{"id":806062,"date":"2026-07-16T17:06:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T17:06:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/806062\/"},"modified":"2026-07-16T17:06:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T17:06:11","slug":"f1-belgian-gp-friday-schedule-weather-forecast-and-how-to-watch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/806062\/","title":{"rendered":"F1 Belgian GP: Friday schedule, weather forecast and how to watch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Formula 1 heads to\u00a0Spa-Francorchamps this weekend after Charles Leclerc’s<\/a>\u00a0British grand prix win gave Ferrari<\/a> another sign of momentum in the fight with Mercedes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Kimi Antonelli<\/a> still leads the championship, but his advantage over George Russell<\/a> has been cut to 25 points after a difficult run since Monaco. Spa gives the Mercedes driver a chance to respond at a circuit where he has enjoyed junior success, but also endured a tough rookie weekend last year.<\/p>\n

The Belgian GP also arrives with another major storyline already in place, as Lando Norris<\/a> faces a 10-place grid penalty after McLaren fitted new Mercedes power unit components to his car<\/a>. However, Spa\u2019s long straights and overtaking opportunities should give him a better chance to recover than at many other circuits.<\/p>\n

Spa-Francorchamps is one of Formula 1\u2019s most famous tracks, with long full-throttle sections, major elevation changes, and fast corners including\u00a0Eau Rouge, Raidillon, Pouhon and Blanchimont. This year, it could also pose a major energy management test, with drivers expected to carefully choose where they deploy power through each 19-turn, 7.004km (4.352mi) lap.<\/p>\n

Friday brings two practice sessions, with free practice 1 followed by free practice 2 later in the afternoon. Here is everything you need to know ahead of Friday\u2019s running at the Belgian GP.<\/p>\n

Read Also:<\/p>\n

How can I watch the F1 Belgian GP?<\/p>\n

Broadcast coverage of Formula 1 varies by region. For viewers in the United Kingdom, Sky Sports continues as the championship\u2019s exclusive broadcaster, showing every session live throughout the 2026 season.<\/p>\n

F1 coverage can also be streamed via Sky Go or NOW, with highlights available free-to-air on Channel 4.<\/p>\n

In the United States, Apple TV is the primary broadcast partner for the 2026 season, with all sessions available on the platform following a multi-year deal. F1 TV remains the series\u2019 global subscription streaming service.<\/p>\n

Motorsport.com will provide live coverage and updates throughout the Belgian GP weekend.<\/a><\/p>\n

F1 Belgian GP Friday schedule<\/p>\n

Times local to Spa-Francorchamps:<\/p>\n

Friday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 1 \u2014 1:30pm CEST
Friday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 2 \u2014 5:00pm CEST<\/p>\n

For UK viewers:<\/p>\n

Friday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 1 \u2014 12:30pm BST
Friday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 2 \u2014 4:00pm BST<\/p>\n

For US Eastern Time viewers:<\/p>\n

Friday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 1 \u2014 7:30am ET
Friday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 2 \u2014 11:00am ET<\/p>\n

F1 Belgian GP full weekend schedule<\/p>\n

All times local to Spa-Francorchamps:<\/p>\n

Friday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 1 \u2014 1:30pm CEST
\nFriday, July 17 \u2014 free practice 2 \u2014 5:00pm CEST
\nSaturday, July 18 \u2014 free practice 3 \u2014 12:30pm CEST
\nSaturday, July 18 \u2014 qualifying \u2014 4:00pm CEST
\nSunday, July 19 \u2014 2026 Belgian grand prix \u2014 3:00pm CEST<\/p>\n

Belgian GP Friday weather forecast<\/p>\n

Friday is expected to be warm and mostly cloudy at Spa-Francorchamps, giving teams a useful but not completely straightforward opening day.<\/p>\n

Rain is not expected to be the main issue on Friday, but Spa\u2019s changeable weather is always worth watching. The bigger focus should be on how teams manage the long lap, energy deployment and tyre behaviour across two practice sessions.<\/p>\n

Saturday could bring a greater weather risk for qualifying, while Sunday is currently forecast to be cooler for the Belgian grand prix.<\/p>\n

Belgian GP track facts<\/p>\n

Circuit: Spa-Francorchamps
\nLocation: Stavelot, Belgium
\nEvent: Belgian GP
\nCircuit type: permanent road course
\nFriday sessions: free practice 1 and free practice 2
\nSaturday sessions: free practice 3 and qualifying
\nRace: Sunday, July 19<\/p>\n

Spa-Francorchamps is one of Formula 1\u2019s longest and fastest circuits, with major elevation changes, long straights and high-speed corners that make it a major test of confidence, efficiency and energy management.<\/p>\n

2026 Formula 1 driver and team roster<\/p>\n

Photos from F1 Belgian GP – Thursday<\/p>\n

We want your opinion!<\/p>\n

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?<\/p>\n

Take our 5 minute survey.<\/a><\/p>\n

– The Motorsport.com Team<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Formula 1 heads to\u00a0Spa-Francorchamps this weekend after Charles Leclerc’s\u00a0British grand prix win gave Ferrari another sign of momentum…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":806063,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[441],"tags":[3272,49,48,578,283312,282831,576,577,82,263180],"class_list":["post-806062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-belgian-gp","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-f1","tag-f1-belgian-gp-friday-schedule","tag-f1-belgian-grand-prix","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-sports","tag-weather-forecast-and-how-to-watch"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/806062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=806062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/806062\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/806063"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=806062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=806062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=806062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}