![]() ![]() Norris was fifth, ahead of Gasly (yet to stop), Ricciardo, Tsunoda (yet to stop), Alonso and Stroll. Norris, meanwhile, was holding on well in P3 – but pitting on Lap 21 for new hards, a wheel was slow going on, Norris stationary for six agonising seconds before getting under way and coming out in P6, before quickly passing Alonso for P5.Īt the halfway point on Lap 26, it was Leclerc 2.3s clear from Hamilton and the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz – the front three yet to pit – with Bottas fourth having benefitted from Norris’ slow pit stop. Leclerc was able to maintain his advantage over Hamilton at the front despite incessant pressure from the Mercedes, but was heard on Lap 16 of 52 reporting engine cut-outs – with the issue recurring intermittently, as the tension in the Ferrari cockpit ramped up. Things were going better for the sole Red Bull of Sergio Perez, meanwhile, the Mexican jumping to P13 by Lap 8 after starting in the pit lane following changes to his car after his F1 Sprint spin – Perez the only driver in the field to start on hards, as everyone else went for mediums. Later on in the lap, Vettel’s strong original race start came to nought as he spun coming out of Luffield, dropping to P19 – while Alonso tried to do a move around the outside of Ricciardo through Copse, getting ahead off track before fairly relinquishing the position. The red flag at least allowed Hamilton to have damage to his front wing from the contact repaired, with the top 10 at the restart Leclerc from Hamilton, Bottas, Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo, Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz, Kimi Raikkonen – who’d jumped from P13 to P9 – and Esteban Ocon in 10th, Ocon having been squeezed between Alonso and Vettel off the line, before nearly locking up into Alonso into Turn 3.įrom the standing start on Lap 4, Leclerc aced his getaway to stay ahead of Hamilton, as did Norris, who slipped past Bottas into Turn 1 to claim P3. He was taken away from the scene for a check-up in the medical centre before being transferred to hospital, as the race was red flagged after just half a lap – with Charles Leclerc leading when those red flags were flown, the Ferrari driver having passed Valtteri Bottas in the Village complex before nipping through on Hamilton after his Verstappen contact. WATCH: Huge drama at Silverstone as Verstappen crashes out after contact with HamiltonĪs the two title rivals roared into the near flat-out corner, they made contact, with Verstappen spinning off into the gravel and clouting the wall with a big hit – the Dutchman immediately out of the race, as Hamilton was later handed a 10-second penalty by the race stewards. Hamilton kept coming, though, and after trying a brave move around the outside into Brooklands – which Verstappen cut off with a decisive sweep across Hamilton’s bows – Hamilton decided to send a move up the inside into Copse. There was no quarter given between Verstappen and Hamilton as the five lights went out at the start of the British Grand Prix, Hamilton appearing to enjoy the better getaway of the two before Verstappen toughed it out around the outside of Abbey to keep position. It created incredible scenes at Silverstone – but you had to feel for Leclerc, who led so much of the British Grand Prix, but was still able to claim his first podium of the season, 70 years on from Ferrari’s first ever Grand Prix win here in 1951. READ MORE: Verstappen transferred to hospital for further checks after British Grand Prix crashīut a committed recovery from Hamilton saw him close down the gap to Leclerc in the final stages of the race, Hamilton passing the Monegasque driver on Lap 50 of 52 to take an emotional victory in front of an ecstatic British Grand Prix crowd – with the reigning champion closing the gap to Verstappen in the title race to just eight points. Hamilton and Verstappen had sparred spectacularly throughout the first half lap of the Grand Prix, but made contact at Copse when Hamilton tried to pass up the inside into the fast sweeping corner, with Verstappen spinning hard into the barriers and out of the race – with Hamilton handed a 10-second penalty for the collision. Lewis Hamilton overcame first lap contact with title rival Max Verstappen and a 10-second penalty to take an eighth British Grand Prix win at Silverstone, passing Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – who led the majority of the race – with just three laps of the race to go, as the second Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas took P3. ![]()
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