Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: British Grand Prix

  • F3 – RND 5 – Day 2 & 3

    Sprint Race-

    It was a great start for Ugochukwu from pole, who retained the lead early on despite pressure from David on the opening lap. Behind them, Alessandro Giusti retained P3 ahead of James Wharton and Noah Stromsted.

    The entire field was within DRS range of the other on Lap 3, as Nael started his charge by driving to the inside of Fionn McLaughlin at Brooklands to take eighth.

    The Campos driver was looking to make more moves at the same corner on Lap 5. This time he went around the outside of Maciej Glaysz, but the ART Grand Prix rookie held him off.

    The top four drivers of Ugochukwu, David, Giusti and Wharton were pulling away from the rest, with Stromsted over a second behind at the end of Lap 7.

    However, the Trident driver was able to close back in once Wharton and Giusti started battling. The Australian made a neat move around the outside at Brooklands to move up to third.

    The MP Motorsport driver looked to be struggling as Stromsted then overtook him at Copse, dropping him to fifth.

    As the race reached the halfway stage on Lap 9, Ugochukwu had built a three second lead on David, who was now facing a battle for P2 from Wharton and Stromsted.

    The Trident of Stromsted and de Palo were showing electric form as both overtook Wharton, the Dane going around the outside at Maggots and Becketts. The latter made his move to the inside at Copse.

    Ugochukwu was 5.8s clear out in front, as David looked to hold off Stromsted, de Palo and Nael who had just overtaken Wharton for fifth on Lap 11.

    At the end of Lap 12 however, the two Trident cars touched at the Vale chicane, allowing David to build a gap of 1.2s.

    Stromsted and de Palo continued their fighting through Luffield, with Nael right on the back of the duo looking to take advantage.

    The French driver saw his opportunity and took it on Lap 14, making another neat move to the inside at Brooklands on de Palo to take fourth place.

    Stromsted however had closed back in on David, but he was not alone as there was a huge group of cars behind them with Nael, De Palo, Gladysz, McLaughlin, Louis Sharp and Slater all watching on.

    At the end of Lap 16, de Palo retook P4 from Nael at Stowe. On to the penultimate lap, and the Italian continued his charge to the podium, overtaking teammate Stromsted on the run to Copse.

    The Danish driver lost another place, this time to Nael at Luffield, dropping him to fifth on the final lap.

    Ugochukwu however was at his brilliant best out in front winning by 17 seconds to claim his second victory of the season. David held on to take his maiden podium, while Nael overtook de Palo at the final corner to take P3.

    Feature Race-

    It was a great start from Nael, but polesitter Freddie Slater did incredibly well to stay ahead, braving it around the outside at Turn 1 to keep the position.

    De Palo was up to fourth after starting in P5 and made a nice move on Louis Sharp at the Vale chicane to take P3, with his eyes now set on Slater and Nael.

    The Italian then made a nice move on Nael at Stowe, making it a Trident 1-2 on Lap 3.

    In the championship battle, Ugo Ugochukwu was making progress, getting past Yevan David at the Hangar straight to move up to ninth.

    De Palo’s impressive start continued on Lap 4, as he dived to the inside of Slater, once again at Stowe, to take the lead of the race.

    On Lap 7, Gladysz was battling well also and made a nice move around the outside at Vale on Ernesto Rivera.

    Nael then tried to dive to the inside of Slater at the Loop on the next lap. The Trident home favourite defended the position before taking the lead back from De Palo a few corners later at the popular Stowe.

    Rivera then returned the favour on Gladysz, pulling off the same move at Vale to retake P6. The Campos driver then got past Fionn McLaughlin for P5 down the Hangar straight.

    The Hitech driver and Gladysz then went wheel to wheel at Vale but ran wide, allowing Noah Stromsted, James Wharton and Ugochukwu to get past, relegating McLaughlin to 10th.

    Back at the front, Sharp had been putting some pressure on Nael for third and on Lap 12, they went wheel to wheel at Stowe. But the French driver fought back Vale, putting the PREMA on the back foot at corner exit.

    This allowed several drivers to get past, with Rivera, Gladysz, Wharton, Ugochukwu and Stromsted demoting him to P9 in the space of a few corners.

    Lap 15 and Slater ran wide at Copse as he looked to close back in on his teammate. Behind him, Sharp tried to overtake Stromsted at Stowe, but found the door shut.

    Up ahead, Nael had lost DRS to the top two, and was coming under pressure from his teammate Rivera.

    Slater tried his first move on De Palo on Lap 18 at Stowe, but his teammate held on, before the Safety Car was called.
    Ricardo Escotto stopped at the Loop with damage after hitting the rear of Nandhuvan Bhirombahkdi at Village.

    The Safety Car was brought in on the penultimate lap setting up a grandstand finish with their being just one racing lap.

    Slater had a good restart but De Palo defended well from him and Nael. The Italian then locked up into the Loop, putting his two rivals right on his back down the Wellington straight.

    The two Trident drivers then went side-by-side through Copse and made slight contact which sent the Briton down the order to sixth.

    De Palo then had to defend from Nael and Rivera, and locked up again into the final chicane, but he managed to keep it on the road to claim his first victory in FIA Formula 3.

    Nael crossed the line in P2 but was given a 10 second time penalty at the line for his part in the incident with Sharp, dropping him to 16th.

    This promoted Rivera to second ahead of Gladysz, Wharton, Slater and Ugochukwu.

    However, after penalties, Rivera looses his podium and De Palo disqualified gives Gladysz the win.

  • Round 9 – British Grand Prix

    Charles Leclerc has claimed victory in dramatic British Grand Prix, with Kimi Antonelli dropping backwards due to a car issue in the latter stages while a crash for Max Verstappen triggered a late-race Safety Car.

    Leclerc made a lightning start, the Monegasque and team mate Lewis Hamilton getting ahead of Antonelli off the line. While Antonelli eventually caught Hamilton for P2, Leclerc remained steady ahead, only losing the lead when he made his pit stop.

    That handed P1 to Antonelli, who stretched out his stint before eventually pitting on Lap 36. The Italian promptly went on the chase of Leclerc – but this came undone when he experienced an issue with his car on Lap 41, which the team suggested was a left front wheel shield failure.

    After two further pit stops, Antonelli managed to continue on but had dropped to P10, as well as receiving a five-second time penalty for track limits.
    Further drama then followed when Verstappen spun off into the gravel trap on Lap 48, resulting in the Safety Car being deployed.

    With the race then ending under the Safety Car, Leclerc crossed the line to claim his ninth career win ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell – who, in staying out on track while others pitted during the Safety Car phase, managed to leapfrog Hamilton.

    The final spot on the podium went to Hamilton – a position he retained after being investigated post-race for a yellow flag infringement, with the stewards handing the seven time World Champion a reprimand.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Russell, P3: Hamilton, P4: Norris, P5: Hadjar, P6: Lawson, P7: Lindblad, P8: Bortoleto, P9: Colapinto and P10: Gasly.

    What a result for Leclerc! His first win since October 2024 at the United States Grand Prix. His drive was absolutely perfect! Nothing to fault at all, Ferrari had the right strategy even when the Safety Car came out.
    As for his teammate, a home podium for Lewis! A shame he couldn’t battle for the win, but a very good result considering he had a 5 second time penalty, the team will be walking away from this weekend in a very good mindset!

    P2 for Russell, kind of damage limitation for the Brit, wasn’t a great weekend overall but he brought it back with a home podium, but at the end of the weekend, he would’ve been happy with that. As for his teammate, Antonelli, a weekend to forget for him, he started well with the Sprint victory and then getting pole position, it all looked great… until he reported something was broke, dropping him to 6th, to then pit again and dropped down to 10th by Lap 45, he then also received a five second time penalty. After the chequered flag it dropped the young Italian to 16th.

    A decent result for Norris, a shame he didn’t have more performance, as that would’ve been an entertaining battle, but still great for him to get a podium! As for Piastri, out of the points, in P11, not a good weekend at all.

    5th for Hadjar, a good performance from him, this is what Red Bull wanted in their second seat, someone who can score decent points, when Verstappen doesn’t. Talking of the World Champion, a DNF for the Dutchman, a weekend to forget for him, it’s his 3rd DNF of the season so far.

    6th and 7th for the Racing Bulls! They’ve consistently scored points in the last 5 rounds now and only one weekend so far of this season they haven’t! The amount of work they’ve put in is so consistent – this will count towards the end of the season as they will be battling for 5th with Alpine. Special shoutout to Lindblad, his first home Grand Prix and some great points to see out the weekend.

    Points for Bortoleto! P8, a really strong showing for the Audi driver. Audi’s best point scoring position so far this season.

    A double points finish for Alpine, Gasly 9th and Colapinto 10th, another good result for the team, like I said earlier this will make a difference at the end of the season, with their fight with Racing Bulls.

    It feels incredible. Unfortunately the end was maybe not the one I will have dreamt of but to win after the last few weekends that have been particularly difficult, all the work that we put into trying to get the feeling back in the car. I felt like I had found something yesterday between the Sprint and Qualifying, but I had to confirm that today. And today, the feeling was back where it needs to be. I’m so incredibly happy.
    Leclerc on the win.

    As for the next race weekend, Round 10 of the 2026 Formula 1 season and we head to Belgium, on the 17th – 19th July!

  • F3 – RND 5 – Day 1

    Practice-

    Freddie Slater was on it from the green light at Silverstone, setting a 1:46.161 to end Free Practice fastest overall for Trident.

    The Briton set his first flying lap time, and his benchmark remained unbeaten throughout, as he was followed by Campos Racing’s Ernesto Rivera and teammate Matteo De Palo in third.

    Tuukka Taponen set the initial benchmark time to beat early on, logging a 1:47.652 inside the opening 10 minutes before the track got busier.

    Jin Nakamura was next to lead the way, 1:47.337 putting him ahead of Taponen’s initial effort with 30 minutes to run.

    Slater was flying from the first lap of his weekend as he went to the top on a 1:46.161, over a half second quicker than next-best Rivera.

    The Mexican driver cut the deficit to 0.266s on his next flying lap, with de Palo a further two-tenths back in third place with over 20 minutes to go.

    Both Rivera and De Palo delivered improvements with 12 minutes to go, but neither could better Slater’s initial time, closing the gap down to 0.15s and 0.212s respectively whilst staying P2 and P3.

    Van Amersfoort Racing teammates Hiyu Yamakoshi and Enzo Deligny continued the team’s impressive performances of late, slotting into fourth and fifth at the midway stage.

    Campos Racing teammates Theophile Nael and Ugo Ugochukwu looked set to deliver an improvement in the final five minutes, but a Virtual Safety Car test meant they had to abandon their laps.

    Qualifying-

    Freddie Slater delivered when it mattered, earning his maiden Aramco Pole Position Award in the Championship and Trident’s first of the 2026 season.

    Theophile Nael wound up to P2 with a late lap under pressure having been down in P29 ahead of the final run. Louis Sharp secured third place on the grid for PREMA Racing.

    Tyre prep complete and it was an early PREMA 1-2-3 headed by Jose Garfias, but the Trident’s of Slater and Matteo de Palo topped the times after several improvements from others.

    The home driver lost his effort though for exceeding track limits at Copse corner to leave the Italian P1 on a 1:46.383, with Ernesto Rivera 0.096s behind in P2.

    After a short stint in the pitlane, the drivers returned to the track and De Palo improved to a 1:46.334. But that was shortly beaten by Rivera, who went 0.031s clear to go to provisional pole.

    The fast times were coming in thick and fast, as Maciej Gladysz took over at the top with a 1:46.293. But a few moments later Slater beat that time by just 0.061s to take P1.

    In the fight for the championship, once again Ugo Ugochukwu and Nael lost their times for breaching track limits, leaving them at the back ahead of their final lap of the day.

    With the pressure laps underway, Nael and Slater found time, but it was De Palo who went purple through the first sector.

    Through Sector 2 and Slater delivered a session-best middle sector. Nael crossed the line first to go provisional pole, until Slater delivered a 1:45.620 to take top sot on home soil.

  • Round 9 – Silverstone Sprint Qualifying

    Lewis Hamilton claimed pole position in Sprint Qualifying ahead of this weekend’s British Grand Prix, the Ferrari driver snatching top spot on home soil by just 0.011s from Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli.

    Hamilton had set the pace in Sprint Qualifying at Silverstone throughout Friday afternoon, having gone fastest in Free Practice before leading the way in both earlier segments prior to a one-lap shootout in SQ3.

    The seven-time World Champion posted a 1m 28.376s lap, leaving him just fractionally quicker than Antonelli, as the pair headed Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in third.

    The full top 10 are- Pole: Hamilton, P2: Antonelli, P3: Verstappen, P4: Leclerc, P5: Russell, P6: Norris, P7: Piastri, P8: Hadjar, P9: Lawson and P10: Lindblad.

    What a result for Hamilton! If you told him that at the start of the week, he might’ve had a different response but his definitely going to take it! It will be interesting to see how the rest of this weekend is going to go! A decent result for his teammate, Leclerc, he can do a bit from 4th and get a decent result!

    A good result for Antonelli, keeping the results consistent which is very important in a Championship fight! As for his teammate, Russell, an okay result, he definitely could’ve had a better result, but its still a very long weekend ahead.

    Third for Verstappen, a very good result for him! It seems like Red Bull have made an improvement on their side and are more consistent than the few bad results they had. As for Hadjar, 8th, a good result for him, an opportunity to score points there.

    6th and 7th for McLaren, not the best result for the team, but like I said earlier it’s a long weekend and they have an opportunity to try something different for the actual qualifying and race.

    Another good result for Racing Bulls, in the top 10 again, 9th for Lawson and 10th for Lindblad who is having his first home race in his debut season! They will be ones to watch this weekend.

    I love this place, I love this crowd. I can’t express to you how big a dream it is, still to this day, when you’re building up to this race and you think about every corner and kind of the flow that you can get into at this track if you get the set-up right, and if you’ve got the right team behind you. The car’s felt really great today, thanks to everyone back at the factory, just continuing to push. We brought tiny little bits here – every single weekend we’re showing up with something, and everyone’s pushed to the max, so I’m really grateful to get that pole. I was quick through all the session, but still it was only 10 milliseconds or something like that, so it’s very close to these guys and the team really deserves it. A big, big thank you to everyone here.
    Hamilton on Sprint Qualifying.

  • Battig as Wild Card driver for Silverstone

    Chiara Battig will make her F1 Academy debut at Silverstone, with the Swiss racer confirmed as the Wild Card entry for Round 3 of the 2026 season.

    Driving for the series’ official partner Wella Professionals, Battig will take to the track in the #6 car featuring the brand’s bespoke red Wella livery.
    The design is inspired by its “Make It You” campaign, which celebrates confidence and female empowerment in the F1 Academy paddock.

    A three time Swiss Karting Champion in OK Junior, Battig was selected as an F1 Academy Discover Your Drive karter in the Champions of the Future Academy Program International Series, finishing runner-up in the OK-N Senior category in 2025.

    She joined the Red Bull Junior Team that same year and went on to claim six top 10 finishes in her first single-seater campaign in the F4 Saudi Arabian Championship, before achieving a maiden podium in the 2026 Formula Winter Series.

    This season, the 16 year old is competing in British F4 and has already stood on the podium at Silverstone, finishing third in the reverse grid Race 2.

    Silverstone is one of the most legendary circuits in motorsport, so making my F1 ACADEMY debut here as the Wild Card driver is a dream come true. I’m excited to challenge myself, learn from every session, and show what I’m capable of on such a big stage with the support of Wella behind me. I’m focused on making every lap count and leaving a strong impression.
    Battig on the news.

    Our partnership with F1 ACADEMY goes beyond sponsorship – it’s about creating visibility for ambition and individuality at a defining moment for women in sport. Silverstone allows us to bring that vision to life at scale, connecting beauty with confidence, performance and cultural relevance in a completely new way.
    Marlene Lotter, Senior Vice President, Global Professional Brands at Wella Company.

  • McLaren reveal heritage-inspired livery

    McLaren have unveiled an eye-catching livery for this weekend’s British Grand Prix, paying homage to their history with a heritage-inspired design.

    The team will switch out their usual striking papaya for a primarily white livery, as first seen on the McLaren M2B when they joined F1 in 1966 – in the same season, founder Bruce McLaren scored their maiden point at the British Grand Prix.

    Highlighting how much the team have evolved over the last six decades, the new look also builds on their milestone 1000th Grand Prix earlier this year in Monaco, where they ran a special orange and black colour scheme.

    Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will both be in white race suits for the weekend, too, with a ‘Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Team’ sticker added to the MCL40 in honour of the team’s founder.

    Our Silverstone livery is a celebration of where we began and everything we have built since. The McLaren M2B represents the start of a journey defined by relentless innovation and a belief in possibility, and this design brings that spirit to life. Our partnership with Google Gemini is grounded in those same principles.
    Louise McEwen, McLaren’s Chief Marketing Officer.

  • Williams reveal special livery

    Williams have revealed a one-off livery for this weekend’s British Grand Prix, where the team will celebrate their home race with a Union Jack inspired design across their cars, race suits and team kit.

    Since Frank Williams set up the team in 1977, they have won at Silverstone on eight occasions and are set to mark their British heritage with splashes of red,white and blue across the nose cone and chassis side of the FW48.

    Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz will wear unique race suits with a similar design, while team members working trackside will also show off takeover kits as the Grove team look back on some of their greatest memories from their home race, including their 100th win at the hands of Jacques Villeneuve in 1997, and crowd favourite Nigel Mansell’s three victories.

    They will also be hoping to add to their tally of 11 points by returning to the top 10, especially after Sainz was forced to retire from the recent Austrian Grand Prix.

    We are proud to be flying the flag for the British GP this week. From our first win to our 100th, Silverstone has played host to some of Atlassian Williams F1 Team’s most iconic moments – and there is nothing on the F1 calendar quite like the atmosphere of the home crowd here. Whether watching in the grandstands, supporting at the Fan Zone or cheering us on from home, we really feel the energy of the fans and will be carrying it with us all weekend.
    Team Principal, James Vowles.

  • R12 – Silverstone

    Lando Norris has taken victory in an eventful wet-dry British Grand Prix, the McLaren driver leading home team mate Oscar Piastri on an action-packed afternoon that also saw Nico Hulkenberg finally clinch his maiden F1 podium.

    With the race starting in dry conditions, polesitter Max Verstappen initially led away from Piastri- but the Australian soon got ahead just as the rain started to fall heavily.

    While the McLaren quickly built a strong lead, this was neutralised when the Safety Car was deployed, marking the first appearance for the vehicle during the event.

    An action-packed event ensued from there, with Piastri receiving a 10 second time penalty for slowing too much when preparing to lead the pack away following another Safety Car restart, while a spin for Verstappen moments later saw the Dutchman drop back.

    As conditions changed and drivers started to switch to slick tyres on, Piastri served his penalty during his pit stop and Norris took over the lead of the race – and from there Norris maintained his advantage to seal the win in front of a cheering crowd, crossing the line 6.812s ahead of Piastri.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Norris, P2: Piastri, P3: Hulkenberg, P4: Hamilton, P5: Verstappen, P6: Gasly, P7: Stroll, P8: Albon, P9: Alonso and P10: Russell.

    What a result for McLaren! Lando Norris has won his home Grand Prix!!! This is the one he really wanted, and he absolutely smashed it out of the park.
    As for Piastri, a good result for him too, unfortunate for the 10 second time penalty but sometimes it is just racing…

    Nicoooo Hulkenbergggggg!!! P3! He finally got his podium!!! What a result for the Stake driver, he and the team will be ecstatic, and it is fully deserved, they smashed it out of the park with strategy.

    P4 for Lewis Hamilton, a good result for the Ferrari driver! It’s a shame he wasn’t on the podium at his home race, but still a very good result! As for his teammate, Leclerc took the gamble and pitted before lights out (like some of the other drivers) and put the slicks on and it just didn’t work in his favour he ended up a shocking 14th…

    An okay result for Verstappen, obviously not what he would’ve wanted starting on pole, but still in the points which is good, it didn’t help that he had a spin on the safety car restart which did not help at all.
    As for Tsunoda he finished a disappointing 15th, the last of the runners.

    A lovely P6 result for Pierre Gaslyyy! He kept out of trouble and kept it on track and was rewarded with another lovely points finish.

    Double points for Aston Martin at their home Grand Prix! P7 for Stroll and P9 for Alonso, a great result for the team!

    A disappointing result for George Russell who finished in P10, again he took a gamble and pitted and it just didn’t work at all. As for his teammate, Antonelli was one of five DNF’s, a few bad weekends to forget for the young driver.

    Now we have a little break before the next round, it is on the 25th-27th July and we head to Spa-Francorchamps for the Belgian Grand Prix!

  • R12 – Silverstone Qualifying

    Max Verstappen has clinched pole position at the British Grand Prix, the Red Bull driver storming through with a stunning lap to put himself at the front of the grid ahead of the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.

    While Piastri had secured provisional pole during the first runs of Q3, the Australian made a mistake on his final effort and could not improve.
    But Verstappen put his lap together perfectly to go fastest on an effort of 1m 24.892s, putting himself 0.103s clear of Piastri’s McLaren.

    The full top 10 are- Pole: Verstappen, P2: Piastri, P3: Norris, P4: Russell, P5: Hamilton, P6: Leclerc, P7: Antonelli, P8: Bearman, P9: Alonso and P10: Gasly.
    However, this isn’t the starting grid as Ollie Bearman has a 10 place grid penalty meaning he will start 18th and Antonelli has a 3 place grid penalty which means he will start from 10th, which promotes Alonso to 7th, Gasly 8th, and Sainz 9th.

    A lovely result for Verstappen, I was quite surprised he got pole as he was complaining a lot about the car in Q1 and Q2, but this is the result he would’ve wanted and needed too.
    As for Tsunoda he has had a decent result! P11 for the Japanese driver, just outside of the top 10 however he is in the middle of the pack so he has to be very careful at the start.

    A good result for McLaren P2 for Piastri and P3 for Norris, they are in a very good position for winning this race! Could Lando bring it home for the first time ever? I think his going to have a bit of competition for this win today…

    A good result for George Russell, I feel like he went a bit under the radar with his P4 result, but I think that’s more because of his pace which hasn’t been as good as other weekend. Obviously his teammate starts P10, still a good position to score some decent points for the Silver Arrows.

    A decent result for Ferrari, P5 for Hamilton and P6 for Lelcerc, it could’ve been a bit better of a result, especially as both cars have the pace. But, and key word being but, can you ever count Lewis Hamilton out of a British GP win or podium? It will definitely be an interesting race later, especially if we have some rain…

    A good result for Alonso, P7 for the Aston Martin driver, he will be looking to score some good points this weekend.

  • F3 – Silverstone – Day 1

    Practice-

    Campos Racing’s Nikola Tsolov topped Free Practice at Silverstone on a 1:45.847 to start his weekend on the front foot.

    The Bulgarian was the only driver into the 1:45s, as Charlie Wurz followed in second for Trident ahead of Tim Tramnitz of MP Motorsport in third.

    Nicola Lacorte led the way in the very early stages on a 1:49.859, while tyre preparation laps got underway for the rest of the field.

    Campos went 1-2 with under half an hour to go, as Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak led teammate Mari Boya on a 1:46.379, 0.3s quicker than the Spaniard in P2.

    Tramnitz moved MP up to P2, 0.037s down on the best effort until Ugo Ugochukwu put PREMA Racing top of the pile on a 1:46.277.

    Martinius Stenshorne and Wurz set personal bests to go second and third respectively, and within a tenth of the McLaren Development Driver in P1.

    After drivers returned to the circuit for a second run in the final 10 minutes, further improvements began to flow in.

    Rafael Camara set a time to go quickest but lost it to exceeding track limits. Moments later, title rival Nikola Tsolov broke into the 1:45s to take the top spot, while Stenshorne and Ugochukwu posted improvements of their own that put them second and third.

    Tramnitz closed the gap down to 0.291s as he went to P2 in the final five minutes. Camara posted a time good enough for P4 as the chequered flag waved to bring an end to Free Practice, but teammate Wurz went up the order once again to P2, 0.289s off Tsolov’s session-topping time.

    Qualifying-

    Nikola Tsolov fired in a late lap to take his second Aramco Pole Position Award in a row.

    The Campos Racing driver had been bettered by title contender Rafael Camara going into the final attempts, but one last improvement put the Bulgarian back to P1. He finished ahead of Ugo Ugochukwu, who wound up second for PREMA Racing, with Camara having to settle for third.

    With the tyre preparation laps complete, TRIDENT set the early pace with Camara going to the top on a 1:46.318, 0.2s ahead of teammate Noah Stromsted in second. Ugochukwu split them on his attempt, going to within 0.023s of the Brazilian’s effort.

    Tim Tramnitz delivered his first time to go top of the pile, but only briefly, as Tsolov followed to smash the time to beat with a 1:45.655, some 0.3s quicker than the MP driver in second.

    Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak made it a Campos 1-3, slotting into third with his initial attempt.

    Everyone returned to the pitlane for a fresh set of Hard tyres and returned to the track with just over 15 minutes of the session remaining.
    Tramnitz cut the gap down to 0.2s to Tsolov, while teammate Bruno del Pino slotted into third for the Dutch team.

    Behind them though, Camara delivered a 1:45.176 to surge to the top of the times, 0.479s quicker than Tsolov’s initial benchmark time.
    Stromsted put in an improvement also to go third overall with just over 10 minutes to go, while Charlie Wurz followed a few minutes later to go fourth.

    With five minutes left, the circuit got busy once again. Theophile Nael moved Van Amersfoort Racing up to second to cut the deficit to provisional pole sitter Camara down to 0.3s.

    Tramnitz followed that up to go second for MP, 0.296s behind the TRIDENT, but Tsolov returned to P1 with a 1:45.043 with less than half a minute to go.

    Ugochukwu then went to P2 with his final attempt and just 0.023s off the top spot. Camara had a poor middle sector on his last lap and could only manage third in the end.

    The full top 10 are- Pole: Tsolov, P2: Ugochukwu, P3: Camara, P4: Boya, P5: Tramnitz, P6: Wurz, P7: Stenshorne, P8: Van Hoepen, P9: Nael and P10: Leon.

  • R12 – Tyre Selection

    The midpoint of the 2025 season sees Formula 1 return to where it all began 75 years ago. The first Grand Prix to count towards the Drivers’ World Championship was held on 13th May 1950 at Silverstone.

    Silverstone has hosted 59 Grands Prix, more world Championship events than any other circuit with the except of Monza (74).
    It’s layout has remained more or less unchanged throughout the years.

    At 5.861 kilometres, it is one of the longest tracks on the calendar, with 18 corners, 10 to the right and 8 to the left.
    The circuit is in almost year round use with four and two-wheeled racing categories and so it provides good grip right from Friday’s first free practice session.

    Despite taking place at the height of summer, the English weather can often be unpredictable with very changeable temperatures and wind and rain suddenly putting in an appearance.

    The compounds for this year are- C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium), C4 (Soft), which is a step softer than last year.
    The aim is to create a wider range of strategy options for the race. In 2024, when the C3 was the Soft, it was used by just a few drivers in the closing stages of the race following the rain.

    All dry compounds and the intermediates were used during the 2024 British Grand Prix. 17 drivers opted to line up on the starting grid on the medium, the only exceptions being Ocon and Zhou on the Soft and Perez on the Hard tyres.

  • McLaren reveal Chrome livery for Silverstone

    McLaren have unveiled a new iteration of their chrome livery, to be used by Lando Norris and championship leader, Oscar Piastri at this weekend’s British Grand Prix.

    The livery pays homage to the iconic chrome look of McLaren’s of the mid-2000s and early 2010s, as raced by the likes of Kimi Raikkonen, Juan Pablo Montoya and current Ferrari driver, Lewis Hamilton.

    The livery was revealed to fans in a special McLaren Racing Live event held in London’s Trafalgar Square, with Norris and Piastri both in attendance, along with development driver Alex Dunne, and several other team members.

    The team previously used a chrome livery at the 2023 British Grand Prix, while other special liveries used in recent times include the team’s ‘Triple Crown’ paint job for the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix, and their ‘Riviera’ look for this year’s Monaco and Spanish Grand Prix.

  • Racing Bulls unveil special livery for British GP

    Racing Bulls and their partner HUGO have unveiled a special livery for the British Grand Prix in collaboration with Nigerian artist Slawn.

    Revealed by Slawn along with Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar at the Flannels X store in London this evening, the link-up sees VCARB 02 adorned with Slawn’s caricature style street art.

    The artwork will also feature on the drivers’ race suits and the team’s kit across the weekend, while Slawn will also be in the paddock on Thursday alongside Lawson and Hadjar where the squad say he will be “designing the garage IRL”.

    Slawn’s famed graffiti aesthetic – rooted in his Yoruba heritage and London’s urban culture – has seen him make his name in the city’s art landscape.
    He also has previously made a foray into the world of sports, having designed the Emirate FA Cup Trophy in May this year.

    Slawn’s work is unlike anything we’ve seen in Formula 1, and that’s exactly why this collaboration felt right. Partnering with HUGO and Slawn has allowed us to push creative boundaries in a way that reflects the bold identity of our team. Silverstone is a massive moment in the season, and we’re proud to bring something completely original to our fans.

    Witnessing the big reveal of Slawn’s fresh, energetic art on the VCARB Team’s new livery and his exciting takeover will consolidate HUGO’s ambition to take F1 further off-track and into culture. This collaboration is a brilliant demonstration of the power of going your own way, which is at the core of HUGO and VCARB’s DNA. All eyes will be on VCARB during the action at Silverstone.
    James Foster, SVP of Global Marketing at Hugo Boss.

  • Aron to drive in FP1 with Kick Sauber

    Alpine Reserve Driver, Paul Aron will make his free practice debut at the upcoming British Grand Prix weekend with Kick Sauber after the rival teams came to an agreement to share his driving services.

    The Estonian driver, who competed in Formula 2 last season, is not racing competitively this year, with his focus currently helping Alpine with simulator work as they try and claw their way back up the standings from P10 in the Championship.

    Alpine entered the 2025 F1 Season with plenty of driving talent in reserve.
    While Ryo Hirakawa soon departed for Haas, the Enstone-based squad still have Jack Doohan alongside Aron – the Australian had started the year in a full-time race seat but was swapped out in favour of Franco Colapinto ahead of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.

    The agreement Alpine have reached with Kick Sauber will release Aron for two FP1 sessions this season, with every team having to give up four FP1 sessions across the year.

    Kick Sauber only need to give up two FP1 sessions this season, as they are running a designated rookie in their other car in Gabriel Bortoleto. As such, Aron will replace Nico Hulkenberg at Silverstone and in Budapest.

    I am very pleased to be given the opportunity to have valuable track time in Formula 1, so thanks to BWT Alpine Formula One Team for coming to this arrangement. It is no secret that my desire is to one day race full-time in Formula 1 so any chance to be on track in a competitive environment is an important stepping stone. While I continue to focus on my development with Alpine, I do look forward to the two sessions with Kick Sauber and giving my maximum effort to them at Silverstone and Budapest.
    Aron on the news.

    It is in our interests to maximise any driving opportunities for our young talent, so it is good to have an agreement with Sauber for Paul to drive in Free Practice 1 in Silverstone and Budapest. We are seeing varied success from last year’s Formula 2 drivers this year up and down the grid, and Paul was a front runner in that category, so this is an opportunity for him and the team to continue his progress and to give him valuable track time.
    Briatore on the news.

  • F2 – RND 8 Round-Up

    Day 1-
    Practice-

    Joshua Duerksen set the pace on the wet weather tyres in free practice, ending the session quickest of all for AIX Racing.
    The Paraguayan set a 1:58.064 to finish the session on top, with Josep Maria Marti second for Campos and teammate Taylor Barnard in third.

    Championship leader, Paul Aron was the first underneath the two-minute mark, setting a 1:59.526 on the wet tyres to go fastest in the opening 10 minutes.

    Zak O’Sullivan and DAMS Lucas Oil’s Jak Crawford then set identical times, though the ART Grand Prix driver recorded his 1:59.884 first to claim P2, with the American third.

    With just over 15 minutes remaining of the session, Andrea Kimi Antonelli went to the top briefly before teammate Oliver Bearman took over, going quickest after setting a 1:59.474 leaving the top three separated by just 0.052s.

    Franco Colapinto prompted plenty of drivers to return to the track on slick hard tyres, though they all struggled with the surface still damp around most of the circuit.

    All that tried the white-walled tyre struggled to find the necessary grip, with late yellow flags courtesy of O’Sullivan running through the gravel at Stowe before rejoining the track, with Marti repeating the off just moments later.

    Qualifying-

    Isack Hadjar took a hugely important pole position at Silverstone, as the Campos Racing driver led the pack on a 1:39.368, capitalising on an error by title rival and championship leader Paul Aron that left the Hitech Pulse-Eight driver down in 12th following a spin.

    ART Grand Prix’s Victor Martins making it an all-French front row , while Dennis Hauger found a late improvement to secure P3 with his final lap.

    Home favourite Oliver Bearman, recorded the initial time to beat, 1:40.918 putting him a tenth clear of Invicta Racing’s Kush Maini in the early running, until Aron split the pair to go P2, 0.040s down on the PREMA.

    Hauger was next go quickest, 1:40.554 but that was beaten twice over. Zane Maloney slotted into P2 just behind Maini who moved up to first on his next lap.
    Aron then found time to go fastest on a 1:40.181 with 20 minutes remaining.

    Getting his first lap on the second set of tyres underway, Aron suffered a spin at Turn 1 which left him with major flatspots as everyone else improved.
    Title rival Hadjar leapt up to provisional pole with a 1:39.368 in the Campos car.

    Having been inside the top 10, Maloney lost a time for track limits to leave Aron in P10, but an improvement from Ritomo Miyata in the Rodin Motorsport car bumped the Championship leader out of the top 10.

    Hadjar peeled into the pitlane with a minute and a half to go while the majority continued on their way for a final attempt.
    Maloney put himself back into the top 10 on his final attempt, going ninth-fastest for Rodin, though he was one of the only improvements in the final minute.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Hadjar, P2: Martins, P3: Hauger, P4: Colapinto, P5: Bearman, P6: Bortoleto, P7: Crawford, P8: Maini, P9: Maloney and P10: Antonelli.

    Day 2-

    After a formation lap behind the Safety Car, racing got underway with a rolling start with heavier rain closing in quickly. Antonelli retained his lead but teammate Oliver Bearman was battling Gabriel Bortoleto in the opening corners and the pair made slight contact, leaving the Brit with a broken front wing.

    Bortoleto was undeterred and rounded Jak Crawford on the outside of Copse and into Maggots with a brave move for P4.
    Torrential rain arrived to close out the first lap as Antonelli built up a 2.5s lead over Maloney in second.

    With damage to his front wing, Bearman dropped down the order, losing places to Franco Colapinto, Dennis Hauger and Victor Martins in the space of half a lap.
    A virtual safety car was then deployed on lap 3 to recover the endplate of Bearman.

    As racing resumed, Paul Aron caught his title rival napping to secure P10 from Isack Hadjar on the approach to Maggotts and Becketts.
    Zak O’Sullivan relegated the Frenchman to 12th into Abbey at the end of the lap, before Hadjar then ran off the road at Turn 1.

    After a brief pause in action to allow the rain to ease off, racing resumed entering lap 7, with another rolling start and once again, Antonelli kept hold of the lead.

    On lap 8, contact between Marti and Championship leader Aron left both out of the race, while in a separate incident, Hadjar found himself in the gravel following a spin at Copse. This then brought out another Safety Car.

    Racing got back underway on lap 13 with Antonelli leading comfortably once more while Bearman made a pass on Hauger at Turn 4 to secure eighth.
    Colapinto then moved ahead of Hauger into Brooklands and cleared Bearman after the Briton ran through the gravel at Copse dropping him to 18th.

    O’Sullivan was on the move next on lap 14, rounding Colapinto on the outside of Copse for seventh position to continued his charge through the pack.
    Onto lap 16, and the Brit was attacking his teammate but contact between the pair at the loop left Martins spinning O’Sullivan with damage, putting them both out of the race.

    Back to racing conditions again and Roman Stanek had been had been hustling Miyata for eighth and the Trident driver secured P8 from the Rodin driver with three laps to go.

    Heading into the penultimate lap, Colapinto looked to have cleared Crawford for fifth around the outside of Stowe, but the DAMS Lucas Oil driver fought back into Abbey to retake the spot.

    Onto the final lap and the all-Invicta battle for the last spot on the podium could hardly be split, the pair almost colliding several times on a frantic final tour.

    Up ahead though, Antonelli was uncatchable and the Italian won his first F2 race by over eight second to Zane Maloney in second.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Antonelli, P2: Maloney, P3: Bortoleto, P4: Maini, P5: Colapinto, P6: Crawford, P7: Hauger, P8: Stanek, P9: Barnard and P10: Miyata.

    Day 3-

    Wheelspin for Hadjar allowed ART Grand Prix’s Victor Martins to take the lead while Oliver Bearman got a perfect launch in his PREMA car to rise up to second from fifth on the grid.
    Both MP Motorsport drivers fell back however, dropping from third and fourth to eighth and ninth, Franco Colapinto leading Dennis Hauger.

    Crawford profited to take those two spots for P4, as Gabriel Bortoleto took fifth around the outside of Maloney at Copse corner.
    That move came just before a lap 1 safety car for the stranded Andrea Kimi Antonelli, stationary at Turn 3 after a spin in the opening exchanges following contact with Kush Maini.

    Racing then resumed on Lap 3, but the Safety Car was back out almost immediately after a spin for Joshua Duerksen coming through Woodcote.

    Fighting Championship leader Paul Aron for position, the AIX Racing driver got onto the grass that left him spinning into the gravel, but he tagged the right rear of the Hitech en route, which left the Estonian with a puncture and forced to pit.

    Hadjar had been close to Bearman’s rear wing, and he got the move done for second place with DRS down the Hangar straight on lap 8. Both pitted at the end of the lap for their switch to the hard tyres.

    After a flurry of pitstops, Hadjar closed down compatriot Martins and the ART driver was under serious threat from the Campos behind him.
    With DRS on lap 12, Hadjar almost pulled off a pass around the outside of Stowe but had to concede the place after running wide over track limits.

    Ending lap 18, Hadjar went side-by-side with Martins through the Vale chicane in an attempt to pass but couldn’t get the move done.
    The Alpine Academy Junior ran wide at the final corner to re-open the door and then went off at Turn 1 to allow Hadjar through.

    The ART driver then lost places to Crawford and Maloney in the process as he rejoined at Turn 3, while the American profited from their battle to take the lead of the race from Hadjar entering the Wellington Straight.

    Onto Lap 25, Bortoleto was able to clear Bearman into Stowe for eighth position as the fight for the points continued.

    Colpainto was back ahead of Martins and into sixth with five laps remaining but his progress stalled out with three to go as those ahead pushed on in pursuit of Crawford.

    Despite his best efforts, the American couldn’t pull the gap to Hadjar, who claimed his third victory in 2024 and the lead of the Drivers’ Championship with it.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Hadjar, P2: Maloney, P3: Crawford, P4: Colapinto, P5: Martins, P6: Bortoleto, P7: Bearman, P8: Fittipaldi, P9: Hauger and P10: Marti.

  • F3 – RND 7 Day 2 & 3

    Day 2-

    It was a great start for Lindblad, as the PREMA driver won out in a three way battle with pole-sitter Leon ans Zagazeta heading into Turn 1 to take the lead.

    Zagazeta initially got ahead of Leon, but the Van Amersfoort Racing driver fought back through at Maggotts and Becketts to move up to P2. The Jenzer Motorsport rookie them came under attack from Christian Mansell heading into Stowe but managed to stay ahead.

    Mansell though then lost a position on lap 3 as Rodin Motorsport’s Callum Voisin was showing strong pace to move past the ART Grand Prix driver for fourth at the entry to Luffield.

    The Virtual Safety Car was needed moments later after Santiago Ramos suffered a puncture following a slight collision with Tommy Smith, with a piece of his tyre needing to be cleared from the racing line near Copse.

    The action resumed on lap 5, but the safety car was almost immediately deployed after Max Esterson and Oliver Goethe collided on the entry to Copse, sending both through the gravel and into the barrier.
    Both drivers walked away from the incident, and they were back underway at the end of lap 7, however there was another collision as Tim Tramnitz and Luke Browning made contact going through the loop.

    Alex Dunne was on the move and got ahead of Charlie Wurz for P6 going down the inside at Stowe, before making his way past Mansell for fifth on lap 11.
    Onto the next lap, and Dunne had dropped back behind Mansell and Wurz to seventh and was looking to retake the position from the Jenzer rookie, but the collided on the Wellington Straight.

    Racing resumed on lap 14 with Lindblad two and a half seconds clear of Leon in the lead. Having resisted an earlier attack from Voision, Zagazeta was now outside DRS range of the British driver.

    Just behind in the battle for fifth, a DRS train had formed behind Mansell which included his ART teammate Nikola Tsolov, Gabriele Mini, Sami Meguetounif and Sebastian Montoya.
    Montoya though, having started P17, was on a mission and dived down the inside of Meguetounif for P8 at Turn 3.

    Onto the final lap, and Lindblad was now well over six seconds clear out in front as he crossed the line to win on home soil. Leon finished in second while Zagazeta achieved his first Formula 3 podium by finishing third.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Lindblad, P2: Leon, P3: Zagazeta, P4: Voisin, P5: Tsolov, P6: Mini, P7: Montoya, P8: Meguetounif, P9: Van Hoepen and P10: Fornaroli.

    Day 3-

    It was a dramatic start to the day as light rain prior to the race getting underway promoted 28 of the 30 drivers to switch to the wet tyres, with Rodin Motorsport’s Voisin and Piotr Wisnicki the only ones to stick to slicks.

    But as the cars rounded the track on the formation lap, the rain stopped causing several drivers to pit for Hards prior to lights out.

    Pole-sitter, Luke Browning made a strong start from pole on his wets, while Leonardo Fornaroli was on the charge as he made his way past Trident teammate Sami Meguetounif before going round the outside of Max Esterson at Maggots and Becketts for second.

    But a Safety Car was required as Cian Shields stopped by the side of the track at Turn 3, just as his HItech teammate Browning was told that more rain was expected.

    We were back racing on lap 3, as Voisin put his slick tyres to use, going round the outside of Esterson at Turn 3 before getting past Fornaroli down the Wellington Straight. He then took over the lead of the race from Browning on the run down to Copse corner.

    Voisin, who had a five second lead at one stage, was then handed a 10 second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in his overtake on Esterson.

    But we were back racing on lap 8 and this time around it was the wet tyre runners making the moves with Browning and Fornaroli getting past Voisin in the first sector.
    Tramnitz was a major winner in this situation as having pitted for the wets he came from the back to P7 ahead of Hitech debutant James Wharton.

    Another Safety Car was required on lap 9 though after Joshua Dufek spun at the exit of Stowe, causing Alexander Dunne and Sebastian Montoya to crash into the barriers as they looked to avoid the AIX Racing car.

    We had now entered the final 15 minutes of the race and with the pack now bunched up together, PREMA came on the radio to tell Mini, now in P23, that the rain was stopping soon.

    As racing resumed, Browning extended his lead over Fornaroli to over one second, while Leon went round the outside of Esterson at Stowe to take P3.

    With 10 minutes to go, it looked like we had reached the crossover point with slick tyre runners Voisin, Lindblad and Mini slowly beginning to make their moves through the field.

    With seven minutes left, those on dry tyres started to make their moves with VAR telling Leon that they were quicker by one second a lap. Voisin was up to fourth, Lindblad was sixth and Mini was eighth.

    Entering the final five minutes, Voisin got past Browning down the Hangar Straight to take back the lead he had lost earlier. But with the penalty hanging over his head, Lindblad and Mini, who were fighting for P2 just behind him were effectively battling for the lead.

    The three drivers were flying at the front as Voisin crossed the line in P1, but with his penalty, he dropped to third. This promoted Lindblad to first giving him a clean sweep of wins, a Formula 3 first in which a driver has won every race during a single weekend with Mini in second.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Lindblad, P2: Mini, P3: Voisin, P4: Smith, P5: Wisnicki, P6: Goethe, P7: Fornaroli, P8: Browning, P9: Bedrin and P10: Leon.

  • RW 12 – Silverstone

    Lewis Hamilton has claimed a long-awaited and record-breaking ninth British Grand Prix victory in a thrilling race at Silverstone!

    While pole sitter, George Russell had led away from Hamilton as the event got underway, an exciting battle soon unfolded between the two Mercedes cars and the McLaren pair of Norris and Oscar Piastri amid changing weather conditions.

    The lead changed hands as the field began to switch to intermediate tyres after the opening phase of the race, before the skies later became dry and Hamilton capitalised from pitting for slicks on lap earlier than Norris – who also face a slow pit stop.

    While Russell retired with a water system issue, and Max Verstappen snatched P2 from Norris in the latter stages – Hamilton held his position to clinch an emotional victory, a record ninth win in a single Grand Prix and his first P1 since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Hamilton, P2: Verstappen, P3: Norris, P4: Piastri, P5: Sainz, P6: Hulkenberg, P7: Stroll, P8: Alonso, P9: Albon and P10: Tsunoda.

    WOWWW! What a result from Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes! His first win of the season, and he done it in style, this really does show you how much Mercedes have put so much into getting their car into a race winning way again and it hasn’t been easy but they’ve done it!
    Obviously unfortunate for Russell, as he could’ve easily been on the podium if he didn’t have to retire but I’m sure he will bounce back next race.

    A great result for Max Verstappen, it wasn’t the easiest of races for the world champion and that showed a few times as even himself wasn’t sure where he would finish the race, but it was a good recovery back to P2. However his teammate didn’t make massive moves in the race… He finished 17th… and was two laps down aswell. Not good at all, when is it time for Red Bull to rethink the second seat?

    A decent result for McLaren, P3 for Norris and P4 for Piastri. I think the team threw away a victory here, they definitely left Oscar out for too long when it was raining as they could’ve double stacked like Mercedes did and giving Norris options for slick tyres instead of picking him a certain set. I think the team has to iron out a few little problems as this won’t win them more races…

    Ferrari, P5 for Carlos Sainz, a decent drive for him, didn’t really see much from the Spanish driver but a decent point haul from him. As for the other Ferrari, Charles Leclerc didn’t have the best race either it was a disappointing outcome for him after he made places up at the beginning of the race and then slipped backwards after making an early switch to intermediate tyres.

    Another great result for Hulkenberg! P6, he is on fire at the moment, Haas really have pulled it out of the bag recently and it just seems to be working at the moment!

    A decent result for Aston Martin, a double points finish for the team which is good to see after their recent struggles.

    Albon in the points aswell for the teams home grand prix which is good! His teammate, Logan Sargeant just missed out on points in P11, unfortunate for the American but a decent drive by him.

    Alpine didn’t have the best of weekends, Pierre Gasly didn’t even get to start the race he went into the pits on the formation lap due to a gearbox problem and that was him done for the day. As for his teammate, Esteban Ocon, finished 16th.

    Now the triple header is over, and we have a little break before a double header which starts on the 19th to 21st July and its the Hungarian Grand Prix

  • F3 – RND 7 Day 1

    Free Practice-

    Jenzer Motorsport’s Max Esterson ended up with the fastest time in the Free Practice, leading HiTech Pulse-Eight Cian Shields in a rain-hit session.

    Esterson completed a lap of 2:00.153 to take top spot, eclipsing Shield’s previous benchmark time by just 0.114s as ART Grand Prix driver Nikola Tsolov ended up third.

    With the full wet tyres strapped on as rain continued to fall at Silverstone, MP Motorsport’s Tim Tramnitz was the early pacesetter thanks to his time of 2:02.391.

    However, the fastest time continued to change as home favourites Joseph Loake and then Arvid Lindblad went to P1 only for Campos Racing’s Mari Boya to go over a second quicker on a 2:00.873.

    Then came Tsolov in his ART car who then eclipsed Boya’s time by 0.323s while his teammate Christian Mansell went up to third, over half a second behind the Bulgarian driver.

    With 20 minutes left of practice, the teams brought their cars in and bolted on the slicks for the first time in the day, but just as they did the rain began to fall even harder.

    This meant that drivers did not improve on their best times, leaving Esterson fastest ahead of Shields, with Tsolov in third ahead of James Wharton, who has made a good start to his debut weekend with Hitech Pulse-Eight as Boya ended up fifth.

    Qualifying-

    Hitech Pulse Eight’s Luke Browning took a last gasp pole position at a rain-hampered qualifying in Silverstone ahead of Jenzer Motorsport’s Max Esterson and Trident’s Sami Meguetounif.

    The Championship leader left it late on a drying lap with a time of 1:44.992 to take top spot with Esterson following his P1 in practice to go within 0.045s off pole to seal a maiden front row start.

    Van Amersfoort Racing’s Noel Leon then set the initial time to beat with a lap of 1:45.475, Alexander Dunne moved up to second, just 0.070s off top spot, while Gabriele Mini settled into third for PREMA Racing.

    However, as most of the grid returned to the pitlane looking to strap on a new set of hards, the rain intensified. This left Dino Beganovic at the back after the Swede lost his initial time to a track limits violation, while Championship leader Luke Browning was demoted to P13 by Tim Tramnitz.

    But with all looking lost, the drivers ventured out on to the track aiming to do as much learning in mixed conditions before tomorrow’s sprint race.

    However, the track began to improve heading into the final minute, with Leonardo Fornaroli going fastest on a 1:45.265. This was bad news for the drivers in the pit lane like Leon and Dunne as the timing screens lit up with purple and green sectors.

    Browning then came across the line to complete a lap of 1:44.992 giving him pole position on home soil, as Esterson went second moments later.

    The full top 10 are- Pole: Browning, P2: Esterson, P3: Meguetounif, P4: Fornaroli, P5: Van Hoepen, P6: Wurz, P7: Mansell, P8: Tsolov, P9: Voisin and P10: Zagazeta.

  • RW 12 – Silverstone Qualifying

    George Russell clinched an impressive pole position in qualifying for the British Grand Prix, with the Mercedes team locking out the front row after Lewis Hamilton claimed second place.

    Having set the initial pace during the first runs of Q3, Russell improved further on his final effort by pumping in a time of 1m 25.819s, putting him 0.171s clear of Hamilton, while Lando Norris followed in third for McLaren to complete an all British top three.

    The full top 10 are – Pole: Russell, P2: Hamilton, P3: Norris, P4: Verstappen, P5: Piastri, P6: Hulkenberg, P7: Sainz, P8: Stroll, P9: Albon and P10: Alonso.

    What a result for the Mercedes duo! Honestly I was hoping for a Brit to be on pole and I really didn’t mind who, but it just makes it even more special that Mercedes have managed to qualify P1 and P2 at their drivers home grand prix! They will be pushing for a double podium, so it’s going to be an interesting race!

    Lando in the top three aswell, making it 3 Brits in the top 3 which we love to see! But he will be bringing the battle to the Mercedes drivers, as he will want this home win more than anything. His teammate, Oscar Piastri starts P5 which isn’t too bad, he will have the hard job of overtaking Max Verstappen.

    A really good result for Hulkenberg, P6! He will be hoping for a good result in the race and grab some more points for the team.

    Verstappen didn’t have the best of qualifying, it just didn’t seem to be all hooked up for the Dutch driver. But starting P4 isn’t all too bad, he can easily make up places. However, his teammate starting all the way down in 19th… not a good day for the Mexican driver, he got beached in the gravel and that was his session over in Q1.

    Not the best result for Ferrari, Carlos Sainz had the better qualifying session finishing in 7th, whereas his teammate Charles Leclerc is starting P11 after he got pushed into the elimination zone of Q2, so a lot of work to do for the Monegasque driver.

  • Hadjar to make FP1 appearance for Red Bull

    F2 racer Isack Hadjar will turn out for Red Bull in FP1 at the British Grand Prix weekend, taking over Sergio Perez’s RB20.

    The Red Bull junior currently sits second in the 2024 F2 standings in what has been an impressive campaign so far for the 19 year old, with feature race victories in Melbourne and Imola particular highlights.

    The French driver’s upcoming appearance in first practice at Silverstone is his latest outing with F1 machinery, having made two FP1 appearances in 2023 – one for AlphaTauri in Mexico and one for Red Bull in Abu Dhabi.

    He will be joining some of his other F2 colleagues in FP1 with Franco Colapinto turning out for Williams, while Ollie Bearman will also be making another practice appearance for Haas.
    Alpine reserve driver, Jack Doohan, who race in F2 last year and finished third, will also be getting behind the wheel of Pierre Gasly’s car as he pushes for a seat on the 2025 grid.

    With a packed schedule over the British Grand Prix weekend, Hadjar will have to dovetail FP1 duties with Red Bull alongside his F2 duties for Campos Racing but it’s a chance he will surely relish.

    Under F1’s current regulations, each team must run a rookie in two FP1 sessions each campaign.

  • RW 12 – Tyre Selection

    The British Grand Prix marks the midpoint of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship and round 12 of 24 takes place where it all began 74 years ago.

    5.861 kilometres long, the track is the fifth longest on the Calendar after Spa-Francorchamps, Jeddah, Las Vegas and Baku.
    It features 18 corners and is one of the most exciting and also one of the most demanding for the car-tyre package.

    Some corner combinations, such as those from 10 to 14 – Maggotts, Becketts and Chapel – are taken at high speed and generate lateral forces on the tyres and drivers of over 5g.
    This along with other technical aspects, mean that as is always the case at Silverstone the chosen compounds are: C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium), C3 (Soft).

    The weather in England in the summer can be changeable, a further factor which is to be taken into consideration, especially as conditions can change very rapidly.

    Last year the entire race was run in the dry, with the soft somewhat a surprising protagonist, with only two teams not using it.
    However, the most used compound was the medium, which was used to complete half the overall mileage.
    The great majority of drivers went for a one-stop strategy, even if in the past, a two-stop had been the popular choice.

  • Alpine confirm Doohan for FP1

    Alpine have confirmed that Jack Doohan will make his second FP1 outing of the Formula 1 season at the British Grand Prix weekend.

    Doohan previously drove Esteban Ocon’s A524 in FP1 in Canada, but was only able to complete three laps – without setting a time – due to the wet weather seen in Montreal that day.
    But the Australian will get a second chance behind the wheel – this time Pierre Gasly’s car – during FP1 at Silverstone.

    A former FIA Formula 3 runner-up and the third-placed driver in last year’s F2 standings, with the 21 year old continuing to push for a drive with Alpine on next year’s F1 grid.

    The team currently have one seat vacant for 2025 following the confirmation, in the run-up to the Austrian Grand Prix that Pierre Gasly has committed his future to the team with a new multi-year extension.
    With Ferrari driver, Carlos Sainz still to decide on his future, and Alpine reported to be interested in securing his services, Doohan’s Silverstone opportunity gives him another chance show his talent.

    In addition to his FP1 outings and simulator duties at Enstone, Doohan – son of former 500cc motorcycle world champion Mick – has also completed several test sessions with Alpine over the last couple of years in his quest to become a full time member of the F1 grid.

  • Colapinto to take part in FP1 for Williams

    Argentine F2 racer, Franco Colapinto will be making his Formula 1 debut this weekend when he drives Logan Sargeant’s Williams at the British Grand Prix in FP1.

    So far this year, the 21 year old is enjoying a strong rookie season in Formula 2, having won one race and scored two podiums in the last four rounds to sit fifth in the standings.

    The Williams Driver Academy racer will dovetail this opportunity, which will see him share the garage with Alex Albon, with his F2 duties on the same race weekend.

    It will be the second time Colapinto has got behind the wheel of Formula 1 machinery, after he drove for Williams in last year’s young driver test in Abu Dhabi and it is part of a requirement for every team to run a young driver in FP1 at least twice during a season.

    Colapinto has fond memories of Silverstone having won the Sprint race at the venue last year in F3, on his way to fourth in the drivers’ championship.

    I have so many emotions. I am extremely delighted and it’s a very important moment in my life and my career. I will be the most prepared I can; I will be doing a lot of laps in the simulator and studying the details needed to drive this year’s car. I’m really looking forward to experiencing the new car after driving last year’s in Abu Dhabi. To be able to drive it at a track like Silverstone is a privilege, it is one of my favourite tracks and to drive it at the team’s home race means a lot. To all the Argentine fans – I hope you enjoy FP1 as much as I’m going to! It’s an important moment for our country and I’m so grateful for all the support I’ve been given. I’m going to give my all to make you proud.
    Colapinto on the news.

    Franco has had a very encouraging start to his debut season in F2 and we are delighted to reward his performances over the past two years with his first FP1 session. We are proud of our talented group of drivers in the Williams Racing Driver Academy and it is important for us to give them the opportunity to progress and have these important chances as they move up the ladder. To showcase our talent at our home race at Silverstone is a nice moment and, of course, this is going to be a great day for the Argentine F1 fans.
    Sven Smeets, Sporting Director.

  • British Grand Prix signs new 10 year deal

    Formula 1 has announced that the British Grand Prix will remain on the calendar until 2034 inclusive following a 10-year extension with promoter Silverstone and its owner, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC).

    The new agreement between the three parties will see the Northamptonshire circuit race into its ninth decade, having hosted the first-ever F1 Grand Prix in 1950.

    A host of famous F1 names have taken the chequered flag at Silverstone over 74 years of competition, from Giuseppe Farina in 1950 to Max Verstappen in 2023, while Lewis Hamilton holds a record eight British Grand Prix victories.

    Two other members of the 2024 grid have claimed victory around the 5.89km, 18-corner circuit, including two-time winner Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz, who took his maiden win at the venue in 2022.

    Recent years have seen the British Grand Prix become on of the largest attended events on the F1 calendar, with 2023 attracting some of the biggest names in sport, music and culture, as the race drew in a record crowd of 480,000 across the weekend.

    I am delighted to announce that the British Grand Prix will remain on the calendar for 10 more years with this agreement. Silverstone is an iconic venue at the heart of F1 history and as it approaches its ninth decade hosting Grands Prix, the event continues to attract fans from around the world for fantastic racing on track and the amazing fan experience off it. I would like to thank Peter Digby from the BRDC, Stuart Pringle and the whole Silverstone team for their hard work and dedication to take the British Grand Prix to new heights and I look forward to working closely with them as they look to further improve the facilities and fan experience over the next 10 years.

    Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula 1.

    I am delighted we have secured a 10-year extension to host the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone. This contractual security will provide a solid base for the further development of the venue as we continue to improve and transform the circuit into a year-round international motorsport and leisure destination. The 2024 Formula 1 season will start with nine BRDC Full and Honorary members on the grid and the importance of our continued support of young drivers is particularly evidenced by the success of Lewis, Lando [Norris], George [Russell] and Alex [Albon].

    Peter Digby, Chairman of the British Racing Drivers’ Club.

    This long-term commitment reflects the importance of the British Grand Prix to Formula 1 and their acknowledgement of our ability to deliver a world-class experience for the British fans who are among the most enthusiastic and knowledgeable in the world. The cheers of support for the home teams, and particularly for the British drivers on the grid, makes the Silverstone atmosphere unique and I am looking forward to harnessing this passion for our sport and taking the event to the next level in the coming decade.

    Stuart Pringle, Chief Executive Officer, Silverstone.

  • F2 – RND 9 – Day 2 & 3

    Day 2-

    Reserve pole sitter, Vesti got things underway with a rolling start, pulling well clear of Isack Hadjar, Pourchaire and Bearman, who dispatched Enzo Fittipaldi with a brave move around the out of Becketts.

    Further down the order, Brad Benavides spun off at the loop after being tagged by Clement Novalak, as the pair tried to avoid a slowing Ayumu Iwasa.

    Once the safety car went in on Lap 3, Vesti once again nailed his getaway steadily began building his advantage out front. Teammate Bearman wasted no time dispatching two cars in one lap.

    Fittipaldi and Victor Martins were locked in battle over sixth. From the loop, the pair were side-by-side until the Rodin car was able to sweep into Copse to keep the position.

    As conditions slowly improved, Doohan caught Bearman on lap 11 to set up fight for the remaining laps. Up ahead, Pourchaire utilised his better traction out of Club to snatch second from Hadjar on Lap 12.

    Doohan and Bearman then resumed their battle on lap 17. Desperate to keep the place after Doohan got alongside him out of Stowe, Bearman locked-up into Vale and ended running up into the gravel.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Vesti, P2: Pourchaire, P3: Doohan, P4: Fittipaldi, P5: Hadjar, P6: Bearman, P7: Martins, P8: Leclerc, P9: Nissany and P10: Maloney.

    Day 3-

    Ayumu Iwasa got a lightning start from third, immediately getting the better of pole sitter Martins off the line. However, the ART Grand Prix instantly fought it back, diving up the inside of the loop to retake the lead.

    Meanwhile, second-place Kush Maini got bogged down off the line, allowing Oliver Bearman to move up into third and Enzo Fittipaldi dived up past Jack Doohan for fourth.

    Martins already had a 4.5s advantage before the first Safety Car arrived on Lap 7 following a spin for Amaury Cordeel at Stowe. The ART driver and the top six soft tyre runners took the opportunity to complete their mandatory stops.

    Racing resumed on lap 11, Hadjar was able to put a gap between himself and Leclerc, while Doohan lost out to both Maloney and Pourchaire.
    Further back, Championship leader Frederik Vesti was caught up in a crash at Vale, tagged from behind by Dennis Hauger. The contact knocking him straight into Roman Stanek’s Trident, triggering a second Safety Car.

    On Lap 17, Martins was handed a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage just as the Safety Car made a third appearance of the day.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Martins, P2: Maloney, P3: Pourchaire, P4: Doohan, P5: Iwasa, P6: Daruvala, P7: Fittipaldi, P8: Bearman, P9: Leclerc and P10: Crawford.

  • F3 – RND 7 – Day 2 & 3

    Day 2-

    As rain began to fall before lights out, all bar Gregoire Saucy started on slicks. Pole sitter Sebastian Montoya kept the lead from pole, while Taylor Barnard surged up to second as he passed Jonny Edgar around the outside of Turn 1.

    Colapinto then passed both in one move, diving down the inside at Village to go from fourth to second. A scruffy run through Maggotts and Becketts allowed Barnard to slot back into second.

    With DRS enabled, Bortoleto was able to put pressure on Mini ahead in fifth position, the Brazilian driver was through on the Hitech driver as he forced a lock-up from the Italian driver into the Vale Chicane.

    The heavy rain arrived on lap 8 and the Safety Car was deployed with all the drivers running slick tyres. Dino Beganovic took the opportunity to pit for wet tyres whilst the rest of the grid remained on track.

    With positions one to 10 still on dry tyres and those behind on wets, the Safety Car was withdrawn entering lap 13, with Barnard right on the rear wing of Montoya, the pair made contact at Turn 1.

    After his spin, Montoya was back into the points and eighth, as he passed both of the PREMAs down the Hangar Straight with three laps to go.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Colapinto, P2: Bortoleto, P3: Mansell, P4: Collet, P5: Mini, P6: Barter, P7: Fornaroli, P8: Montoya, P9: Cohen and P10: Marti.

    Day 3-

    Fornaroli covered off his teammate to retain the lead into Turn 1 while Gabriel Bortoleto made immediate progress up to fourth position, going around the outside of Mansell into Turn 3.

    Further ahead, Marti cleared Goethe to take second position, albeit briefly. The Trident driver was able to retake the place with a great pass around the outside of Stowe later on.

    Luke Browning made contact with Hugh Barter out of the final corner, leaving the Hitech driver with a broken suspension. It resulted in his retirement from the race and brought out the Safety Car. Edgar was also out of his home event on lap 1 after contact with Collet on the opening lap.

    On lap 17, rain began to fall and Robert Faria went off into the barriers at Woodcote. He was out of the car ok and the Safety Car came back out. As the rain intensified, Tommy Smith was the only taker for wet tyres with three laps remaining, rejoining in 28th position.

    Van Amersfoort Racing’s Collet was able to make great progress despite running the slick hard tyres, taking multiple positions on the penultimate lap to rise up to the points positions.
    Teammate Smith was able to take full advantage of conditions on the wets, going from 28th to 12th in the space of a lap and a half.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Goethe, P2: Fornaroli, P3: Marti, P4: Aron, P5: Mansell, P6: Bortoleto, P7: Mini, P8: Colapinto, P9: Saucy and P10: Montoya.

  • F2 – RND 9 – Day 1

    Free Practice-

    DAMS’ Ayumu Iwasa kicked off Round 9 in style around Silverstone, laying down a 1:41.593 in the final minutes of a disrupted Free Practice to top the session by 0.060s from Victor Martins.

    Martins got the first competitive lap of the day on board after the first 10 minutes of the session. The ART driver put down a 1:42.690 put him five tenths ahead of Iwasa before improving further to a 1:42.067.

    Running stopped at the 24 minute mark, due to Juan Manuel Correa losing his rear of the Van Amersfoort Racing Car spinning off into the gravel at Copse which resulted in a red flag.

    With just over 15 minutes left, Martins quickly took advantage to leapfrog teammate Pourchaire for P2. The Alpine junior wasn’t done there as he improved to a 1:41.653, before the VSC made an appearance as Dennis Hauger suffered a spin at Brooklands and couldn’t get his car restarted.

    Qualifying-

    Victor Martins will start from P1 for the second time in the space of a week. The Frenchman was the man to beat once again in Qualifying, setting a 1:39.832 to secure the top spot around Silverstone.

    Kush Maini made a late improvement to jump up to P2 for Campos Racing late on, whilst Ayumu Iwasa moved himself up into third with his final effort.

    Practice pacesetter, Iwasa was quick to set the early benchmark with a 1:41.100 matched exactly by his teammate Arthur Leclerc to the thousandth.

    The first of two red flags came at the 19 minute mark after Amaury Cordeel spun off into the barriers at Copse. After the Invicta Virtuosi car had been recovered, a short green flag spell was broken by the second red flag.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Martins, P2: Maini, P3: Iwasa, P4: Doohan, P5: Bearman, P6: Fittipaldi, P7: Maloney, P8: Pourchaire, P9: Hadjar and P10: Vesti.

  • RND 11- British Grand Prix

    Round 11 is now complete, let’s take a look at how it went down at an action-packed British Grand Prix weekend!

    Max Verstappen extended his current winning streak to six races and a first at Silverstone. With Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton rounding out the podium putting on a show for the British crowd.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Norris, P3: Hamilton, P4: Piastri, P5: Russell, P6: Perez, P7: Alonso, P8: Albon, P9: Leclerc and P10: Sainz.

    Norris jumped Verstappen for the lead at the start, with teammate Oscar Piastri almost following him through, meaning it was a Red Bull sandwich over the first few laps – but the reigning double world champion fought back.

    We had a late Safety Car period as Kevin Magnussen’s Haas was smoking which saw the leading group come into the pits.

    Great result for McLaren!! Wow, so glad we saw Lando on the podium at his home race, as it’s fully deserved! Obviously gutting for Piastri for him to miss out on his maiden F1 podium but either way its a career best finish for him in 4th!

    Obviously a great result for the Mercedes team too, I think we had no doubt that Lewis will get on the podium here, but to have George in the top five too, just rounds out the weekend for them.

    Not the best result for Ferrari, 9th and 10th is a bit shocking considering their pace in qualifying, but these things happen, they still scored points!

    Another great weekend from Albon, so happy to see him doing well at the moment, it’s like his fount something and it just clicks, so more points in the bag for himself and the team! As for Logan Sargeant, he was just missing out on points in P11! But I have a feeling they’ll come soon enough.

    A decent result for Perez considering his starting position, I think we all know it could’ve been a better result. I think it’s time he needs to re-group and start fresh as I think RB might get the hump soon if they haven’t already with the Mexican…

    We are back racing for Round 12, in just under 2 weeks! And we head to Hungary on the 21st to 23rd July!

  • RND 11 – Silverstone Qualifying

    What a qualifying session we had yesterday, with changing conditions adding a bit of drama to it, which brought out a few surprises… good and bad!

    Max Verstappen made it five pole positions in a row and seven for the 2023 season so far, as he beat the McLaren pair, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to the top spot.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Norris, P3: Piastri, P4: Leclerc, P5: Sainz, P6: Russell, P7: Hamilton, P8: Albon, P9: Alonso and P10: Gasly.

    Obviously first few drivers I have to mention are McLaren! WOW, honestly being a McLaren, Norris and Piastri fan I’m so happy. We all saw how Lando did last weekend with the updated car, and now Oscar has it, McLaren have made a huge step forward!

    Really good results for Ferrari, nice to see them both there together, so they can push for more points today.

    Now Sergio Perez… he is starting 15th, not the place he wants to be that’s for sure, especially when there’s both drivers from three teams in the top 10. It’s his 5th exit not being able to make Q3, I think something needs to change on his side of the garage, whether it’s just bad luck or not.

    Valtteri Bottas got disqualified from qualifying as he starts in the race in P20. Bottas ground to a halt at the end of Q1, after bagging himself a spot in Q2.

    The FIA were unable to extract the stipulated one-litre fuel sample from the C43 machine, which lead to him being disqualified.

    Predictions for Qualifying-

    P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Hamilton, P4: Norris and P5: Russell.

    I think we might have an entertaining race, we have Sergio Perez coming through the field, and will the McLaren’s be able to turn the qualifying pace into race pace and keep up with the likes of Ferrari and Mercedes.

  • Silverstone Tyre Selection

    The tyres for this weekend’s British Grand Prix have been chosen, with a debut of a new slick tyre construction.

    The chosen tyres are: C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium) and C3 (Soft), a choice dictated by the high energy loads that Silverstone puts through the tyres.

    The track is one of the most demanding of the whole season, especially for the front-left tyre that has to cope with heavy loadings throughout eight different corners.

    Some of the highest average cornering speeds of the year are seen at Silverstone (Maggotts, Becketts and Chapel are all taken flat out) while the drivers are subjected to lateral forces that can exceed 5g.

    A two-stopper was generally the most popular strategy in 2022. And all three compounds were seen during the race: including on the starting grid.

    After Monza, SIlverstone is one of the most historic permanent tracks on the F1 calendar, having hosted 57 Grand Prix. In 2020, the British Grand Prix was followed one weekend later by another grand prix to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the very first F1 race in history.

    The British Grand Prix will mark the debut of a new slick tyre construction, using materials that have been brought forward from their anticipated introduction next year. This change in specification was made necessary due to the increased performance of the cars seen since the start of the season – both in terms of outright speed and loadings – compared to the pre-season simulation data supplied to Pirelli by the teams last winter, and the fact that this trend is only set to increase as the championship goes on. We’ve worked very hard on simulation over the last few years in order to not only supply a product that meets the performance targets set by all the stakeholders but also to have the ability to anticipate any eventual issues and react to them promptly. The new specification gives the tyre extra resistance against fatigue but does not affect any technical parameters or its behaviour on track. All the teams already had the opportunity to try the new tyre construction out at the Spanish Grand Prix, when two sets were put at the disposal of each driver in free practice. Their comments were in line with our expectations, especially when it came to transparency in terms of performance. The new specification also allows us to keep front and rear tyre pressures largely unchanged compared to last year, despite a significant increase in average loads. This debut will come on a track that is traditionally one of the hardest on tyres; on our internal charts Silverstone is right at the top in terms of stress and lateral forces exerted on them: particularly the front-left. The track also takes a lot out of the drivers, who have to cope with lateral accelerations in excess of 5g throughout its rapid corners. The compound choices – which, unlike the structure, are not undergoing any change in specification – are identical to previous years at least in name: C1 is the hard, C2 is the medium, and C3 is the soft. However, the current C1 is in fact a brand new compound for this year, which fits in between the C2 and the C0: our new name for the hardest compound in the 2022 range.

    Mario Isola.