Kimi Antonelli Menangi GP Belgia Usai Lewis Hamilton Tabrak George Russell

Pembalap Kimi Antonelli berhasil menjuarai balapan Formula 1 Grand Prix Belgia pada Minggu, 19 Juli 2026, sekaligus memperkokoh posisinya di puncak klasemen sementara kejuaraan dunia.

Kemenangan Antonelli diwarnai insiden tabrakan pada lap pembuka di tikungan tiga selepas trek lurus Eau Rouge yang melibatkan dua mantan rekan setim, Lewis Hamilton dari Ferrari dan George Russell dari Mercedes. Hamilton menabrak ban Russell hingga mobil Mercedes tersebut berputar dan tersangkut di area kerikil, yang memaksa Russell keluar dari balapan dan memicu keluarnya safety car.

Pengawas balapan FIA kemudian menjatuhkan hukuman penalti lima detik kepada Hamilton karena dinilai menjadi penyebab tabrakan tersebut. Kendati demikian, Ferrari menerapkan strategi cerdik dengan meminta Hamilton menjalani hukuman penalti saat periode virtual safety car berlangsung untuk meminimalkan kehilangan waktu.

Sesaat setelah insiden tersebut terjadi di lintasan, Hamilton memberikan pembelaan awal melalui radio komunikasi tim terkait situasi di depannya.

"Car crossed over in front of me. I was right behind another car so I had no front end," kata Lewis Hamilton, Pembalap Ferrari.

Di sisi lain, Russell mengaku sangat kecewa karena kegagalan finis ini merusak peluangnya dalam perebutan gelar juara dunia. Russell mengungkapkan rasa frustrasinya atas masalah teknis daya baterai turbo yang drop sebelum insiden kecelakaan terjadi.

"When it happens so often you just get used to it. I made a great first corner and I was tucked up right behind (Red Bull’s Max) Verstappen but for whatever reason the battery decided not to recharge at Turn One. I exited the first corner 35% down because of that, and it didn’t charge, I had a boost problem, the turbo didn’t sort itself out, so no power, and I got to the top of Eau Rouge with 0% battery and quite frankly it was dangerous.

I got swamped by three cars and I shouldn’t have been in that position in the first place, and that is why I am most angry. The incident with Lewis was a racing incident. He didn’t do it on purpose.

He was more to blame than I, but he didn’t do anything reckless," ujar George Russell, Pembalap Mercedes.

Sementara itu, rekan setim Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, sempat diselidiki atas benturan dengan Oscar Piastri dari McLaren di lokasi yang sama. Namun, FIA memutuskan tidak mengambil tindakan lanjutan karena kerusakan minimal dan kedua pembalap bisa melanjutkan lomba.

Dilansir dari motorsport.com, kepala tim McLaren Andrea Stella menilai performa Piastri pada musim 2026 merosot ke peringkat enam akibat gaya balapnya yang terlalu rapi untuk regulasi mobil baru.

"I think the drivers are talking about this generation of cars requiring a certain driving style. Basically, if you just try to drive too clean, the lap time doesn't come. You have to attack the car, you have to accept that the car slides, you have to be extremely active.

And this is a driving style that comes more normal to Lando than Oscar. We are working with Oscar to make sure that his natural application in terms of driving input takes these characteristics into account. We have seen this across some other team-mates, like Antonelli and Russell, sometimes Hamilton and Leclerc.

So, I think we will figure this out and Oscar will be able to express the full extent of his talent," kata Andrea Stella, Prinsipal Tim McLaren.

Piastri sendiri mengonfirmasi bahwa kendala utamanya sepanjang akhir pekan di Belgia murni karena karakteristik mobil yang sangat sulit dikendalikan pada batas maksimal.

"I think the struggles I've had today have not been related to that. It's just been a very difficult car to drive and very, very tough. If you can balance it on the edge, then the lap time seems to be there, but balancing it on the edge is pretty tough," jelas Oscar Piastri, Pembalap McLaren.

Pembalap asal Australia tersebut menambahkan bahwa hilangnya daya cengkeram bagian belakang mobil memperparah performanya dalam beberapa seri terakhir.

"A bit of everything, depending on where exactly you put it and which way the wind is, what kind of corner you're in. It's not one kind of clear problem, which I think when you've got struggles with a bit of everything, it's probably that that's just what the car is capable of and extracting any more out of it is... You just need more downforce really.

But the rear of the car has definitely been a challenge the last couple of weekends in particular. Obviously today it's been quite windy, Silverstone was quite windy, so I don't know if that's added to the challenge, but it's definitely not been easy," pungkas Oscar Piastri, Pembalap McLaren.