Belgian Grand Prix 2021 Preview: Session times, How to watch, channels, & more

It's been a long Summer break, but Formula 1 is finally back, and we couldn't be more excited!

The fastest racing series in the world heads to one of the most beautiful and exhilarating tracks around, Spa-Francorchamps. The home of the Belgian Grand Prix for decades now, Spa is beloved by everyone, and will be covered in orange for the continued fight between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.

What should fans expect for the 12th round of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship? Let's get into it!

A high-speed duel?

Spa has long been a Mercedes playground thanks to its power-circuit nature. However, in 2021 it's looking like Honda is on a level with Mercedes when it comes to ultimate straight-line speed.

Having dominated the speed traps in France, Max Verstappen and Red Bull will be confident of getting into Les Combes ahead of the competition.

F1 2021 Trophy achievement guide tn
expand image
RAGING BULLS: The last two races haven't been kind to Red Bull, can they bounce back?

It's worth noting too, that Lewis Hamilton hasn't had the best of luck at Spa-Francorchamps. He's only won there four times, and three with Mercedes. For him that's a remarkably poor record, and includes his famous 2014 clash with teammate Nico Rosberg.

Verstappen's best finish is third ('18 & '20) at Spa, one of his two home tracks. This year he's almost guaranteed to be on the top two steps though, and with a sea of orange supporting him, he's going to be confident of a sixth victory this season.

Spa-Francorchamps

Spa is one of the best-known and most loved circuits in the world. Set in the Ardennes forest and featuring huge elevation change, it's a rollercoaster of a track.

spa track map
expand image
A FLOWING RIBBON OF TARMAC: Everyone loves Spa

The main overtaking places at Spa are turn 5, the Les Combes chicane at the top of the Kemmel straight, and turn 18, the bus stop chicane.

It's very tricky to get past in the middle sector, but a tyre difference could let someone find an overtake at turn 12.

Of course, that whole sector 2 run is a sensational journey, one that is waiting to catch drivers out. Turn 8 is an understeery nightmare, the wall comes very close at turn 9, ready to grab anyone who is over-ambitious on the throttle. We've seen the gravel on the exit of turn 13 catch drivers out recently too. It only takes being a millemetre wide for your race to end at Spa.

Session times

Let's start with the most important part of any race weekend... When is it on!

Below are the session times for this race weekend.

Session
EST
BST
Track Time
Practice 1 (Friday 27th)
5:30-6:30
10:30-11:30
11:30-12:30
Practice 2 (Friday 27th)
9:00-10:00
14:00-15:00
15:00-16:00
Practice 3 (Saturday 28th)
6:00-7:00
11:00-12:00
12:00-13:00
Qualifying (Saturday 28th)
9:00-10:00
14:00-15:00
15:00-16:00
Race (Sunday 29th)
9:00-10:00
14:00
15:00

How to watch

In the UK viewers will need a Sky Sports F1 package to watch all the Formula 1 this year.

Those that don't have Sky Sports can get limited-time access to the races via NowTV.

In the USA ESPN has exclusive rights to Formula 1, with ESPN2 showing the practice sessions while the ESPN main channel will show qualifying and the race.

Standings

Driver
Team
Points
Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes
195
Max Verstappen
Red Bull Racing
187
Lando Norris
McLaren
113
Valtteri Bottas
Mercedes
108
Sergio Perez
Red Bull Racing
104
Carlos Sainz
Ferrari
83
Charles Leclerc
Ferrari
80
Pierre Gasly
AlphaTauri
50
Daniel Ricciardo
McLaren
50
Esteban Ocon
Alpine
39
Fernando Alonso
Alpine
38
Sebastian Vettel
Aston Martin
30
Yuki Tsunoda
AlphaTauri
18
Lance Stroll
Aston Martin
18
Nicholas Latifi
Williams
6
George Russell
Williams
4
Kimi Raikkonen
Alfa Romeo
2
Antonio Giovinazzi
Alfa Romeo
1
Mick Schumacher
Haas
0
Nikita Mazepin
Haas
0

Support series

Racing alongside F1 at Spa is Formula 3. The junior category has provided awesome racing entertainment, with it's 30-car field and no pitstops. Red Bull junior Dennis Hauger has been dominating the series, sitting atop the standings with 152 points, 63 clear of Jack Doohan.

The F3 racing will be split into three races, two sprint races on Saturday and the feature race on Sunday morning.

The first sprint race will reverse the top 10 from qualifying, while the second sprint will reverse the top 10 from the first sprint race. Sunday's feature race will take the results from qualifying.

The W Series will also be supporting this weekend. With a Saturday race at 3:30pm.

This Article's Topics

Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!

Motorsport
Have an opinion on this article? We'd love to hear it!