2013 Belgian Grand Prix grid

2013 Belgian Grand Prix

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Row 11. Lewis Hamilton 2’01.012
Mercedes
2. Sebastian Vettel 2’01.200
Red Bull
Row 23. Mark Webber 2’01.325
Red Bull
4. Nico Rosberg 2’02.251
Mercedes
Row 35. Paul di Resta 2’02.332
Force India
6. Jenson Button 2’03.075
McLaren
Row 47. Romain Grosjean 2’03.081
Lotus
8. Kimi Raikkonen 2’03.390
Lotus
Row 59. Fernando Alonso 2’03.482
Ferrari
10. Felipe Massa 2’04.059
Ferrari
Row 611. Nico Hulkenberg 1’49.088
Sauber
12. Adrian Sutil 1’49.103
Force India
Row 713. Sergio Perez 1’49.304
McLaren
14. Giedo van der Garde 1’52.036
Caterham
Row 815. Jules Bianchi 1’52.563
Marussia
16. Max Chilton 1’52.762
Marussia
Row 917. Pastor Maldonado 2’03.072
Williams
18. Jean-Eric Vergne 2’03.300
Toro Rosso
Row 1019. Daniel Ricciardo 2’03.317
Toro Rosso
20. Valtteri Bottas 2’03.432
Williams
Row 1121. Esteban Gutierrez 2’04.324
Sauber
22. Charles Pic 2’07.384
Caterham

2013 Belgian Grand Prix

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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91 comments on “2013 Belgian Grand Prix grid”

  1. can we rate this qualifying as a race? because this was the best and most exciting “race” of the year!

    1. ruth517 (@spanishconnection)
      24th August 2013, 14:17

      +1

  2. Oh my god what a qualifying, one of the best qualifying sessions i have ever seen.
    Lewis does it again !!!!!!!!!!!!!

  3. That was a crazy session. Ferrari and Lotus were very unfortunate…

    1. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
      24th August 2013, 14:08

      Extremely. Both had great pace.

    2. it was all about timing the last lap.

    3. @eggry – not exactly unfortunate for Ferrari. Alonso took a spin otherwise he would have crossed the line right behind Hamilton with a chance to take pole. It was his fault really and he has shown in the past that he is not too comfortable in damp conditions. Massa was the first to set a time behind Di Resta and he must have thought job done and took it easy from there no doubt thinking he had had the best conditions for a front row.

  4. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
    24th August 2013, 14:07

    Great qualifying – extra-ordinary drive for Hamilton! And Di Resta looked bullet-proof, but ends uo 5th! and what in the world were Ferrari thinking? they had qualifying and alonso just set one time!

    1. 1992 Peugeot Talbot Sport (@peugeot-905-92-93-le-mans-winner)
      24th August 2013, 14:19

      Ferrari really need to think over their strategy department, every time they are screwing things up. They definitely were in contention of a front row start

    2. FA was running wide in his first run, because KR was trailing him and suddenly ahead.

  5. best qualifying session i’ve seen in a while!
    easily more intresting than the whole canadian grad prix!

  6. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
    24th August 2013, 14:07

    Great qualifying – extra-ordinary drive for Hamilton! And Di Resta looked bullet-proof, but ends uo 5th! and what in the world were Ferrari thinking? they had qualifying pace and alonso just set one time!

  7. Lewis should be thankful that it rained, He had zero chance of pole if it stayed dry as the car has looked awful in the dry all weekend to this point.

    1. Mercedes still would have been fighting for pole in the dry, it’s just that they have quite obviously been working on race pace in practice rather than qualifying and so he probably wouldn’t have been as good as he could be. But, Merc still need to show they have pace in the race now, which I don’t think they have.

    2. Mercedes still would have been fighting for pole in the dry, it’s just that they have quite obviously been working on race pace in practice rather than qualifying and so he probably wouldn’t have been as good as he could be. But, Merc still need to show they have pace in the race now, which I don’t think they have.

  8. Poor di Resta thinking of what might have been.

  9. That Mercedes is a real beast…
    If Lewis/Merc don’t screw this opportunity I can see him winning the title.

    1. That wasn’t beast that was luck. Merc may pray for rain tomorrow from start to finish.

      1. I personally couldn’t care less if it was luck. The amount of misfortune Lewis had at McLaren last season was biblical.

      2. Yeah RB, especially Vettel, have a ton of straight line speed, and have been faster in the dry all weekend. If it doesn’t rain I expect another Vettel win.

  10. I’m absolutely gutted for Di Resta!

    My main interest for this race comes from nowhere near the front though: I’m very intrigued to see just how Ricciardo fares against Vergne as this is one of those rare occasions where both are in a very similar position. That should be an interesting team battle in the race.

    Particular congratulations go to van der Garde, Di Resta and Hamilton for their respective performances!

    1. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
      24th August 2013, 14:14

      @vettel1 Would have been an even more exciting qualifying if Ferrari and Lotus hadn’t been so unfortunate! Alonso, Kimi and Grosjean would have been in contention for the front row as well, going by Q1 and Q2! Lewis was awesome! :D

    2. All said and done though I think it was just a case of Hamilton being very lucky with his timing (Rosberg looked much quicker) and Lotus and Ferrari being a bit too early as you said @shreyasf1fan.

      Nonetheless, I expect both to be good in the race and their is still the chnace of more rain to come so I wouldn’t be too downhearted – I’m sure they’ll recover somewhat ;)

      1. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
        24th August 2013, 14:27

        @vettel1 I was totally hyped after Q2! And then I looked on and Alonso just kept slipping down after 4th on his only time in Q3. Depressing, almost. They may recover, he may recover, but will it be enough to match the all-mighty RB9-1? Nah.

        1. @shreyasf1fan depends on the conditions I suppose – I think it’s going to be a very strategy-based race so it’s just a case of who can pull it off ;) Ideal for me would be Di Resta, Vettel and Webber on the podium (as long as Vettel’s ahead of Webber I’d be happy for Di Resta to win)! :)

          That’s my fandom though and really I’m just looking for a good race above all else!

          1. @vettel1

            I guess you, as a Vettel fan, have found these past four years pretty good :-)

          2. @full-throttle-f1 2010 and 2012 were a bit tense at parts but yes overall it’s been nice :)

          3. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
            24th August 2013, 15:16

            @vettel1 @full-throttle-f1 It’s all been great for Vettel fans these past 4 years. Alonso fans have been contemplating suicide lately :p

          4. It’s not so much the winning that’s great though (it is very nice however and I’d like it to continue!), it’s just seeing good drives from who I think is a great personality

          5. @vettel1 @shreyasf1fan

            Its been 3 loooong years for me :-D

          6. @vettel1
            Do you seriously think Poor DiBesta has a great personality? What drugs are you taking???

          7. @beejis60
            LOL no, I think @vettel1 was talking about Vettel 1.

          8. @beejis60 no no, as @david-a said I’m talking about Vettel!

            I like Di Resta but I’d be naive to suggest he has a great personality haha! Seriously though, the “what drugs are you taking” comment is both unnecessary and terribly cliche.

          9. Very necessary if someone came in saying DiBesta’s personality is great.
            And I guess I missed it was directed toward/about vettel.

      2. “All said and done though I think it was just a case of Hamilton being very lucky with his timing”

        Lol, yeah of course it was luck “@vettel” (who was only a few meters up the road from Hamilton…

        And Rosberg looking alot quicker? the track was drying as the session was counting down the last minutes, everyone was alot quicker until the last lap.

        1. …and I’ve said Vettel was also fortunate, point?

          Rosberg was the only one to beat Di Resta’s time before the final laps – if that isn’t showing superior speed I don’t know what is. You seem to be mistaking the fact that I’m not supporting Vettel in this case, I’m supporting Rosberg.

      3. @vettel1

        Yes.. just like Vettel in Canada.

        1. Not just Canada, its been the case for alot of the Q sessions over the past 3 years where RB/Vettel where known for getting their timing ‘just right’ for him to cross the line at the last possible moment.

          But of course this is Lewis, so he is indeed lucky..

        2. That wasn’t even the last lap in the session.

  11. Most amazing qualifying ever. Race is also going to be similar with Merc,RB,Lotus and Ferrari showing good pace all round.

    Alonso needs to take his chances at the start. Good that he is starting on the clean side.

    Any info on the race pace of the leading teams?

    1. There is no clean side since it’s been raining….

  12. I think I am the only one who disliked the qualifying… Way too much luck involved :/

    1. It’s no luck, it’s rain, strategy and teamwork

  13. Great qualifying. Superb fight between Vettel and Hamilton. Well done Lewis!

  14. C@ck!! Ferrari had good pace but got it wrong on track! So very unfortunate. Alonso and Kimi could have been on the front row today!!

    Cant wait for the race!

  15. This why Spa is the best.

  16. Did Hamilton yet again switched to Rosberg’s setup in the last second?

    1. Does that mean Rosberg does not know how to drive with his own set up. This is what Hamilton has been doing at every qualifying nailing at the last minute sorry last second. Rosberg beats him up until the last run in Q3

    2. Yes but what I think it primarily means is Hamilton doesn’t know how to set up a car properly if that is indeed the case.

      1. @vettel1

        Grumpy vettel :P

      2. But i guess knowing how to set up a car “properly” is irrelevant if you can use your team mates set up and beat him with it.

        1. @kbdavies fair enough, but if you’re teammate was Chilton say you wouldn’t have that luxury – he can’t rely on it :P

  17. Ferrari is just over estimating themselves

    1. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
      24th August 2013, 18:11

      Actually, what is the base of your statement?

  18. Hamilton for win!!

  19. OmarR-Pepper (@)
    24th August 2013, 14:17

    Fernando behind Grosjean… TIME FOR SAMURAI REVENGE!!! ;P

    1. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
      24th August 2013, 14:18

      @omarr-pepper I am not sure if Alonso can affor a one-race ban, though. :p

      1. Shreyas Mohanty (@)
        24th August 2013, 14:19

        *afford

      2. OmarR-Pepper (@)
        24th August 2013, 14:36

        @shreyasf1fan according to FIA logic, he can crash anybody who is not really in the hunt for the title.

    2. +1 But what he should do.

    3. Good that he is behind Grosjean. He can see what the ‘Master of Destruction’ is up to this time.

    4. Teflonso would complain, nothing new.

    5. @omarr-pepper You wish, but I actually am worried about Grosjean whose car does have reverse gear.

  20. Man, what a session, what a lap.

    A little scared this qualifying session might be better than the race.

  21. Not the expected grid!! Well that is what you get from a thrilling qualifying. PDR shouldn’t be that gutted, he did his best and a great place to start from tomorrow and finally as Brundle said ” That’s the difference between the great and the good”, exactly describes Hamilton!!

    1. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      24th August 2013, 14:34

      @akshay the only “unexpected” thing I see is Di Resta and Ricciardo swapping usual places,

      1. in short, what about Alonso and Kimi??

  22. I thought Q3 was probably the best bit, and it would’ve been a corker tomorrow if Q1 had ended with DIR and MAS on the front row and vettel, alonso and kimi at the back of the 10.

    Really hope the weather stays the same for the next 24hrs.

  23. Alonso’s championship is over. It’s a Wrap. Now it’s most likely he’ll have to put up with Kimi next year seeing Ricciardo is 100% RBR . I feel bad for Nando maybe he should go black and yellow. ;)

    1. Don’t be so quick to write Alonso’s title hopes off. At least wait till after tomorrow’s race ;-)

    2. Vergne seems to be doing a better job than Ricciardo, and RBR still has some time to re-think this gamble and choose Kimi (the obvious choice).

      1. +1, not convinced by DR.

  24. I can’t choose one of the Top 3 to prove as Best. Their Teams got the Strategy right and Drivers delivered at best in the Last gasp. Those 3 are Best.

    1. That was Rosbergs pole genius lap in that rain… Hamilton, Vettel and Webber got lucky because it stopped raining. Was no Strategy just poor luck.

      1. If it rains tomorrow Rosberg will have a chance to prove himself.

    2. @harsha I thought Rosberg was massively impressive, just he didn’t have the best of timing for his final run.

      1. Yeah… a lot of people saying bad luck for Nick, but I call it bad timing. In the interviews Webber confirmed he could’ve gone quicker that lap but decided to save the tires & throws everything into the final lap. Rosberg squeezed too early… his & his side of the garage’s call, I’d imagine… not that much luck to it, IMO.

    3. Rosberg has been great in the rain as we’ve seen earlier this year as well. But I think people saying where Rosberg was great bit everyone else was l lucky is a bit misguided. You see, everyone put up better times in better conditions, aka performing under pressure. There’s no luck about it. Everyone had the same time and the same track.

      1. +1. I agree wholeheartedly with this.

      2. @beejis60 I don’t fully agree – your team dictates where and when you feed out on track so it is at least partially down to the team. Also, that means everybody does not have the same track conditions.

  25. super session.. cant wait for tmrw!!

  26. I hope the race will be as entertaining as the qualifying. The one guy I’m actually most interested of is Button, I think he could make some kind of surprise from P6.

  27. Argghh!!!!

    The only qualifying session I’ve missed in the last couple of seasons… and it ends up being a cracker!

  28. Weather report for tomorrow: Cloudy with occasional light rain. Chance of rain 70%.

    Weather is likely to shake up the results in the race just like it did in qualifying. Gotta love Spa! :-)

    Wet weather drivers will shine through tomorrow. Whoever can keep it on the track while going the fastest and make tire switches from wet, intermediate and dry at just the right times will have better chances to prevail. I love it when these driver and team skills come into play in an F1 race. My ideal race tomorrow would be enough wet racing to mix things up and enough dry racing to see some good hard racing.

    If wet, there will likely be a couple of spin-offs tomorrow, let’s hope not at the start. My wild prediction for drivers to excel in the wet-dry would be Hamilton (pole helped, he’ll be ahead of the spray at the start) Vettel ( also up front and sometimes does well in the wet) Kimi (Lotus may not be great in the wet, but Kimi is) JEV (will finish ahead of Ricciardo with his better wet skills), maybe Bottas (can do well in wet) and I think Button will do well (smooth, patient, experienced and starting from a decent position). Final wild prediction (really wild), we may see a Marussia or Caterham finish in the top 10. If so, hope it’s Bianchi.

  29. A lot of talk about the ” luck” of Hamilton but luck doesn’t hustle any F1 car to pole position. Track conditions were the same for everybody, & the usual group of “super soldiers” (Alonso, Vettel, Kimi) had the benefit of cars that behaved the way they wanted to throughout practice & Q1/Q2. The mighty Vettel in God’s own chariot (RB9) was only a few meters up the road! Some questionable calls from the Ferrari & Lotus pit walls for sure, but credit where credit is due. It doesn’t even matter how abysmal & lost he looks on a Friday & even Saturday morning, come that final hot lap in Q3 and Lewis Hamilton will usually get the best out of whatever package he’s got.

    1. luck doesn’t hustle any F1 car to pole position

      Well said buddy….. :D

    2. come that final hot lap in Q3 and Lewis Hamilton will usually get the best out of whatever package he’s got.

      It helps that the “package he’s got” has been the best package in qualifying this year though. As it was last year, come to think of it.

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