As for Leclerc, Ferrari chose not to pit him during the final Safety Car period – when he was leading the race – leaving him vulnerable to attack from Sainz, as well as Sergio Perez and Hamilton who all passed him to they leave Monegasque fourth. The flag. READ MORE: ‘It’s about time’ – Sainz reveals relief after ending 150-race wait for Silverstone win Carlos Sainz, 1st “What a day! To win my first F1 GP and with Scuderia Ferrari in front of this amazing crowd, at one of my favorite tracks, Silverstone, is literally amazing. “Mentally it was one of the hardest races I’ve done: managing the gaps, a lot of racing on the track, the second start. We struggled a bit with the understeer and in the second stint we had to save fuel to get to the end, so the lift and coast I was put in danger by the cars behind. However, once the safety car came out we knew it was paramount to change the tires as mine were quite old. “On the restart I had fresher tyres, but we were fighting for 1-2 as a team, so I tried to be as clear as possible when overtaking Charles. Thanks to the fuel saved behind the Safety Car, we were able to push to the end and I finally got my first win. I’ll enjoy it for today, but we’ll immediately start preparing for the next one.” Charles Leclerc, 4th “I didn’t finish where I wanted, so it was a disappointing race for me. There were times when I really had to be on the edge to keep my place, fighting with others who were on Softs, which wasn’t easy in It’s a shame we didn’t get more points for our team today, but that’s how it goes sometimes. “No matter how disappointed I am, it shouldn’t take away from what is an amazing first win for Carlos. It’s a moment he will never forget, a dream come true for any driver and I hope he enjoys it!” Mattia Binotto, Team Principal and Managing Director “To get back to winning ways, especially at a circuit as demanding as Silverstone, is particularly pleasing and confirms that we have worked well this season, both on the track and back at Maranello. Carlos had a great weekend, securing his first pole position. He was strong and consistent throughout and the win was well deserved. “On the other hand, it’s a shame that we scored less points than we could have with Charles, who, when the safety car came out, was comfortably in the lead. at that point he would be out on fresh hard tyres, it didn’t seem like the right choice so we decided to leave him out of the track. Unfortunately, on the restart, he was at a tire disadvantage. We also want to congratulate Mick Schumacher on his first championship point. They deserve it. “Finally, it is worth underlining once again the efforts of the FIA and Formula 1 in terms of safety. The fact that no driver involved in the accidents at the start was seriously injured confirms how effective the current safety measures are.” NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 03: Race winner Carlos Sainz of Spain and Ferrari celebrates on the podium during the F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 03, 2022 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images) NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 03: Carlos Sainz of Spain driving (55) Ferrari F1-75 ahead of Charles Leclerc of Monaco driving (16) Ferrari F1-75 during the British F1 Grand Prix at Silverstone on 03 July 2022 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Bryn Lennon – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images) NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 03: Charles Leclerc of Monaco driving the (16) Ferrari F1-75 leads Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain driving the (44) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team W13 during the F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain at Silverstone on July 03, 2022 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Joe Portlock – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)
Red Bull
Max Verstappen overtook pole-sitter Carlos Sainz off the line, only for the race to be immediately red-flagged, putting him back in the P2 grid slot for the restart. He passed Sainz again when the Ferrari man ran through the open stages, but a few laps later a puncture dropped him to sixth, while a damaged floor meant he struggled all afternoon and eventually returned to P7. Meanwhile, Sergio Perez was forced to pit for a new front wing after contact on the first lap, but then returned to class and engaged in some thrilling wheel-to-wheel battles with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton in the closing laps . before sealing a P2 diamond. READ MORE: Perez enjoys ‘epic’ final laps at Silverstone after rallying from last to P2 Max Verstappen, 7th “Seventh place is a good result, considering the damage I had to the car and with Czeko on the podium, we got some good points for the team. Of course I was hoping for more, but today was just unlucky. I took a look at the car during the red flag and the entire bottom left side was broken. I hit a huge piece of debris. I think it was coal. While driving it felt like a puncture as I had no balance and a lot of oversteer. “The car was a handful in the car, I tried to find a good aero balance but it was difficult. I understand Alex is having his check-ups in hospital so I hope he’s OK. It’s never nice to see these things and today he proved for once again the halo is a huge safety improvement, I think without it Zhou would be in a different situation.” Sergio Perez, 2nd “It’s a good day for us and the team after such a dirty weekend for us. Physically I wasn’t a hundred percent this week and after the first round I was last, so to come second is a great result. I was so unlucky in the first lap that I made contact with Charles, broke my front wing and had to drop back. So we had to fight for it and it’s nice to get a result like that. “I’m also very happy for Carlos and sharing his first win with him is a nice moment for him and his family. I really enjoyed the race today, we fought hard and fair and it felt like my karting days. Everyone was Pushing really hard and going wheel to wheel, my heart rate was quite high in those last laps. It was a race where it was important not to give up.” Christian Horner, Team Manager “It was an amazing performance today from the Czech after the damage to the front wing endplate in the first lap, we had to change the nose and his drive back up the field was simply sensational. He benefited from the safety car which allowed us to put on a new set of tyres, but his pace and racing ability were just outstanding. “For Max, he had taken the lead and was in a commanding position, but unfortunately some debris caused a lot of damage to the floor of the car which led to a huge loss of downforce. It was unfortunate because I think it would have been a fantastic race for him today, but every point counts and fought as hard for P7 as he would for the win. “The biggest takeaway today is that all the drivers are in good shape considering the scale of the crashes we saw today and we hope to see Alex and Zhou racing in Austria next week.” NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 03: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands drives the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB18 on track during the F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 3, 2022 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images) NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 03: Sergio Perez of Mexico drives the (11) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB18 during the F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 3, 2022 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Bryn Lennon – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images) NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JULY 03: Runner-up Sergio Perez of Mexico and Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrates on the podium during the F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 03, 2022 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)
Mercedes
With new upgrades to the W13, Lewis Hamilton looked straight back in the chase at Silverstone and could very well have won. He had a spectacular running battle with Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc over the final 10 laps that will live long in the fans’ memory and eventually finished third after a crowd-pleasing run at his home race. Instead, George Russell was caught in a multi-car crash on the first lap and jumped out of his car to check on Zhou Guanyu, who had also crashed. His team was then not allowed to repair his car for the restart as he recorded his first DNF of the year. READ MORE: ‘This was Formula 1 at its best’, says Hamilton after P3 battle at home Grand Prix Lewis Hamilton, 3rd “I gave it my all…
