British Grand Prix – Race – Hamilton Dances in the Rain

The weather is still beautiful and relatively cool as the British Grand Prix is about to start. The probability of rain is only 30% at this point: it’s far from being imagined that the weather conditions will change dramatically about fifteen laps before the finish. The race will also be marked by an unusual number of retirements, including that of Felipe Nasr even before the start.

The Williams stand up to the Mercedes

However, there was no need to wait for the Sky to intervene in the race to already feel the excitement at the end of the first lap. To everyone’s surprise, the Williams had a perfect start and overtook the Silver Arrows, who were starting from the front row! Felipe Massa indeed shot off like a bullet from a shotgun and began to lead the race. Valtteri Bottas, however, was a bit hesitant and was caught off guard by Lewis Hamilton, who reclaimed second place. The big loser was Nico Rosberg, who found himself only in 4th place.

In the pack, the battles are tight and intensify at the first corner. In the confusion, Jenson Button, Romain Grosjean, Pastor Maldonado, and Fernando Alonso collide. The first three mentioned won’t see the end of the first lap, while the Spaniard has to return to the pits to change his wing—which will take longer than expected. To clear Romain Grosjean’s car, the safety car is deployed.

On the 4th lap, when the Safety Car returns to the pits, Lewis Hamilton decides to attack immediately and try everything to overtake Felipe Massa. However, his maneuver, performed on barely warmed-up tires, does not succeed, and Hamilton goes wide… allowing Valtteri Bottas, who was eagerly waiting for such an opportunity, to catch up. So, the Williams are leading the race! What if the race took a particularly unexpected turn?

On the 6th lap, the top ten are: Massa, Bottas, Hamilton, Rosberg, Hülkenberg, Räikkönen, Kvyat, Perez, Vettel, Sainz, Ricciardo, and Ericsson. Sebastian Vettel lost significantly at the start. However, all attention is focused on the battle for first place. The Williams cars can’t shake off the Mercedes, but thanks to their excellent top speeds, they hold their own against the formidable Silver Arrows. Valtteri Bottas repeatedly gets close to his teammate using DRS; however, the Williams team communicates via radio that it’s better not to tempt fate…

Hamilton retakes the lead thanks to the undercut

On the 12th lap, the flurry of tire changes begins. Daniel Ricciardo starts it off, closely followed by Carlos Sainz and Kimi Räikkönen. It’s a decisive moment for Mercedes, who decide to pit Lewis Hamilton a lap before the Williams. The undercut gamble pays off: the Englishman comes out ahead of Massa, who stayed on the track one lap too many. Williams could have perhaps tried a separate strategy, but the men from Grove were likely too conservative. Bottas manages to stay ahead of Rosberg.

At the 33rd lap, Carlos Sainz, in tenth, stops and has to retire. As his car is poorly positioned, the virtual safety car is used for the second time this season. The race resumes on the 36th lap… just as the surprise arrival of rain is announced! Lap by lap, the rain becomes more intense, and several drivers struggle. Kimi Räikkönen decides to take a risky gamble and stops to switch to intermediates. It backfires: it only rains significantly on three corners, and his tires are destroyed at lightning speed. He will finish 8th, after having to pit again at the end of the race because his tires were out of service.

The rain dampens Rosberg and the Williams team’s spirits.

At the 43rd lap, Nico Rosberg overtook Valtteri Bottas and closed in on Lewis Hamilton. He was about to enter the DRS zone when the rain intensified, making the switch to intermediate tires an absolute necessity. Unfortunately, strategy was Williams’ blind spot this Sunday: the white cars once again stopped too late and lost precious seconds on the track. Nico Rosberg also stopped half a lap too late and let his teammate Lewis Hamilton, who perfectly managed this strategic turning point by stopping on the 44th lap, get away.

Thanks to his skill, instinct, or luck, Lewis Hamilton regains a ten-second lead over Rosberg, while the latter was in his mirrors a few laps ago. The race has definitively turned in favor of the local contender. Nico Rosberg consoles himself by dealing with the two Williams, who cannot keep up the pace in the rain. Very discreet during the race, Sebastian Vettel nonetheless takes advantage of an excellent Ferrari strategy to snatch third place from Felipe Massa. The Scuderia took risks: Vettel’s race was saved, Räikkönen’s was spoiled.

Hamilton Prophet in His Kingdom

Lewis Hamilton wins the British Grand Prix for the third time, and this victory is surely the most epic. After an emotion-packed race, which featured the Williams cars and then the rain, Mercedes secures yet another one-two finish, which was certainly not as easy as anticipated. The Williams team could have aimed for much better than 4th and 5th places, but as in the 2014 Austrian Grand Prix, their lack of strategic foresight cost them dearly.

Beyond the Williams, it is important to highlight the strong performances of Daniil Kyvat (6th) and Nico Hülkenberg (7th). Sergio Perez brings two more points to Force India’s version B thanks to his 9th place. Fernando Alonso took advantage of the numerous retirements to finally score his first point of the season. His McLaren-Honda finishes 10th, which will serve as encouragement to the whole team…