Spa

Spa-Francorchamps is the longest circuit on the calendar at 7.004 km, laid out in the Ardennes forest with 19 corners and roughly 100 m of elevation change. Eau Rouge and Raidillon, the uphill left-right-left after the first corner, are the best-known corners in the sport and have been used in every Formula 1 layout at Spa. The Kemmel Straight that follows is the main overtaking area, and Pouhon, taken close to flat-out, and the fast Blanchimont test downforce and driver commitment through the rest of the lap.

The weather adds another layer: it can rain on one part of the circuit while another stays dry, which regularly changes tyre strategy mid-race. The Bus Stop chicane at Turn 19 closes the lap and is the last overtaking chance before the line.

The original Spa-Francorchamps circuit was a triangle of public roads opened in 1921, running through Francorchamps, Malmedy and Stavelot. The Belgian Grand Prix was part of the first Formula 1 World Championship in 1950, won by Juan Manuel Fangio in an Alfa Romeo. The old road circuit was more than 14 km long and very fast, and safety concerns kept the race off the calendar in 1969 and 1971 before it moved to Nivelles and Zolder for most of the 1970s.

A redesign in 1979 roughly halved the length of the track, and the Belgian Grand Prix returned to Spa in 1983 (the 1984 race went to Zolder). Ayrton Senna won five times here between 1985 and 1991 and Michael Schumacher won six, including his first Formula 1 victory in 1992. The current 7.004 km length dates from the 2007 modifications; there was no Belgian Grand Prix in 2003 or 2006.

The 2024 race was won on the road by George Russell but he was disqualified for a car underweight, and Lewis Hamilton was declared the winner. In 2026 Kimi Antonelli won for Mercedes from pole position.