2	6	Artem Markelov		2:03.818	1:48.170	+0.014
3	94	Pascal Wehrlein		2:04.188	1:48.498	+0.342
4	18	Sebastian Vettel		2:04.187	1:48.530	+0.374
5	39	Sho Tsuboi		2:04.373	1:48.533	+0.377
6	31	Esteban Ocon		2:05.722	1:48.852	+0.696
7	7	Charles Leclerc		2:06.247	1:49.228	+1.072
8	47	Lando Norris		2:06.285	1:48.852	+1.233
9	77	Valtteri Bottas		2:07.105	1:49.514	+1.358
10	64	Dave Cassidy		2:05.582	1:49.562	+1.406
11	70	Sérgio Sette Câmara		2:07.149	1:49.999	+1.843
12	33	Max Verstappen		2:06.028	1:50.006	+1.850
13	29	Roger Ibe		2:05.105	1:50.124	+1.968
14	23	Alexander Albon		2:06.874	1:50.411	+2.255
15	37	Kazuki Nakajima		2:07.494	1:50.820	+2.664
16	13	Pastor Maldonado		2:08.696	1:51.184	+3.028
17	73	Daniel Melrose		2:08.515	1:51.762	+3.606
18	84	Jack Aitken		2:10.492	1:52.906	+4.016
19	4	Robin Frijns		2:09.941	1:52.902	+4.746
20	55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.		2:11.268	1:53.387	+5.231
21	99	Antonio Giovinazzi		2:10.809	1:53.599	+5.443
22	23	Jules Bianchi		2:11.001	1:51.583	+3.427*
23	98	Bradley Dagnall		2:10.007	1:53.631	+5.457
24	26	Robert Shwartzman		2:06.905	No Time	+18.749

* 5-place grid penalty for causing an avoidable accident

Report:

When it was announced that Formula One would return to the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, fans everywhere rejoiced. With a rainy weekend, the dreams of the fans were more than fulfilled with an exciting race.

Qualifying saw Dean Stoneman and Artem Markelov take up the first row and, indeed, those two looked like they would determine the winner. Unfortunately, Markelov made a rare error and retired and Stoneman had a technical problem.

Pascal Wehrlein was left to pick up the pieces, putting Esteban Ocon and Lando Norris at distance to secure his second career victory. However, even he would agree he was not really the main story after the race had calmed down.

The many retirements allowed some unusual names to shine. Sérgio Sette Câmara kept it on the black stuff, the Brazilian fought with Valtteri Bottas and Roger Ibe for fourth spot; it would eventually end in the hands of Bottas and Toyota.

Race:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Time/Retired	Points
1	94	Pascal Wehrlein		53:49.982	15
2	14	Esteban Ocon		+13.288	12
3	47	Lando Norris		+28.959	10
4	77	Valtteri Bottas		+47.716	8
5	70	Sérgio Sette Câmara		+55.191	6
6	29	Roger Ibe		+55.598	5
7	33	Max Verstappen		+60.958	4
8	23	Alexander Albon		+67.012	3
9	64	Dave Cassidy		+74.074	2
10	73	Daniel Melrose		+106.649	1
11	37	Kazuki Nakajima		1 Lap
12	85	Jack Aitken		1 Lap
13	55	Carlos Sainz, Jr.		1 Lap
14	98	Bradley Dagnall		1 Lap
DNF	18	Sebastian Vettel		Accident
DNF	23	Jules Bianchi		Accident
DNF	99	Antonio Giovinazzi		Motor
DNF	13	Pastor Maldonado		Transmission
DNF	39	Sho Tsuboi		Motor
DNF	7	Charles Leclerc		Motor
DNF	57	Dean Stoneman		Electrical
DNF	6	Artem Markelov		Accident
DNF	26	Robert Shwartzman		Accident
DNF	19	Robin Frijns		Accident

Fastest Lap:

Pascal Wehrlein – 1:58.261

Infinite Improbability Drive Of The Race:

Valtteri Bottas – Toyota’s best result of the season was achieved with supreme, yet safe racing.

Reject Of The Race:

Sebastian Vettel – questionable pace and a number of errors really undermine the former champ’s reputation.