Tag: formula-one

Daniel Ricciardo left to ponder why he was ‘not competitive’ at the British Grand Prix daniel,ricciardo,left,to,ponder,why,he,was,not,competitive,at,the,british,grand,prix,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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One of Formula 1’s most iconic figures climbed to the top step of the podium Sunday at Silverstone, as Lewis Hamilton finally broke through into the winner’s column in the British Grand Prix. It was the seven-time champion’s first victory since the penultimate race of the 2021 F1 season.

However, another transformative figure in the sport was left to wonder where things went wrong as he came across the line down in 13th.

Daniel Ricciardo, who was on the back foot almost the entire week in Silverstone, finished outside the points Sunday at the British Grand Prix. Speaking after the race, the Australian driver — and one of the most popular figures in the sport — was left to ponder what might have happened.

“It was a mixed conditions race which was exciting; ultimately grabbing some opportunities, but unfortunately, we were not competitive,” said Ricciardo in the team’s post-race report. “It was one of those days where we struggled more than we should have, so we’ll try to get into it and figure out why. In the last three weekends, I think we have lost out a little bit on the latest upgrades battle compared to some of our competitors in the midfield, so we’ve got some work to do looking at the next races.

“It’s good now to have a week off for all of us to reset and come back to Budapest which is a completely different circuit.”

Speaking with Lawrence Barretto in the television pen after the race, Ricciardo elaborated on how he felt in the car, highlighting how the pace was simply not there for his RB01 this week in Silverstone.

“I felt like we struggled more than we should have,” said Ricciardo. “I know that this isn’t necessarily going to be a real competitive circuit for us. But I still felt [relatively speaking] we struggled more. [So we’ll] try and get into it and figure out why that was.”

Looking ahead to the Hungarian Grand Prix, Ricciardo outlined how the team needs to “rectify some weaknesses” before the grid is back in action in Budapest.

“I think compared to some of our competitors in the midfield, we have lost out a little bit in the latest upgrade battle,” said Ricciardo. “I think Budapest is [a] completely different circuit. So let’s see.

“But yeah, it’s not enough for us just to be like ‘that track will suit us and we’ll be ok.’

“We obviously got to rectify some weaknesses and I’ll obviously look at my race and figure out where I lack the pace, but there were times we were like missing about eight-tenths a lap and I didn’t really feel like that was there.

“So, yeah, just one of those days.”

And with that, Ricciardo was off, left to ponder where he and Visa Cash App RB F1 Team can find those critical eight-tenths.

British Grand Prix: Toto Wolff and Lewis Hamilton hail ‘fairytale’ victory british,grand,prix,toto,wolff,and,lewis,hamilton,hail,fairytale,victory,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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It was a win almost 1,000 days in the making.

On a challenging Sunday at Silverstone, Lewis Hamilton captured victory for the first time since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, finally reaching the top step of a Formula 1 podium for the first time since that epic campaign.

And the fact that it came on Hamilton’s final race at Silverstone for Mercedes was not lost on Team Principal Toto Wolff.

“Today’s win is like a fairytale,” emphasized Wolff in the team’s post-race report. “It is our last British Grand Prix together with Lewis and what a way to sign off. It is such a great feeling to be able to achieve victory in front of the British crowds with the most iconic, and most successful British driver in a Mercedes.”

Hamilton’s emotions matched the moment. The legendary British driver was choked up as he took the checkered flag, and that continued as he was handed a Union Jack at Becketts Corner during his cooldown lap. When he finally brought his W15 to a stop he shared a long, emotional embrace with his father before paying tribute to the thousands of fans cheering their hero.

Hamilton then shared his immediate thoughts with Jenson Button.

“Yeah, I can’t stop crying,” admitted the seven-time champion.

“I think, you know, since 2021, I’m just every day getting up, trying to fight, to train, to put my mind to the task and work as hard as I can with this amazing team and this is my last race here, the British Grand Prix, with this team so I wanted to win this so much for them, because I love them, I appreciate them so much, all the hard work they’ve been putting in over the years,” continued Hamilton.

“I’m forever grateful to everyone in this team, everyone at Mercedes, and all of our partners. And I just want to say thank you to all of you for being here with us today. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And then otherwise to all our incredible fans,” added the Mercedes driver, “I could see you lap by lap as I was coming around, and there’s just no greater feeling as to finish at the front here.”

Hamilton’s tributes to the crowd as Silverstone continued into the FIA Press Conference.

“I mean, the car’s so loud, so hard to hear, but I could see it, and I really could feel [the crowd noise],” described Hamilton. “You know, when you go through Turn 7, it’s a long, long corner, and you see the guys on the left, or through the last couple of corners, you can also see this incredible crowd, or into Turn 15. It’s really, really an unbelievable feeling to be on that track. This is the best track for me, personally. I think this is the best track in the world. But it’s the fans also, the whole place, the wind direction that you have going into Stowe. That corner is incredible.”

In response to a question from the brilliant Luke Smith from The Athletic, Hamilton talked about the emotions he felt, particularly in that extended post-race embrace with his father, and whether this win felt any different than his previous 103 F1 victories.

“Yeah, it really does, because I think, you know, I’ve had my parents come to a race here and there,” began Hamilton.

“We’ve had, you know, my mom was there when we won a championship. My dad’s been there when we won a championship. It’s always been just at a different point of life. First World Championship, you know, was incredible, but it was really difficult to absorb it all at the age I was at. I think this weekend, I think just within life, you know, your parents are getting older, you know, we’re traveling so much.

“Time with family is a constant challenge. My niece and nephew are growing up and growing out their cuteness,” continued the driver. “But I’ve had them here this weekend, and I think they’ve all… We all try to be there for each other, even at a distance. But to have them there and… I mean, I know I’ve always had their support, but to be able to see them there and share this experience, they wanted to be at my last race, the last British Grand Prix with this team that have been so incredible to us. I mean, Mercedes obviously supported me since I was 13. So it’s definitely meant the most today to have them there and to be able to share it with them.”

While there was a downside for the team, as pole-sitter George Russell retired early on a day that could have seen him on the podium as well, Hamilton’s victory marked two wins in a row for Mercedes, extending their run of impressive form.

Hamilton addressed what this recent form means for the team going forward.

Yeah, I think hugely, hugely grateful to everyone in the team. I think this is just hats off to everyone. Niki [Lauda] would definitely take his hat off, but everyone that’s continued to work hard, everyone in the garage that’s continued to show up each weekend and not get downbeat by results,” said Hamilton. “I think George’s win last week was amazing, but it wasn’t on pure pace and I think this weekend was the first time we did it on pure pace. [With] qualifying on the front row. And then after that, even pulling in that first stint, both of us pulling away from everybody else. And then ultimately, I think with the conditions today, the drivers able to make a bit of a difference.”

Hamilton also admitted that the time between victories meant this win was even sweeter, along with the admission that for the first time in 104 victories, tears finally fell after a win.

“Absolutely. It feels different to previous races and particularly races where you’re having race after race after race or seasons where you’re having multiple wins,” said Hamilton. “I think with the kind of the adversity I would say that we’ve gone through as a team and that I personally felt, that I’ve experienced, those challenges, the constant challenge like we all have to get out of bed every day and give it our best shot. And, you know, there’s so many times where you feel like your best shot is just not good enough.

“And the disappointment sometimes that you can feel, you know, and we live in a time where mental health is such a serious issue. And I’m not going to lie, that I have experienced that. And there’s definitely been moments where you know, the thought that this was it, that that was never going to happen again,” continued Hamilton. “So to have this feeling come across the line, I think, honestly, I’ve never cried coming from a win. It just came out of me. And it’s a really, really great feeling. I’m very, very grateful for it.”

A fairytale Sunday, in what is shaping up to be a fairytale season for the Silver Arrows.

McLaren left wondering what might have been at the British Grand Prix mclaren,left,wondering,what,might,have,been,at,the,british,grand,prix,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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At first blush, Sunday’s British Grand Prix looks like a massive win for McLaren. Lando Norris captured his seventh Grand Prix podium of the season with a third-place finish. Oscar Piastri finished behind him in fourth place, giving the team a 27-point haul that topped all teams at Silverstone. That chunk of points saw McLaren not only gain on Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship but pull to within just seven points of Ferrari for P2 in the standings.

And yet, Sunday could have been so much more for McLaren.

A series of strategy decisions in changing conditions saw McLaren turn a potential one-two finish into the eventual P3 and P4 for Norris and Piastri, leaving the team to wonder just what could have been on Sunday at Silverstone.

In the early stages, it seemed as if McLaren had gotten it right. While Max Verstappen powered into P3 behind the Mercedes duo of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, Norris and Piastri waited to strike sitting in fourth and fifth, respectively. As the first batch of rain came through, that is when the papaya boys pounced, and within a few laps, they were running up in first and second, with Norris ahead of his teammate.

Eventually, the teams faced the critical decision regarding when to switch from slick tires to a set of intermediates, as conditions on the track began to worsen. Finally, McLaren brought Norris in, but given the pit lane layout at Silverstone — with each team having just the one pit stall — they faced a critical decision: Do they bring both drivers in and double-stack the cars, or do they leave one of them out for a lap on the slick tires in worsening conditions?

They brought Norris in and left Piastri out.

While that worked for Norris, and he came back out as the race leader with a three-second advantage over Hamilton, it cost Piastri dearly. He wound his way around Silverstone while struggling to find enough grip, and after he finally completed his pit stop he emerged with a set of intermediates on his MCL38, and back in sixth place behind Carlos Sainz Jr.

Up in the F1TV commentary box, Jolyon Palmer was rather dismayed at the decision to leave Piastri out for one more lap. “His race has been butchered by staying out another lap,” stated the former F1 driver, and there was evidence available to bolster his position. Mercedes faced the same decision as Hamilton and Russell but executed a solid double-stack stop and both drivers came out ahead of Piastri.

However, McLaren then caught a break, as Russell’s W15 suffered a suspected water system failure, and his retirement promoted Piastri up to P5. He then took fourth, overtaking Sainz for the position.

Then came the next critical decision. With the laps ticking down and the track drying out, teams faced the question of when to switch from the green-walled intermediate tires — which were starting to show significant signs of wear — to a set of slicks. With 15 laps to go Hamilton and Verstappen both came in for a fresh set of tires, while McLaren left Norris out for one more lap.

Similar to the decision with Piastri, Norris lost significant time on his next lap on the worn intermediates, and his situation was compounded further by a slower-than-usual pit stop, set in motion when Norris pulled slightly too far forward in his pit box. As he lumbered out of his stall on a set of softs and tried desperately to fire them up, all he could do was watch Hamilton rocket by him to take the race lead.

Shortly thereafter, Norris’ hopes of a victory turned into a fight to hold on for P2. Red Bull decided to bolt on a set of hard tires on Verstappen’s RB20, and that looked like the right decision as Verstappen slowly gained on both Hamilton and Norris, with both British drivers working around Silverstone on soft tires. Eventually, Verstappen caught Norris and took second away from him, shuffling Norris down to third where he eventually finished.

Dreams of a McLaren one-two finish had fallen away, with the Woking-based outfit forced to settle for a P3-P4 afternoon.

“And yeah, as a team, I don’t think we did quite the job we should have done or good enough, but still lovely to be on the podium here in Silverstone,” admitted Norris trackside to Jenson Button following the race.

The McLaren driver then shouldered the bulk of the blame.

“You know, at the same time I blame myself today for not making some of the right decisions. But, I hate it. I hate ending in this position and ever having excuses for not doing a good enough job,” said Norris, before turning a bit more optimistic. “But I’m so happy, I’m still gonna enjoy it. I think we still did so many things right. So many positives.”

Speaking with Sky Sports Italy, McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella conceded that there were things they could have done differently, noting the decision not to double-stack with Piastri earlier in the race, as well as not putting a set of mediums on Norris’ MCL38 during the final pit stop.

Norris completed his trackside interview with Button on an even more optimistic note. I’m going to come back stronger next year,” said Norris, “and try again.”

Once more, as far as points go this was still a strong result for McLaren, as they cut into Red Bull’s lead atop the Constructors’ Championship standings, and pulled within single digits of Ferrari for P2.

But it could have been more for them.

So much more.

And there might be a few restless nights in Woking before the grid roars back to life in Hungary.

Lewis Hamilton finally reaches the top step again with victory at the British Grand Prix lewis,hamilton,finally,reaches,the,top,step,again,with,victory,at,the,british,grand,prix,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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It came home.

Sure England is still alive in the Euros, after a victory over Switzerland on penalties Saturday that advanced the Three Lions into the semi-finals where they will face The Netherlands on Wednesday. But something else came home on English soil Sunday.

As Lewis Hamilton finally climbed back to the top step of a Formula 1 podium, doing so at the British Grand Prix.

The last time Hamilton reached the top step? That came at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on the fifth of December, 2021. Much has changed since then, starting with the fact that a week later Max Verstappen beat Hamilton to the checkered flag at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix — in controversial fashion many will be quick to point out — to capture his first F1 Drivers’ Championship. But this victory has been a long time coming for Hamilton.

But it finally came.

As the teams battled challenging weather conditions, which included two different spurts of rain at Silverstone, the second lasting longer and creating slicker conditions on the track, Hamilton and Mercedes made a series of impressive strategy calls. The second was when the team made the decision to pit one lap earlier than race leader Lando Norris, bolting on a set of soft tires to last the seven-time champion to the checkered flag. Norris came in for his own set of softs on the following lap but was left helpless as Hamilton rocketed by him as he lumbered out of the McLaren pit box.

That set up a fascinating finish, with Hamilton ahead of Norris and the ever-dangerous Max Verstappen on the prowl behind the British duo in third place. For a moment it looked as if it would be Verstappen who would come out with the win, as Red Bull made the decision to bolt on a set of hard tires and those seemed to be working better for Verstappen than the softs were for Hamilton, and Norris. On Lap 48 Verstappen wound by Norris, advancing into second place with just Hamilton in front of him.

But Hamilton had a three-second gap over his rival, and with just a handful of laps remaining the Mercedes driver had the advantage, and one hand on the Royal Automobile Club Trophy. Could he hold off his rival, or would Verstappen deny Hamilton his 104th career victory?

The roar of the crowd at Silverstone told the final story.

As Queen guitarist and astrophysicist Brian May waved the checkered flag, it was Hamilton who crossed the line first. Verstappen was able to chip away at Hamilton’s advantage over the last two laps, but he could not get to the rear wing of Hamilton’s W15.

A win years in the making had finally come home and on British soil. Lewis Hamilton had captured the 2024 British Grand Prix.

As Hamilton crossed the line, you could hear the emotion in the driver’s voice has he received the congratulations from his team. He was handed the Union Jack as he reached Becketts Corner on his cooldown lap, and he waved it proudly as he brought his race-winning W15 back to pit lane.

An iconic image, on an iconic day, in what is becoming an iconic F1 season.

Vexation at Alpine as challenging British Grand Prix gets even tougher vexation,at,alpine,as,challenging,british,grand,prix,gets,even,tougher,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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Despite a recent run of good form, Alpine knew things would be a little tougher at this weekend’s British Grand Prix.

The team installed five new components on Pierre Gasly’s A524 ahead of the weekend, and with each component above the team’s allotment for the season, a ten-place grid penalty was added. Technically, Gasly was hit with a 50-place grid penalty for this weekend’s race, meaning he will start at the back of the grid in tomorrow’s main event.

That meant that if the team was going to extend their active streak of four straight races with at least a point, Esteban Ocon would likely have to carry the banner. But that task got tougher on Saturday as Ocon failed to advance out of Q1 during qualifying, and will start the British Grand Prix in P18.

Just two spots ahead, and directly in front of, Gasly.

Ocon’s run in Q1 appears to have been undone by some miscommunication within the team right at the end of the first segment of qualifying. “I asked the team, you know, three times ‘[w]e still pushing?’

The team told me ‘no, we took the checkered flag,” said Ocon to Lawrence Barretto immediately after qualifying.”We clearly took the wrong decisions every time.”

Ocon continued his description of the weekend in the team’s post-session report.

“It was a complicated session with the drying track and stoppage for the red flag, but ultimately, we did not optimise our Qualifying today,” said Ocon. “We did not take the right decisions at the right time, and we seemed to be offset compared to the others, and not pushing when the track was probably at its best. Then there was some confusion at the end where I thought we had one more push lap and I was told to abort the lap.

“In the end, it is a frustrating day that we did not maximise and one that we need to review. It will be a difficult race tomorrow given our starting position. We will try our best to move forward, especially if the weather stays like it is with changeable conditions.”

On the other side of the garage Gasly indicated that given the penalty, his weekend truly starts tomorrow. Because of the grid drop he was facing he just made one swing around the track on the softs because the team did not want to take any unnecessary risks on Saturday, given there was no way of improving his starting position for Sunday.

“We knew ahead of the weekend we were going to start the race from P20, as we had to take a penalty eventually and it is good that we get it out of the way,” said Gasly in Alpine’s post-session report. “It was not a very exciting session for me – I did a single lap on Softs and with the track conditions improving we did not want to take any risks today.

“For me, the weekend will start tomorrow, we will attack where we can and hopefully be able to fight our way back to the top ten and continue our positive streak over the past couple of races. But we also know the conditions here are very tricky and we have seen how easy it is to get off track here,” added Gasly. “At the same time, those conditions could make the race tomorrow quite interesting, and it could help us fight our way back and gain positions.”

Bruno Famin, the Alpine Team Principal, outlined that the team was just not good enough on Saturday from an “operational” standpoint, but that there may be opportunities on Sunday.

“We have not been good enough today from an operational standpoint,” said Famin in the team’s post-qualifying report. “With the changeable conditions it was crucial to push and set a time when the track was at its best and we missed the optimum window. We knew with Pierre there was little to gain today with the grid penalties for tomorrow, so we did not take any unnecessary risks.

“For Esteban, the timing was tight at the end for the [checkered] flag, and we missed the opportunity to improve on his time. We will go away and review what happened and try to avoid similar scenarios happening in [the] future. It will be a long race tomorrow and we will review how best to approach the race from our starting position and give ourselves a chance of progressing through the field.”

The weather could play a factor on Sunday, giving Ocon and Gasly a chance to move up in the field. However, it still looks like Alpine will need something special at the British Grand Prix to extend their run of points results.

Daniel Ricciardo not making any proclamations after frustrating Saturday for VCARB at the British Grand Prix daniel,ricciardo,not,making,any,proclamations,after,frustrating,saturday,for,vcarb,at,the,british,grand,prix,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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A week ago at the Austrian Grand Prix, Daniel Ricciardo delivered a bold statement despite missing out on the third segment of qualifying. Ricciardo outlined how the RB01 was a “top ten” car despite his elimination in Q2, and he backed up that proclamation with a points finish at Red Bull Ring.

There were no similar proclamations from Ricciardo following Saturday’s qualifying session at the British Grand Prix.

Ricciardo and teammate Yuki Tsunoda were both eliminated in Q2, with Tsunoda set to start 13th in the main event Sunday, and Ricciardo behind him in 15th. To hear the Visa Cash App RB F1 Team driver tell it, he was not “happy” with how things unfolded on Saturday at Silverstone.

“I’m not particularly happy with today’s qualifying; it wasn’t a good session, and this is something we need to figure out,” said Ricciardo. “Both runs in Q2 didn’t go as expected, and we struggled to get the lap in, leading me to do some overtaking in the last corner, which is something I hate when people do it to me.

“I started my last push lap a couple of seconds behind Zhou [Guanyu], and with the dirty air, you’re never going to get a good lap. The last three weekends haven’t been easy, but we found a way to make it work,” added Ricciardo. “Coming into Silverstone with the same struggles has also added to today’s frustrations because we don’t have the luxury to be able to get things wrong. We’ll address all we need during tonight’s debrief and look ahead at the race.”

While Ricciardo was frustrated with how Saturday played out, his teammate was a bit more pleased with the session.

“I’m happy with how we handled today; the team and I worked well together and communicated during qualifying to adapt to the changing weather conditions,” described Tsunoda. “We knew it would be difficult coming into quali because we’ve been lacking pace throughout Free Practice, and it’s a shame we haven’t been able to quite turn it around as much as we would’ve liked to, but the field is tight, and anything can happen.

“We’re struggling with pace in the high-speed corners at this track, which is similar to last week, but we’ll work hard to maximise our performance tomorrow. We had good pace in the wet and we’ll adapt based on the weather conditions and communicate, that’s the key.”

VCARB Technical Director Jody Egginton noted that the team might not have put Ricciardo in the best position during Q2, but that there is potential for the team on Sunday.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t put Daniel in good enough conditions for his final run in Q2 which got him caught up in a lot of traffic, altering his position for tomorrow,” said Egginton. “We find ourselves slightly back from where we want to be, but laps time deltas to the cars around us are small and the team is pushing hard to extract everything from the car.”

Salvaging something on Sunday could be critical for the team in their fight with Haas in the F1 Constructors’ Championship. VCARB currently sits in sixth place in the standings, 11 points clear of Haas. But with Nico Hülkenberg starting sixth on Sunday Haas has tremendous potential to cut into that lead. If Riccardo and/or Tsunoda can find a way to forge into the points, it would be a massive step for the team.

And it would perhaps ease some of the frustration Ricciardo is feeling this Saturday at Silverstone.

Charles Leclerc and Ferrari looking for answers to a ‘slow’ car at British Grand Prix charles,leclerc,and,ferrari,looking,for,answers,to,a,slow,car,at,british,grand,prix,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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Charles Leclerc struggled to find the right answers, but not many are on offer at the moment for Ferrari.

Speaking with the official Formula 1 channel following a surprising elimination in Q2, the Ferrari driver lamented a frustrating state of play for the team at the moment. Leclerc has endured a difficult stretch of performances in the weeks since his victory at the Monaco Grand Prix which saw the Monegasque driver finally break through with a win at home, despite Ferrari bringing a series of upgrades to the SF-24. He finished out of the points in the Canadian Grand Prix and after a fifth-place finish in Barcelona, Lecler brought home only two points from Austria, both of which came from a seventh-place finish in the F1 Sprint Race at Red Bull Ring.

That run may continue on Sunday, as Leclerc will start in P11 in what he calls a “slow” car.

We are just slow. We are just really slow at the moment and we have a lot of inconsistencies with the car,” said Leclerc to F1TV. “I don’t think it quite helps that we are trying to also… we are trying to just assess the situation we are in at the moment and try to understand which are the directions in which we need to push into.”

The driver noted that the team tried some different configurations in practice, to try and unlock the answer to the questions they faced with the SF-24. While Leclerc noted that the decision offered some potential solutions for Ferrari, it was not enough to unlock the time he needed to reach Q3.

“I felt like yesterday, by splitting the cars [with pre and post-Barcelona configurations], we understood a good amount to use for the future,” described Leclerc. “However, that means that maybe you don’t optimise your whole weekend as you are focused on just trying to learn, and when you are speaking about a tenth to go to Q3, it’s all about small details. So at the moment we are just struggling with the situation we are in, and I hope we can bounce back as soon as possible.”

Leclerc compared the strategy to a similar decision Ferrari made a year ago. Last season saw the Scuderia struggling during the summer, and trying different configurations at the Dutch Grand Prix helped the team improve down the stretch.

“I think last year we did that in Zandvoort, where it was really a turning point of the season and we did well,” said Leclerc. “We shouldn’t over-panic, but it is true that now this difficult time has been there for longer than last year, so we’ve really got to react now and I hope that from next race onwards we can re-optimise the weekend like we did at the beginning of the season.”

Things were a bit better for teammate Carlos Sainz Jr., who advanced to the third segment of qualifying and will start Sunday’s British Grand Prix up in seventh, but Ferrari seems on the back foot compared with some of their rivals at the moment.

Perhaps adding to the frustration is that this weekend may present a missed opportunity for the Scuderia. With Sergio Pérez starting at the back of the grid, and Max Verstappen set to start fourth, Ferrari could have taken a big step towards Red Bull at the front of the grid.

Instead, they are still looking for answers to what Leclerc calls a “slow” race car.

British Grand Prix: Sergio Pérez concedes he ‘let the team down’ in qualifying british,grand,prix,sergio,p,rez,concedes,he,let,the,team,down,in,qualifying,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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Ahead of the Formula 1 British Grand Prix Red Bull team boss Christian Horner noted that Sergio Pérez needed to “dig deep” to pull himself out of a bit of a slump.

Digging in the gravel trap at Copse was probably not what the Red Bull Team Principal had in mind.

During Saturday’s qualifying session, Pérez was one of the first drivers to make the change from the intermediate compound to a set of slicks, but that soft tire did Pérez no favors as he quickly found himself in the gravel, and out of qualifying.

“I was the first one basically to get to the slick tire, and as I was coming into Turn 9 I downshifted and lost the rear of the car,” said Pérez in the team’s post-qualifying report. “I just locked up. So I went straight … but it was completely wet on the outside. My mistake.”

Despite his starting position, down in P19, Pérez hopes he can get back into the points and minimize the damage for Red Bull.

“It’s gonna be a very tricky race, a long afternoon, but I have every hope that I can get back to secure some points and minimize the damage,” added Perez.

Speaking with the official F1 channel after qualifying, Pérez went as far as to say that he “let the team down” with his mistake at Copse.

“It’s very frustrating, it hurts to let your team down in that way, especially because we’ve had a really strong weekend up to now. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to show the full pace,” described Pérez.

That mistake came not only during a difficult stretch of form for the driver but on a week where that run of poor performances has led to renewed speculation about Pérez’s job security at Red Bull. Despite the announcement of a new contract for the driver which could keep him in his current seat through 2026, his recent struggles have seen more rumors about Pérez potentially losing his spot due to performance clauses in his contract.

As always, paddock rumors require at least a healthy grain of salt or two, but there is no denying that Pérez is under pressure to deliver for Red Bull as they face a potential Constructors’ Championship fight with teams like Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes.

Seeing Pérez in the gravel is not how Red Bull wanted to start their weekend, as they look to stay ahead in that fight.

George Russell and Lewis Hamilton lock out front row, Sergio Pérez falters at British GP george,russell,and,lewis,hamilton,lock,out,front,row,sergio,p,rez,falters,at,british,gp,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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Given where the Formula 1 grid is this week, the three cars at the front of the grid simply feel right.

The British trio of George Russell, Lewis Hamilton, and Lando Norris will start up front in Sunday’s British Grand Prix, with Russell on pole position as Mercedes locked out the front row during Saturday’s qualifying session. Norris, looking to rebound after a bitter result last week at the Austrian Grand Prix, will start third alongside Max Verstappen, who qualified fourth.

According to F1TV, it marks the first time the top three drivers on the grid at the historic Silverstone circuit are British drivers.

But the story is Mercedes.

This Silver Arrows got off to a slow start this season, but a series of upgrades the team began rolling out at the Miami Grand Prix have certainly delivered the improved performance they were seeking. Mercedes has been the hottest team over the last three race weekends — having scored 100 points over that stretch — and since Miami only McLaren has scored more points, 144 to the 132 posted by Mercedes.

That hot streak looks to continue this weekend.

“Nice one team,” exclaimed Russell as he crossed the line having put his W15 on pole position, knowing he and Hamilton had locked out the front row. “Race to win tomorrow.”

Whether the Silver Arrows can deliver a win tomorrow remains to be seen, and the fight at the front looks fascinating between the McLarens, the Mercedes duo, and an ever-lurking Verstappen starting fourth.

But make no mistake, Mercedes are back, and if they keep their streak of results alive on tomorrow, it could set things up for a fascinating second half of the season.

Here are the full results, as well as more winners and losers from a thrilling qualifying session at the British Grand Prix

Winners: McLaren

In terms of the big picture, Saturday was another strong day for McLaren.

Norris is set to start the British Grand Prix on the third row, right behind pole-sitter Russell in P3. When the lights go out tomorrow he will have a friendly face right behind him, as teammate Oscar Piastri qualified fifth and will be in Norris’ rear-view mirror at the start tomorrow.

Those starting positions give McLaren a tremendous chance to bring home another big haul of points in the British Grand Prix.

When I spoke with Oscar Piastri following his podium finish in the Monaco Grand Prix, the second-year driver told me in no uncertain terms that the F1 Constructors’ Championship is far from over, and that McLaren is in the fight.

“The Constructors’ [Championship] I would say is still open. We’re still a third of the way through the year. So it’s definitely still all to play for,” said Piastri to me back at the end of May.

“I think in the position I’m in in the driver’s standings, [I’m] probably not gonna win the Championship unless I really take it up a notch again. But I think in the Constructors’, we’re not out of contention for winning that,” added Piastri.

“So, that’s definitely the aim of the team.”

Much has been said and written about how Norris would respond following the late-stage incident with Verstappen at the Austrian Grand Prix. While their wheel touch ended Norris’ chances at a win at Red Bull Ring, Piastri’s ability to finish on the podium — combined with results from the F1 Sprint Race the day before — saw McLaren pull a few points closer to Red Bull in that potential title fight.

And with both Norris and Piastri starting inside the top five — while Verstappen will be alone at the front of the grid when the lights go out Sunday — McLaren is primed to do that again tomorrow.

Loser: Sergio Pérez

With just over seven minutes to go in Q1, the red flag flew.

Sergio Pérez was in the gravel.

The Red Bull driver was the first victim of the tricky conditions, as teams and drivers alike performed the cost-benefit analysis of slick tires versus the intermediates. While the track was drying out and there was a dry racing line taking shape, Pérez was one of the first drivers to make the change to slicks.

As he was winding his way around Silverstone on that set of slicks, he ran wide at Copse and found the gravel.

Despite his protests and pleas for a push, the crane eventually came out, and the driver reluctantly climbed out of his RB20, as a chagrined Christian Horner looked on from the pit wall.

On F1TV Jolyon Palmer summed it up as “nightmare” stuff for Pérez and Red Bull. “Oh no for Sergio Pérez,” said Palmer. “That is nightmare stuff for team and driver … this is off the back of what Christian Horner was saying yesterday they need a second driver in the fight … this is tough times for Sergio Përez.”

Complicating matters for the team when it comes to the Constructors’ Championship is that Verstappen could only qualify fourth, and will start alongside Norris and behind the Mercedes duo. That could mean Red Bull sees their rivals inch even closer in the Constructors’ standings by the time the checkered flag flies on Sunday.

But that is a team issue, returning to Pérez, the early end to his day comes at a critical time for the driver.

As Palmer and Ben Edwards noted, the incident comes as Pérez is under renewed pressure regarding his seat with the team. Not only has his mid-season swoon come as teams such as McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes have pulled closer to Red Bull in the standings, but this week brought renewed speculation about a potential driver change at Red Bull, despite Pérez’s new contract.

To the point about the standings, as we outlined earlier in the week Pérez has secured just 15 points since the Miami Grand Prix, miles off the 101 points added by Max Verstappen during that stretch. Pérez is dead last among the eight drivers from the top-four teams in the standings during that period of the calendar:

Driver Points Since Miami Grand Prix

Driver Points since Miami
Driver Points since Miami
Max Verstappen 101
George Russell 74
Lando Norris 73
Oscar Piastri 71
Charles Leclerc 62
Lewis Hamilton 58
Carlos Sainz Jr. 52
Sergio Pérez 15

Pérez is set to start P19 in Sunday’s Grand Prix, thanks to a massive grid penalty handed down to Pierre Gasly for changing components.

But at this point, he might have bigger problems than a start at the back of the grid.

Winners: Williams

This was a week that Williams truly needed, and their best qualifying session of the 2024 campaign.

Alexander Albon advanced into Q3, posting the ninth-fastest time in the second segment of qualifying. He ended his third segment of qualifying in that position as well, and he will start inside the top ten on Sunday. Putting the team on track to bring home some much-needed points in Sunday’s main event.

“Yes very happy,” said Albon after qualifying.

As for Albon’s teammate Logan Sargeant, the lone American driver on the grid took to the track over the Fourth of July weekend sporting a Union Jack on his FW46 and facing continued speculation about his F1 future. But Sargeant advanced into Q2 for just the second time this season, and while he was eliminated in Q2 and is set to start P12, it was another positive sign for the young driver.

And perhaps of note, it marked the third time in the past five grands prix that he out-qualified Sergio Pérez.

It might not be enough to save his seat for next season, and interestingly enough Williams Team Principal James Vowles even opened the door to replacing Sargeant at some point this season earlier in the week. “We’re continually evaluating it,” said Vowles on Friday when asked about a potential mid-season change. “What we’ve said to Logan is it’s a meritocracy. You have to make sure you earn your place in the sport continuously. That’s been the same message that has been for 18 months really for him. And we are open-minded to things.”

Sargeant’s performance on Saturday might not save his seat for 2025, but it could keep him in the FW46 for a little while longer.

But for Williams, who are seeking their first points since Albon’s P9 at the Monaco Grand Prix, Saturday was a massive step in that direction.

Losers: Alpine

This was going to be a bad weekend at least for Pierre Gasly.

But things got worse for Alpine on Saturday.

Gasly’s British Grand Prix got off on the wrong foot as the team changed components on his A524. The team added the fifth Internal Combustion Engine, the fifth Turbo Charger, the fifth Motor Generator Unit – Heat, the fifth Motor Generator Unit – Kinetic, and the third Control Electronics.

As all five components were more than the allowed number per season under the Sporting Regulations, Gasly was hit with a ten-place grid drop, for a total penalty of 50 places on the grid.

As a result, he was locked into starting at the back of the grid on Sunday no matter what happened today.

That means if the team was to salvage something this weekend, their hopes likely rested with Esteban Ocon.

Who was eliminated in Q1.

Ocon perhaps fell victim to circumstances, as he noted after the checkered flag flew at the end of Q1 that his one push lap came just as the rain fell near the end of the segment, which threw the session into chaos. But he could not find the time he needed and is set to start at the back of the grid near his teammate.

Alpine has made substantial progress throughout this season, given where they began the 2024 F1 campaign. Recent results have pulled the team out of the basement, and into P8 in the Constructors’ Championship standings. They entered the British Grand Prix having scored points in four straight races, and five of the last six.

But given how their Sunday is shaping up, that streak is likely to end tomorrow.

Winner: Nico Hulkenberg

“[Nico] Hülkenberg is driving a blinder this weekend.”

That was the description from Jolyon Palmer from the F1TV commentary box, as the Haas driver stormed into Q3 and put his VF-24 onto the third row, as Hülkenberg qualified sixth for the British Grand Prix.

It is his best qualifying result of the 2024 season, as well as the best result for Haas this year.

Hülkenberg starting sixth gives the team a legitimate chance at carving into the advantage Visa Cash App RB F1 Team currently holds over them in the Constructors’ Championship standings. VCARB sits sixth in the Constructors’ standings entering the British Grand Prix, with 30 points on the season. Haas, meanwhile, is in seventh, 11 points adrift of VCARB in the Constructors’ table.

But, hypothetically, should Hülkenberg manage to finish where he starts tomorrow, a P6 would see Haas add eight points to their account, bringing their season total to 27. With both Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda starting outside the top ten, that would pull Haas to within three points of VCARB for sixth.

Which would be a massive result for the team.

Of course, there is a long way to go before points are handed out at Silverstone, but this was a tremendous day for Hülkenberg, and Haas.

Loser: Charles Leclerc

Ferrari has been on the back foot all week, and that continued on Saturday.

Charles Leclerc bore the brunt of things, as he failed to advance into Q3 and is slated to start the main event alongside Logan Sargeant in P11.

Ferrari has struggled in the wake of Leclerc’s breakthrough victory at the Monaco Grand Prix, which saw the driver finally reach the top of the podium at his home race. Leclerc has scored just 12 points since that win at home, and the upgrades the team introduced following the Monaco Grand Prix have yet to deliver the improved performance Ferrari was seeking. While Carlos Sainz Jr. advanced to Q3 at Silverstone and scored a podium last week in Austria, Ferrari has slipped away from Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship standings since Monaco.

Starting from 11th Leclerc can certainly work his way into the points, but that is a small-picture issue. The bigger-picture question facing Leclerc — and Ferrari — is whether they can find the answers they need to the upgrades to the SF-24 introduced following Monaco.

Speaking with the media on Friday Leclerc indicated that the upgrades are doing what they expected, but it is a matter of getting the SF-24 into the right operating window to maximize the package. “We are still trying to work out where we need to set up the car in order to maximise the potential of those upgrades,” Leclerc told media on Friday. “Because, as I’ve said many times, the [performance] numbers that we were expecting from this upgrade is there.

“The upgrade is working the way it should be, but it’s more about where you run the car to optimise those numbers that we see that for now, we haven’t quite managed to do that. So we are still working on that.”

That work continues …

Andrea Kimi Antonelli captures maiden F2 win as Mercedes F1 decision looms andrea,kimi,antonelli,captures,maiden,f,win,as,mercedes,f,decision,looms,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one

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As far as Saturday’s go, it was an impressive one for young Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

And one that added an important item to his resume as a decision looms at Mercedes.

Antonelli captured the Formula 2 Sprint Race in wet and rainy conditions, leading every lap from reverse pole position to score his maiden win in F2.

The victory comes as questions linger about the second seat at Mercedes on the F1 grid for 2025, and whether Antonelli will be ready to make the jump from just one season in F2 to the highest level of single-seater racing. Antonelli, who is yet to turn 18, skipped F3 altogether, and while his already impressive resume has him as the leading candidate for the seat Lewis Hamilton will vacate at the end of the season, it lacked a win in F2.

That changed today.

Antonellii’s maiden F2 win also comes during a week where Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff addressed Antonelli’s “tricky” F2 campaign, and opened the door to options for next season beyond the young phenom.

“Yeah, the season has been a bit tricky because overall the two have not been on a level and I think the team recognises that. That wasn’t great, but last weekend was pretty good. The pace was there, there were mistakes in getaways, so that’s something a rookie needs to learn, that’s clear,” said Wolff when asked about Antonelli during Friday’s FIA Press Conference.

“But he has a lot of pressure. He’s being talked a lot about. His junior formula and go-karting track record is one of a kind. And that’s clear that the pressure ramps up. But it’s like his father says, a champion needs to be thrown in the cold water and needs to swim. So they are very clear about that,” continued Wolff. “But the driver market at the moment is quite a dynamic, interesting thing. I think because some of the drivers have more options and some of the teams have more options. So it’s interesting. And you know, it’s like Bernie [Ecclestone] said: ‘last week I had an opinion, this week I have a different one’.”

Wolff then talked about how Antonelli was handling all the expectations and pressure, drawing a comparison to fellow F2 driver Oliver Bearman, who made some news this week when Haas announced he would be driving for them full-time in F1 next year.

“What I like in terms of his attitude, generally his family, who has been always close to him, is the objective assessment of a situation, and that is good or not good enough. And I don’t think that the pressure harms at all the way he performs in the car and how he drives. You can clearly see it’s a good benchmarking with Ollie Bearman,” said Wolff. “They are pretty close. Ollie had an obviously very good race in Austria and Kimi on the Sunday, had a clutch release issue in the second race. So you’ve got to swim. That’s clear. It was a rapid career progression. He’s 17. Hasn’t got even a driving license for a road car. And the best ones will be able to cope with that, with the amount of scrutiny and the pressure, and it’s going to get bigger.”

If Saturday’s F2 Sprint Race is any indication, Antonelli is starting to handle that pressure rather well.