Watch: Max Verstappen’s Hand Gesture for Fernando Alonso After Easy Overtake at Belgian GP

Despite registering the fastest lap time during qualifying in the most dominant fashion, Max Verstappen started the Belgian GP from P11 due to a 10-place grid penalty that he received for fitting a new power unit on his car. Fernando Alonso, meanwhile, started the race in P8, courtesy of his fine racecraft during a rain-affected qualifying session.

Despite starting ahead of Verstappen, the Spaniard knew he did not have the car underneath him to beat the Dutchman. Alonso had his target clear and that was simply to finish in a points position.

In that pursuit, he allowed faster cars to pass him without putting up much resistance. That helped him preserve his tires and go for a one-stop strategy.

He executed the plan to the T as Verstappen approached from behind for an overtake. Alonso led him to the Eau Rouge-Raidillon, only to move to the side to let the reigning champion pass on the Kemmel straight. Acknowledging the gesture, Verstappen waved at him as a sign of respect, as seen through one of his onboard cameras.

Max waved at Alonso after passing him on Kemmel straight in Lap 2 of Belgian Grand Prix 2024
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The footage made its way to the social media platform Reddit where the users lauded both drivers. While there was a section that praised Alonso for sticking to his guns and knowing when not to put his defensive prowess on display, the other praised Verstappen for recognizing the Spaniard’s help and acknowledging it immediately.

One user took note of both moves and appreciated Alonso’s dexterity as well as Verstappen’s sportsmanship.

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Another user praised Alonso for getting to terms with reality where he is not among the podium finishers anymore. That requires the Spaniard to tweak his strategy accordingly and he is not shying away from it.

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Aston Martin is no more in contention for podium finishes since the start of the 2024 season. That is in stark contrast to where they were at the same time last year in the season. Alonso bagged eight podium finishes in 2023. Until the summer break of 2024, he has none.