Oscar Piastri, McLaren (P2, 18 pts): 9/10
Fresh from his maiden Grand Prix victory last week, Oscar Piastri bounded out of pit lane in Spa and was consistently second quickest in all three practice sessions, even when the weather turned bad on Saturday morning. Finishing qualifying in fifth would have been on the low end of his expectations, but still gave him plenty to work with on Sunday. Lando Norris' error at La Source obligingly handed Piastri a place at the start, and a longer second stint saw him lead for four laps mid-race. He was back in fourth again after his final pit stop but effortlessly dispatched Charles Leclerc to put himself on the podium. He came close to catching the two leading Mercedes in the final laps but never found the chance to pick them off before the chequered flag. Instead it was George Russell's subsequent disqualification that promoted Piastri to P2, a most satisfying way to finish off what's been a breakthrough spell for the Aussie sophomore.
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (P1, 25 pts): 9.5/10
When Lewis Hamilton won at Silverstone at the start of July, there was a sense that it was a fairy tale way for him to finish his time at Mercedes. Even with Mercedes looking so much better now, it was hard to imagine another race win before Hamilton packs his trunk for Maranello. And yet just two races later, here we are with the seven time world champion picking up his 105th Formula 1 career win. It was the last thing he (or the team, or the fans, or any of us here at F1i Towers to be honest) was expecting after a subdued start in practice on Friday. Even when he netted P3 on the grid for the race you could tell that no one felt Mercedes had much of a chance of winning on Sunday. But watching Hamilton brutally dismiss Sergio Perez at La Source at the start, and a lap later take care of Charles Leclerc along the Kemmel Straight, it was like we were watching a highlights package from Hamilton's title-winning years. In the end it looked he had lost out on victory - rather unfairly, in way - to a fortunate strategy call by George Russell. Could Hamilton have made a late bid to pass his team mate? Maybe, but it would have been at the cost of a Mercedes 1-2 with Oscar Piastri so close behind. So he let it pass, accepted second place, and got his just reward from the stewards a couple of hours later. Because without doubt, he really was a worthy winner in Spa this week.
