Max Verstappen overtakes Lewis Hamilton on opening lap before claiming seventh consecutive win and giving Red Bull record 12th win in a row; Lando Norris second for McLaren as Sergio Perez completes podium after starting ninth; Hamilton fourth but lost three positions on opening lap
By Jonathan Green at the Hungaroring
Last Updated: 23/07/23 4:06pm
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Lewis Hamilton ends up in fourth place after the first lap, with Max Verstappen in the lead and Oscar Piastri in second at the start of the Hungarian GP
Lewis Hamilton ends up in fourth place after the first lap, with Max Verstappen in the lead and Oscar Piastri in second at the start of the Hungarian GP
Max Verstappen delivered Red Bull an F1 record 12th consecutive Grand Prix win as he cruised to victory at the Hungarian GP after passing Lewis Hamilton on the opening lap.
Verstappen got an excellent start from P2 on the grid to draw alongside the pole-sitting Hamilton and claim the lead going into Turn One.
The championship leader was never threatened after that as he cruised home by 33 seconds for a seventh consecutive win which also meant Red Bull became the first team to win a dozen races in row.
Lando Norris claimed another second place for McLaren, while Sergio Perez pulled off a number of aggressive overtakes in the other Red Bull to finish third after starting ninth.
Perez had to hold off a charging Hamilton in the closing stages as the Mercedes finally came alive again on lower fuel, but the seven-time world champion had to settle for fourth on a difficult afternoon where he lost three positions on the opening lap.
Oscar Piastri was fifth, with his and Norris’ results helping McLaren strengthen their grip on P5 in the Constructors’ Championship after Alpine suffered another double DNF after Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon collided as a result of some first-corner pinball on the opening lap.
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Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly collide after being hit from behind on the opening lap of the Hungarian GP
George Russell made an excellent recovery from 18th on the grid to finish sixth, promoted a position after Charles Leclerc dropped a place to seventh due to a five-second time penalty for speeding in the pit lane.
Carlos Sainz was unable to progress after a brilliant start had lifted him from P11 to P6 and finished eighth in the second Ferrari, ahead of the two Aston Martins as Fernando Alonso led home Lance Stroll.
Daniel Ricciardo was 13th in his first race for AlphaTauri, two places ahead of team-mate Yuki Tsunoda.
Hungarian GP result
1) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2) Lando Norris, McLaren
3) Sergio Perez, Red Bull
4) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
5) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
6) George Russell, Mercedes
7) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
8) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
9) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
10) Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
Red Bull set fresh benchmark while Perez charges to podium
Verstappen and Hamilton were lining up on the front row together for the first time since their 2021 title decider in Abu Dhabi, and as in that race it was the driver starting from P2 who got the better start.
Despite being on the dirty side of the grid, Verstappen was immediately able to get alongside Hamilton and then overtake his former title rival at Turn One while narrowly avoiding contact.
With Hamilton pushed slightly wide, the equally fast starting Piastri from P4 was able to also get ahead of the Mercedes driver before the second McLaren of Norris overtook the pole sitter on the opening lap as well.
But neither McLaren could put any pressure on Verstappen who was twice able to pit as he retained his lead and claimed another victory and fastest lap to extend his championship lead to 110 points.
The victory saw Red Bull move ahead of McLaren’s 1988 record of 11 consecutive wins.
Instead of challenging the leader, the McLarens would instead have their attentions on Perez in the other Red Bull.
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Sergio Perez gets his elbows out in his Red Bull as he passes Carlos Sainz in the Ferrari to move into sixth place
The Mexican produced a very strong recovery drive as he charged through the field from ninth on the grid through a mixture of overtakes and strategy.
Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle said Perez was “getting his elbows out” when he first overtook Sainz for P6 on lap 27 and then duelled with Russell a lap later to claim P5.
The undercut enabled Perez to get ahead of Hamilton and a 1.9s pit stop by Red Bull put him right on the back of Piastri’s McLaren as they pitted at the same time, before hard racing between the pair saw Perez overtake the Australian at Turn One and the McLaren edging onto the grass as he fought back at Turn Two.
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Perez gets feisty as he moves past Oscar Piastri into fourth place in his Red Bull
Perez started to become a threat for Norris, but in the closing laps it would be Hamilton who the Mexican had to focus on, but he was able to hold onto third place by 1.5s.
More to follow…
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