Verstappen dominates in Hungary as Red Bull make history

Max Verstappen took an imperious victory in Hungary, setting a new record in F1 in the process.

Pre-race

After a thrilling qualifying session that saw Lewis Hamilton take pole for the first time since Jeddah 2021, expectation was high for the race. A record-breaking ninth pole at the Hungaroring for the seven-time World Champion saw him line up next to former title rival Max Verstappen.

With their bitter rivalry still playing out, inevitable questions of whether both could get through the first corner without contact were being asked throughout the paddock. Genuine excitement filled the paddock for the first time in 2023.

Behind Hamilton and Verstappen, the dark horses of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri had a chance to pounce. Locking out the second row, the McLarens were in a prime position to jump the top two, particularly with the papaya team’s strong long-run performance.

Eyes were also on Daniel Ricciardo. The returning Honey Badger aimed to perform strongly after out qualifying teammate Yuki Tsunoda. While repeating his 2014 victory was out of the question, points would seal a fairytale comeback.

Sergio Perez finally broke his Q3 curse, starting P9. He needed a strong result today to counter Ricciardo’s new, looming presence at AlphaTauri. Hard compound tyres with the rest of the top ten on mediums was a bold move.

After the formalities of the national anthem and pre-race procedures, the paddock held its breath for the return of one of its most iconic rivalries preparing to duel once again.

Lights out

Hamilton vs Verstappen began their duel from lights out. Despite a better start, Verstappen led into turn one. Lando Norris was boxed in, with Piastri passing him and Lewis Hamilton. Piastri began to close on Verstappen at the end of lap one.

Further back, a crash took out three cars. Zhou hit Tsuonda, with Ocon being hit from behind. Ocon then ran into his teammate, the two cars being damaged. Daniel Ricciardo dropped to last with a lot of work to do, while Alfa Romeo’s strong qualifying had evaporated in a matter of meters. Zhou Guanyu bore the brunt of the steward’s wrath, being awarded a five-second penalty.

The two Alpines also found themselves at the back of the field, with Gasly pulling into the pits at the end of lap one with a destroyed rear left tyre and suspension damage. Ocon pulled into the pits shortly afterwards to join his teammate. After the trials of Silverstone resulted in a double DNF, the same result befell the team again, making it a weekend to forget.

A nightmare weekend for Alpine ?

Both Gasly and Ocon are OUT after contact with eachother ? pic.twitter.com/X7UQKIyPgb

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 23, 2023

A question of tyres and early pit stops

As the race entered its first stint, Verstappen again disappeared into the distance, as he has at so many races this year. By lap ten, the Dutchman had pulled three seconds on Oscar Piastri.

On the hard tyres, Perez found himself stuck behind the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso on the softs. The superiority of the Red Bull came into its own; Perez passed on lap 8.

Lance Stroll, Bottas and Tsunoda all opted on lap ten to pit for hard tyres to counter a stop by the Williams of Logan Sargeant. Tsuonda’s day continued to challenge, enduring a slow stop.

With most of the field on mediums and hards, the race entered a management period. Cars opted not to push but instead focused on making their tyres last. The top four remained unchanged, with Verstappen pulling away from the two McLarens of Norris and Piastri, while Hamilton told his team he did not have the pace to overtake the papaya cars.

The front runners make their move

With the hot temperatures, strategy was critical to this race. Two or three stops were the options on offer. Sainz became the first of the top ten to pit on lap 16 as the second Red Bull of Perez loomed in his mirrors. Removing his soft tyres for hards, he was very much running his own race.

Hamilton pitted a lap later for hard tyres to counter the Ferrari, confirming a three-stop strategy. McLaren reacted immediately, bringing in Lando Norris. Piastri pitted a lap later but could not prevent Norris from passing around the outside of turn one.

Leclerc also reacted and pitted but endured a nightmare stop requiring a new wheel gun. He rejoined in P11, his race very much compromised and a lot of ground to make up.

Further back, Alonso used his stop for fresh hard tyres to pass Valtteri Bottas for P10, using DRS to pass the Alfa Romeo.

Verstappen pitted on lap 23 to counter the two McLarens, who had picked up the pace. Teammate Perez pitted a lap later, having run as high as P3. Rejoining P7, Leclerc’s slow stop had yet another consequence as the Ferrari lost out to the Red Bull.

The undercut works for Lando Norris against his McLaren teammate! ✅ pic.twitter.com/opEF2L29WH

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 23, 2023

The return of Sergio Perez

Mercedes saw their pace evaporate, Hamilton losing almost 11 seconds to the McLaren in the ten laps since his pit stop. Back at the front, Norris had begun to match Verstappen’s times, the gap levelling off at just over five seconds.

Perez had begun to push hard. The second Ferrari of Sainz became another victim of the resurgent Perez, the Red Bull now on medium tyres. The Mercedes of George Russell tried valiantly to hold back the Mexican but had to concede defeat. Russell pitted at the end of the lap for mediums and began to advance, passing the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg on lap 30.

Hamilton’s pace became a concern for Mercedes as Perez began to close on the Mercedes. By lap 32, he was just 3.6 seconds away. Hamilton, in turn, was closing on the McLaren of Oscar Piastri, who was not enjoying his hard compound tyres.

As the race approached half race distance, Russell also made moves. Passing Bottas on lap 36. Hamilton had now been told to lift and coast, leaving him at serious risk of being overtaken by Perez. By lap 37, he had closed to within 1.6 seconds of the Mercedes. Such was Perez’s pace; the two McLarens podium places looked under serious threat.

Perez moved to within striking distance of Hamilton on lap 40. Tailing the Mercedes the whole lap, the Red Bull closed on the main straight but could not pass. A late lunge on the next lap into turn two kept Perez behind, their battle giving breathing space to Piastri.

Piastri and Perez opted to pit, with Red Bull performing a 1.9-second stop, with Piastri a second slower. The gap between Perez and Piastri was now just 1.6 seconds. Norris came in a lap later to counter the ultra-fast Red Bull stop. Perez was passed Piastri by lap 47.

Perez and Piastri battled hard between Turns 2 and 3 ?

Race stewards had a look at the incident but they'll be no further action #HungarianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/yfSx5TWZls

— Formula 1 (@F1) July 23, 2023

Down the order, Charles Leclerc questioned Ferrari’s strategy. This was understandable, as the Scuderia had fallen far behind the top runners. His afternoon was compounded by a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane. Eighteen seconds behind Piastri and teammate Sainz, four seconds behind him, Leclerc and Ferrari once again needed to regroup.

Final pushes

Hamilton pitted from P2 on lap 50, rejoining in P5. This moved Norris back up to P2, 34 seconds behind the imperious Verstappen. In the lower order of the top ten. The Dutchman pitted a lap later for mediums; the race win was all but secure.

George Russell continued his push back up the order, running P8 after starting P18. Aston Martin’s non-existent pace saw them down in P9 and P10, unable to make an impression on the cars in front.

Overtaking action was happening outside the points, with Bottas and Alex Albon locked in an intense battle for P11. The Finn pushed the Williams hard but was unable to pass.

Traffic began to help Perez on his final charge, the McLaren of Norris dropping 0.8s to the Red Bull in a single lap. Hamilton had closed on Piastri, and the Mercedes was passed on lap 57, dropping Piastri to P5. The Mercedes set off after Perez, hoping to take a podium.

The gap between Perez and Norris continued to drop, moving to within 3.4 seconds with seven laps to go. But the traffic that hampered the Briton began to hinder the Red Bull.

Russell’s pace suddenly dramatically increased and finished off Ferrari’s woeful afternoon by passing Sainz for P7 on lap 66. He would get to within five seconds of the second Ferrari of Leclerc and kept pushing.

? "Yeah baby!"

George was happy with that one as he moves up to P7 ? pic.twitter.com/Kn7RHtghJN

— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 23, 2023

Low fuel and track contributed to the race’s fast and furious end. Hamilton sensed an opportunity to pass Perez and each other. Hamilton closed to within two seconds, with just two laps to go. As the final lap started, the Mercedes was too far back to make a move.

Max Verstappen’s seventh consecutive victory also marks Red Bull’s 12th straight win. This sets a new r, record, beating McLaren’s record set in 1988.

Norris achieved his second successive P2, and Perez held off Hamilton for P3. Piastri takes P5. Leclerc finishes ahead of Russell but loses a place for speeding. Sainz, Alonso and Stroll completed the top ten.

Full Classification

#F1 – Provisional Classification of the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix ?? @F1 #HungarianGP pic.twitter.com/KmbJJSZB9R

— FIA (@fia) July 23, 2023

Feature Image Credit: Red Bull Content Pool/Getty Images