Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
Spa-Francorchamps is the long, fast, hilly track in the Belgian Ardennes that drivers talk about with real affection, home of Eau Rouge and Raidillon, of the Belgian Grand Prix and the 24 Hours of Spa, and of weather that can be sunny at one end of the lap and pouring at the other. Here’s everything you’ll want to know before you go or before you fire it up in a sim: the name, the history, a corner-by-corner lap, the lap records, the 2026 and 2027 race dates, the weather by season, and how to drive it yourself.
Spa-Francorchamps at a Glance
Length 7.004 km / 4.352 mi Grand Prix layout, used since 2007
Turns 19 run clockwise, from La Source to the Bus Stop chicane
Elevation change About 100 m / 330 ft one of the hilliest tracks on the F1 calendar
First races 1921 motorcycles first; the first car race followed in 1922
Location & owner Francorchamps, Belgium run by Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps SA, mainly owned by the Walloon region
Race lap record 1:44.701 Sergio Pérez, Formula 1, 2024
Spa or Francorchamps?
The full name is Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, but nearly everyone just says “Spa.” That’s a little misleading, because the track isn’t in the spa town of Spa at all. It sits next to the village of Francorchamps, in the municipality of Stavelot, about 10 km from Spa, in the hills of the Ardennes in eastern Belgium.
The original circuit was a huge triangle of public roads between Francorchamps, Malmedy and Stavelot, nearly 15 km long. Today’s 7.004 km track keeps the most famous part of that triangle, including Eau Rouge, La Source and Blanchimont, and adds a newer section built in 1979 to cut out the fastest, most dangerous public-road stretches.
It’s still the longest track on the Formula 1 calendar. The circuit is run by Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps SA, a company whose main shareholder is the Walloon region, alongside the province of Liège, nearby towns and Belgian motoring clubs.
Spa-Francorchamps History
Spa is one of the oldest tracks still in use, and it has been part of Formula 1 since the very first world championship season in 1950. Its long, fast public-road layout made it a legend and a danger in equal measure, and the story of the last 50 years is about keeping the character while making it safer.
- 1921 The first car race is planned for August, but only one driver enters, so a motorcycle race runs instead. Cars follow in 1922.
- 1924 The first Francorchamps 24 Hours, the ancestor of today’s 24 Hours of Spa, is held.
- 1939 The Eau Rouge and Raidillon climb is built, cutting out the old Ancienne Douane hairpin.
- 1950 Juan Manuel Fangio wins the first Belgian Grand Prix of the Formula 1 world championship, for Alfa Romeo.
- 1970 After drivers boycott the 1969 race over safety, Pedro Rodríguez wins the last F1 race on the 14 km road circuit.
- 1973 Henri Pescarolo sets the old circuit’s race lap record, 3:13.4, at an average of more than 260 km/h (160 mph).
- 1979 The new, shorter circuit of about 7 km opens.
- 1983 Formula 1 returns to Spa, and Alain Prost wins for Renault.
- 2003 After years of partly using public roads, Spa becomes a fully permanent circuit.
- 2007 After a year off in 2006, F1 returns on today’s 7.004 km layout, with a rebuilt Bus Stop chicane.
- 2019 Anthoine Hubert is killed in a crash at Raidillon during the Formula 2 race.
- 2022 Major safety work adds wide run-off at Raidillon, brings back gravel traps around the lap and adds new grandstands.
- 2025 A new deal keeps F1 at Spa through 2031, on a rotation: races in 2026, 2027, 2029 and 2031.
- 2026 Kimi Antonelli wins the Belgian Grand Prix from pole on July 19, ahead of Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen.
Michael Schumacher holds the record for F1 wins at Spa, with six. He also scored his first-ever Grand Prix win here, in 1992.
Eau Rouge and Raidillon at Spa
Out of La Source, the track plunges downhill to a small stream, the Eau Rouge (“red water,” for the iron in it). Strictly speaking, Eau Rouge is just the quick left kink at the bottom. The steep right-left climb that follows is Raidillon (“steep path”). Most people call the whole thing Eau Rouge, and it’s one of the best-known sequences of corners in racing.
Turns 2–4
Left, right, left
A downhill left kink at the bottom, then a steep, blind right-left up the hill.
About 17–18%
Climb
The gradient up Raidillon, one of the steepest climbs on any Grand Prix track.
1939
Built
Added when the old hairpin was cut out, and rebuilt with gravel and run-off in 2022.
What makes it special is the compression. Cars arrive at the bottom flat out, the suspension squashes into the dip, and then the track turns and rears up so steeply that the driver can’t see the exit. Over the crest the car goes light, just as it needs grip most. Modern F1 cars take it flat in the dry, but in a GT car, or in the wet, it still takes real nerve. Since 2022 there’s a big paved run-off and gravel on the outside, and a grandstand at the top.
Spa-Francorchamps Track Guide: A Lap, Corner by Corner
Spa runs clockwise and splits into three parts: the climb from La Source over Eau Rouge and up the Kemmel Straight, the twisty run down the hill through Bruxelles and Pouhon, and the fast blast back up through Blanchimont to the Bus Stop. Turn numbers vary a little between sources and maps; here’s how a lap goes, using the corner names you’ll hear on TV.
T1
La Source
A tight right-hand hairpin right after the start line. Brake hard and expect chaos on the first lap.
T2–4
Eau Rouge and Raidillon
Downhill to the stream, a left kink at the bottom, then the blind climb up the hill. Get it right and you’re flat out onto the Kemmel Straight.
KS
Kemmel Straight
A long uphill run to the top of the hill. It’s the main place to slipstream, and where most passes start.
T5–6
Les Combes
A right-left chicane at the top of the hill and the main overtaking spot. A late lunge up the inside is the classic move.
T7
Malmedy
A right-hander that starts the long drop down the hill toward the valley.
T8
Bruxelles
A tight, downhill right-hand hairpin that locals still call Rivage. It’s easy to lock a wheel on the way in.
T9
Jacky Ickx
A short left, formerly called Speakers’ Corner, that sets you up for the big one next.
T10–11
Pouhon
A fast, downhill double-apex left and one of the biggest commitment tests on the lap. Drivers love it.
T12–13
Les Fagnes
A right-left flick at the bottom of the valley.
T14–15
Campus and Stavelot
A right at Campus, then the long fast Courbe Paul Frère at Stavelot, named after the Belgian driver and journalist who won Le Mans in 1960.
T16–17
Blanchimont
Very fast, flat-out lefts on the way back up toward the pits. Brave, and in the wet, scary.
T18–19
Bus Stop
A slow right-left chicane before the line, and the last chance to pass on the final lap.
Spa-Francorchamps Lap Records
Only laps set in a race count as the official record, so the fastest lap ever at Spa is a qualifying time. Here are the numbers people usually ask about on today’s 7.004 km layout. For comparison, the fastest GT3 lap is 2:15.264, set by a McLaren 720S GT3 Evo in 2025.
1:44.701
Race lap record
Sergio Pérez set the official race lap record in a Red Bull during the 2024 Belgian Grand Prix.
1:41.252
Fastest lap ever
Lewis Hamilton’s pole lap for the 2020 race in a Mercedes. It doesn’t count as the official record because it was set in qualifying.
1:44.361
2026 pole
Kimi Antonelli’s pole time for the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix, which he went on to win.
2:02.327
Hypercar record
Kamui Kobayashi in a Toyota GR010 Hybrid at the 2023 6 Hours of Spa.
Races and Events at Spa-Francorchamps
Spa hosts Formula 1, the World Endurance Championship and one of the biggest GT races in the world, plus historic meetings, motorcycle racing, track days and even a 24-hour race for Citroën 2CVs. Here are the headline events, with 2026 results for reference.
July
Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix
Formula 1 Rotating from 2026
The 2026 race ran July 17–19, and Kimi Antonelli won from pole for Mercedes. The 2027 race is set for July 23–25. Under the new deal, Spa sits out 2028 and 2030.
May
WEC 6 Hours of Spa
World Endurance Championship Hypercar
Hypercars and GT cars race for six hours, often as the warm-up for Le Mans. The 2026 race ran May 9, and the No. 20 BMW of Frijns, Rast and van der Linde won by under two seconds.
Late June
24 Hours of Spa
GT3 Endurance
One of the world’s big GT3 races, run since 1924. The 2026 race was won by the No. 80 Lionspeed GP Porsche from a pit-lane start, in front of a record 132,000 fans.
May and September
Spa Six Hours and Spa Classic
Historic racing Classic cars
Spa hosts two big historic meetings: the Spa Classic in May and the Spa Six Hours in September, which runs into the night with pre-1966 GT and touring cars.
Spa-Francorchamps Race Calendar: 2026 and 2027
Here are the big public weekends at Spa, so you can plan a trip around the racing you want to see. Club races, motorcycle meetings and track days fill many of the other weekends. Dates marked TBA haven’t been announced yet; we’ll add them once they’re confirmed, and it’s always worth checking the official calendar before you book.
2026 season
| Dates | Event | Series | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4–Oct 11 | Public Driving Experience days | Drive your own car (6 dates) | Done |
| May 7–9 | WEC 6 Hours of Spa | World Endurance Championship | Done |
| May 22–24 | Spa Classic | Historic racing | Done |
| Jun 24–28 | 24 Hours of Spa | GT World Challenge Europe (race June 27–28) | Done |
| Jul 17–19 | Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix | Formula 1 | Done |
| Sep 25–27 | Spa Six Hours | Historic racing | Done |
| Oct 24–25 | 24H 2CV | Citroën 2CV endurance race | Upcoming |
2027 season
| Dates | Event | Series | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 13–15 | WEC 6 Hours of Spa | World Endurance Championship | Upcoming |
| Jun 24–27 | 24 Hours of Spa | GT World Challenge Europe (race June 26–27) | Upcoming |
| Jul 23–25 | Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix | Formula 1, round 12 (no sprint) | Upcoming |
| TBA | Spa Classic and Spa Six Hours | Historic racing | Date TBA |
| TBA | Public Driving Experience days | Drive your own car | Date TBA |
Spa-Francorchamps Weather by Season
Spa’s weather is famous, and not in a good way. The circuit sits high in the Ardennes, and with a 7 km lap it’s common for one part of the track to be soaked while another is bone dry. It rains a lot, about 1,100 mm a year, spread across every season. The numbers below are typical daily highs and lows for the town of Spa (1991–2020 averages from the Royal Meteorological Institute); the circuit is higher up in the hills, so expect it to be a bit cooler and wetter.
4–5°C
Winter · Dec–Feb
Daily highs of only 4–5°C (39–41°F) and lows around freezing, and December is the wettest month of the year, with about 118 mm of rain. Snow is common in the Ardennes. Few big events run now, but the circuit and the abbey museum in Stavelot are still worth a winter visit.
9–17°C
Spring · Mar–May
Daily highs rise from about 9°C (48°F) in March to 17°C (62°F) in May, with lows from 1°C to 8°C (34–46°F). April is the driest month. Bring a warm layer and a waterproof for the WEC race and the Spa Classic in May.
20–22°C
Summer · Jun–Aug
Daily highs of 20–22°C (68–71°F) and lows of 10–13°C (50–55°F), so it’s mild rather than hot. It still rains on about 12 days a month, and the 24 Hours and the Grand Prix have both seen sudden downpours. A raincoat is a must, even when the morning is sunny.
8–18°C
Autumn · Sep–Nov
Daily highs drop from about 18°C (63°F) in September to 8°C (46°F) in November, with lows from 9°C to 3°C (48–37°F). Fog and rain become common as the season goes on. The Spa Six Hours runs into the night in late September, so pack for cold evenings.
Visiting Spa-Francorchamps: Tickets, Getting There and Tips
Spa is a big, hilly, wooded site, and walking it is part of the experience. Wear proper shoes, because you’ll be climbing, and expect to spend a lot of the day on your feet.
Where to watch
- Eau Rouge and Raidillon. The view everyone wants, from the general-admission banks or the grandstand at the top of Raidillon, added in the 2022 rebuild.
- La Source. The first corner, where you’ll see heavy braking and first-lap action. There’s a big grandstand here too.
- Pouhon. A fast, downhill double left that shows off how much grip modern cars have. It’s about a 10–15 minute walk from Eau Rouge on a shortcut.
- Les Combes, Blanchimont and the Bus Stop. Les Combes is the main passing spot, Blanchimont shows raw speed, and the Bus Stop is where last-lap moves happen.
Tickets
Formula 1 tickets are sold only through the official Belgian Grand Prix site, spagrandprix.com, with parking and camping sold separately and nothing for sale at the gate. The cheapest Bronze general-admission tickets give you access to the banks around Eau Rouge and La Source. For WEC, the 24 Hours and the historic meetings, tickets are cheaper and easier to get. On many days without an event, you can walk onto the site for free.
Getting there and what to bring
The nearest big airports are Liège, Maastricht Aachen (about 80 km), and Brussels, Cologne Bonn and Charleroi (about 140 km each). The nearest major train station is Verviers-Central, with local buses to the circuit and special shuttles on Grand Prix weekend; on Sundays the regular buses don’t stop at the circuit. Roads get very busy on race days, so arrive early. Bring a raincoat and a warm layer whatever the forecast says, along with sunscreen and ear protection.
While you’re there, the Spa-Francorchamps Circuit Museum sits in the vaulted cellars of Stavelot Abbey, a few kilometres away, with racing cars, Belgian motorcycles and a model of the old circuit. There’s also a rental kart track right next to the circuit at Francorchamps.
Can You Drive Spa-Francorchamps?
Yes. The circuit runs its own Public Driving Experience days, where you can drive your own road car in 25-minute sessions, with no timing. In 2026 one session cost €135, or €389 for four. Your car has to stay under 103 dB, needs a tow hook, and can’t be on slicks; race cars and SUVs aren’t allowed. The 2026 dates have all passed, so watch for the 2027 list.
Track-day companies also book Spa regularly, including RSR Spa, Pistenclub and RMA, and the circuit offers passenger taxi laps, driver training and car hire. Cyclists can even ride the track at set Cycl’On Track sessions.
If you’d rather start on a screen, Spa is in nearly every racing game: the official F1 games, Gran Turismo 7, iRacing, Assetto Corsa Competizione and Forza Motorsport all have it. It’s a good way to learn where the track goes, though no sim quite captures how steep Raidillon really is.
Talk Spa-Francorchamps With Other Enthusiasts
Heading to the Belgian Grand Prix, booking a Public Driving Experience or chasing a sim lap time? Share what you’ve learned, ask questions and find people going the same weekend in the AutoGathering community.
- Belgian Grand Prix trips
- Best spots at Eau Rouge
- Getting to Spa
- Camping at Spa
- 24 Hours of Spa
- Spa track days
- Sim racing lap times
- Ardennes road trips
Spa-Francorchamps FAQ
How long is Spa-Francorchamps?
The Grand Prix circuit is 7.004 km (4.352 miles) long, with 19 turns, and it’s the longest track on the Formula 1 calendar. The Belgian Grand Prix is 44 laps.
What is Eau Rouge?
Eau Rouge is the left kink at the bottom of the dip after La Source, named for a small stream. The steep climb after it is Raidillon, but most people call the whole sequence Eau Rouge.
Is Eau Rouge flat out?
For Formula 1 cars in the dry, yes. Slower cars and drivers in the wet usually have to lift or brake.
When is the 2027 Belgian Grand Prix?
July 23–25, 2027. Under the rotation deal, there will be no Belgian Grand Prix in 2028.
Who won the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix?
Kimi Antonelli won for Mercedes from pole on July 19, 2026, ahead of Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen.
What is the lap record at Spa?
The official race lap record is 1:44.701, set by Sergio Pérez in 2024. The fastest lap ever is Lewis Hamilton’s 1:41.252 from qualifying in 2020.
Why is the weather at Spa so unpredictable?
The circuit sits high in the Ardennes and the lap is 7 km long, so one part of the track can be wet while another is dry. The area gets about 1,100 mm of rain a year.
Can you drive your own car at Spa?
Yes, at the circuit’s Public Driving Experience days (from €135 for 25 minutes in 2026) or on track days run by approved organizers.
Explore More Racing Circuits
Spa-Francorchamps is one of 40 circuits in our European racing directory. Making a trip of it? The Nürburgring is about an hour and a half’s drive east, in Germany, and Circuit Zolder is in the north of Belgium.
Photo credits
- Header image: Nathanael Majoros, CC BY-SA 2.0, cropped and resized.
- Eau Rouge and Raidillon at Spa-Francorchamps after…: Cutkiller2018, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari during the 2025 Belgian…: Skyebble, CC BY 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The winning No. 63 Grasser Racing Lamborghini…: Pitchdobrasil, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The No. 20 BMW M Hybrid V8…: MarcelX42, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- Historic touring and GT cars in qualifying…: SunflowerYuri, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- Track map of the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps…: Will Pittenger, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped and resized.