While the English-language paddock chatter reads Verstappen’s Red Bull exit clause as a runway to McLaren, Formule1.nl’s Paddockpraat panel is making the opposite case: the smarter technical fit right now is Ferrari.

Charles Leclerc took second at the Belgian Grand Prix 1.952 seconds behind race winner Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes and comfortably ahead of Verstappen in third. Lewis Hamilton was fourth in the sister Ferrari. Oscar Piastri led the McLarens home in fifth; Lando Norris recovered from a grid penalty to seventh.

Ferrari outscore McLaren by 90 points

The constructors’ table underlines what Spa suggested. Ferrari sit second on 285 points, 90 clear of McLaren’s 195. Mercedes lead on 358, Red Bull are fourth on 151.

The Spa numbers were sharper still. Ferrari’s Leclerc-Hamilton pair finished second and fourth, while McLaren’s Piastri and Norris came home fifth and seventh.

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Motorsport Week noted the MCL40 showed qualifying promise but suffered from pit-stop execution issues that blunted its recovery drive.

SF-26 balance impresses at Spa

Verstappen has long preferred a car that turns in quickly and stays predictable at the rear, the philosophy Red Bull have built the RB series around him. Analysis of the SF-26 at Spa described a well-rounded package rather than a peaky one, with good aerodynamic balance, competitive race pace and effective tyre management across both drivers.

Leclerc’s second place was helped by Virtual Safety Car timing, but his pace against Antonelli in the closing stint is what convinced the Paddockpraat crew: Ferrari’s underlying race pace is now real, not a strategy mirage. That is the shape of car Verstappen has consistently outperformed his machinery in.

No obvious Ferrari seat

The Dutch argument runs into one obstacle: Ferrari does not have a vacancy.

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Hamilton is second in the drivers’ standings on 159 points, Leclerc fourth on 126, and both look set for another year at Maranello according to reporting after Spa.

Verstappen himself gave nothing away. Asked repeatedly in Belgium about his future, he told reporters “there’s nothing to say” and added:

“I said already many times that if there was something new, I would say it myself.”

His Red Bull deal runs to 2028 with a performance-based exit clause he can trigger in October.

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Formula 1 heads to the Hungaroring next weekend for the last race before the summer break.

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