Verstappen wins British GP
Sports Desk, Jul 9 (EFE).- Max Verstappen (Red Bull) extended his lead in the Formula One driver standings Sunday with his first-ever victory in the Grand Prix of Great Britain.
The Dutchman, in pursuit of a third straight championship, finished ahead of Britons Lando Norris (McLaren) and Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes).
The 23-year-old Norris equaled the best previous finish of his career, second in the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, while seven-time F1 champion Hamilton, 38, reached the podium at Silverstone for the 14th time from seventh on the grid.
It was a sixth consecutive checkered flag for Verstappen and the record-tying 11th in succession for Red Bull, going back to the final race of 2022.
Australian rookie Oscar Piastri (McLaren) was fourth and Hamilton’s teammate and countryman, George Russell, claimed fifth place.
The other half of the Red Bull duo, Mexico’s Sergio “Checo” Perez, surged from P15 at the start to take sixth in front of Spanish two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin).
Thai driver Alex Albon (Williams) and the Ferrari pair of Monaco’s Charles Leclerc and Spaniard Carlos Sainz filled the three final points places.
Norris had a fantastic start from second on the grid, charging in front of pole-sitter Verstappen and grabbing the lead to cheers and applause from most of the 150,000 people in the stands.
But the 25-year-old reigning double champion overtook the Briton on Lap 5 and faced no serious challenges for the rest of the race.
With his eighth win of the season, Verstappen improved to 255 points, 99 more than Checo Perez. The Red Bull drivers finished one and two last year.
Third in the standings is Alonso (137), followed by Hamilton (121), and Sainz (83).
EFE arh/dr
