Amid strategic blunders and on-track clashes, Piastri secures a controversial victory in Hungary.
After a Friday under a blazing sun and a Saturday under cloudy skies, the heat once again greets the drivers for the Hungarian Grand Prix at the scorching Hungaroring.
McLaren F1 dominated on Friday in these conditions, but it was their mastery over the qualifying that really stood out, securing the front row with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Max Verstappen is third ahead of Carlos Sainz, while Lewis Hamilton is in close pursuit alongside Charles Leclerc.
Aston Martin secured the fourth row with Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, followed by the RB F1s of Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda, who had an accident in Q3. Nico Hülkenberg and Valtteri Bottas are next, ahead of Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant, then Kevin Magnussen.
Following an off-track incident in Q1, Sergio Pérez starts 16th, ahead of George Russell, Guanyu Zhou, and the Alpine F1 drivers who were caught out by a poor strategy. Esteban Ocon is 18th on the grid, while Pierre Gasly will start from the pits after qualifying last, taking the opportunity to fit a new battery.
Notably, the organisers have smoothed the surface at the exit of turn 5, where Tsunoda went off and launched after running two wheels onto the grass, to prevent such an incident if a driver runs wide. A gravel trap has replaced the start of the grassy area.
14:49: Pirelli predicts two-stop strategies regardless of the starting compound.
14:52: The air temperature is 28 degrees, and the track temperature is 43 degrees, cooler than Friday but warmer than Saturday.
14:57: Alonso, Stroll, Albon, and Magnussen start on soft tyres, Pérez, Russell, and Gasly on hard compounds, while the rest of the drivers have opted for mediums.
14:59: There’s a 20% chance of rain for the race, according to race control.
Start: Norris gets away well but Piastri does better, and Verstappen attempts the outside but is pushed off the track. Piastri takes the lead ahead of Verstappen, with Hamilton slotting into third.
Lap 1: Norris has regained the position from Hamilton, thus Piastri leads the first lap ahead of Verstappen and Norris. Hamilton follows in front of Leclerc, Alonso, and Sainz. Stroll, Albon, and Magnussen round out the top 10, while the RB F1 drivers are 11th and 12th. Ocon is 15th, having gained four places, ahead of Russell, while Sargeant has overtaken Pérez.
Lap 2: Verstappen complains of being forced off the track at turn 1, while Norris asserts that the pass was off-track. Piastri sets the fastest lap at 1’24″038, only to be outdone by Verstappen with 1’24″026. Sainz overtakes Alonso for sixth place.
Lap 3: Red Bull opts for caution, instructing Verstappen to let Norris pass to avoid potential penalties as the first turn incident is under investigation.
Lap 4: Piastri extends his lead to 2.5 seconds over Norris, who is under pressure from Verstappen. Ocon and Russell each gain a place as Hülkenberg pits.
Lap 5: Verstappen drops slightly back from Norris, trailing by 1.2 seconds. Hamilton remains close behind the Dutchman.
Lap 6: Albon, Magnussen, and Ocon pit, rejoining at the back of the pack. Their stops are earlier than Pirelli had anticipated.
Lap 7: Alonso, Ricciardo, and Zhou also make pit stops. Alonso re-enters the race in 14th place, confirming the short lifespan of the soft tyres.
Lap 8: Piastri now leads Norris by 2.7 seconds, with Norris holding a 1.7-second advantage over Verstappen.
Lap 9: Due to pit stops, Russell and Pérez move up to 10th and 11th places, respectively. In seventh, Stroll maintains a steady pace, affirming his skill in tyre management.
Lap 10: Hamilton, 1.2 seconds behind Verstappen, is emerging as a threat to the Dutch driver. Leclerc is also close, while Sainz lags 4 seconds behind his teammate.
Lap 11: Piastri now holds a 3-second lead over Norris, who has a 1.8-second margin over Verstappen. Hamilton struggles to close within a second of Verstappen.
Lap 12: Tyre management becomes a critical factor for victory between the two McLarens and Verstappen. However, Hamilton remains close to the Red Bull ahead and could yet influence the outcome.
Lap 13: Piastri continues to widen the gap, now at 3.4 seconds, while Verstappen is 2.6 seconds behind Norris. Hamilton closes to within a second.
Lap 14: Russell and Pérez remain stuck behind Bottas, with no change in their relative positions.
Lap 15: A 3.3-second gap separates Piastri from Norris, the same margin observed between the Brit and Verstappen. Stroll pits after 14 laps on soft tyres, within the optimal window predicted by Pirelli, and rejoins in 16th place on medium tyres.
Lap 17: Verstappen loses time, now 4 seconds behind Norris and 7.5 seconds off Piastri. Hamilton makes a pit stop and rejoins in seventh with hard tyres. Bottas also pits, re-emerging in 18th behind Ocon.
Lap 18: Norris now pits after executing a lap at “100% pace” as directed by his engineer. His stop is smooth, and he re-emerges ahead of Hamilton in fifth place on hard tyres. Piastri leads with an 8.3-second margin over Verstappen.
Lap 19: Piastri makes his stop and rejoins on hard tyres as well, positioned fourth ahead of Norris and Hamilton, who sets the fastest lap at 1’23″350. Bottas overtakes Ocon.
Lap 20: Despite complaints about his car under braking, Verstappen continues on track with a 3.3-second lead over Leclerc and 8 seconds over Sainz. Piastri is fourth, 11 seconds ahead of Norris and Hamilton, who records another fastest lap at 1’23″201.
Lap 21: Verstappen extends his first stint but loses time to Piastri, who is now less than 10 seconds behind.
Lap 22: Verstappen pits, along with Sainz. The Red Bull driver resumes in fifth on hard tyres, and the Spaniard in ninth also on hard compounds. Leclerc leads, while Hamilton, having performed the undercut on Verstappen, trails the Brit by 6.9 seconds.
Lap 23: Hamilton improves the fastest lap of the race to 1’23″180. Leclerc leads and opts for Plan C: might he attempt a one-stop strategy?
Lap 24: Leclerc finally pits, while Verstappen records the fastest lap of the race at 1’22″769. Leclerc rejoins just ahead of Tsunoda in fifth place, also on hard tyres.
Lap 25: Piastri reclaims the lead with a 3-second advantage, while Norris holds a 2.3-second margin over Hamilton. Verstappen, the fastest on the track, has reduced the gap to Hamilton to 4.7 seconds. Leclerc trails the Red Bull by 7.3 seconds.
Lap 27: Piastri captures the fastest lap of the race at 1’22″654. Norris is losing four-tenths per lap to him, and Hamilton seven-tenths. Verstappen, gaining speed, closes to within 3.5 seconds of Hamilton. Alonso overtakes Hülkenberg, who made an error at the first corner. Stroll now pressures the German.
Lap 28: Piastri has a 3.9-second lead over Norris, who is 3.5 seconds ahead of Hamilton. The latter now has only a 2.8-second margin over Verstappen. Albon expresses frustration over the radio as his team makes a late strategic change, and his tyres have suffered excessively.
Lap 29: Leclerc sets the fastest lap of the race at 1’22″359, while Hamilton is the slowest of the front-runners. Pérez pits, along with Gasly and Ricciardo. Pérez rejoins in 15th place behind Bottas.
Lap 30: Leclerc improves his best lap to 1’22″182. He is nearly a second faster per lap than Sainz, now 8 seconds behind him. Verstappen is less than two seconds behind Hamilton. Tsunoda, Hülkenberg, and Albon also pit. The Japanese driver rejoins in tenth.
Lap 31: Piastri extends his lead to 4.3 seconds over Norris, and Hamilton is 4.6 seconds behind the Brit. Verstappen remains 1.8 seconds adrift. Ocon also makes a pit stop.
Lap 32: The front-runners slightly slow down, with Leclerc now the fastest on the track ahead of Sainz.
Lap 33: Verstappen is now within a second of Hamilton.
Lap 34: Piastri’s lead over Norris has nearly halved in the previous lap, now just two seconds due to backmarkers. Verstappen is close behind Hamilton but is neatly blocked by him. Gasly is called to the pits to retire due to a hydraulic leak.
Lap 35: Verstappen makes a move on Hamilton with DRS at the end of the straight, and Hamilton slightly misjudges it. Verstappen tries an outside pass at turn 2 but overshoots, allowing Hamilton to retake the position! The gap now extends beyond one second.
Lap 36: Piastri’s lead is reduced to 1.6 seconds as Norris handles the backmarkers more effectively. Norris maintains a 6.2-second lead over Hamilton, with Verstappen closing back within a second. The Dutchman complains of steering issues, and Leclerc is the main beneficiary of this tussle, closing to within two seconds of Verstappen.
Lap 37: Verstappen is again within striking distance of Hamilton but holds back. Piastri leads Norris by 1.3 seconds, who in turn continues to extend his lead over Hamilton. Leclerc is 1.7 seconds behind Verstappen. Pérez overtakes Stroll and now targets Alonso.
Lap 38: Verstappen attacks again but fails to pass Hamilton, who defends aggressively. Alonso pits and rejoins in 13th.
Lap 39: The duel continues between Hamilton and Verstappen, with the latter still trailing and now Leclerc closes to within a second. The McLarens gain from this battle as Norris now has an 8.7-second advantage over Hamilton.
Lap 40: Verstappen remains visible in Hamilton’s mirrors but to no avail. Hamilton could have pitted, but Mercedes instructs him to stay out.
Lap 41: Hamilton and Leclerc pit. Verstappen and Sainz move ahead, but it’s an undercut attempt by Leclerc on Verstappen. A replay shows that Piastri’s time loss to Norris was also due to a minor off-track excursion.
Lap 42: Verstappen is frustrated: “It’s insane how much we’re losing from the undercut; it completely messes up my race!” Up front, the McLarens opt to stay out and do not cover Hamilton, fearing it might be too early a stop.
Lap 44: Verstappen gains some time on the McLarens but is 9.6 seconds behind Piastri and 7.9 seconds from Norris. Sainz is 8 seconds behind the Dutchman, with Hamilton 19 seconds adrift of Verstappen. Leclerc is 1.3 seconds behind the Brit. Pérez is seventh ahead of Russell and Stroll, followed by Tsunoda. Alonso, with two pit stops, hopes to climb back to seventh.
Lap 45: Piastri now holds a two-second lead over Norris, and Verstappen is 7.1 seconds behind Norris. Sainz matches Piastri’s pace, while Hamilton and Leclerc shave off over half a second from Verstappen’s time. Pérez and Russell are currently the fastest on the track with their worn mediums.
Lap 46: Norris pits and rejoins the race in fourth place on medium tyres. Piastri maintains a 9.2-second lead over Verstappen. Stroll and Bottas also make pit stops.
Lap 47: Piastri remains on track, while Norris is markedly quicker on his out-laps. With the Australian having pitted a lap after his teammate during the first stint, is McLaren positioning Norris for the lead?
Lap 48: Verstappen stays out, temporarily taking the lead, as Piastri re-enters the race in third behind Norris. The additional lap Piastri stayed out may have cost him the race lead and potentially the victory. Hamilton is fourth, ahead of Leclerc.
Lap 49: Norris sets the fastest lap of the race at 1’21″954, but McLaren instructs the Brit to allow his teammate to catch up, despite the 3.5 seconds separating them. The team aims to restore Piastri to the race lead.
Lap 50: Verstappen pits and rejoins in fifth, over 5 seconds behind Leclerc. Norris leads with a 3.5-second advantage over Piastri, with Hamilton 4.4 seconds behind the Australian. Pérez records the fastest lap at 1’21″096.
Lap 51: The McLarens extend their lead over Hamilton and Leclerc, while Verstappen begins to close in on the pair. Sainz is ahead of Russell, who will likely need to pit soon.
Lap 52: Verstappen claims the fastest lap of the race at 1’20″908. McLaren advises Piastri that if he closes the gap to Norris, positions will be swapped. The Australian thus needs to catch his teammate.
Lap 53: The gap between Norris and Piastri stands at 3 seconds. Hamilton is 7.6 seconds behind, with Leclerc just 0.9 seconds ahead of Verstappen, who now poses a threat to both drivers.
Lap 54: Norris extends his lead to 3.4 seconds, and Russell pits, rejoining in eighth place.
Lap 55: Verstappen struggles to pass Leclerc and vents his frustration over the radio, nearly insulting his race engineer.
Lap 56: With fresh hard tyres, Russell sets the race’s fastest lap at 1’20″305. Norris maintains a 3.4-second lead over Piastri. Hamilton is 9 seconds back, with Leclerc 1.8 seconds ahead, keeping Verstappen at bay.
Lap 57: Verstappen finally overtakes Leclerc for fourth place.
Lap 58: Norris’s engineer warns him about excessive tyre wear, saying, “I think you’ll do what’s necessary.” McLaren here self-inflicts a problem by having doomed Piastri to be overtaken.
Lap 59: The gap between the two McLarens is 3.8 seconds. Hamilton is 9 seconds behind, and Verstappen remains 1.5 seconds from the Brit. Norris’s engineer repeatedly insists he slow down and conserve his tyres, advice which the Brit seems to ignore.
Lap 61: The gap between Norris and Piastri widens to 4.7 seconds. Verstappen is again on Hamilton’s tail, launching an initial attack.
Lap 62: Norris now leads by 5 seconds. He tells his engineer to instruct Piastri to close up if he wants to overtake. Verstappen tries another outside move but Hamilton firmly shuts the door.
Lap 63: Verstappen makes a move and completely misses his braking point, colliding with Hamilton, who fortunately escapes unscathed. Leclerc seizes the opportunity to overtake the Dutchman, with Sainz also closing in.
Lap 64: Race Control notes the incident involving Verstappen and Hamilton, unsurprisingly given the Red Bull driver’s botched braking. Meanwhile, negotiations continue at McLaren but Norris is reluctant to yield.
Lap 65: Verstappen claims Hamilton moved under braking, but his engineer admonishes him to stop being “a child on the radio”. The Dutchman loses his composure, and his engineer does not hesitate to put him in his place!
Lap 66: Norris now has a 5.9-second lead over Piastri. Hamilton is 3.7 seconds ahead of Leclerc, who has a 1.6-second margin over Verstappen. The same gap exists between Verstappen and Sainz. Norris’s engineer now threatens: “Let Oscar pass. Think of the championship; you’ll need Oscar, you’ll need the team.”
Lap 67: Verstappen closes to within a second of Leclerc. McLaren instructs Norris: “Do it now.”
Lap 68: Norris complies! He lets Piastri pass and tucks in right behind his teammate. Over the radio, the Brit expresses his frustration: “Don’t tell me anything else.”
Lap 69: Norris remains closely behind his teammate’s exhaust. Behind, the gaps stabilize.
Final lap: Norris allows a 2-second lead to develop between himself and his teammate.
Finish: McLaren achieves a one-two finish, and Oscar Piastri becomes a Formula 1 race winner! However, the team’s celebration is marred by a baffling strategy, later asking drivers to rectify the initial blunder. No doubt this will have repercussions.
Hamilton finishes again on the podium, ahead of Leclerc and Verstappen, who marked the race with his radio outbursts, bad faith, and erratic driving. Sainz finishes sixth ahead of Pérez and Russell, who records the fastest lap of the race. Tsunoda and Stroll round out the top 10. Alonso finishes 11th ahead of Ricciardo, Hülkenberg, Albon, Magnussen, Bottas, Sargeant, Ocon, and Zhou.
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Diff | Stops |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | 70 Laps- 1h38m01.989s | 2 |
| 02 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes MCL38 | +2.141 | 2 |
| 03 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes W15 | +14.880 | 2 |
| 04 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari SF-24 | +19.686 | 2 |
| 05 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | +21.349 | 2 |
| 06 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari SF-24 | +23.073 | 2 |
| 07 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull Honda RBPT RB20 | +39.792 | 2 |
| 08 | George Russell | Mercedes W15 | +42.368 | 2 |
| 09 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | +77.259 | 1 |
| 10 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | +77.976 | 2 |
| 11 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Mercedes AMR24 | +82.460 | 2 |
| 12 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB Honda RBPT VCARB 01 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 13 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 14 | Alex Albon | Williams Mercedes FW46 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 15 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari VF-24 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 16 | Valtteri Bottas | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 17 | Logan Sargeant | Williams Mercedes FW46 | +1 lap | 3 |
| 18 | Guanyu Zhou | Stake F1 Kick Sauber C44 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 19 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault A524 | +1 lap | 3 |
| 20 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine Renault A524 | DNF | 0 |
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