F1 update – British GP

Round 12 of the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship was held at the Silverstone Circuit in Northampton, England for the British Grand Prix. This race also marked the halfway point in the 2025 season.

It was a mixed condition race that saw McLaren’s Lando Norris take his fourth victory of the year in front of the British fans in attendence heading home team mate Oscar Piastri who finished second despite getting a 10 second time penalty for a safety car infringement. The star of the day was Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg who after 239 races finally scored his maiden podium finish in third, it was also the teams first podium finish since Japan 2012.

British GP – top 5:

• 1st: Lando Norris – McLaren
• 2nd: Oscar Piastri – McLaren
• 3rd: Nico Hulkenberg – Sauber
• 4th: Sir Lewis Hamilton – Ferrari
• 5th: Max Verstappen – Red Bull

Other highlights:

• Alpine’s Franco Colapinto failed to start the race as his car suffered gearbox issues before the start of the race.
• Racing Bulls had a weekend to forget as both their drivers Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar both retired from the race in seperate incidents. Lawson retired on the opening lap coming out of Aintree corner due to damage from a collision involving Haas’s Esteban Ocon and Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda. Hadjar retired on lap 18 after colliding with Mercedes driver Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli on the run to Copse corner which saw his car crash into the barrier afterwards.
• Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto would crash out on lap 4 and then pulling out of the race later on in the lap due to car damage.
• Mercedes driver Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli would retire on lap 24 due to damage from the collision with Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar.
• Red Bull’s Max Verstappen would spin on lap 21 coming out of Stowe corner, but would finish the race in fifth.
• Mercedes George Russell would spin on lap 40 at the Maggots and Becketts complex, he would carry on and finish in tenth.
• Ferrari’s Sir Lewis Hamilton would run wide at the Village complex on lap 42 after pitting for dry tyres, his team mate Charles Leclerc would run wide at Abbey corner on the same lap, both carried on, Hamilton finished fourth whilst Leclerc finished fourteenth, the latter after running wide at Stowe on lap 44.
• McLaren’s Oscar Piastri went wide at the Maggots and Becketts complex on lap 45, but would carry on to finish second.
• Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda and Haas’s Oliver Bearman collided on lap 22 at Brooklands corner, both were able to keep going, Tsunoda was given a 10 second time penalty for causing the collision.
• Both Haas drivers Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman collided on lap 43 at Brooklands corner, both were able to keep going. Bearman finished eleventh whilst Ocon finished thirteenth.

News:

• McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was given 2 points on his licence (totalling to 6 for a 12 month period) for erractically braking under safety car conditions.
• Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda was given 1 point on his licence (totalling to 5 for a 12 month period) for colliding with Haas’s Oliver Bearman.
• Red Bull have sacked their team principal Christian Horner after 20 years with the team.
• Racing Bulls boss Laurent Mekies becomes new CEO at Red Bull.
• Alan Permane becomes new Racing Bulls team principal.
• Former Mercedes designer Duncan Elliott joins Aston Martin as their new chief designer.
• Former F1 steward Tim Mayer has announced that he is to stand as a candiate to run for FIA president.

The next round of the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship will be held at the Spa-Francomchamps Circuit in Belgium for the Belgian Grand Prix on 25th to 27th July.

Here’s Aston and regular contributor Cameron Perkins with the latest from the world of Formula 1.