The British Grand Prix was bonkers — and it may have been even higher

three:48 PM ET

Laurence Edmondson

ShutF1 Editor• Joined ESPN in 2009
• An FIA accredited F1 journalist since 2011

Nate Saunders

ShutF1 Affiliate Editor• Beforehand labored in rugby union and British Superbikes
• Historical past graduate from Studying College
• Joined ESPNF1 in February 2014

SILVERSTONE, England — What. A. Race.

The British Grand Prix had kind of the whole lot you can need from an F1 race, although a midrace security automotive neutralised a number of the drama. The battle for the lead was ruined by it, however would the end result have been any completely different had Antonio Giovinazzi not beached his automotive within the gravel on lap 20?

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An excellent race that would have been even higher: The house followers bought the end result they needed at Silverstone, however missed out on what promised to be the most effective battles of the season between championship rivals Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. After the pair went wheel-to-wheel within the opening 4 laps, Bottas got here out on prime, however the timing of the protection automotive in the end gave Hamilton a free pit cease and value Bottas his shot at victory.

Had it been a straight battle, it is debatable that Hamilton nonetheless would have received. He seemed to be the sooner of the 2 Mercedes firstly of the race and was eking out a strategic benefit by staying out longer than his teammate — a bonus that in the end paid out with the jackpot of a security automotive. However had the race panned out as anticipated, he would have wanted to make a transfer on monitor slightly than rising from his single cease with a lead gifted by Bottas’ lowered tempo below security automotive situations.

Whatever the ifs, buts and maybes, Bottas will really feel onerous executed by. The choice to suit mediums at his first pit cease left him tied to a two-stop technique no matter how issues panned out, however that’s comprehensible given the comparatively low chance of a security automotive. Nonetheless, it was not clear why he wasn’t introduced in once more for a set of onerous tyres below the protection automotive that a minimum of would have allowed him a straight battle to the flag together with his teammate when racing resumed. The group mentioned it wasn’t certain if the onerous tyres would final the space, however in the end Bottas needed to make a second cease regardless.

Thankfully, the motion additional again made up for the lack of pleasure on the entrance.

Leclerc vs. Verstappen is F1’s ‘Empire Strikes Again’: It isn’t usually a sequel is nearly as good as the unique, however this one was, and we solely needed to wait 14 days to see it. Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen’s battle on Sunday will reside lengthy within the reminiscence.

After their contentious conflict for the lead on the Austrian Grand Prix two weeks in the past, it was straightforward to think about the re-run was going to finish with one other collision. Neither man was keen to present the opposite an inch, however they stored it clear all through. After some thrilling wheel-to-wheel duels over a collection of laps, Verstappen was compelled huge as they went two-wide down the Hangar Straight in a single heartstopping second.

Essentially the most notable transfer got here shortly after the protection automotive restart. Verstappen appeared to have gotten the bounce on Leclerc, however the Ferrari driver compelled his well past Verstappen on the within of the ultimate nook, pushing him huge throughout the run-off in what regarded like a carbon copy of their conflict on the Purple Bull Ring — albeit with their roles reversed.

For the second race in a row, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen went wheel-to-wheel on monitor. David Davies/PA Photographs by way of Getty Photographs

Leclerc could not win the drag race out of the nook, nevertheless, and the battle quickly fizzled out. He would have the final snort, rising to 3rd late on as Verstappen hit bother within the type of the opposite Ferrari (see under) and completed fifth.

Leclerc clearly had a number of enjoyable, saying postrace: “That was undoubtedly essentially the most enjoyable I’ve ever had in my Formulation One profession.

“It is a quick profession, solely a yr and a half, nevertheless it was undoubtedly very, very enjoyable from contained in the automotive. I feel Austria was fairly an eye-opener for me, and I perceive how far we will go and what was anticipated. I am very blissful on the finish to race like this, I feel each driver needs to race onerous, and we did throughout many of the race. It was very, very enjoyable, all the time borderline however I feel inside the guidelines, and really fulfilling.”

Verstappen wasn’t shocked his previous karting rival was preventing with the bit between his enamel.

“They had been good,” he mentioned of the fights afterward. “I feel he was a bit bit sore nonetheless from Austria so he was defending actually onerous, however that is effective. I am all for that.

“I did not need to take a lot dangers in these battles to break the automotive, as a result of I knew we had been fairly a bit sooner so I simply wanted to select my second however then fortunately the group did it for me with a superb technique after which it was wanting all good for a superb end result.”

If the final two races are something to go by, F1 is in extremely protected palms so long as these two are capable of battle like that regularly.

The deployment of the protection automotive ruined Valtteri Bottas’ British Grand Prix. ANDREJ ISAKOVIC/AFP/Getty Photographs

A kick within the enamel for Bottas: The one silver lining in Bottas’ technique was the flexibility to bolt on mushy tyres on the finish and go for the quickest lap, however even that did not work out. On his first flying lap out of the pits, Bottas set a 1:27.406 on his recent, mushy tyres — the quickest time as much as that time — however on the ultimate lap Hamilton trumped it with a 1:27.369 on 32-lap-old, onerous tyres. It was a exceptional lap from Hamilton and underlined the extent of his benefit over his teammate. For Bottas, it can go away him questioning what he has to do to show the tide on this yr’s title battle.

The place does Vettel go from right here? Whereas one Ferrari driver received driver of the day, the opposite ended his day behind the order after a slightly embarrassing collision. Vettel took full accountability for clumsily operating into the again of Verstappen as they fought for third place (there was little else he may do, because it was his fault).

It was a becoming place for him to make his newest error — 12 months in the past was arguably the final time he raced like a four-time world champion together with his enthralling victory right here at Silverstone. He infamously crashed out of the lead on the subsequent race on the German Grand Prix and has by no means fairly regarded the identical since.

With Leclerc wanting higher and higher with each race and people retirement rumours refusing to go away, there is a little bit of an elephant within the room for Ferrari proper now — most agree Vettel is not the way forward for the well-known Italian group anymore, however just lately he hasn’t even regarded like he deserves to be the current, both.

Charles Coates/Getty Photographs

Haas hits a brand new low: Haas’ hunch hit a brand new low at Silverstone. Romain Grosjean banged wheels with teammate Kevin Magnussen within the opening moments of the race, giving each vehicles a puncture. An early cease adopted for each, relegating them to the again of the order. Each vehicles had been quickly again within the storage shortly afterwards, with the group calling it a day.

When requested who was accountable, group boss Guenther Steiner mentioned: “Each of them, it’s not acceptable what occurred.

“I used to be fairly clear with them after Barcelona, what to not do. In the long run, we’re in a troublesome place in the intervening time, find out how to get the automotive work on monitor. Everybody works onerous like hell. Then after we get an opportunity … our lengthy runs look OK. … We crash into one another on Flip 5. It isn’t acceptable.”

It was a nasty day Haas simply did not want. The times main as much as this week have seen a number of protection of the interior battle occurring at Haas’ title sponsor, Wealthy Power. The CEO of that firm, William Storey, known as the group’s automotive a milk float forward of the weekend — his fellow shareholders are at the moment making an attempt to regain management of the corporate and its social media channels.

In case you needed an replace on how that is going, this is what the apparently Storey-led Twitter account tweeted when Haas’ vehicles had been operating 19th and 20th.

Nice begin boys@HaasF1Team #BritishGP #HaasF1 #richenergy #milkfloat pic.twitter.com/19zDwusVYj

– Wealthy Power (@rich_energy) July 14, 2019

Fairly exceptional, contemplating Haas insists Wealthy Power stays its title sponsor. Preserve checking again to see how this weird saga unfolds within the coming days and weeks.