Ferrari fielded Alberto Ascari, Nino Farina, and Piero Taruffi, with Ascari replacing André Simon. The team was further supported by two privateer Ferrari entries: Ecurie Francorchamps' local representative Charles de Tornaco and Louis Rosier. Gordini expanded their lineup with Belgian driver Johnny Claes alongside Jean Behra, Robert Manzon, and Prince Bira, while American Robert O'Brien drove a Simca-Gordini. HWM recruited two Belgian drivers for the occasion — Paul Frère and Roger Laurent — who joined regulars Peter Collins and Lance Macklin. Stirling Moss switched from HWM to ERA for this event. Among the privateer entries was future World Champion Mike Hawthorn, making his Grand Prix debut in a Cooper-Bristol. Ken Wharton entered a Frazer-Nash.
Ascari headed an all-Ferrari front row, with Farina second and Taruffi third. The Gordinis of Manzon and Behra occupied row two, while the third row consisted of Hawthorn, Wharton, and Frère, who was the highest-placed of the five Belgian drivers on the grid.
The race began in wet conditions. Taruffi made a poor start, falling to ninth by the end of the opening lap, while Behra moved forward to pass both leading Ferraris and seize the lead. Moss also started well before his car broke down mid-way through the first lap.
Behra's lead lasted only a lap. Ascari and Farina reclaimed first and second on lap two and held those positions unchallenged to the finish. Taruffi recovered through the field and passed Behra for third on lap 13, only to spin at Malmédy on the following lap; Behra, following closely, struck the stricken Taruffi and both were forced to retire. That promoted Manzon to third. Hawthorn, suffering from fuel leakage, held fourth to the end despite the problem. Hawthorn's fellow debutant Paul Frère completed the points-paying positions in fifth.
Ascari won and also set the fastest lap, earning the bonus championship point then awarded for the feat. With Taruffi's retirement, the pair became joint championship leaders on nine points each. Indianapolis 500 winner Troy Ruttman sat third in the standings, while Farina's second place lifted him to fourth, three points behind the co-leaders.
The race underlined Ferrari's near-total dominance during the Formula Two era of the World Championship. The presence of Belgian home talent — Frère, Laurent, Claes, and de Tornaco — gave the Spa round a distinctive local character, and Frère's points finish demonstrated genuine domestic competitiveness. Hawthorn's debut in a privateer Cooper-Bristol was a notable marker of the rapid rise that would ultimately bring him the 1958 World Championship.