Silverstone will forever hold a special place in Carlos Sainz’s heart as the Ferrari driver picked up his first career win after an eventful British Grand Prix.
In a race that featured a couple of major crashes right at the start, Sainz took advantage of some fortunate breaks as he turned his maiden pole position into his maiden Grand Prix victory.
In what is steadily becoming a trend this season, Sainz again got the better of team-mate Charles Leclerc, who was once again on the receiving end of a questionable decision by Ferrari which likely cost him the victory.
The British Grand Prix 2022 odds had Max Verstappen as a strong favourite, but the championship leader saw his recent win streak snapped as a piece of debris derailed his race.
Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton dazzled the crowd with a throwback performance and podium finish on his home Grand Prix.
Read on below as SBOTOP shares its top three takeaways from a thrilling British Grand Prix.
Sainz rides good fortune to first F1 victory
Carlos Sainz produced a fine performance to claim his first career F1 win. But he also had his fair share of good fortune to aid him along the way.
The Spanish driver impressively claimed pole position – also the first of his career – amid a rain-soaked qualifying session, but he lost it immediately as Max Verstappen made a great start to overtake before Turn 1.
However, Sainz was given a second chance as the race restarted in grid order after the early crashes brought out the red flag. But while Sainz held onto his lead at the start, he made a costly mistake on lap 10 that once again allowed Verstappen to reclaim the lead.
But Sainz got another big break just a few laps later as Verstappen’s car was badly damaged by debris and had to go into the pits.
And if that wasn’t enough, Sainz – who had slipped to second behind team-mate Leclerc amid team orders – got another huge slice of fortune later in the race when Esteban Ocon’s retirement brought out the safety car. Sainz was able to head into the pits to get fresh tyres, while Leclerc stayed out.
When the race restarted, Sainz produced one of the top British Grand Prix 2022 highlights as he took the lead after Leclerc went off the track and held on for the last few laps to claim his first career chequered flag – in slightly fortuitous fashion.
Ferrari’s decision once again costs Leclerc dearly
A combination of Ferrari reliability issues and questionable strategy calls have already cost Leclerc a shot at being a legitimate title contender this season. And the Scuderia made another big decision to leave Leclerc out during the safety car while bringing Sainz in for fresh tyres, which once again proved detrimental to Leclerc.
Sainz wasted little time in reclaiming the lead from Leclerc, who then fell further to fourth after failing to fend off Sergio Perez and Lewis Hamilton, both of whom got new tyres during the safety car as well.
That is now four times in the last five races that Leclerc has lost out to his Ferrari team-mate, and on two occasions (Monaco GP, British GP) Ferrari’s decision-making cost him dearly as he missed a great opportunity to close the gap on Verstappen in the drivers’ standings.
This latest Ferrari decision flub is yet another example of why, despite Leclerc’s impressive pace this season, his chances of mounting a competitive title challenge to Max Verstappen are looking quite unlikely.
Hamilton delivers old magic in home Grand Prix
It has been a tough season for Lewis Hamilton thus far, but the seven-time world champion showed signs of life last time out at the Canadian Grand Prix, where he claimed just his second podium finish of the season.
And the Briton showed that result was no fluke as he reached into his old bag of magic tricks to pull off another podium finish at Silverstone.
Hamilton was always going to give a bit extra in his home Grand Prix, and he did not disappoint. He was right in the thick of the battle throughout and even led his first laps of the season, which should have felt fantastic amid his struggles.
Hamilton and Mercedes still face an uphill battle to compete with the likes of Red Bull and Ferrari on a consistent basis given the state of their cars. But every once in a while, Hamilton is still capable of turning back the clock and producing a vintage performance like at Silverstone.
●●●
CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE FORMULA 1 STORIES & ODDS
Stay updated with everything sports and betting.
Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
