Formula 1: Ferrari in position to dominate Belgium; will they finally break through?

Ferrari have been in great positions to secure their first victory of the 2019 Formula 1 season many times, and they’ve blown it every time. Will they change that in the Belgian Grand Prix?

Through the first 12 races of the 21-race 2019 Formula 1 season, Scuderia Ferrari have had the advantage over Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsports and Aston Martin Red Bull Racing at quite a few tracks.

However, coming off of the summer break, the Italian team are still winless while Mercedes and Red Bull Racing have combined to win each of the 12 races that have been contested so far this season.

Every time Ferrari have seemed a big advantage over their competition this season, they have found a way to blow it. Every time. Such was the case during the weekends of the Bahrain Grand Prix, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the Canadian Grand Prix, the Austrian Grand Prix and the German Grand Prix.

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As a result, they have still not won a race since Kimi Raikkonen, who now drives for Alfa Romeo Racing, won the United States Grand Prix on Sunday, October 21, 2018. As a team, their win drought is up to 15 races.

But heading into this Sunday’s race, the Belgian Grand Prix, at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Ferrari are considered the favorites because of the emphasis that the 19-turn, 4.352-mile (7.004-kilometer) road course in Stavelot, Belgium places on straight-line speed, an area in which Ferrari have excelled in what has been a struggle of a 2019 campaign. Sebastian Vettel won this race for the team last season after leading each of its 44 laps.

The first two practice sessions illustrated this advantage that the Scuderia seem to have, and they illustrated that in reality, they should dominate this race.

Vettel topped the speed chart in the first practice session by recording a top lap time of 104.574 seconds (149.819 miles per hour), and teammate Charles Leclerc finished in second place by recording a top lap time of 104.788 seconds (149.513 miles per hour).

Third place driver Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing finished 0.933 seconds (1.325 miles per hour) off the pace by recording a top lap time of 105.507 seconds (148.494 miles per hour).

Leclerc then topped the speed chart in the second practice session by recording a top lap time of 104.123 seconds (150.468 miles per hour), and Vettel finished in second place by recording a top lap time of 104.753 seconds (149.563 miles per hour).

Third place driver Valtteri Bottas of Mercedes finished 0.846 seconds (1.213 miles per hour) off the pace by recording a top lap time of 104.969 seconds (149.255 miles per hour).

The third and final practice session for this race is currently airing on ESPN2. Qualifying is set to air live on ESPNews beginning at 8:55 a.m. ET later this morning.

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Will Ferrari finally secure their first victory of the 2019 Formula 1 season in this Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix? If so, will it be Sebastian Vettel who ends his 21-race win drought, or will it be Charles Leclerc who secures the first victory of his career in his 34th start?

If not, how will they manage to blow this golden opportunity, and which team and driver will be in position to take advantage this time around?

Tune to ESPN2 at 9:05 a.m. ET tomorrow morning for the live broadcast of this race from Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.

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