Lewis Hamilton claimed a brilliant and emotional first victory for Ferrari at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, launching himself into the title race and sticking two fingers up at his detractors in the process.
British drivers locked out the podium at a Formula One race for the first time since the 1968 US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen, a race in which Sir Jackie Stewart led home Graham Hill and John Surtees.
Mercedes’ George Russell and McLaren’s Lando Norris finished second and third here after championship leader Kimi Antonelli was forced to retire from second place with five laps remaining, his Mercedes suffering an electrical shutdown just after he had passed his team-mate.
Advertisement
Three Britons stood on the podium for the first time in nearly 60 years – Lluis Gene/Getty Images
But the day belonged to Hamilton. The 41-year-old had his doubters in his debut season with the Scuderia last year. And to be honest, in his final few seasons with Mercedes too. But the seven-time world champion has looked revitalised this year. And even though he needed the help of a virtual safety car with 25 laps remaining to claim the lead from Russell – until then it had looked like it was going to come down to a grandstand finish between the three-stopping Hamilton and the two-stopping Russell – the speed at which he pulled away from the Mercedes after that suggested he would have won anyway.
Russell conceded afterwards that he would have, adding that he felt his former team-mate was now in this title fight. “The pace today was insane from Lewis, so yeah, they [Ferrari] are coming, I think,” he said.
Advertisement
It does look as if Hamilton might be at least. This was his first win in 686 days (since the 2024 Belgian GP), his first time crossing the line in first place in 707 days (since the 2024 British GP), and it leaves him 41 points behind Antonelli in second place in the championship, with Russell a further nine points behind.
Hamilton appeared to be choking up over the radio as he returned his car to the pits.
“Grazie tutti to everyone at Maranello,” Hamilton told his team. “I can’t thank you enough. I’m so proud of you. And to my family, I love you. And to my fans, thank you for reminding me who I am. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
Advertisement
More to follow…
04:04pm
Updated constructor standings
Mercedes maintain a healthy lead but Ferrari increase their lead over McLaren.
04:02pm
Updated driver standings
Hamilton cuts Antonelli’s lead to 41 points and Russell is now 50 points behind. Finally the luck that he needed, if not deserved. A three-way fight for the title? Perhaps…
03:57pm
Hamilton celebrates
David Davies/PA
Andy Hone/LAT Images
03:48pm
Norris on a good podium
“We stayed there, we gave ourselves a chance if anything happened… but otherwise very happy for the team, very happy to be back on the podium. A good day for us.”
He is asked what more they need to do to win: “A little bit of everything, I think,” he says.
03:47pm
Russell speaks after a strong second
“I know how hard he [Hamilton] works and we spent a lot of years together at Mercedes, really pleased to see him back to the Lewis I saw when I was growing up watching Formula One. Yesterday was a real surprise for us in the team and the pace today was insane from Lewis, so yeah, they are coming, I think.”
03:45pm
Hamilton speaks after his 106th GP win
He is a little out of breath…
“First, I have to say a huge grazie to say everyone here, my team here at Ferrari, everyone back at the factory. I started out a dream last year but we never gave up hope and the team just continued to lift me up. We made so many changes and so many improvements. Thank you to everybody.
“They are all special in their own way but this one in something else. I watched Ferrari have all that success when I was younger… I wondered what it would be like to win in that car and it’s come. This is just the first I hope of many. The car felt fantastic and forza Ferrari.”
03:43pm
Quite a turnaround from Ferrari
In Hamilton’s hands at least the Ferrari was a match for, in fact probably faster than Mercedes. McLaren have been left behind a bit, though Norris wasn’t a million miles off the pace.
03:39pm
⏱️Barcelona-Catalunya GP – Classification
03:37pm
🏁LEWIS HAMILTON WINS THE BARCELONA-CATALUNYA GRAND PRIX!
His first win for Ferrari! I think an emotional one.
Advertisement
Lluis Gene/Getty Images
Russell in second, making up a crucial 18 points up on Antonelli.
Norris a slightly fortunate but hard-earned podium. He kept with the front-runners well all race, never letting them get away.
03:36pm
FINAL LAP
Hamilton might or might not win this by 20 seconds but it doesn’t matter. It has been a superb weekend from him, he has found his best form for the last few years…
03:34pm
Lap 65 of 66 – VSC ends
Just a handful of corners for Hamilton to negotiate now.
Advertisement
It will be three Britons on the podium as it stands.
03:33pm
Lap 64 of 66 – They are struggling to remove Antonelli’s car
There is a gap in the barriers but they are not doing a good job of threading it through. Not much steering lock and it looks uphill too…
This race might end under non-racing conditions.
03:32pm
Lap 63 of 66 – Order under the VSC
Leclerc is technically in sixth but has retired his car into the pits. Looks like we will get away with just a VSC rather than a full safety car.
03:30pm
Lap 62 of 66 – ANTONELLI IS OUT!
Is Russell vulnerable to Norris behind? Perhaps? Antonelli has some of his front wing endplate loose on the right-hand side. Did the two Mercedes cars come together?
Advertisement
❌It doesn’t matter now because Antonelli has stopped on the track! It sounds like a gearbox or engine issue! He is out! Finally some luck for Russell.
🟨VSC is deployed… Leclerc goes off after losing the power steering.
03:28pm
Lap 61 of 66 – Antonelli gets Russell for second!
Russell pushes him wide at turn one but he makes the move stuck. Russell tries to come back but he does not have the pace or the grip, it seems.
03:27pm
Lap 60 of 66 – Is Antonelli going to go for this?
I wouldn’t put it past him… Norris is now 3.2sec behind and he will find it hard to make that time up unless they start fighting and losing time again.
Advertisement
Antonelli has driven a good race and looks to be the faster driver today… he gets overtake mode on the pit straight.
03:26pm
Lap 59 of 66 – Hamilton could win this by 20sec
Hadjar pits from eighth but he had a big gap in which to do so.
Antonelli now closer to Russell than ever…
Timing of the VSC just about sums up Russell’s luck this season. But questionable whether he would have held Hamilton off. The 41-year-old’s pace has been excellent today. Barring calamity this is going to be an historic first win in Ferrari colours for the seven-time world champion. A first win in 686 days (2024 Belgian GP). His first time crossing the line first in 707 days (2024 British GP). And a massive two fingers up to his doubters.
03:24pm
Lap 58 of 66 – Norris has backed off a bit
He might come back later on. Russell has had a fairly trying afternoon. Not the win he was hoping for but he might make up a few points on Antonelli if he can keep him behind.
Advertisement
13.5sec Hamilton leads by now.
03:23pm
Lap 57 of 66 – Hamilton leads by 12.7sec
Antonelli is a second behind Russell, Norris is two seconds behind Antonelli.
Behind him are Verstappen, Leclerc, Piastri, Hadjar, Gasly and Colapinto.
03:22pm
Lap 56 of 66 – Hamilton has been on it all weekend
Motivated and fast, too. No doubt his finest weekend for Ferrari, but one of the finest in the last few years, too.
03:21pm
Lap 55 of 66 – Hamilton leads Russell by 11.3sec
Hamilton’s last victory came in 2024 in Belgium. He is cruising to 106th now…
03:19pm
Lap 54 of 66 – Hamilton leads Russell by 10.9sec
The Ferrari upgrades are working a treat. Mercedes have no answer for this. Norris is joining the battle for second, just behind Antonelli…
Advertisement
Albon update:
Williams say Albon came in to the pits to “fix a loose camera”. A spokesperson adds: “The team has since made changes to his car and he will return to the Grand Prix as a testing session to gather more data.”
03:18pm
Lap 53 of 66 – Penalty for Antonelli?
McLaren are watching him like a hawk and have gone to the FIA because they believe he has gone over limits more than three times. How will that pan out?
Antonelli still on the back of Russell…
03:16pm
Lap 52 of 66 – Top 10 and gaps
Advertisement
Russell told to pick up the pace. Antonelli believes, correctly, that he has so much more pace.
03:15pm
Lap 51 of 66 – Great pace from Hamilton
You have to ask the question, would he have had the pace even without the VSC? Perhaps, but it is hard to say given he would have been in dirty air behind two Mercedes cars. But the pace does look good.
David Davies/PA
03:14pm
Lap 50 of 66 – Norris has a chance of a podium here
Antonelli will be given a five-second penalty if he exceeds track limits once more. Perhaps Norris could have a say in that. He charges and is now within 1.3sec of the Italian and championship leader.
Advertisement
Hamilton now leads by 8.8sec…
03:13pm
Lap 49 of 66 – Albon is 10 laps down
I didn’t catch that but he stopped in the pit lane and is 10 laps down.
Hamilton, meanwhile, has extended his lead to 7.1sec. Antonelli is now within 1.5sec of Russell. Norris doing a fine job, only 1.7sec behind Antonelli.
03:11pm
Lap 48 of 66 – No further investigation for Hamilton
It sounds like he approached Alonso’s car just as the yellow flags came out…
I am not sure Mercedes have an answer for this.
03:09pm
Lap 47 of 66 – Four cars out of this race
Alonso, Hulkenberg, Bottas and Stroll. Albon is showing as retired and 10 laps down but he is still out there as far as I can see. Possibly a timing issue.
Advertisement
Hamilton stretches his lead further by nearly a second on this lap…
03:08pm
Lap 46 of 66 – Hamilton leads Russell by 4.7sec
Antonelli is 1.8sec behind Russell and might be wise just to limit the damage this weekend and accept a three-point hit to his championship lead over his team-mate. Hamilton, of course, will take more out of it stays like this.
03:06pm
Lap 45 of 66 – Superb pace from Hamilton
He was 0.7-0.8sec faster than the Mercedes cars on the last lap. Still no further word on the yellow-flag infringement. Colapinto has also been noted for that. Hamilton might need to keep pushing…
03:05pm
Lap 44 of 66 – Top 10 and gaps
03:05pm
Lap 43 of 66 – ⁉️Yellow-flag infringement noted for Hamilton
I assume that is for Alonso’s car being stopped. It has not been confirmed as being investigated yet.
03:02pm
Lap 42 of 66 – Hamilton leads…
He has hard tyres that are four and five laps fresher than the Mercedes cars behind him. Can he cling onto the win in the next 24 laps? It’s going to be fun finding out…
Advertisement
03:01pm
Lap 41 of 66 – Will Ferrari stop Hamilton?
This would be the best way to make up time, surely? I am surprised they didn’t do it a bit sooner, but I think he passed the point of pitting before it was called…
Out come the Ferrari mechanics… Hamilton pits. Will he go onto the hard tyres? Surely…
Yes… he gets too close for comfort with an Alpine.
Hamilton comes out of the pit lane ahead, just as the VSC is ending…
03:00pm
Lap 40 of 66 – 🟨Yellow flags
Alonso has stopped by the side of the track. This becomes a Virtual Safety Car. Will this help Hamilton? He could get a cheap stop.
Advertisement
02:58pm
Lap 39 of 66 – Hamilton told to ‘give everything’
Seven laps, foot to the floor. That is what he is told.
Russell into second ahead of Leclerc now, a bit close for comfort, though, towards the end of the lap. Leclerc pits.
02:56pm
Lap 38 of 66 – Antonelli comes out ahead of Norris
Not much in it, though, that undercut almost worked beautifully for Norris.
It’s currently a Ferrari 1-2. Let’s look at the lap times from Hamilton compared to the Mercedes cars. When will Hamilton stop again? He is currently 17-19sec clear of the two Mercedes cars but is likely to be a decent chunk slower than them, with their fresh tyres.
02:54pm
Lap 37 of 66 – Antonelli leads
Hamilton in second, 4.7sec behind him and much quicker. Leclerc in third with Russell about 7.3sec behind him. This will be a fascinating end to the race.
Advertisement
Here is the top 10 now:
Some varying strategies out there but it is essentially a three-horse race with Hamilton on a three-stopper, with one more to go and Antonelli and Russell on two-stoppers. Russell has stopped twice, Antonelli will stop at the end of this lap most likely.
02:53pm
Lap 36 of 66 – In comes Russell…
Norris pits, Hamilton into third. Russell is told to pit this lap, which will help his cause. A long way to go, though…
02:52pm
Lap 35 of 66 – Norris still in play here
He is 4.5sec away from Antonelli. Not really in this race for victory but doing a fine job nevertheless.
Advertisement
Josep Lago/Getty Images
Antonelli is reminded of Norris and to not fight too hard.
02:50pm
Lap 34 of 66 – Hamilton 2.3sec faster than the leaders
He is around 10 seconds adrift of Antonelli and Russell.
“Am I catching them?” Hamilton asks. “You are catching them very well! Keep pushing,” he says.
02:49pm
Lap 33 of 66 – Antonelli makes a move!
Russell has to defend at turn one and he does so fairly well but puts himself on the back foot before things settle down again.
Russell has tyres that are older by two laps but Antonelli looks to be the faster man in this stage of the race. This plays into Hamilton’s hands. Antonelli also needs to stay within track limits, he has been reminded of that by his race engineer.
02:48pm
Lap 32 of 66 – Hamilton is keen
“Let me know what times I need to do,” he says. He is focused and locked-in here. Leclerc had just let him through for fourth.
Advertisement
The Mercedes cars squabbling would help his cause…
02:46pm
Lap 31 of 66 – Problems for Russell…
Antonelli is now within one second of him as they negotiate traffic…
02:45pm
Lap 30 of 66 – Danger zone for Antonelli
A black and white flag for track limits. One more of those and it’s a five-second penalty.
Hamilton with the new fastest lap, 2.6sec faster than Russell.
Lluis Gene/Getty Images
02:44pm
Lap 29 of 66 – Hamilton gets Piastri
Around the outside of turn three on fresher tyres. It doesn’t seem to be the case that Russell will do a three-stop strategy. Hamilton on the medium tyres, by the way, so I guess both Hamilton, Antonelli and Russell will stop once more.
02:43pm
Lap 28 of 66 – Problems for Russell
Were he to pit now he would come out behind Hamilton… superb pace from Hamilton so far.
02:42pm
Lap 27 of 66 – Undercut for Hamilton!
He comes into the pits… what do Mercedes do now? Russell only 3.7sec ahead of team-mate Antonelli now. His race could become complicated and quickly.
02:40pm
Lap 26 of 66 – Antonelli making ground
He is now 1.6sec behind Hamilton and 4.3sec behind leader Russell, who complains that his front-end feels a bit weak.
02:37pm
Lap 25 of 66 – Hamilton makes up some time
The gap down to 2.2sec with Antonelli 2.6sec behind him. The final stint of the race could be an interesting one… no real on-track battles at the front yet, so let’s hope we get to see some in the second half.
02:37pm
Lap 24 of 66 – Is this a three-horse race?
The top three are within five seconds of each other. Norris is a further two seconds back from Antonelli and is doing a good job but the pace is not there in the McLaren there today, I think.
02:36pm
Lap 23 of 66 – Russell in traffic
This will help Hamilton and Antonelli.
02:35pm
Lap 22 of 66 – The trouble for Russell now…
Is the undercut. Hamilton can pit first, get extra lap time on fresher tyres and gain position. That is at the moment. Russell could do with stretching his lead to 3.5sec or so that would mitigate if not eliminate that risk.
Advertisement
Andy Hone/LAT Images
02:33pm
Lap 21 of 66 – Russell leads Hamilton by 2.1sec
Again, Russell just seems to be a tenth or so faster most laps. Antonelli is four seconds behind Hamilton is by no means out of this race. Leclerc has good pace and is closing in on Verstappen in fifth. Norris a bit of a lonely race in fourth, which would be a decent result in a slightly problematic McLaren.
02:31pm
Lap 20 of 66 – Backmarkers update
Challenging for the final points spot are Hulkenberg in 11th, then Gasly Colapinto close behind. Bit of a gap to Sainz in 14th, then it;s Ocon, Bortoleto, Albon, Alonso, Perez and Bearman.
Advertisement
Colapinto is told to let Gasly through, which he complies with. He is a little baffled. They are on similar strategies but perhaps Gasly appears to be the faster man, unequivocally.
02:30pm
Lap 19 of 66 – Top 10 and gaps
02:29pm
Lap 18 of 66 – Hadjar into the top 10
He overtakes the Haas of Bearman to move into ninth. He has stopped, so is making decent progress. Russell still has the edge on Hamilton but it’s not a large one.
Mark Thompson/Getty Images
02:27pm
Lap 17 of 66 – ⁉️ Sainz under investigation
That is for a start-line procedure infringement. As is his team-mate Alexander Albon.
Advertisement
❌Bottas retires from the race. A poor and disappointing season for him.
02:26pm
Lap 16 of 66 – Leclerc does stop
He moves onto the hard tyres, so Russell regains the lead of the race.
02:25pm
Lap 15 of 66 – Leclerc leads Russell
But it sounds like Leclerc is stopping. He does not want to, though, and has been told to stay out.
Hamilton is roughly keeping pace with Russell since they emerged from the pit lane. 1.8sec now the gap. Can or will Ferrari use Leclerc as a blocker?
02:24pm
Lap 14 of 66 – Antonelli stops
So no real trouble for Russell on that front. Leclerc inherits the lead of the race, 5.5sec ahead of Russell but he has not stopped.
02:22pm
Lap 13 of 66 – Antonelli leads Norris
But Norris is coming into the pits. Fair that Russell responded to Hamilton stopping, I guess, but does it compromise his race compared to Antonelli, who has not stopped, and is on medium tyres. Hamilton, remember, started on the soft tyres.
Russell says he has been exposed by his team, to his team-mate.
02:21pm
Lap 12 of 56 – This will be a flurry of pit stops
A slow stop for Liam Lawson. 2.5sec stop for Hamilton. Russell thinks Hamilton is going for a three-stop race. Hamilton is on the hard tyres now and is in seventh. Verstappen also complaining about his tyres.
In comes Russell to the pit lane. It’s a tidy stop. 2.5sec so is not vulnerable to any undercut. Verstappen stops as well. 2.5sec for him.
Hamilton has gained some time from that earlier stop… he is 1.5sec off Russell as the Mercedes comes out of the pit lane. Can he make any further inroads with warmer tyres. They are both on the hards now.
02:19pm
Lap 11 of 56 – Leclerc closing in on Verstappen now
He is within a second, so gets a boost. Hamilton has slipped to 3.5sec behind Russell. He just doesn’t have the pace to trouble Russell but is doing a decent job in not dropping back any further on the soft tyres.
Is Hamilton coming in now? It looks like he is…
Bruna Casas/Reuters
02:16pm
Lap 10 of 56 – Top 10 and gaps
02:16pm
Lap 9 of 56 – Norris asked how the pace and tyres are
“Yeah, just sliding everywhere,” he says.
02:14pm
Lap 8 of 66 – Leclerc gets Piastri for sixth
Patient at the start of the lap but then hangs it around the outside of turn three to move up a place. The McLaren looked a little helpless to respond to it, really. The cars are sliding around the track and the gaps are growing.
02:13pm
Lap 7 of 66 – Scrap that, Russell ups his pace
He takes another 0.4sec out of Hamilton behind him, though Hamilton is now 1.5sec ahead of Antonelli.
02:11pm
Lap 6 of 66 – Russell leads Hamilton by 2.6sec
The lead has stabilised a little and Antonelli looks to be stuck a little in the dirty air behind the Ferrari of Hamilton.
Lance Stroll pulls into the pit lane to retire from the race.
02:10pm
Lap 5 of 66 – What happened to Hadjar?
A poor start with too much wheelspin, really. Leclerc nearly ploughed into the back of him but avoided contact, thankfully.
02:09pm
Lap 4 of 66 – Russell leads Hamilton by 2.5sec
Antonelli has closed in a little. Leclerc showing decent pace in seventh and is approaching Piastri as they end the lap.
02:07pm
Lap 3 of 66 – Russell leads Hamilton by 1.7sec
Are Hamilton’s chances of victory gone? Too early to say that but his best chance was getting ahead of Russell on the soft tyres. He is now two seconds behind and Antonelli is only 1.1sec behind him.
02:05pm
Lap 2 of 66 – Top 10
02:05pm
🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 THE BARCELONA-CATALUNYA GRAND PRIX IS GO!
It’s a good start for Russell who holds the lead ahead of Hamilton at the first corner. Verstappen makes a decent start but has not made any positions up y turn four. Norris is on the back of Antonelli from early on for third. Leclerc up into seventh.
Hadjar, sixth on the grid, has dropped back to 15th somehow but is up to 14th by the end of the lap.
Russell extends his lead by the end of the lap, more than one second ahead.
02:01pm
The formation lap is under way
Everyone away cleanly.
01:57pm
Starting tyre types
Interesting…
In the top 10 everyone is on mediums ecept for Hamilton in second, Verstappen in fifth and Hulkenberg in ninth. Below them it is softs and mediums until Perez in 19th and the two Aston Martins, who are all on hard tyres.
That grid is sweltering. Track temp is 50.9C according to the screens in the press room. It certainly felt like you could fry an egg on it during the gridwalk. All about the tyre deg today. Ferrari believe their delta to Mercedes is around 0.2sec on race pace. But that would easily be offset by clean air if Lewis can get out in front. Who does Russell block? Hamilton? Or Antonelli?
The start today is massive because there is going to be very little yo-yoing by all accounts. The overtake mode here is less powerful than DRS used to be. McLaren’s Lando Norris starts P4 and I’ve just been reminded that Fernando Alonso started P4 in 2011 and blasted past both Red Bulls and Lewis Hamilton’s McLaren, braking late on the inside to take the lead by Turn 1. It can be done…
01:53pm
STARTING GRID
1. RUS 2. HAM
3. ANT 4. NOR
5. VER 6. HAD
7. PIA 8. LAW
9. HUL 10. LEC
11. LIN 12. BOR
13. BOR 14. GAS
15. BEA 16. SAI
17. OCO 18. ALB
19. PER 20. BOT
21. STR
PIT LANE: ALO
01:48pm
It is hot, hot, hot in Spain
It often is. 31C air temperature and 51C track temperature. Pirelli seem to suggest that a two-stopper is best but a three-stop race is possible. Russell, on his way to the grid, does not think it will be an easy race even if he keeps the lead at the end of the first lap.
01:46pm
Nico Rosberg on the grid
He tries to grab a word with Lewis Hamilton on his way to the front of the grid for the national anthem, but politely declines. He acknowledged him, at least. 10 years since they crashed into each other here on the opening lap…
01:42pm
Work going on on Kimi Antonelli’s car
They are adjusting the brakes as, according to race engineer Peter Bonnington, Antonelli reported a “long pedal”. Not what you want. It doesn’t look like it will be a problem that will stop him from starting the race.
01:39pm
Current constructor standings
I suppose the one good thing about Aston Martin’s season is that they have scored a point and are ahead of Cadillac because of it.
01:31pm
Cars are out on track
01:30pm
Is Hamilton back to his best?
Bruna Casas/Reuters
It has been a fine season for him so far, and he has now taken three podiums for Ferrari this year, compared to none last year. He has the edge (just) over Leclerc in qualifying and also on results. It’s much better, in other words. What chance of a first Ferrari win today? Half decent, I guess, but might need a bit of luck.
Here are his results in grands prix so far this season.
01:20pm
Qualifying head-to-heads in 2026 so far
Some standout results there. Leclerc losing to Hamilton, Albon being trounced by Sainz and Stroll actually managing to out-qualify Fernando Alonso for the first time in 40-odd races. Astonishing.
01:11pm
How Leclerc’s qualifying ended
In the barriers… it has not been a brilliant season from him so far. Not terrible, just a few too many mistakes.
01:06pm
Current driver standings
A long way to go for Russell… and also Antonelli. Plenty of points up for grabs from here on in, though the races do start coming thick and fast now.
12:56pm
Qualifying times
Mercedes are, frankly, running away with it this year. Yet their dominance is not near the scale of the last big regulation reset in 2014, thankfully. In percentage terms, their gap to the next fastest team at the first race was one per cent; yesterday it was just 0.086 per cent, having been 0.06 per cent in Monaco and 0.208 per cent in Canada.
Good work from Cadillac, too. Both of their cars finished ahead of both Aston Martins in qualifying.
12:37pm
Good afternoon
Welcome to our coverage for the 2026 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. It feels a bit too early to be saying this is a pivotal race for George Russell’s championship hopes, with so long to go, but that is not that wide of the mark.
Russell trails Mercedes team-mate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli by 68 points. Indeed, Russell’s two pointless weekends in Monaco and Canada mean that Lewis Hamilton, of Ferrari, has snuck into second place in the standings.
Has Russell been unlucky? Undoubtedly. But has he underperformed? Yes. And I think he would admit to that. Credit must also go to Antonelli, who was well beaten by Russell in his debut season last year, but has now won five races in a row. That doesn’t happen by accident. Even if Russell gets some good luck and finds form, beating Antonelli is not a formality.
George Russell starts on pole – Alejandro Garcia/Shutterstock
Qualifying yesterday was, at least, some sign that he can turn this around. He took pole position – his third of the season and first since Canada – by just under a tenth of a second from Hamilton. Lewis. Unfortunately for Russell there was not a big gap to Antonelli, who was third. The order could well be swapped on the first lap.
What prospect of good racing today? Well, the larger issues with the electrically-charged cars have lessened in recent times, perhaps because of some tweaks by the FIA and also the nature of some of the tracks. This track isn’t the bore-fest that it once was, but any track is capable of hosting a dull event. I think this could be a decent one, though.
It’s lights out at 2pm and we will be here for all of the build-up, latest updates and reaction from the race.









Leave a Reply