2026 Belgian GP starting grid after five grid penalties at Spa

Norris dropping to 13th is the headline consequence here — a 10-place penalty for a fourth battery of the season hands McLaren a significant strategic headache at a circuit where overtaking is possible but far from guaranteed. Alonso and Hadjar absorbing 20 and 30-place penalties respectively compresses the back of the grid in ways that make their race largely academic, while Sainz's post-qualifying battery change adding a Williams penalty on top of an already difficult weekend compounds the team's troubles. Antonelli leads the clean grid from Verstappen and Russell, which sets up a genuinely interesting front-end battle with both Mercedes cars bracketing the Red Bull. The sheer volume of power unit penalties — five drivers affected — is a reminder of how aggressively teams are cycling through components at this stage of the season.