Max Verstappen posted the fastest lap during the first practice session at the Belgian Grand Prix, clocking a time of 1:47.070 on July 17 at Spa-Francorchamps [1, 2]. Lewis Hamilton finished second, 0.145 seconds behind Verstappen, followed by Charles Leclerc, who was 0.207 seconds slower than the Dutch driver [3, 1, 2].
Isack Hadjar recorded the fourth fastest time but will start the race with a 10-place grid penalty due to exceeding his engine allocation [3, 1, 2]. Similarly, Lando Norris, seventh fastest, faces a 10-place grid drop for surpassing battery usage limits during the session [3, 1, 2]. Oscar Piastri placed fifth fastest but encountered a hydraulic issue late in practice [3, 1, 2].
Kimi Antonelli, the current world championship leader by 25 points over teammate George Russell, was sixth fastest for Mercedes [3, 1, 2]. Russell was eighth in the session, 0.356 seconds behind Antonelli [3].
Red Bull abandoned their recently introduced 'flip-flop' rear wing design for this session, reverting to their standard wing after the new setup caused crashes in recent races [3, 1, 2]. The practice was largely incident-free, with only minor incidents such as Liam Lawson running wide and Lance Stroll briefly entering the gravel trap [3, 1, 2].
The session sets the stage ahead of qualifying and the race weekend at the Belgian Grand Prix, with teams finalizing strategies and adjustments based on the practice times and penalties served.
