This is the first victory for a non-Mercedes driver this season. In the previous four rounds, Hamilton had won three times, and once – Bottas.
The Verstappen victory is not only the result of good driving but also skillful tire management. A week earlier, three drivers had a flat tire on the same track in the final laps, changing the standings in the top six and nearly costing Hamilton a win.
See also: Formula 1: Heavy penalty for a point race
The Dutchman started from fourth place and after the start surpassed the German Nico Hulkenberg in the qualifiers, replacing Mexican Sergio Perez at Racing Point, who had tested positive for the Coronavirus. Later on the track or during visits by Mercedes drivers in the pit lane, the Dutchman moved to first place.
“This is an amazing result and a great day. We developed the right strategy and everything went smoothly,” said Verstappen, 22, his ninth win in his career. “We had a good rhythm and no tire problems.”
Hamilton maintained their overall lead while Verstappen moved up to second place at Bottas’ expense. The Dutchman loses 30 points to the six-time world champion, and the Finn – 35 points.
“Congratulations to Max. They (Red Bull drivers – PAP) haven’t had tire issues like us. I don’t know why, but the whole team will work hard to find out,” Hamilton emphasized.
Once again, four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) can speak of frustration at the finish line. The German, who finished 11th in the qualifiers, lost control of the car shortly after the start and fell to last place. Later, he was dissatisfied with the strategy his team had imposed on him, which he expressed on the radio in the clear words: “You know you screwed it up.”
The drivers of Alfa Romeo Racing Orleans, and test driver Robert Kubica, never registered again. Finn Kimi Raikkonen came in 15th, and Italian Antonio Giovinazzi in 17th.
The next race – the Spanish Grand Prix – will take place on August 16 in Barcelona.
Formula 1 Grand Prix 70th Anniversary in Silverstone (Great Britain):
1. Max Verstappen (Holandia/Red Bull) 1:19.41,993 2. Lewis Hamilton (W. Brytania/Mercedes) strata 11,326 s 3. Valtteri Bottas (Finlandia/Mercedes) 19,231 4. Charles Leclerc (Monako/Ferrari) 29,289 5. Alexander Albon (Tajlandia/Red Bull) 39,146 6. Lance Stroll (Kanada/Racing Point) 42,538 7. Nico Huelkenberg (Niemcy/Racing Point) 55,951 8. Esteban Ocon (Francja/Renault) 1.04,773 9. Lando Norris (W. Brytania/McLaren) 1.05,544 10. Daniił Kwiat (Rosja/AlphaTauri) 1.09,669 11. Pierre Gasly (Francja/AlphaTauri) 1.10,642 12. Sebastian Vettel (Niemcy/Ferrari) 1.13,370 13. Carlos Sainz jr (Hiszpania/McLaren) 1.14,070 14. Daniel Ricciardo (Australia/Renault) 1 okr. 15. Kimi Raikkonen (Finlandia/Alfa Romeo) 1 okr. 16. Romain Grosjean (Francja/Haas) 1 okr. 17. Antonio Giovinazzi (Włochy/Alfa Romeo) 1 okr. 18. George Russell (W. Brytania/Williams) 1 okr. 19. Nicholas Latifi (Kanada/Williams) 1 okr. nie ukończył: Kevin Magnussen (Dania/Haas) Klasyfikacja generalna kierowców: 1. Lewis Hamilton (W. Brytania/Mercedes) 107 pkt 2. Max Verstappen (Holandia/Red Bull) 77 3. Valtteri Bottas (Finlandia/Mercedes) 73 4. Charles Leclerc (Monako/Ferrari) 45 5. Lando Norris (W. Brytania/McLaren) 38 6. Alexander Albon (Tajlandia/Red Bull) 36 7. Lance Stroll (Kanada/Racing Point) 28 8. Sergio Perez (Meksyk/Racing Point) 22 9. Daniel Ricciardo (Australia/Renault) 20 10. Esteban Ocon (Francja/Renault) 16 11. Carlos Sainz jr (Hiszpania/McLaren) 15 12. Pierre Gasly (Francja/AlphaTauri) 12 13. Sebastian Vettel (Niemcy/Ferrari) 10 14. Nico Huelkenberg (Niemcy/Racing Point) 6 15. Antonio Giovinazzi (Włochy/Alfa Romeo) 2 16. Daniił Kwiat (Rosja/AlphaTauri) 2 17. Kevin Magnussen (Dania/Haas) 1 Klasyfikacja konstruktorów: 1. Mercedes 180 pkt 2. Red Bull 113 3. Ferrari 55 4. McLaren 53 5. Racing Point 41 6. Renault 36 7. AlphaTauri 14 8. Alfa Romeo 2 9. Haas 1.
RM, PAP
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