Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Spa-Francorchamps, 2021

Rate the race: 2021 Belgian Grand Prix

2021 Belgian Grand Prix

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What did you think of today’s race? Share your verdict on the Belgian Grand Prix.

RaceFans has held polls on every F1 race since 2008 to find out which fans thought of each round of the season.

Join in the latest poll and give your verdict on the race: 10 being the highest and 1 the lowest. Please vote based on how entertaining and exciting you thought the race was, not on how your preferred driver or team performed.

What were the best and worst moments of the race? What was the main thing you’ll remember about it? Rate the race out of ten and leave a comment below:

Rate the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix out of 10

  • 10 (7%)
  • 9 (0%)
  • 8 (0%)
  • 7 (1%)
  • 6 (1%)
  • 5 (1%)
  • 4 (2%)
  • 3 (1%)
  • 2 (4%)
  • 1 (84%)

Total Voters: 386

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1 = ‘Terrible’, 10 = ‘Perfect’

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View more Rate the Race results:

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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131 comments on “Rate the race: 2021 Belgian Grand Prix”

  1. Dutchguy (@justarandomdutchguy)
    29th August 2021, 17:50

    This race gets a 2. That is because Russell podium. Otherwise, this race requires a negative rating

    1. only reason I gave it a 2 as well. lol

    2. Mickey Mouse podium gets negative votes 🤡

    3. Russell sounded like a politician.

    4. Bad day for F1. Farcical “solution” to avoid refunding the tickets, bad decisions and poorly timed, Max shows that he is more interested in himself than anything else, Russell puffs his chest for a podium that he would have not have seen with a telescope had they gone racing…very little to salvage other than the honesty of some drivers.

  2. Maybe this poll should be closed for this occasion?

    1. Maybe they should only accept the first two votes, but stand by the result as if it has any meaning

      1. Only the first two votes or half points – 0.5 to 5.0.

      2. CD (@clipperdael)
        29th August 2021, 17:58

        Two votes in total, which combined should amount to 50%

      3. Ha, good one Will!

      4. I think RF should refund the votes.

  3. Where is the ‘N/A’ option? Since it wasn’t a race.

  4. The worst race ever.

    1. Dutchguy (@justarandomdutchguy)
      29th August 2021, 17:51

      I didnt even see a race

  5. what is there to rate?

    1. Exactly, I did not see a race.

  6. The first time in F1 you get points for qualifying!

    1. There used to be 1 point for pole long ago

      1. No, there used to be a point for fastest lap in the 50s like there is now, but not points for pole. Although there were three points for pole position in Silverstone this year.

        1. Keith Crossley
          29th August 2021, 22:50

          Actually, yes – there once was a point for pole. I’m old enough to remember it, but too old to remember when :-)

    2. That would have been better than to tick a box.

  7. What an utter farce from FIA. Just call the race as cancelled or postponed.

    1. The F1 twitter feed posted, and then deleted, a message confirming “it just wasn’t possible to race today”.

  8. The issue are double and triple headers. Surely with gaps between races this could have been run next weekend. In my opinion a 3pm start time is too late anyway

    1. It is. I do not know why it hasn’t been written into the rulebook that due to weather conditions races could be moved forward for up to 2 hours if it is announced before the next previous session starts. (this could not be worded as “before qualifying starts” because sprint qualifying).

      1. Because the other races would be annoyed…

      2. It’s all about tv numbers. Nascar is really bad with this, multiple Daytona 500s have been postponed because they started too late and knew it would rain

  9. Boooooo ! 😅

  10. There wasn’t enough of a race to rate.

  11. We shouldn’t rate it.

  12. Masi continues to be a disgrace. What a shambles.

    1. Another bunch of Masi’s unacceptable incidents and untrustable lies, here we go…
      – Before Belgium 2021: Masi said that the circuit is still safe enough, when it isn’t.
      – Belgium 2021 qualifying: Session not stopped before Norris crashed.
      – Belgium 2021 race: Handing out points when there was no normal start.

      And one more thing: June 6th, never forget.

  13. What race? Very difficult to rate something which didn’t happen… It’s it really worth keeping the poll open?

    1. Ofc it is, this is the worst race ever, it deserves to get the worst score, be sure I voted 1 and I’m not alone.

    2. Could’ve been a classic if they let them race ofc.

      1. It would have been much more likely to have been carnage, with half the field or more crashed out, a craps shoot with little to no skill, hoping that the driver in front of you who you cannot see hasn’t had an accident or braked earlier than you expected…

  14. I thought about giving it a 10 for the lolz, but I couldn’t…

    Understandable and logical that there was no racing, and as such, there shouldn’t be a podium ceremony or points given. They should’ve cancelled the event…

    I’m not angry at the fact that I spent 4 hours in front of the TV waiting for something, but I’m furious at the prospect of this race affecting a championship that looks that it’s going down to the wire…

  15. Gave it a one as there wasn’t a zero, still better than Monaco this year though

  16. 0 should be included from now on. Truly a cornerstone in F1 history.

    1. The pineapple of motorsport.

    2. There does need to be a 0 option. This wasn’t even a race. I understand the issue of driver safety but they should have just cancelled it and not awarded any points. It’s baffling why there isn’t some minimum number of *racing* laps before a race can be classified a race. I really hope none of the WCC or WDC positions aren’t decided by this mess of an event.

      1. It’s less of a farce if this decides anything than the silverstone accident example.

  17. I sat on the sofa and did absolutely nothing for three hours except one game of chess (which I won, by the way). At least there were some decent BTCC races as small consolation, but if that’s not a one out of ten, I don’t know what is.

  18. 10! Just because realistically, it shouldn’t have gone ahead, and it didn’t, therefore 10, perfect result. There is too much danger at that track and if someone had died in bad weather, F1 would be negligent as there have been many warnings of how dangerous it is.

    Hopefully progress is made on making that track safer, even for good weather, let alone bad weather…

    (really though there was no race.)

    1. Dutchguy (@justarandomdutchguy)
      29th August 2021, 18:03

      then they should have cancelled the race. And earlier. Made a clear statement. It was clear the weather wouldn’t improve soon. They kept everyone waiting for hours and did 3 laps behind the safety car in the end. This was disingenuous.

  19. It should be -10 for that disgraceful 3 lap parade. If you can’t race cancel it. This was a very ridiculous way of hamdling this situation

  20. Which race?

  21. Well, I’ve never given a 1 before because I always knew that no matter how dull a race was, at least it’s better than a race run entirely under the safety car. Today’s the day!

    What a shame. I almost would’ve preferred the race to just be cancelled than run 2 safety car laps. Makes you wonder what the point in that rule is if they can just crawl around and declare an official result.

    Good for Williams though.

  22. 2 because we don’t have to hear how Russell had to let Hamilton pass or lose his contract.

  23. Victor (@victorandrei1999)
    29th August 2021, 17:56

    I have given it a 5. Half points for this one…

    1. Victor (@victorandrei1999)
      29th August 2021, 17:58

      At the end, no one is at fault for the rain.

  24. How do I rate it -1000?

  25. So unpredictable, all those announcements of race updates being delayed and not knowing how many laps they would run behind the Safety Car…
    The clock running, then stopping, then running again…

    Just wow!

  26. You should be ashamed, Michael Masi. In fact, you should be fired!

    1. Dismiss him now.

  27. My guess is that a there is paragraphs in various business contracts that only kicks in if the race is classified. Therefore a result was important.

    But from a sporting perspecive its a joke that points are awarded,

    1. Indeed.
      But this might lead to the bankruptcy of the Spa circuit.

      Lewis is right in saying that the fans should get a refund. But who will pay for it?
      Not FIA
      Not Lewis
      Who’s left? Spa indeed.

  28. Amazing, simply amazing! Congratulations, F1!
    They said you couldn’t top Indianapolis 2005, but today’s ‘race’ was something so special, people will remember it for the rest of their lives.
    A new milestone for F1!

    And Nikita Mazepin answered all his critics by posting the fastest lap of the race under such difficult conditions.

    1. Indy 2005 – “I’m the worst race ever”
      Spa 2021 – “Hold my umbrella…”

    2. Which proves HAAS is really the fastest F1 car. They have been sandbagging all the time

  29. Alex McFarlane
    29th August 2021, 18:00

    10/10, if only every race was this thrilling. A new benchmark for the pinnacle of motor sports.

  30. They really do need a system in place for these circumstances.

    Could they have run the race early?

    Can they run it tomorrow.

    Running 2 laps behind the safety car in qualifying order is ridiculous.

    Nearly as farcical as Indy 2006. 🤮

    1. Indianapolis 2006 was a perfectly fine race! Maybe you mean 2005, and even so they ran all distance at least.

      1. Yes. Typo!

        And yes at least there was some kind of race there.

        I agree with you!

        Driving around neutralised for 2 laps is not a race. A least 6 cars raced each other at Indy.

  31. You show up Monday and put on a proper race. You just make it happen. Everyone at that track today should get full refunds.

  32. I feel like as if these generation of F1 cars aren’t suitable for wet weather running, doesn’t help that the full wet tyres by Pirelli are useless either.

    Biggest farce in years since 2005 Indy, might be even worse.

    1. I was thinking the same. At least communication at Indy was effective and quick, it left us with a horrible show but at least the organization were consistent and provided what could be safely be done without decieving. Here, in spite of having information about the weater and already knowing how the conditions made the race impossible, a show was made making everyone waste 3 extra hours to see a couple of laps behind the safety car. I don’t believe there was any intend to actually go racing in the shor SC period, it was just so F1 could say “there was a race” and were not make to provide refounds to fans or accept even less than 22 races on this calendar.

      Horrible management, if those laps under safety car were done at the begining, at least it could have been excused as an attrmp to clear the track and try to start a race. For me it was bad race direction, one of Massi’s worst managed races and one who left me with a feeling of being treated in a disrespectful manner.

  33. Worse than indy05/ 10

  34. They didn’t even do anything and drivers should’ve at least give quarter points in my perspective.

  35. 1/10. Would have given 0 if I could. What a farce.

  36. Not sure there was a race… rate the last 4 hours of your life?

  37. I’d rate this poll as 1.
    How can you rate a race when there was no racing?

  38. The shortest race which somehow took 4 hours to complete.

    1. Also, 19 cars started and 20 finished.

      1. @netm that is indeed a great stat! Makes this race even more (in)famous!

  39. There was no race to rate.

  40. This new experimental format sucks.. Quali was done with breaks and crashes,

    Sprint race was skipped.

    Race was completed without actual racing?

    And this on the best track of the year, what a missed opportunity.

  41. What a farce. Worse than Indianapolis 2005 result.

  42. In the Rate the Race Top 100, we had this NB:
    NB. No Rate the Race poll was held for the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix due to Jules Bianchi’s crash.

    What it should have been today: “NB. No Rate the Race poll was held for the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix because of no normal start.

    1. That in my opinion is wrong, none of these is a reason to not have a poll.

  43. No race, no points.

    (OK so 1 point as 0 isn’t an option)

    1. Probably should be true of the championship points too…

  44. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU4Hy_B5Joo&ab_channel=FORCE24

    ‘The worse thing ever?

    Masi ‘Hold my pint’.

  45. The shortest “race” in history.

  46. a 1 for sure but half points makes that 0.5

  47. Wet weather fenders designed specifically to reduce spray. Long fenders with multiple screens inside.

  48. Is this a joke ?

  49. The vote needs a zero we didn’t have a Belgium grand Prix today we had a carry on F1 farse. The only reason they drove behind the safety car for two laps was to ensure they could say a race occured and didn’t need to refund the venue and the ticket holders.

  50. Very dirty job by FIA.
    Might lead to financial ruin of the circuit of Spa.

    Spa has to pay to host the race.
    Fans might want to get a return of their money (I would)
    FIA decides to call it an official race.
    Spa probably can’t get money back from FIA and might have to pay back the fans.
    FIA doesn’t lose a dime, instead makes lots of money, but circuit of Spa might go bankrupt.
    They were on a tight budget already and often the Walloon government had to help them out.

    FIA: Fools International
    Shameful!

    1. They wouldn’t get money back from FOM (rather FIA) anyway as it was due to the weather.

      And I understand that Hamilton offered to reimburse the spectators.

    2. Spa won’t *have* to pay back the fans. No matter how unhappy they (justifiably) are, they have no legal grounds on which to demand a refund from the circuit, and the circuit won’t give them one of their own accord.

      1. Sure, legally Spa maybe doesn’t have to pay back.
        But will these fans book a ticket next year if it has been raining the whole summer like this year?
        Or will they wait until the last moment to know for sure it’s going to be good weather?
        Refunding will have an immediate impact on the circuit, not refunding will probably have an impact on the longer term.

  51. So much unpredictability it gets a 10/10! 🤡 Liberty must be proud.

    1. Shoot! Forgot to add FIA, of course.

  52. What an incredible race! Russell earning his first podium at spa in the rain! Mazepin somehow earning fastest lap in the slowest car on the grid! An easy 10/10 and for sure the best race of the year

  53. I’ll rank it with a 4 as for once FIA took a correct decision regarding driver safety.

    The rest (organizations, delays,etc) were ridiculous…

    1. Fans forget Bianchi’s crash where the weather was similar

  54. This was an obvious 1/10. There wasn’t even a race!

  55. Well I have seen more dull races than this one. There was a chance that someone would have crashed v a race where the winner wins by 30+ seconds and there is no overtaking at all.

    1. It’s a conundrum isn’t it.
      Which is the better race?
      One where the winner wins by 30+ seconds and there is no overtaking at all
      OR
      One where the winner wins by less than a second and there is no overtaking at all.

  56. Cannot be postended because the teams can’t reach Zandvoort in time and tomorrow’s forecast is very similar. Maybe they must cancel this race but I’m glad for Russell’s podium. And qualifying was entertaining. 10/2

  57. I gave it a 10 because as a race it was totally unique, like nothing we’ve ever seen before, a one-off.

  58. I was late to the party. Spend the last 30 minutes fast forwarding my tv. What a joy! Love the champagne spraying at the end.

  59. My heart goes out to the fans who were at the track and waited for nothing.. I went to Interlagos in 2003 and it was just as damp (I caught a fever because of it), but at least I saw a race (and what a race that was). Yet, I don’t know how to feel about what happened today. I think that Indianapolis in 2005 was a bigger farce because that was due to a technical issue (tires) that should have been forseen by Michelin. Spa is notorious for bad weather but there is nothing you can really do about it..

    1. In fact, bad weather makes f1 races great, but ofc let’s not race, indeed 2003 brazil was great.

      1. Yes, but Alonso suffered a hideous shunt in which he was lucky not be hit by any car..

  60. One cannot rate the race that was held behind the Safety Car.
    The only action was from Perez in the warm-up lap. Not sure if it worth a point (1/10), but I gave this race a point, because I am asked to rate the race from 1 to 10.

  61. They tried everything to make it work. However you cannot control the weather. A 10 for the effort and for the fans at the track. Also for the qwerty tigers here.

  62. That was incredible. They somehow managed to top Indianapolis 2005 for the biggest farce in recent F1 history.

  63. I’m not voting. There wasn’t a race to rate. Nor award points for

  64. Not sure I liked this new sprint race format with it only being 2 laps long and run behind the safety car.

  65. Reluctantly gave it a 1, which is still too high, for this farce of a “race”. 0 is what it deserves

  66. Easiest points ever earned in F1. Sadly, in future, there will be nothing in the stats to show what a non race this was.

  67. This Poll is an Insult. . .So much money and time lost by the people who stood to gain no profits. You’re seriously asking them to rate the “Race”?

  68. There was no race. So the poll is a bit pointless.

    I think Lewis is going to feel mightily aggrieved if he loses the world championship by less than 5 points i.e. the difference between 12,5 to 7.5.

    All a bit farciical and the stewards have not made a good decision here I don’t think.

    1. > @phil-f1-21: I think Lewis is going to feel mightily aggrieved if he loses the world championship by less than 5 points []

      After what he did to Max at Silverstone? And what his servant Botsass did in Hungary?

  69. This is probably the second worst farce in F1 history, with only the 2005 US Grand Prix exceeding it.

  70. There’s option for zero.

  71. Better not to comment, I’ll give it 1 because there is no 0 as option, according to DaveW.

  72. A lower point for F1 than Indy 2005! At least a 6 car race was a RACE!

    Declaring a result after no racing laps is farcical. Should have been cancelled or postponed.

    What can be learnt from this? Maybe the FIA should have looked to run the race earlier in a better weather window?

    1. I know safety comes first, but I think things are becoming a bit too sanitised. There is no way the rain was anywhere near as bad as Monaco ‘84 or Adelaide ‘91. I remember Spa ‘98, Silverstone ‘08, Fuji ‘07, Estoril ‘85, Donington ‘93, Malaysia ‘12, Korea ‘10. All races run in extreme wet conditions, some worse than what we saw today. What all these races gave us were epic displays of driving talent, I feel that was what we were robbed of today, who was going to rise above the rest with a legendary performance?

  73. In all my years of watching Formula 1, this has to be the worst race I have ever seen that didn’t have a fatality. It was absolutely abysmal in almost every single way, except for Williams bagging some more good points.

    This is a day to forget for the sport. Or something to learn from. Perhaps make the track safer so that we don’t get a clown show like this. The fans deserve a refund.

    1. I don’t rate a race low because there’s a fatality tbh, there was an interesting battle between hamilton and rosberg in the bianchi race, I rate laces low if they’re just bad, boring or there’s some kind of questionable stuff, like penalties that shouldn’t have been there, or that make no effect etc.

  74. didn’t we use to have a “0” slot for this? am I remembering things that never were?

  75. There was no race, only a few laps behind the safety car, if I could have rated it as zero I would have.

    I didn’t think there would be a more farcical Grand Prix than the 2005 US Grand Prix but the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix has taken that crown.

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