The customary British race unfolds at the renowned Silverstone Circuit, in line with tradition. Unbroken since the establishment of Formula 1 in 1950, the race is predictably listed on the calendar for 2023.
Located in Northamptonshire, in the town of Silverstone, the British Grand Prix boasts a storied history, originally functioning as a training airfield for British bombers during World War II before transforming into a racing circuit. Spanning 5.89 kilometers, Silverstone is one of the longer tracks on the calendar, and Lewis Hamilton holds the fastest lap record with a time of 1:27.369.
Hamilton’s dominance at Silverstone is unmistakable, having won four of the last six editions of the race. The 2021 race was particularly controversial. In the first lap of the Grand Prix, Hamilton was wheel-to-wheel with Max Verstappen. All went well until they reached Copse corner, one of the fastest corners of the year. Hamilton made contact with the rear wheel of Verstappen, resulting in a crash with a 51G impact for the Dutch driver. Despite receiving a ten-second time penalty, Hamilton went on to win the race. Charles Leclerc narrowly missed out on victory, finishing second, while Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate, Valtteri Bottas, secured the third spot on the podium.
In September 2022, Silverstone faced criticism when selling tickets for the 2023 British Grand Prix. The track implemented a ‘dynamic pricing’ model, where prices were updated every 90 seconds depending on demand. Fans were then urged to promptly access the online ticketing system as soon as sales commenced. The high demand resulted in pricing spikes and caused the ticket sales website to crash. Consequently, Silverstone had to halt sales and issue an apology to the fans.
Recent Winners of the British Grand Prix
| Year | Winner | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari |
| 2021 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes |
| 2020 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes |
| 2019 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes |
| 2018 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari |
| 2017 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes |
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