Pure talent and an impressive bit of strategy helped Mercedes AMG’s Lewis Hamilton secure victory yesterday in a rain-affected 2015 Formula One British Grand Prix. It was the Briton’s 38th career win in F1, plus the fifth of the current season. Furthermore, it’s his third win at Silverstone, which means he now equals Jim Clark and Nigel Mansell’s record for wins by a British driver at this legendary circuit. Hamilton’s teammate Nico Rosberg finished roughly 11 seconds behind to make it a Mercedes one-two.
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But it didn’t always seem that the Silver Arrows would come out on top. After a brilliant start, Williams’ Felipe Massa took the lead of the race, with his teammate Valtteri Bottas gunning for second. An early safety car due to a series of collisions at the back of the field prevented any overtaking. However, after the first round of pit stops, Hamilton jumped both Williams drivers before rain played havoc with the field, allowing Rosberg as well as Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel to move ahead.
Vettel would eventually cross the finish line third, 25 seconds behind the leader. Then would come Massa, followed by Bottas. Infiniti Red Bull Racing’s Daniil Kvyat showed some promise, managing to come close to Vettel in the closing stages, though a spin and a late tire change meant the Russian missed out on a potential podium finish. He eventually crossed the line sixth.
Seventh place went to Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg while Ferrari’s other driver Kimi Räikkönen took eighth. Ninth place went to Force India’s other driver Sergio Perez while McLaren’s Fernando Alonso finished 10th and in the process scored his first point of the season.
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There were a handful of drivers that weren’t able to finish because of the collisions mentioned above. As the field headed into Turn 3 during the first lap, contact was made between Lotus' Romain Grosjean and Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo, sending Grosjean into the path of teammate Pastor Maldonado. Alonso swerved to avoid the action but ended up hitting his own teammate Jenson Button. As a result, Button, Grosjean and Maldonado were all eliminated. After the race, the events were declared a racing incident by the FIA and no penalties were given.
Following the results, Hamilton now leads the 2015 Drivers’ Championship with 194 points versus the 177 of Rosberg and 135 of Vettel. In the Constructors’ Championship, Mercedes has 371 points versus the 211 of Ferrari and 151 of Williams. Teams now have three weeks off before gearing up for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Below are the full results of the 2015 Formula One British Grand Prix:
1) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG
2) Nico Rosberg, Mercedes AMG
3) Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari
4) Felipe Massa, Williams
5) Valtteri Bottas, Williams
6) Daniil Kvyat, Infiniti Red Bull Racing
7) Nico Hulkenberg, Force India
8) Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari
9) Sergio Perez, Force India
10) Fernando Alonso, McLaren
11) Marcus Ericsson, Sauber
12) Roberto Merhi, Marussia
13) Will Stevens, Marussia
Ret) Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso
Ret) Daniel Ricciardo, Infiniti Red Bull Racing
Ret) Max Verstappen, Toro Rosso
Ret) Romain Grosjean, Lotus
Ret) Pastor Maldonado, Lotus
Ret) Jenson Button, McLaren
Ret) Felipe Nasr, Sauber
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