Formula 1: Piastri clinches crucial Spa victory, extends championship lead to 16 points

Oscar Piastri delivered a commanding performance at a rain-hit Belgian Grand Prix, fending off teammate and title contender Lando Norris to clinch his third win of the season. The McLaren driver now leads the Drivers’ Championship by 16 points, heading into the summer break with momentum firmly in his favour, reported IANS. The race at Spa-Francorchamps was delayed by nearly 80 minutes due to heavy rain, turning the 44-lap contest into a test of patience, precision, and tyre strategy. When racing finally got underway on Lap 5, it was Piastri who seized the moment. Starting alongside pole-sitter Norris, the Australian made an assertive move through Eau Rouge and passed his teammate on the Kemmel Straight before braking into Les Combes. That overtake proved crucial.

As the track dried, strategy came to the forefront. Piastri opted to switch to medium tyres on Lap 12, while Norris stayed out for an extra lap and gambled on hard compounds. The decision saw him rejoin nine seconds behind. Although Norris chipped away at the gap and got within striking distance in the final laps, a lock-up at La Source ended his charge, allowing Piastri to cross the line with a 3.4-second lead. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took the final podium spot, 20 seconds behind the leading McLaren pair. Max Verstappen, who had won the Sprint race on Saturday, applied pressure but ultimately finished fourth, just 1.5 seconds adrift of Leclerc. Further down the field, Lewis Hamilton staged an impressive recovery drive in his Ferrari. Starting from the pit lane, he climbed 11 positions and was among the first to switch from intermediates during the crossover window, eventually finishing seventh. For Piastri, this win is more than just another tick in the victory column—it’s a statement. With the season now at its halfway point, the 23-year-old leads what has become a McLaren-dominated title battle, and he’s looking increasingly like the man to beat. (Inputs from IANS).