Charles Leclerc triumphed at the chaotic 2026 British GP. Lewis Hamilton joined his teammate on the podium in P2, while George Russell completed the podium, securing his first home podium.
Kimi Antonelli’s World Drivers’ Championship (WDC) lead shrank further as the Italian faced reliability issues, finishing the race in P16 without scoring any points.
Max Verstappen crashed on lap 48, ending his race prematurely and triggering the safety car, which affected several drivers’ races. We discuss some of the noteworthy stories from the 2026 British GP in our “Biggest Hits and Misses” format.
Also Read
Hit: Charles Leclerc gets first win of the season
Charles Leclerc secured his ninth career win and first of the season. This also marked Ferrari’s 250th victory. The Italian outfit endured a difficult season last year. Hamilton gave the team its first win since 2024 during the 2026 Spanish GP. Leclerc had his fair share of troubles as well.
He switched brake providers to get better performance. On Sunday at Silverstone, he benefited from his newfound comfort with the SF26. He took the lead at the first corner and only lost it while pitting. The race ended under a safety car, with Leclerc taking the victory.
However, this doesn’t mean Ferrari is back in the championship fight. As discussed in last week’s “Biggest Hits and Misses,” the Italian outfit’s pattern this year has been “one step ahead and two steps back.” Leclerc himself echoed a similar sentiment:
“I’m very happy to get out of this situation in this way. However, it’s still the beginning,” he cautioned. “It’s only one race, and I must not get carried away thinking that the war is over. I mean, the battle with this car has been quite a lot recently – and I cannot take it for granted that now it’s behind me.”
Miss: Kimi Antonelli’s lead shrinks due to reliability issues
There’s nothing perfect in this universe, and Mercedes’ 2026 campaign is no exception. The team has a dominant power unit and two talented drivers at its disposal but has often suffered from reliability issues throughout the season. George Russell was the one suffering earlier, and now Antonelli is getting his share of bad luck.
The Italian secured pole on Saturday but wasn’t able to reap the benefits as he lost a few positions to the Ferrari pair in quick succession. He recovered from the setback and was back in contention, actively pursuing the race leader.
P2 would have been the worst-case scenario for him, but bad luck struck when his wheel shield failed, increasing the handling issues on the left side of his car. He was also given a five-second penalty for repeated track limits violations, which further compromised his race. In the end, the Italian was denied points as he finished in P16.
The gap between him and second-placed Russell in the championship is now just 25 points.
Hit: George Russell
Let’s continue the topic of fortune. Russell, who suffered repeated bad luck at the start of the season, now seems to be on the opposite end of the spectrum. He was not on par with Antonelli throughout the weekend, but the Italian’s misfortune helped the British driver.
Now he can again be on the WDC’s driving seat with only a race win. The 28-year-old will be leaving Silverstone as a satisfied man for now, but later, at some point before Spa, he will have to ponder why his teammate is outperforming him, because luck cannot save him every time.
Miss: Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen suffered another rear wing failure, which caused his RB22 to crash at Stowe Corner, ending his race with just four laps remaining. After back-to-back failures of a similar nature, the Dutchman was frustrated and called the situation “super dangerous.”
When asked if this will have any impact on the decision about his future, he replied, “I’m not going to say anything about that. It’s not fair to say anything about that also right now.”
Hit: Racing Bulls
Racing Bulls delivered yet another impressive result in a difficult British GP. The team is currently the fastest outfit in the midfield. Liam Lawson reached Q3 for the fourth consecutive time, while Arvid Lindblad qualified in 10th place for the second weekend in a row.
Lawson and Lindblad finished in P6 and P7 respectively. Red Bull’s sister team now sits sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, just one point behind Alpine with 59 points.
Miss: McLaren
As the season progresses, McLaren is falling further and further behind, and a recovery will be nearly impossible if this pattern continues. The key issue for the papaya team is insufficient aerodynamic performance, particularly in terms of downforce and efficiency. Another contributing factor is that McLaren has not extracted as much performance from the Mercedes power unit as the works team.
Lando Norris finished fourth thanks to the chaos of the race. Oscar Piastri’s race was compromised after his first-lap collision with Alex Albon, which damaged the front wing of the Australian’s car. He eventually finished P11.
There is no immediate relief expected for the Woking-based outfit, as similar struggles are anticipated at Spa.
