British GP: Lando Norris beats Oscar Piastri; Nico Hulkenberg takes first podium

SILVERSTONE, England — Lando Norris secured a dramatic victory in a wet and challenging British Grand Prix. His McLaren teammate, Oscar Piastri, finished second but was denied a potential win after receiving a 10-second penalty for an infringement behind the safety car.

Despite the penalty, Piastri managed to hold onto second place. The win marked Norris`s first ever at his home circuit, Silverstone, and his fourth victory of the season, bringing him within just eight points of Piastri in the championship standings.

Norris described the home win as the pinnacle of his achievements so far.

“It`s beautiful. Everything I dreamed of, I guess,” he said after the race. “Everything I`ve ever wanted to achieve. Apart from a championship, I think this is as good as it gets in terms of feelings and in terms of achievement, being proud, all of it.”

“This is where it all started for me, and now thankfully I`ve been able to have my go,” he added.

Nico Hulkenberg achieved a historic milestone, claiming the first podium of his lengthy 239-race Formula 1 career. This result ended his unfortunate record as the driver with the most race starts without a top-three finish.

Piastri, who had taken the race lead from Max Verstappen on Lap 8 in wet conditions, was handed the 10-second penalty for erratic driving during a safety car period ahead of the restart on Lap 21.

Stewards noted that the McLaren driver appeared to brake aggressively on the Hangar Straight, causing second-placed Verstappen to take evasive action.

A statement from the stewards explained that Article 55.15 of the FIA Sporting Regulations requires cars to maintain a consistent pace without erratic braking or maneuvers that could endanger others once the safety car lights are off. They concluded Piastri`s actions were a clear breach and imposed the penalty accordingly.

A visibly disappointed Piastri offered brief comments in his post-race interview: “I`m not going to say much. I`ll get myself in trouble. Well done to Nico. I think that`s the highlight of the day.”

He added, seemingly ironically, “Apparently you can`t brake behind the safety car any more. I did it for five laps before that.”

Adding to the chaos ahead of the restart, Max Verstappen spun off track as the cars exited Stowe corner, dropping from second to tenth place when racing resumed.

Verstappen`s incident elevated Norris to second position. This meant the British driver only needed to finish within 10 seconds of his teammate to inherit the lead once Piastri served his penalty during his pit stop on Lap 43.

The final phase of the race saw teams switch from intermediate tyres to slicks. Piastri had a scare on his outlap, briefly running off track at Maggots.

Evidently feeling the penalty was unfair, Piastri radioed his team to inquire about swapping positions with Norris before the chequered flag. However, with five laps remaining, he was informed no team orders would be issued.

Norris went on to cross the finish line six seconds ahead of Piastri for the win. Hulkenberg`s Sauber finished third, 21 seconds behind Norris and five seconds clear of Lewis Hamilton`s Ferrari in fourth.

Hulkenberg`s podium charge was aided by an early strategy call to switch to a second set of intermediate tires just before the safety car deployment due to heavy rain. However, it also required a determined and faultless drive to secure and defend his third position.

“It`s been a long time coming, hasn`t it?” Hulkenberg remarked afterward. “But I always knew we have it in us, I have it in me, somewhere.”

“What a race,” he continued. “Coming from virtually last, doing it all over again from last weekend. It`s pretty surreal, to be honest. I`m not sure how it all happened, but obviously crazy, mixed conditions. It was a survival fight for a lot of the race. I think we just were really on it with the right calls, the right tires in the right moment, made no mistakes — quite incredible.”

Lewis Hamilton`s fourth-place finish ended his remarkable run of consecutive podiums at the British Grand Prix, a streak that dated back to 2014.

Max Verstappen recovered from his spin to finish fifth. However, his championship aspirations, already impacted by a retirement in Austria the previous weekend, now face a significant challenge, trailing championship leader Piastri by 69 points.

Pierre Gasly secured sixth place for Alpine, finishing ahead of Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), who had run as high as third earlier in the race.

Alex Albon took eighth position for Williams, followed by Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) in ninth and the highest-placed Mercedes driver, George Russell, in tenth.

British Grand Prix: Top 10