Oscar Piastri has beaten Max Verstappen to pole position for the sprint race at the Belgian Grand Prix as Red Bull began its first Formula 1 race weekend since the firing of Christian Horner as team principal.

Max Verstappen doesn’t think Christian Horner’s firing at Red Bull “will matter at all” amid speculation that he could leave the team after this season

For Hamilton, who joined Ferrari in 2025 aiming to fight for wins and titles, the result was a bitter setback. Ferrari’s early elimination in SQ1 added to the unwanted record books, especially as the team had never before been knocked out in the first segment of a Sprint Qualifying session.

Hamilton said it's ‘crunch time’ as he and Ferrari try to regain contender status and hunt for his eighth world championship.