Did you know that almost half of the current grid have scored a podium finish at Spa-Francorchamps? Or that the original Spa circuit measured over 14 kilometres in length? Ahead of this year’s Belgian round, we present some fascinating facts and figures...
20
Percentage of Kimi Raikkonen’s F1 career wins taken in Belgium - four of his 20 victories have been at Spa.
2
The number of Belgian drivers to have won a Grand Prix - Jacky Ickx (eight victories) and Thierry Boutsen (three).
1
Number of Belgian-born drivers on the current grid. Max Verstappen races as a Dutch national, but he was born in Hasselt.
3
Number of circuits to have hosted the Belgian Grand Prix: Spa (48 times), Nivelles (2) and Zolder (10).
14,120
The lap distance, in metres, of the original Spa-Francorchamps circuit, host of the inaugural Belgian Grand Prix in 1950.
4m 34.1s
The fastest lap achieved in that race, as recorded by Juan Manuel Fangio in an Alfa Romeo 158.
45
Percentage of the drivers competing at Spa this weekend to have previously finished on the podium in Belgium.
4
The most pole positions achieved by a driver - Juan Manuel Fangio and Ayrton Senna - at Spa-Francorchamps. Lewis Hamilton can match that tally if he qualifies first this weekend. No other current driver has taken pole here more than once.
244.700
The fastest average speed, in km/h, achieved over a single race lap in Belgium, as set by Chris Amon in a March in 1970.
3h 3m 46.3s
Longest ever race time for a Belgian Grand Prix - the 1952 event at Spa, won by Ferrari’s Alberto Ascari.
37
Total pit stops made in last year’s Belgian Grand Prix.
8
Number of drivers to finish the 1998 Belgian Grand Prix, following opening-lap pile-ups on both the original race start and the resulting restart.
21
Number of Belgian drivers to have contested a Formula One Grand Prix, the most recent being McLaren reserve Stoffel Vandoorne, who stood in for the injured Fernando Alonso in Bahrain earlier this year.
28
Percentage of throttle typically applied by a driver through Spa-Francorchamps’ famous opening corner, the second-gear La Source hairpin.
