2025 marks 75 years since the inaugural Formula 1 World Championship began, and while F1 had precursor races between 1946 and 49, 1950 is officially when the start of the World Championship era truly began, and Silverstone was the first ever race.
Fitting, then, that this historic circuit, once again, delivered an epic race today, one that saw a British driver, Lando Norris, triumph on home soil. Another big moment, Nico Hülkenberg, finally earned a long-overdue podium. Add in championship leader, Oscar Piastri’s penalty, Max Verstappen’s dramatic spin, and classic British summer weather, and you truly had a race worthy of the sport’s diamond jubilee.
From the moment the lights went out, chaos reigned as the track was only dry-ish with polesitter Verstappen leading the field away. While George Russell and Charles Leclerc gambled early on slicks, the track was still treacherous in the final sector. Up ahead, by the time the first drops of rain hit the tarmac under race conditions, the Aussie wasted no time snatching the lead from the reigning champion on lap 8, just before conditions deteriorated considerably.
As showers intensified by lap 11, strategy came into play. Lance Stroll and Hülkenberg made the decisive call to bolt on fresh intermediates, a move that would pay massive dividends to climb up the order. On ap 14, the first Safety Car of the race was deployed, bunching up the field and erasing Piastri’s advantage.
Then came a major flashpoint. Isack Hadjar rear-ended Kimi Antonelli on the first restart on lap 18, a consequence of a soaked track and poor visibility from the spray, bringing out the safety car again. In a dramatic turn of events, upon the second restart on lap 21, Verstappen spun on cold tires and dropped from second to ninth. But most notably, Piastri was handed a 10-second penalty for slowing down dramatically before leading the pack away from that second Safety Car.
By lap 30, Lewis Hamilton in P6 began his surge into contention, thrilling the home crowd in his first British Grand Prix with the Scuderia. With 15 podiums at Silverstone, including nine wins, Hamilton who is also a wet-weather champion, remains unmatched at this venue. But a small off-track moment after his final stop saw the hopes of adding a 16th fade away.
Meanwhile, Hülkenberg, who by the way started P19, was driving the race of his life. The German driver, who at age 37 is also one of the oldest on the grid, capitalized on the chaos, nailed his strategy, and used DRS to snatch third place from Lance Stroll on Lap 35. He would then hold off Hamilton, all the way up to the closing stages of the 52-lap race. After 239 Grand Prix, Hülkenberg finally became a Formula 1 podium finisher in P3, with Hamilton crossing the line in fourth.
Up ahead, as Piastri served his penalty during his final stop, teammate Norris took the lead. The Brit kept his cool and managed to keep Piastri at bay, finishing 6.812 seconds ahead of the Aussie when the chequered flag dropped, for a spectacular McLaren 1-2 finish. After round 12 of the 2025 season, Piastri continues to lead the championship with 234 points and an eight-point advantage over Norris’ 226. Verstappen is third and has a lot of ground to cover with 165 points as we head to Spa-Francochamps next. Catch the race highlights here.
With this year’s historic British GP behind us, the upcoming Festival of Speed set to roar to life at Goodwood later this week, is set to continue to provide plenty more from the U.K., including more F1 action. Watch this space.
Source: Formula 1, McLaren