Freddie Slater weathered a chaotic storm at the Belgian GP to secure his second consecutive pole position in a dramatic, rain-shortened qualifying session.
Prema Racing took early advantage of the looming weather to head the queue, but a rapid game of musical chairs saw MP Motorsport’s Tuukka Taponen and Rodin’s Pedro Clerot trading fastest sectors before Slater locked in the definitive 2:05.150 benchmark.
Friday at the Belgian GP so far
Trident driver Freddie Slater set the pace during Free Practice at the Belgian GP, leading a highly competitive field ahead of qualifying.
The 40-minute session saw constant leaderboard changes as teams dialed in their setups.
Theophile Nael and Alessandro Giusti exchanged early fastest laps before Tuukka Taponen jumped to the top of the order.
Maciej Gladysz briefly claimed the provisional P1 spot for ART Grand Prix, but Pedro Clerot and then Slater quickly bettered his benchmark. Slater’s time of 2:06.311 ultimately proved unbeatable.
Following a mid-session lull where the field returned to the pitlane, drivers emerged for a final run.
Traffic in the final sector hampered late improvements, though Nael managed a late jump to secure second place overall, just ahead of Clerot in third.
Green light for Qualifying
The weather update for rain set the tone for a high-stakes qualifying session at the Belgian GP, where timing and track position proved everything.
Anticipating the incoming weather, Prema Racing held the early advantage by positioning their trio of drivers at the front of the pitlane, ensuring they were the first to launch into flying laps.
The urgency was echoed across the radio waves, with Rodin Motorsport engineer warning Pedro Clerot that his very first lap would be crucial with rain looming.
The initial run saw a rapid flurry of improvements as the fastest time continuously changed hands.
Tuukka Taponen initially went purple through the opening sector to hit the top of the timesheets, but his benchmark was short-lived.
Freddie Slater quickly usurped the position, posting a blistering 2:05.150 to clear the field by two-tenths of a second.
As Slater and the rest of the pack pushed on for a second attempt, the weather took over.
The rain began falling heavier by the second, rapidly changing track conditions.
Teams scramble to warn their drivers, with Callum McLaughlin receiving a radio message that heavy rain was arriving in a matter of minutes.
Drivers visibly struggled to find time in the final sector as grip levels vanished, cementing the early lap times and leaving Slater at the head of the order.
The final shootouts trigger a red flag
As conditions began to worsen again, a clear split in strategy emerged; some drivers elected to head back out while others remained in the garage.
This late-session scramble led to severe traffic in the middle sector as drivers desperately format-jostled for position in the final moments.
Right on cue, a major multi-car collision triggered an immediate red flag after the drivers came out of the pits.
The incident occurred as drivers fought hard for track position before their fast laps, resulting in contact involving Noah Stromsted, Yevan David, Hiyu Yamakoshi, Valentin Garfias, and James Wharton.
The rest of the grid returned to the pitlane while the rain intensified – with 9:38 minutes left on the clock.
Qualifying will not be resumed
The qualifying clock continued to count down with under eight minutes remaining as heavy rain persisted over the Spa-Francorchamps circuit.
With track conditions showing no signs of improvement, Race Control officially confirmed that the session would not be resumed.
The early stoppage solidified the order from the opening minutes, meaning Freddie Slater secured pole position for the second consecutive weekend, followed by Taponen and Yamakoshi.
READ MORE – Formula 3 Belgian GP – Qualifying results
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