We take a quick look back at the last race before the F1 summer break in this post title, F1 Review Belgium 2023.

The Belgian Grand Prix may have appeared to introduce a few twists and turns, but the podium was stacked with familiar faces. Max Verstappen worked his way from sixth place to win the race by over 22 seconds. His teammate Sergio Perez crossed the line in P2, making it his best performance since Miami earlier this year.

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Verstappen won his eighth grand prix of the season while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc edged Lewis Hamilton for the final spot on the podium. If you’re looking for a quick recap of this weekend’s race, here’s what you need to know.

A Strong Ferrari Performance

Ferrari had a powerful qualifying performance that saw Charles Leclerc start on pole after Max’s penalty. Despite a great start, the polesitter couldn’t keep a charging Sergio Perez behind. The Mexican driver breezed past the Ferrari before the end of the first sector on the opening lap.

Sainz also had a complicated start and locked up into turn one. This pushed Oscar Piastri (McLaren) into the wall and left the Ferrari with some damage along its sidepod. The damage proved to be too much for the Spaniard to manage as he dropped down the field and eventually retired.

Click here to read a more detailed account of the 2023 Belgian F1 GP.

Trouble for McLaren

McLaren’s updates proved to be powerful around Spa as Piastri challenged Max Verstappen for pole position in the Sprint Shootout. However, a first-lap incident saw the Australian rookie retire from the race.

Lando Norris also had a challenging start and dropped down the field. Despite this, Norris had a great race and worked his way up to finish the race in P7. While the race didn’t pan out exactly how McLaren may have liked, there are major positives that McLaren can take away from Belgium as they look to challenge the top of the midfield for the rest of the season.

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A Tricky Aston Martin

Aston Martin has seen a significant drop in performance over the last few race weekends. This was made even worse by both Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso putting it into the wall at various points of the weekend.

While both drivers managed to finish the race, they were severely off the pace. It’s clear that Mercedes, McLaren, and Ferrari have all brought updates to their cars, allowing them to breeze past the Aston Martins. Alonso finished the race in P5, while Stroll crossed the line in P9. Alonso now finds himself just one point ahead of Lewis Hamilton in the driver’s championship.

The Summer Break

Formula 1 now takes an official break for the next few weeks. In this summer period, work is limited and restricted for all teams. While some teams may want to maintain their momentum, others may see the summer break as a great opportunity to reset before the second half of the season. This also means that you can expect another round of updates coming soon after the break.