Home
Formula 1

Hamilton wins on home soil after showers in Silverstone

Lara Seychell
Formula 1

http://gty.im/545866028

By Lara Seychell

  • Lewis Hamilton wins his fourth ever British Grand Prix in Silverstone
  • Nico Rosberg finishes third after gearbox problem, investigation and demotion
  • Hamilton closes the gap in championship to one point

SILVERSTONE, GREAT BRITAIN – Lewis Hamilton has become the most successful British Formula One driver at Silverstone after winning his fourth British Grand Prix.

His teammate Nico Rosberg crossed the line in second but was given a 10-second penalty after the race which meant that Red Bull’s youngster Max Verstappen finished in second and Rosberg was demoted to third.

The German got a penalty following his radio exchange with the Mercedes team during the race after he suffered a gearbox problem just a few laps before the end. Mercedes have however lodged a notice with their intention to appeal this decision.

As reported on the Sky Sports, the FIA statement read, “Having considered the matter extensively, the stewards determined that the team gave some instructions to the driver that we specifically permitted under Technical Directive 014-16. However, the Stewards determined that the team went further and gave instructions to the driver that were not permitted under the Technical Directive, and were in Breach of Art.27.1 of the Sporting Regulations, that the driver must drive the car alone and unaided.”

The race started in wet conditions under a safety car up until the fifth lap, which some thought was too long. As soon as the safety car went in, most drivers went into the pits to change into intermediate tyres, but the top four, including Hamilton and Rosberg, stayed out.

A virtual safety car following Pascal Wehrlein’s crash meant that the top four drivers pitted for intermediates and gained all the time they would have lost had they stayed out.

On lap 18, the drivers started to pit and change to slick tyres and this saw a number of skids and accidents, especially on Turn 1, where the water on the track was still visible, despite the track drying up. Manor’s Rio Haryanto had to retire after ending up in the gravel, while McLaren’s Fernando Alonso and Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz had lucky escapes in the same corner.

Despite all the commotion behind, Hamilton managed to drive the car first across the finish line in front of the 135,000 fans present who cheered him through all the 52 laps. As soon as he entered parc ferme, the Brit ran towards the fans and did a bit of crowd surfing.

As reported on the BBC, Hamilton said, “I am so grateful. We’ve got the best fans here, thank you so much. The good English weather came out. It was so tricky in those conditions. But that’s what I love about this race – something always happens.”

This win means that the gap at the top of the championship is now of just four points, with the Brit trailing behind Rosberg.

Here are the final standings:

  1. Lewis Hamilton
  2. Max Verstappen
  3. Nico Rosberg
  4. Daniel Ricciardo
  5. Kimi Raikkonen
  6. Sergio Perez
  7. Nico Hulkenberg
  8. Carlos Sainz
  9. Sebastian Vettel
  10. Daniil Kvyat
  11. Felipe Massa
  12. Jenson Button
  13. Fernando Alonso
  14. Valtteri Bottas
  15. Felipe Nasr
  16. Esteban Gutierrez
  • DNF Kevin Magnussen
  • DNF Jolyon Palmer
  • DNF Rio Haryanto
  • Romain Grosjean
  • DNF Marcus Ericsson
  • DNF Pascal Wehrlein

The next race will be the Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest on July 24th.