Round 14 F1 GFT Driver Rankings: Verstappen wins Belgium GP, P1 and 98 points ahead of the grid
28 August 2022
By Bob Francis, Managing Editor
Go Full Throttle Racing News
Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps — After winning Pole Position in qualifying, Max Verstappen started P14 on Sunday due to an equipment change grid penalty. It was just a few weeks ago before the F1 summer break that Verstappen came from P10 on the grid to win in Hungary. Could he do it again? Simple answer — yes. Red Bull Racing had a dominate day with Verstappen driving through the field for the win, his 9th win in 14 races so far this season. Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez was P2, and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz P3. With the win, Max Verstappen is solidly in P1 in our F1 GFT Driver Rankings, now 93 points up on his competitors. Perez is P2 in F1 Driver Points but Leclerc holds P2 in our GFT ranking model primarily because he has 3 wins vs. Perez with 1.
Lewis Hamilton Gets Airborne
The 7-time champion crashed himself out of the Belgium GP on Lap 1 when he chopped Alonso.
Lewis Hamilton has accepted the blame for his Lap 1 clash with former team mate Fernando Alonso, which saw Hamilton’s Mercedes thrown into the air before he was forced into retirement.
The pair touched, with the impact lifting the rear of Hamilton’s W13 into the air, causing him to smash back down onto the tarmac, the resultant damage forcing Hamilton to retire from the race.
Reflecting on the incident, a downcast Hamilton said: “Looking back at the footage, he was in my blind spot and I didn’t leave him enough space today. Just so sorry to the team.”
The collision led to some choice words from Alonso, who bellowed into his radio: “What an idiot, closing the door from the outside. I mean, we had a mega start, but this guy only knows how to drive and start in first.”
