Those that stand against the dominance & formidable skillsets of Lewis Hamilton were pleasantly surprised on August 9th when Max Verstappen stole the 1st place podium from the British Six-Time F1 Champion. This is a substantial loss for Lewis Hamilton, with Silverstone’s recent race being the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix for Formula One. This historic moment in motorsports is now owned by Max Verstappen, someone that wasn’t expected to become victorious.
Max Verstappen now stands as the single F1 Driver to have won a Grand Prix in 2020. It comes after a formidable strategy was implemented by Red Bull – Aston Martin Racing, which included starting the Grand Prix on the Hard Tyre Compound. Verstappen would immediately gain a single placement after the 1st corner, taking P3 from Nico Hulkenberg.
Max would then manage his Tyres & Pace better than Lewis Hamilton or Valtteri Bottas throughout the 52 Laps. After the 10th Lap, Max would begin pressuring Bottas once learning Mercedes AMG-Petronas was experiencing blisters. He’d overtake Valtteri at the Luffield Corner, with his domination over Lewis Hamilton coming once Mercedes pitted their star driver. It marks the 1st victory for Red Bull Racing at Silverstone since 2012.
Lewis Hamilton found himself struggling throughout the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix, maintaining a resurgence into the later laps. This unexpected resurgence prompted Lewis to acquire 2nd Place on the Podium, which was obtained after overtaking Valtteri Bottas at Brooklands. Lewis Hamilton now maintains the same number of Podium Finishes as Michael Schumacher.
The Placements for Fan Favourite Drivers
Fan favourite drivers like Sebastian Vettel, Charles Leclerc, Alex Albon, Nico Hulkenberg, Pierre Gasly, and Lando Norris found themselves maintaining notable positions on the grid by the 52nd Lap. Scuderia Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc should’ve received “Driver of the Day” after obtaining P4 on a One-Stop Pit Strategy. Charles got this position with his 2020 SF1000, which is considerably slower than competing cars from Red Bull & Mercedes. This was proven with Sebastian Vettel’s P12 Placement.
Alex Albon from Red Bull Racing garnered P5, making his final overtake on Lance Stroll on the Last Lap. Lando Norris for McLaren Racing maintained 97, and Pierre Gasly with AlphaTauri maintained P11.