Oscar Piastri has beaten Max Verstappen to pole position for the sprint race at the Belgian Grand Prix as Red Bull began its first Formula 1 race weekend since the firing of Christian Horner as team principal.

Laurent Mekies didn't get long to settle in as Red Bull team principal on his first Formula 1 race weekend leading his new team

A new Red Bull era begins under Mekies at this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix. He was appointed after 18 months at Racing Bulls. He worked at Ferrari for five years, as deputy team principal and racing director, and at the F.I.A., which governs Formula 1, for four years, initially as safety director and then deputy race director.

Red Bull have introduced a new front wing configuration at the Belgian Grand Prix, which features changes to the camber and incidence of the mainplane and secondary flap, with the most obvious visual changes to be found in the outboard section (green arrows), whereby there’s some small changes to the twist geometry.

New Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies stressed that four-time Formula One champion Max Verstappen is "central" to the project of bringing the team back to the top. "Max is central to the project and he's key to the project and we need his magic at the racetrack.

Red Bull Formula 1 chief engineer Paul Monaghan has admitted Christian Horner’s sacking was a “shock”, and acknowledged boosting the squad's fortunes would be tough for new CEO Laurent Mekies.

New Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said he is making it his mission to provide Max Verstappen with a competitive car to remove any doubts of seeking a move away.

Formula One's Spa weekend marks a new start for Red Bull and reigning world champion Max Verstappen as the team go racing for the first time without Christian Horner at the helm.

Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda have spoken up about the upcoming race at Spa Francorchamps with new Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies.