Andrea Kimi Antonelli stretched his Formula 1 championship lead with a victory at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.

After celebrating a fifth consecutive win in round six in Monaco that saw him build a 66-point lead over Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, Antonelli experienced a series of misfortunes in the following three rounds, managing only 23 points while his title rivals closed in on him in the standings.

The Mercedes man suffered a late retirement in Barcelona, took third place in Austria and then secured victory in Saturday’s sprint at Silverstone before finishing in a point-less 15th in the main race on Sunday.

Following the British Grand Prix weekend, Antonelli found his lead slashed to only 25 points over his teammate George Russell, who built on his second-place finish in Barcelona and his victory in Spielberg with a P2 on home turf at Silverstone.

Knowing very well the pressure he is under, Antonelli managed to bounce back beautifully in round 10 at Spa, converting his pole position into a sixth win of the season and further extending his lead in the championship to 45 points.

Charles Leclerc, who took the lead at some point during the 44-lap race, secured second place in his Ferrari while Max Verstappen took third for Red Bull.

Meanwhile, Russell suffered a big blow in his title fight after he was forced to retire from the race on the opening lap. The Briton was trying to overtake Hamilton around the outside when the Ferrari clipped the rear of his Mercedes and sent him spinning into the gravel.