The Overview II

Streaking through Eau Rouge on lap six, Kevin Magnussen’s Renault lost downforce over the brow at high speed, its rear braking away and throwing the car backwards into the barriers. The impact was beyond vicious. Magnussen was able to climb from the devastation with only a minor cut, but the race was red-flagged so that the barriers could be repaired. Stopping the race meant that every team’s race strategy was “reset”. Driver’s reading the degradation of their soft and supersoft tyres opted to switch to the harder-wearing medium compound.

It should have been, for all intents, a new race. The tyres had other ideas.

At the restart, Rosberg, on mediums, took control of the gap back to the quick Ricciardo, but the Red Bull driver eventually suffered tyre problems as the high ambient temperature and the long laps had everyone fighting tyre blistering and graining. Even with another round of tyre stops, the script was set as Rosberg rolled on to victory with no opposition. Ricciardo finished second, 14.1 seconds back, his third podium succession. Third fell to a heroic Lewis Hamilton who drove from 21st to third, gaining valuable points while magnificently offsetting the “penalties” set up by Mercedes’ upgrades. The world champion now has 232 points to Rosberg’s 223 and Ricciardo’s 151.

Fourth place went to Hulkenberg ahead of his Force India teammate Sergio Perez. Vettel battled back to sixth after scrimmages with Verstappen, Massa and then Alonso, who finished seventh for McLaren. William’s Valtteri Bottas captured eighth, one place ahead of Raikkonen. Felipe Massa’s second William’s grabbed the last point in tenth, while Verstappen’s recovery left him outside the points in eleventh.