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What the teams said – Race day in Great Britain
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Mercedes
There were sensational scenes at Mercedes, as Lewis Hamilton followed up George Russell’s Austria win with his own first victory since Saudi Arabia 2021, ending a 56-race streak. That was done through some clever strategy calls by the Mercedes pit wall, as well as Hamilton’s typical brilliance at his home track – where he recorded a record ninth victory. Pole-sitter Russell’s day, meanwhile, was cruelly undone by a suspected water leak that forced him into retirement on Lap 35.
Lewis Hamilton, 1st
"Today means so much. It is the most incredible honour to be standing on the top step of the podium here at Silverstone. I think my heart is still racing! We’ve had so many amazing times here and today was the most emotional end to a win I’ve ever had. It has been a really challenging few years for everyone in the team. Knowing how hard everyone has worked to fight back, I think it was a real release of emotion. I am forever grateful to everyone in this team, to Mercedes, and to all our partners. To finally succeed is the greatest feeling I remember having.
"It was a tricky race out there. The changeable conditions made it a real challenge. We kept our cool though and made the right call at the right time to switch back to slicks. That helped us take back the lead and from there, we were able to bring it home."
George Russell, DNF
"I’m absolutely gutted. About 10 laps before I had to retire, I could see temperature alarms on my steering wheel. We had a water system issue we were battling and unfortunately, it won out. Congratulations to Lewis and the team though. He drove a great race and it’s a fully deserved victory. We’ve both been pushing so hard to help the team develop the car and it’s great to see that paying off.
"The car felt so good today. We knew it was going to be a long race with the weather conditions. When the rain first came down, we struggled a little. We were able to find our pace again though and it would have been an interesting battle to the end. Nevertheless, it’s been an amazing weekend for us as a team. We can be proud of what we’ve achieved and look forward to the final two races before the summer break with excitement."
Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport
"Today’s win is like a fairytale. 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.
"Last week’s win was fortuitous. Today, we were quick in almost all conditions. We were running first and second for a long time and, although the McLarens were quick when the rain fell, we were able to get back ahead of them. It is a win on merit, and it shows the grit of this team. We never stopped believing, we never stopped working, and we have been able to unlock the potential in the car. We are now on a roll.
"George was unfortunate today. He has been so strong recently and took a fantastic pole position yesterday. Sadly, we had to retire his car with a water system issue. He would have likely been in position to fight for the win were it not for that."
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director
"It was absolutely fantastic to see Lewis win today. The crowd here make it extra special, and it was an amazing drive. It’s barely believable that it's been so long since we last won a race with Lewis and now, we've just won two weekends in a row as a team.
"It was a difficult race for George. We were monitoring a cooling system on his car from the early laps and unfortunately that got to a stage where we had to retire the car. He can hold his head up high though. He put together a fantastic lap to take pole position and showed that he had the pace to control the race in stint one.
"The last few months have seen the whole team working flat out to improve the car. What we have achieved in a short space of time is incredible. We'll enjoy this moment as it's very special but with two races to go before the summer break, we'll keep pushing to bring performance as we continue to get our championship back on track."
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Red Bull
It really didn't look like Verstappen's day at all in the early stages of the Grand Prix. Despite his early pass on Norris, the Dutchman admitted he was worried he could finish either fifth or sixth after slipping back down the order as Norris and Piastri steamed past. However, Red Bull made the switch to intermediates and then to hards at exactly the right time – those calls were rightly lauded by the Dutchman as he eventually swept back past Norris towards the end to claim P2. For his team mate Perez it was another nightmare Grand Prix weekend, 17th was as good as it got for the Mexican.
READ MORE: Verstappen hails ‘right calls’ from Red Bull in helping to seal P2 at Silverstone
Max Verstappen, 3rd
“It was difficult today to manage especially with the rain, but looking at pure performance we were too slow in the first stint and overall struggled with tyre degradation. At one point it was looking like we might finish P5 or P6, but we made all of the right calls, especially with pitstops, and that put us back into contention. When it started to rain we didn’t want to take too much risk as I was already struggling with grip, and the Team also put the hard tyre on at the end and that definitely saved my race as I was the only one on the hard tyre and was able to really push. Out of a tough situation we still finished second, and extended our Championship leads, and that of course is a very strong result for us. We’re halfway through the season now and we have a bit of work to do still to finish the season where we want to be."
Sergio Perez, 17th
“This is a day to forget, nothing really worked for us, we gambled initially to try and go for it and unfortunately, we didn’t have what we needed today. We took a risk on the intermediate tyre early on, thinking there was going to be more rain, more quickly and it was just too early, we lost a lot of ground and the tyre was completely gone. We were out of position for the whole race, and it was really difficult to manage the race. I am very disappointed, but it is time to move forward, I am happy there is a little break now, we need to regroup as a Team and do some important work. We need a clean weekend now, a weekend of progression to get back to our rhythm. Hungary and Belgium are weekends where we have to get back to our form."
Christian Horner, Team Principal
"It was a thrilling race, with one minute looking like we were out of the race and the next minute we were straight back in it. We got the strategy calls exactly right today, especially the point where we went on the inter, the slicks, and then the hard tyre which were definitely all of the right choices out there today. If there had been a few more laps the outcome might have been different but it was still a great drive and performance. The pitwall and the drivers are working really well together, Max and Checo obviously are feeding back what is going on but the pitwall have more information and they are both communicating and able to make the right calls at the right time. We will need to analyse performance as it was all over the board with pace and which team was the quickest on track at any given point, but it balanced out a bit as the track got drier. The British Grand Prix is always a special weekend, and also a big congratulations to Lewis on a great drive at his home track."
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McLaren
McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown reckoned both of his drivers could have taken victory at Silverstone – and he may have a point. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri both showed scintillating speed at times, with Norris grabbing the lead in the opening stages from Hamilton. But some mistimed calls to pit in the challenging conditions ultimately saw Norris and Piastri come home a disconsolate P3 and P4.
Lando Norris, 3rd
“It was a tough race but very enjoyable. A big congratulations to Lewis Hamilton, he executed his race well, so hats off to him and Mercedes. It was a lot of fun battling these guys in these conditions, and you’re always on a knife-edge when you’re risking a lot. We did many good things this weekend but there are also lots of things to review. This is the place I would love to have everything go perfectly and it just didn't today – but it is still lovely to be on the podium here at Silverstone. We'll come back stronger next race and next year and try again.”
Oscar Piastri, 4th
“Some good points for the team today but we had some missed opportunities, so it’s hard not to leave a bit frustrated. The call to double stack or to stay out is one of the hardest decisions you can make, and unfortunately, we just got it wrong, however we’ll take it back and review to see what we can learn from it. Outside of that, we made strong decisions today and it’s encouraging to see we have the pace to be at the front. We’ll take a week to reset ahead of the double-header.”
Andrea Stella, Team Principal
“The race today was intense and we leave this weekend with a bittersweet taste. We knew rain would be a factor at some stage, and several drivers were in contention to win at different points in the afternoon. I think we looked very strong when the rain started to fall, with both drivers moving to the front of the field. We then didn’t capitalise on that, and it looks like a missed opportunity. We’ll review the calls we made - some were good, others could have been better. Once again, it’s important that we’re in contention for podiums and victories, and perhaps today the difference was a matter of small details in the execution. Our pace across this triple-header has been encouraging, and we’re looking forward to future races.”
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Ferrari
This was another day where pace proved to be a struggle for Ferrari. Carlos Sainz looked like a mild threat early on, but faded to end up P5, a full 47s off the leaders. After missing out on Q3 yesterday, Leclerc enjoyed a punchy start to jump to eighth, but made the switch to inters too early, the loss of lap time in that phase of the race leaving him down in P14 at the flag.
Carlos Sainz, 5th
"It was a very solid performance today and I think we maximised the result with P5 and fastest lap. We executed a difficult race well under mixed conditions I was able to close the gap to the cars ahead. Unfortunately, when the track dried we were lacking a bit of pace and had to settle for fifth. Clearly, we still need to take a step forward to close the gap to our rivals. We now have some time off to regroup and come back stronger in Hungary."
Charles Leclerc, 14th
"We had a good start today but unfortunately, the race didn’t play out as we hoped on my side. The rain was increasing from lap 15 and we thought it would get stronger so we pitted for Inters. It may have been an aggressive choice, but it seemed that it could be worth it at the time, considering the feeling that I had in the car and our weather prediction. Unfortunately, the rain was only really strong enough for those tyres a few laps later and my tyres were worn down by then, so that we haad to make another stop. It went wrong and we have to review our race and make sure we can maximise every opportunity going forward."
Fred Vasseur, Team Principal
"It wasn’t an easy weekend, but today Carlos drove a strong race as he had a good start, was fast in the wet and his final position was the best he could achieve today and it included the additional point for the fastest lap.On Charles’ side it was a bit more difficult as we gambled and the strategy didn’t pay off. He had a great start and moved up three places then he lost some time getting past Lance Stroll. So, when both Mercedes went off the track at turn 1 in the rain we agreed on the decision to bring Charles in for Intermediates, as an aggressive strategy was the only way to try and move him up the order. As we saw, it didn’t pay off and probably cost us a P6. This weekend we learned a lot about the car and we made a good step forward which is encouraging for the rest of the season. Now we need to build on what we have learned and apply it to the next couple of races. Everyone in the team, including me, is impatient to get some good results."
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Aston Martin
Both cars in the points was a welcome result for Aston Martin, following a difficult few races in which progress appeared to have stalled. A mature drive from Stroll saw him best veteran team mate Alonso as they came home seventh and eighth respectively in the team's home race.
Lance Stroll, 7th
“It was a tricky race out there today, but we managed it well and picked up a decent load of points for the team. I had a good start and got [Nico] Hulkenberg off the line. Then the rain started a few laps in and we stopped for the intermediate tyres. It's always a challenge to judge how long you can survive on the dry compound – you don't want to leave it too late and end up in the barriers - but I think we made that call well. It's good to end this triple header with a more competitive weekend; it's a big uplift for the team and we'll look to take that momentum into Hungary.”
Fernando Alonso, 8th
“It was a good result for us today with both cars scoring points in the top ten. I felt more competitive this weekend and it seemed we were in our natural position, which is more encouraging than the last few races. It was a tricky race to understand, with question marks on whether to fit wet or dry tyres at certain points of the race. I think we waited one lap too late to switch to the Intermediates, but you need a bit of luck with these decisions. It's up to us to keep improving and find more performance in the car heading into the upcoming races.”
Mike Krack, Team Principal
“Ten important points at our home race in Silverstone with both cars in the top eight. Lance and Fernando didn't put a wheel wrong, dealing well with a couple of rain showers that made for very tricky track conditions this afternoon. We optimised the strategy today with our decision to keep two sets of Medium tyres proving the correct one. The team and drivers have worked incredibly hard to improve the car recently and this result shows our efforts our moving in the right direction. A big thank you to everyone in the team for their hard work during this triple-header, and thanks to the fans and our team partners for their support during this busy home race week.”
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Alpine
Gasly's miserable weekend continued. Already consigned to the back of the grid after power unit changes, the Frenchman failed to take the start after gearbox gremlins hit on the formation lap. Things weren't much better for team mate Ocon, who at least took the chequered flag, though only in 16th thanks to a combination of poor strategy and lack of pace.
Esteban Ocon, 16th
“Today’s result rounds off what has been a tough weekend for the team. We took wrong decisions across the whole weekend, which means we did not give ourselves a fighting chance. We knew the weather would be changeable, but we did not optimise our strategy with the tyre choices and dropped back as a consequence. Overall, it is a weekend to forget and to quickly bounce back from in Budapest, which is a race and a track that I enjoy with great memories from.”
Pierre Gasly, DNS
“We immediately noticed something was wrong with the car leaving the garage and suspected an issue with the gearbox. We knew there might be a problem to start the race, and, in the end, I came back immediately after the formation lap and had to retire the car. Due to the grid penalty for changing the power unit, it was always going to be a compromised weekend on my side of the garage. It is a pity we could not take part in the race to at least try and fight back for positions. With the weather being so unstable, there might have been some opportunities for us, but that just was not on the cards today. We will continue to learn and we need to analyse what exactly happened to make sure we will not have the same issue again. There is lots for us to do and we will use the time ahead of Hungary to come back stronger.”
Bruno Famin, Team Principal
“Clearly, this has been a difficult weekend for the team in Silverstone. It is one we must learn lessons from, and we must apply ourselves in an improved manner at future races in order to do better. We did not give our drivers a fighting chance. One positive to come from today is our work in the pit-stops where we have made significant strides forwards. It has been an intense triple header for the team. We will debrief collectively, work tirelessly to find improvements, and come back stronger in Budapest in two weeks’ time.”
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Haas
Another strong result for the American squad, who for the second race in succession saw Hulkenberg finish sixth. Magnussen could only manage 12th, but to be fair did not have all the latest updates available to his team mate. Those eight points mean Haas are now only four shy of RB as they eye sixth place in the table.
Nico Hulkenberg, 6th
“I’m very happy for the team, eight more points on the board – super valuable. More importantly, the performance is there with this update and that makes me optimistic for the remainder of the season. We’re definitely in the fight now for the fifth-fastest team, which is obviously positive and nobody expected that a few weeks ago. It’s very encouraging and very positive. It was a tricky race with the rain at the beginning which wasn’t enough for inters. Around here with high-speed corners and the grip like this, it was very risky, but we managed to keep it clean and got back what we lost at the start.”
Kevin Magnussen, 12th
“We pitted one lap too early I think, we were sort of in range of Albon and he stayed out another lap and opened the gap massively. The pace wasn’t that good on the soft tire really, I was graining immediately and just didn’t have a good stint. It’s great for Nico to score eight points today, that’s a really good couple of weekends for the team, and it’s super important. I wish I could’ve contributed a little bit but I didn’t have it at the end.”
Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal
“It’s an excellent day. It's a shame we couldn’t score points with both cars as had Kevin not had that graining issue on the softs in the last stint, he would’ve been close to scoring points. Overall, P6 at two races in a row, what more can I ask for. The updates have worked again and Nico felt it straightaway on Friday, his qualifying on Saturday showed it and his race pace today showed it. Kevin in the old spec car was happy, but I think he had damage from FP2, so all in all today, these are results to be proud of. It wasn’t an easy race, there were changeable conditions and it’s easy to say you only have to put the right tires on at the right time, but it’s much more difficult to do, but we achieved that. It’s been a huge team effort so I’m really proud of them.”
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RB
A slightly anonymous race from RB at least resulted in their second consecutive points finish, courtesy of Yuki Tsunoda. Ricciardo – who claimed P9 in Austria for the team – had a harder time of it, as he finished down in P13. RB will want to hit back in Hungary, having seen nearest rivals Haas claim 20 points to their three in the last two race weekends.
Yuki Tsunoda, 10th
“It was a good but tough race. Based on the pace we had in Free Practice we knew it would be difficult to score points in dry conditions, so I think the wet conditions helped us keep the gap to the cars in front small. Normally, in previous races I haven’t appreciated the rain, but I think it helped us today. It’s one point and we take it. Now we look ahead and move forward, and I’m excited about using what we’ve learnt over the last couple of weekends for the coming races before the break. Hungary has a mix of high and low speed, so hopefully we can use our strengths and fight in the top ten.”
Daniel Ricciardo, 13th
“It was a mixed conditions race which was exciting; ultimately grabbing some opportunities, but unfortunately, we were not competitive. 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.”
Laurent Mekies, Team Principal
“This weekend has been a great advert for Formula One and has demonstrated that while the sport is enjoying fantastic growth in new markets, the classic venues like Silverstone still have so much to offer. The huge crowd clearly enjoyed it and they should be congratulated on not letting the bad weather dampen their enthusiasm. From our side, it’s clear that the fast nature of this circuit has not suited our car particularly well and we are not where we want to be, namely dominating the mid-field as we did earlier in the season. However, we are coming home from this triple header with another well-deserved point for Yuki and the team, executing strongly in difficult changing conditions. Daniel was trailing the same tight mid-field group and finished outside of the point despite putting up a good fight. This race is only the midpoint of the season, the 12th of 24 rounds and we have seen how quickly the hierarchy can change from race to race, from the front of the grid to the back. It is more than ever a development race, and everyone in Faenza and in Bicester is flat out looking for a much-needed further step of performance for our car.”
Jody Egginton, Technical Director
"The weather has certainly played its part today, but overall, I feel we made the right calls at the right time, which certainly contributed to getting a car into the points. Yuki drove a strong race today, making a couple of passes on the opening laps and having enough pace to keep himself in touch with those in front. On Daniel’s side of the garage, race day was not so straightforward. An issue was identified with his car before the race and resulted in a significant amount of work to get his car turned around for the race. In terms of overall performance, the midfield remains very tight, and the focus remains on delivering aero updates to the car to move the package forward and give ourselves the best possible chance of scoring points.”
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Williams
After an eventful start, which included some minor car damage, Albon kept his head to steer Williams to points at their home race with ninth place. Sargeant was pleased with 11th, a result that lifted the American off the foot of the driver standings, ahead of Valtteri Bottas.
Alex Albon, 9th
"We made contact in Turn 3 and more in Turn 4, also losing a chunk of the front wing, so I was a bit worried at the beginning. After that, everything mostly fell into place, and I was happy. I knew the rain would come and there would be a second chance, so I just had to stay patient and wait for the opportunities to arise. We made the right calls for the most part, boxing at the right time for the right tyres. We did lose some time on the pit stops and I think without the damage, we could’ve scored more points, but I’m still happy. It’s a weekend where we really needed to deliver for the team, so to do it at our home Grand Prix always makes it more special."
Logan Sargeant, 11th
"It was a good day in general. From FP2 where we struggled in high fuel, we put the car in a much better place, and it showed. We had good pace, particularly on the slick tyre. I struggled a little on the drying track with the Inters by degrading the tyres a little bit too much. We executed everything relatively well and kept it together in tricky conditions. We got quite unfortunate with the stacked stop for the Inters with Alex having a slow stop ahead which cost us time. Of course, in hindsight there were maybe a couple of decisions we could’ve done a lap or two earlier which ultimately could’ve been the difference between a point or not. Overall, I’m happy with the way I drove this weekend."
Sven Smeets, Sporting Director
"The car worked well today in these mixed and rather cold conditions. Alex picked up some damage in the first corners of the race through contact but avoided a big collision with great skill. Logan had a good start, and both cars had good pace in that first part of the race. When the first patch of rain came both drivers did an excellent job staying out on slicks as it was difficult to call when to go onto the Intermediates. In hindsight, we maybe should’ve boxed a lap earlier as the rain intensified quickly. When the rain had passed, we fitted slicks on both cars at the right time and Logan and Alex had great pace on a quickly drying track. Logan managed to overtake [Kevin] Magnussen for P11, and Alex made a great move on [Yuki] Tsunoda for P9 scoring two valuable points for the team. Overall, it’s been a good weekend for the team after two difficult weekends."
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Kick Sauber
Points continue to elude the Swiss team following another low-key race. They had seen Zhou qualify a decent 14th on Saturday, but this time they were unable to capitalize on the mixed conditions and the Chinese driver trailed home last, two laps off the lead. Things were little better for Bottas, who finished 15th, but still a lap down.
Valtteri Bottas, 15th
"The conditions our there were very tricky, especially when we were on slicks on a damp track: still, I think we got all the big calls right. We were always among the first to switch tyres and we read the conditions well: we didn’t make any unnecessary stops and probably got the most from the changing circumstances. The stops were pretty good too: unfortunately, what we lacked was enough pace under either condition, but we still finished in a better position than we started in. I was also really pleased to see Lewis [Hamilton] win today, especially in his home Grand Prix. I know how much it means for him and how important this race is for him. Now, we have a couple of weeks to focus on improving: we have upgrades coming soon, that will hopefully continue to help us make a step, as the other teams have done.”
Zhou Guanyu, 18th
"Today wasn’t really our day. We started on softs, hoping to make the most of the time before the rain: we made some good progress but, unfortunately, the rain came too late, and by then my tyres were already gone. We switched to mediums, and when the rain eventually arrived, we pitted for inters. However, it felt my race was already compromised after the first stage. Overall, our single-lap pace feels similar to what we had in Barcelona, but there’s still a lot of work to do to get back into the fight for points. It might be a longer journey, but I hope we can find a quick fix. With the European triple header behind us, we’ll use the time before Budapest – a track that has suited us well in the past – to continue working on the car and make the right improvements.”
Alessandro Alunni Bravi, Team Representative
"This race confirms that we lack pace, and we were unfortunately not able to reach any of the targets we had set for ourselves before the weekend. Zhou’s race was compromised by starting on softs: we did not expect the levels of graining and tyre degradation that he experienced in his first stint, and which forced us into an early pitstop before the rain came out. Of course, coming back from there was very hard, and the remainder of his race was beyond recovery. Valtteri had a better race, with good strategy calls and pit stops. He was in phase with all our main competitors, but he also suffered overheating on the front axle and graining, and this affected his pace heavily – on all compounds we used today. We clearly need to make a step forward, and this is why we need to keep working hard to address our weaknesses through a continued and committed programme of development, starting already from the next rounds.”
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Pirelli
Mario Isola, Motorsport Director
“We witnessed a very exciting Grand Prix at the end of a very busy weekend, which featured a great show both on the track and in the grandstands. It was a testing weekend for us because we put almost our entire range of tyres to the test in different conditions on one of the toughest tracks of the entire championship calendar.
“Right from Friday it was evident that all three dry weather compounds could play an important role in this race and that was confirmed today. In terms of strategy, the pre-race predictions were more or less respected. Leaving aside the rain, the length of the first stint on the Mediums and the performance of the Hard for those like Verstappen and Sainz who used them in the final stint, demonstrated how a C2/C1 combination could be very competitive. Obviously, the C3 suffered a bit more, partly because it was used in push mode towards the end of the race on a track that was still pretty green because of all the rain this weekend.”
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