Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari mechanics are facing a race against time to repair his car for Belgian Grand Prix Qualifying following a crash during the final practice session. The session was once again dominated by Mercedes’ championship leader, Kimi Antonelli.
Hamilton, who was running in fifth place, was on a flying lap in the final moments before the 3pm qualifying session began when he drifted wide across the gravel at Turn 13. The car’s right rear made contact with the barrier, mirroring Pierre Gasly’s Alpine crash at the same corner on Friday.
“I’ve destroyed the car, mate,” Hamilton lamented over the team radio. “I’m sorry.”
With the damage to the SF-26 being too severe to drive back to the pits, Hamilton was forced to stop on track and was seen inspecting the damage personally after exiting the cockpit.
Antonelli enters Qualifying as the heavy favorite for pole position after securing the top spot for a second consecutive session.
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Despite seeing his championship lead compressed to 25 points recently, Antonelli has demonstrated immense pace at the historic circuit. He showed a significant advantage mid-way through the session, lapping 0.7s faster than the field. However, his final margin over second-placed Lando Norris and third-placed Max Verstappen narrowed to 0.1s following his final soft-tyre run.
George Russell finished in fourth, just 0.3s behind his Mercedes teammate, ahead of the Ferrari duo of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
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