Five Formula 1 Winners & Losers: British Grand Prix

Photo from Getty Images

I do love Silverstone.

Just like how I love Austria.

But this year was a bit of a down year for the race in my opinion.

And it had a chance to be fantastic at the end.

But it wasn’t…

And we will get to that.

Losers

5. Nico Hulkenberg

One year after Nico’s first ever podium, he became the first driver to retire from the race.

The ups and the downs of Formula 1.

4. Williams

A home Grand Prix for the historic British team ended in misery, with Alex Albon retiring from the race, and Carlos Sainz being given a one lap penalty for unlapping himself when he didn’t need to.

It’s been a very tough year for Williams.

3. Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen was on pace to get a podium before he had a rear wing issue.

That issue lost his grip going into a corner, and he spun off into the gravel to end up not finishing the race.

Now, he is guaranteed to not be in the top 2 of the championship standings heading into the summer break, and his release clause can be activated.

Something to keep an eye on…

2. Kimi Antonelli

Kimi Antonelli has done everything right so far this year.

But his luck just isn’t playing ball.

He was guaranteed a top 2 finish in Spain before his engine fell, and it felt inevitable that he was going to catch and pass Charles Leclerc to get the win at Silverstone.

And then his suspension failed out of nowhere.

He was slow, he couldn’t keep the car on track, and he ended up finishing outside of the points.

Sometimes, the luck just doesn’t go your way.

1. The FIA

Verstappen’s crash brings out a safety car.

The field is bunched together.

Charles Leclerc has been the fastest all race, but he has two British drivers directly behind him ready to pounce.

We’re coming to the final lap, and the safety car is coming in.

Except, it didn’t.

The safety car didn’t come in.

Right as it was about to, the message changed that the safety car would stay out, which ended the race as they stood.

Their reasoning?

The message that the safety car was coming in came up “in error.”

There really was no reason to not get the race going again.

But hey.

They make the rules, I guess.

Winners

5. Franco Colapinto

Started 19th.

Finished 9th.

That’s an awesome drive for the Argentine.

4. Racing Bulls

The Racing Bulls duo just continues to impress, finishing 6th and 7th at the British Grand Prix and getting their best result of the season.

They have really been fantastic.

3. George Russell

He closed that gap to Kimi Antonelli in the title race, so that’s good.

But he was still slower overall, and only got 2nd place because Ferrari pit Lewis Hamilton for fresh tires assuming the race would restart when it never did.

But hey, the gap closed.

Sometimes, it’s better to be lucky than good.

2. Lewis Hamilton

Sure, he missed out on 2nd place, and that’s tough.

But he still closed the championship gap to Antonelli, and with how he’s racing right now and how the Ferrari seems to be improving, that’s crucial.

Plus, it’s another home podium.

Those are always fun.

1. Charles Leclerc

Last week, I mentioned that Charles Leclerc had been outperformed by Lewis Hamilton this year, and that he needed to find another gear.

I guess a wire to wire win after getting the lead off the line is finding another gear, huh?

It’s Leclerc’s first win since 2024, and hopefully it kickstarts the rest of his season so we can get an epic title fight.