SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium — Formula One champion Max Verstappen won a "cat and mouse" Belgian Grand Prix sprint on Saturday in Red Bull's first race under the leadership of Laurent Mekies following Christian Horner's dismissal.

Lando Norris took pole position Saturday for Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix after Max Verstappen won the sprint race earlier in the day.Norris set the fastest time early in the final session. His McLaren teammate and title rival Oscar Piastri couldn't quite beat it on his final run,

SportsLine's model analyzes Red Bull's Max Verstappen, McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and the rest of the starting grid's chances at the 2025 F1 Belgian GP

However, the Dutchman failed to take the momentum into qualifying for Sunday's Grand Prix race as he only managed to put his Red Bull fourth, behind Charles Leclerc, Piastri and Norris. It has to be said that Verstappen 's car underwent a set-up change during the break between the sprint and the Grand Prix qualifying.

Lando Norris slipped from eight to nine points behind his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri after the Belgian Grand Prix sprint race, but the Briton will be confident of closing the championship gap after beating Piastri to pole position for the main race.

Catch up on our Friday coverage as Spa hosted round 13 of the 2025 Formula One world championship and the Belgian Grand Prix weekend

Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli looked crushed after a disappointing Belgium Grand Prix Qualifying. Antonelli finished 20th in sprint qualifying due to spinning out of control after pushing too hard on his final lap of SQ1. He finished in 17th place for the sprint race, gaining a few places, but was unable to capture any points.

In 2023, Dutch driver Dilano van 't Hoff was killed after a multi-car crash at the exit of Raidillon, just before the Kemmel Straight. Van 't Hoff was racing in the Formula Regional European Championship (FRECA) and the crash also involved Joshua Dufek, Adam Fitzgerald, Enzo Scionti, and Tim Tramnitz.