Five things to know ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix

The iconic Spa-Francorchamps circuit is the host for one more race before Formula 1’s summer break - the 2023 Belgian Grand Prix.

Rivalling Austria for the prettiest backdrop on the calendar, Spa is a 7.004 km stretch of motorsport history that many drivers call their favourite track.

The school holiday spirit might be in the air, but before we break up, here are five things to know ahead of this year’s Belgian Grand Prix.

Many hardcore F1 fans will know Spa-Francorchamps is the longest circuit the sport visits and that we've headed to the Belgian track since the first world championship season in 1950.

However, Spa has changed a lot in those 73 years, with the 1950 layout being over double the length of the famous circuit we know today, clocking in at 14.120 km, with a pole position lap time closing in on five minutes at 4:37.

Spa hosted racing far before F1's formal formation, and the original track was longer still at 15.820 km in 1921. Its scheduled first car race that year was replaced by bikes after only one driver registered.

1979 saw a major overhaul that laid the foundation for the circuit we all know and love today, with the length halved to around 7 km and the pit straight moving to its current home before La Source rather than on the run to Eau Rouge.

We've spoken a lot about rain in the last few months with so many weather-affected weekends. However, even if we had enjoyed glorious sunshine in every 2023 round, rain and Spa-Francorchamps go together like Belgium and chocolate.

There are only a few tracks where the region's geography means rain is an ever-present threat, but Spa takes that to another level with a history of seeing parts of the circuit bone dry while others are soaking.

With such a long lap time, especially in the wet, choosing the correct tyre at the right time can see a driver vault up the order on intermediates or wets while others tiptoe around on slicks for three minutes.

The forecasts suggest we're in for a slippery time with rain and showers around every day this week.

Our FW45 has looked its best at high-speed circuits like Spa-Francorchamps, and we head into the weekend hoping to continue our recent run of top-10 finishes at the track.

We don't need to remind you about our last podium trip in 2021 when George Russell's incredible qualifying performance secured a P2 start and P2 finish.

Nicholas Latifi also grabbed us a point that day, with the Canadian's P9 making it two consecutive top-10 races after his Hungarian P7.

Alex secured a Q3 appearance in 2022, and his P9 qualification morphed into a P6 start once the stewards sorted out the gearbox and engine grid penalties for eight of our rivals.

The defensive driving from Albono that day saw him fend off five cars in the final laps for him to take P10 and another well-earned point in Williams Racing overalls.

With a double-podium finish for the Williams Racing Driver Academy in Hungary, our young Formula 3 drivers will look to keep that form up as we head to Belgium for the season's penultimate race.

Runaway championship leader Gabriel Bortoleto could clinch the title one race early, and it's up to the likes of Franco Colapinto and Zak O'Sullivan to stop that from happening.

While our rookie duo of Ollie Gray and Luke Browning continue their F3 education, Franco and Zak are in the chasing pack aiming to close the points deficit to Bortoleto.

Zak is in the prime position to do so, sitting P2 in the standings, with Franco just eight points behind in P6.

F3 has 39 points available at every round, so should either or both of our Academy aces get to within that gap to P1 by Sunday, they'll have a month to prepare for a title showdown in Monza when September comes around.

Spa-Francorchamps isn't just famous in the Formula 1 world. The dedicated circuit sees tyres on track throughout the year as a challenge for drivers in many championships.

It's a popular venue for junior European single-seater series, including the BRDC's GB3 championship, as well as GT and endurance racing, with WEC and ELMS all racing there.

As such, even though it's Logan's rookie F1 season, he's still got plenty of experience racing around the Ardennes Forest in fast cars, having tackled the track through F2, F3, and Formula Renault.

Sarge also boasts success at Spa, with a 2020 win in Formula 3, plus podium trips in 2018 and 2021, and he has a pole position to his name from his 2018 Formula Renault visit.

The recent safety improvements have even seen motorbikes return to the Belgian track, with the FIM Endurance World Championship heading back in 2022 after a 20-year absence.