A race with multiple changes for the lead and two 360 spins ended in the same way as the two grand prixes before did, with a Kimi Antonelli win from pole.
Overall, McLaren are probably the team walking away happiest from this weekend with their sprint race 1-2 and a double podium today, but Lando Norris didn’t seem too content after the race, as at times it was looking like he could go for the win.
It was at the end of the race where most of the chaos took place, and it all started with Oscar Piastri overtaking Charles Leclerc for P3.
What looked like a P3 or P4 at worst for Leclerc soon turned into a sixth-place finish after he spun on the penultimate lap and was overtaken by George Russell and Max Verstappen.
Today’s result now means there is a 20-point gap at the top of the championship, separating the Mercedes teammates with Antonelli on 100 points and Russell on 80.
Embed from Getty ImagesIf you thought that was the only carnage that took place today, then you are heavily mistaken, as it wasn’t just Leclerc who spun in this race; it was also Verstappen right at the start.
A messy opening lap left the Red Bull driver way down the pack and also impacted Lewis Hamilton as he got clipped by Franco Colapinto when he was out of position after avoiding the spinning Dutchman.
Despite the contact between these two drivers, both managed to make it to the finish line and stay in the points. Hamilton probably came off worse out of the two because his damage meant he was out of the race at the top of the field, while Colapinto probably didn’t expect to be in that fight, so P8 was the best possible position to achieve anyway.
Just like McLaren with their double Podium finish Williams managed to achieve a good result for both drivers with a double points finish with Carlos Sainz in ninth and Alex Albon in tenth.
A lot of these results are all currently subject to change, though, as throughout the race there were many different incidents reported, e.g. Verstappen crossing the white line on the pit exit and making contact with Russell, there was also an incident between Russell and Leclerc that was noted and contact between Gasly and Lawson that ended both of their races. All these incidents were said to be getting investigated after the race instead of during it, meaning that no one is safe and secure in their position just yet, for better or for worse.
One driver who managed to avoid a lot of the crashes and not get too involved today was Ollie Bearman. It seems our younger drivers, or at least Bearman and Antonelli, had a very level-headed approach to today’s race and didn’t let the outside noise affect them.
Embed from Getty ImagesThere were many celebrities in the paddock today. Before the start of the race, the grid was filled with famous faces. Lionel Messi was seen multiple times with the Mercedes boys, but I wonder if deep down his Argentinian roots were leading him to root for Colapinto just like many other fans in the grandstands were today.
There were four DNF’s today Isack Hadjar, Gasly, Lawson, and Nico Hulkenberg.
One thing that might surprise you about those four DNF’s is the lack of Aston Martin drivers. Today was the first race this season with both Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso making it to the chequered flag. It may not be a massive achievement for everyone else, but where that Aston car started at the beginning of this year, a whole lot of hard work has gone in back at Silverstone to make it drivable and now even raceable.
It’s now a three-week break before we head to Canada, and I’m sure every team will be using those three weeks wisely in the hope’s to try and chase down the dominant Mercedes and especially wonder kid Antonelli.