F1 grid for the Belgian GP main race to be set by championship order if qualifying washes off

The FIA has officially announced that if the qualifying session at the 2023 F1 Belgian GP cannot be conducted on Friday, July 28, due to heavy rainfall, the main race grid will be set based on the drivers' championship table.

As of now, teams and drivers are struggling to drive even a single clean lap during the first practice session of the race weekend. The entire circuit is extremely slippery, to the point where even the full wet weather tires are not providing ample grip.

Since the Belgian GP has a sprint format, the qualifying session that will set the grid for the main race on Sunday will be held on Friday, a few hours after the first practice session. However, due to heavy rainfall observed by the race stewards, the FIA has decided to set the grid based on the drivers' championship table if qualifying is cancelled.

Aafter the tragic deaths of two F1 aspirants, Anthoine Hubert and Dilano van't Hoff, at Spa-Francorchamps in the past, there were several drivers who were urging the governing body to take extra care. They urged them to not go ahead with the sessions if the weather conditions worsened.

This is a relief to many, as the qualifying session might not take place during the adverse climate.

If this happens, Max Verstappen will automatically get the pole position for the race, followed by Sergio Perez, Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Lance Stroll, Esteban Ocon, Oscar Piastri, Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Nico Hulkenberg, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, Yuki Tsunoda, Kevin Magnussen, Logan Sargeant, and Daniel Ricciardo.

---

Charles Leclerc explains how poor visibility gets when it rains during F1 sessions

Ahead of the 2023 F1 Belgian GP, where there are high chances of rain in almost every single session, Charles Leclerc explained how hard it is for an F1 driver to see anything in front of them.

As quoted by Motorsportweek, the Ferrari driver said:

"Visibility is really difficult to put into words what we are saying, apart from saying we are seeing nothing. We're not exaggerating when we say we don’t see anything, we really don’t see anything when it’s raining."

Whenever an F1 car drivers on a wet track, a massive spray of water is created at the back of the car, disallowing the driver at the back to see anything.