At this British Grand Prix, we were treated to some quintessential British weather, which gave us one of the most chaotic races in recent years. So, who handled the downpour, and who just plain sank?
Top of the class:
Nico Hülkenberg – Qualifying: P19 | Race: P3
Good things come to those who wait… And wait, Nico did. After 239 races, the German finally got his maiden (!!!) podium. I often have things to say about Lance Stroll, not all of them charitable, yet even that man has three podiums to his name. Hülkenberg, meanwhile, has spent years in the wrong place at the wrong time. Always a dependable driver, but rarely the one in the right machinery when it counted. That he’s stuck around this long, that he kept getting seats, says more about his consistency than any stat sheet ever could.
Qualifying was a disaster, plain and simple. Leaving the Hulk to start nineteenth on the grid, no obvious path forward. Until Silverstone’s favourite guest, the weather, rolled in. In the mixed conditions, Hülkenberg drove like he’d been waiting his whole life for this race. Eight places gained off the line, into the points by lap three. A perfectly timed stop for Inters launched him to fifth, which became fourth as Verstappen spun.
With the track drying and DRS re-enabled, Hülkenberg reeled in Stroll and made the move for third. Hamilton was hot on his heels, and the pressure was suffocating in the final laps, but Hülkenberg held firm. His first podium was a long-overdue reward, and he finally cashed in.
As a result of the track drying out, DRS was enabled in the final 20 laps, allowing Hulkenberg to reel in and pass Lance Stroll for third, but with Hamilton close behind, his first podium wasn’t a done deal.
This was Sauber’s first podium since Kamui Kobayashi in Japan in 2012. He was also the first German on the podium steps since Vettel in 2021. And, depending on how deep you want to go in the history books, the oldest first-time podium finisher since George Follmer in 1973.
Lance Stroll – Qualifying: P18 | Race: P7
Stroll put in one of his better drives in recent memory, climbing from 18th to fourth thanks to an excellent first stint and a well-timed early stop. He cycled into the podium places after Verstappen’s spin, but couldn’t keep Hulkenberg behind once DRS came back into play.
He slipped further in the closing stages but held on to finish seventh, his first points since the Miami Sprint.
Alright, it’s not the pretty fairytale Hülkenberg managed, but this was still a genuinely solid performance. I tend to judge Stroll quite harshly, especially when he bins it unprovoked on a dry track, but give him a slippery surface and half a chance, and he usually delivers. That certainly earns him a pat on the back.
Honourable mention of the day goes to Lando Norris!
Winner from third on the grid, in front of the Lando stand, at his home Grand Prix. You’d think that would warrant a bigger spotlight, and it is a really big deal. To his credit, Lando was composed throughout, never fazed by the changing conditions.
But let’s be honest, it wasn’t the standout drive of the day. He spent a fair chunk of the race stuck behind Max, even dropped back at points, and while McLaren clearly had the car to dominate, Norris simply did what was expected. Piastri was removed from contention by a ten-second penalty he had to serve in the pits, and Verstappen spun himself out of the picture. Lando didn’t put a foot wrong, but he didn’t blow the doors off either, hence the honourable mention.
And I’ll admit, I was a bit salty about the podium. You’ve got a guy on the podium for the first time in 239 races, and both McLarens turn their backs on him to spray their team rep instead? Come on. Drench the debutant. It was maybe just a small thing, but not a great look.
Struggle bus:
Oscar Piastri – Qualifying: P2 | Race: P2
Looking at the results, you wouldn’t say that Oscar would have to top the struggle bus, but unfortunately, he does. Because he basically threw the win away all by himself.
As the Safety Car lights went out and the field prepared to restart, Piastri inexplicably braked hard and bunched up the pack behind him. Verstappen had to jink left to avoid him and accidentally jumped ahead, while others were caught in the accordion effect. It could’ve ended a lot worse if Max had driven straight into the back of him.
Some fans suggested Piastri was pulling a Russell, trying to bait Verstappen into a rules breach by tempting him alongside before the restart, which is technically not allowed. Whether that was his intention or just a misjudgment, we’ll probably never know. Either way, it was clumsy, silly and costly. The stewards slapped Piastri with a 10-second penalty for erratic driving under Safety Car conditions. Some called it harsh, others too lenient, but considering the rules allow for anything from a five-second penalty to a full stop-and-go, the stewards went full mid on that one. (Edit: Piastri later received 2 points on his licence as well)
He took the penalty on lap 44 and still emerged with a shot at victory, even though he came out behind Norris. Just over five seconds separated him from his teammate, but that glimmer disappeared when he made a mistake through Becketts. His subsequent team radio request for a position swap with Norris was also an odd one, as no one could figure out why. He hadn’t been undercut. He hadn’t been stitched by strategy. He’d just cost himself a home win by being a bit silly.
After the race, the usual Baby Kimi Räikkönen façade was gone. He appeared quite upset and later despondent in interviews and the press conference, well aware of what had slipped through his fingers.
Yuki Tsunoda – Qualifying: P12 | Race: P15
Given how much Verstappen complained about the RB21 in the wet, it was probably wishful thinking to expect Tsunoda to get much out of it, especially given his recent form. But even by those standards, this was a non-event. He was already drifting towards the back after a mediocre qualifying and never looked likely to recover on Sunday.
The only time he really appeared on-screen was when he picked up a 10-second penalty for tagging Ollie Bearman’s Haas. After that, he washed out to the back and stayed there. Hard to say much more than that. I suppose the only mildly commendable thing is that he made it to the flag, which already puts him ahead of a few others, but that’s a low bar.
Kimi Antonelli, Isack Hadjar, Gabriel Bortoleto, Liam Lawson – DNF | Franco Colapinto – DNS
Four DNFs and one DNS. All rookies, none of whom saw the chequered flag.. Some were victims of the conditions, others of each other. Either way, it was a demolition derby for 1/4th of the grid.
Gabriel Bortoleto spun out early after pushing for slicks, a call he made himself, and one that backfired badly. As for Franco Colapinto, Alpine started him from the pit lane, but he didn’t even get to see the lights go out. A driveline failure as he came in to swap tyres after the formation lap meant his race ended before it began.
Racing Bulls, fresh off leading the midfield in Austria, saw both cars wiped out before lap 20. Lawson had no room to work with on lap one, boxed in by two cars on either side of him. Hadjar later misjudged his braking and rear-ended Antonelli. But in his defence, visibility was awful. Even on TV, Antonelli’s brake lights only appeared a fraction of a second before impact. Hard to judge Hadjar too harshly for that one.
Antonelli could keep going for a little longer, but sustained too much damage to sing out the rest of the race. All in all, a rough day for the rookies.
The dishonourable mention of the day goes to Max Verstappen.
From pole to fifth, not ideal…. But it’s true that the RB21 never looked comfortable or easy to drive this weekend, so it didn’t come entirely as a surprise.
Verstappen still put it on pole with a lap no one saw coming, not even the commentators on F1TV who were already singing praises to someone else before realising he hadn’t yet crossed the line.
The low-downforce setup was risky. It may have helped on Saturday, but it backfired in Sunday’s wet conditions, leaving him with zero grip and a very twitchy RB21. Still, Verstappen held on… Until he didn’t.
The spin came not long after Piastri’s penalty-worthy move, and it’s hard to ignore the timing. We’ve seen this version of Max before. When he feels slighted, the red mist sometimes follows. He’s a four-time world champion, a rain master and a legend. But even he’s not immune to emotion getting the better of him.
The pole showed there’s still fight in him. But with the season now halfway through, the odds of Red Bull turning the car around are getting smaller. If anyone can still mount a Championship-winning charge, it’s Verstappen, but this weekend certainly won’t help.
Belgium’s up next, and I won’t lie, Spa is one of my personal favourites. It’s a Sprint weekend too, so there’s more than just the race and qualifying to keep an eye on. Expect four seasons in a weekend, as the weather is always a bit odd in the Ardennes. The race gets underway at 2 pm UK time on Sunday, the 27th of July.