The Ferrari driver clinched his first F1 victory in his 150th grand prix start, taking advantage of a late safety car to pit for soft tyres while Ferrari kept team-mate Leclerc out in the lead on older hards.
The pair had been fighting for victory against Max Verstappen earlier in the race, but he suffered floor damage after hitting debris from an earlier clash between AlphaTauri team-mates Yuki Tsunoda and Pierre Gasly. The reigning F1 world champion made a partial recovery to seventh place.
Leclerc also lost out to Sergio Perez and Lewis Hamilton in the sprint finish, both having pitted for fresh softs, to see the Monegasque driver drop to fourth place having been the standout performer for much of the race despite also carrying minor front wing damage.
The race was red-flagged after a start crash that pitched Zhou Guanyu over and rolling between the tyre barrier and catch fence, having clashed with George Russell and Gasly. In a separate accident triggered by trying to avoid Zhou’s crash, Alex Albon was punted into the pitwall by an unsighted Sebastian Vettel, with the Williams also collecting Tsunoda and Esteban Ocon in the clash.
Both Zhou and Albon were treated at the medical centre, with the Alfa Romeo driver cleared to leave after checks while the Thai driver went to hospital for further examinations before being discharged.
To assess a hectic British GP, Autosport chief editor Kevin Turner and Autosport.com editor Haydn Cobb join host Martyn Lee to discuss events at Silverstone.
You can listen to the podcast using the player below, or via all good audio platforms including Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Autosport.com – Formula 1 – Stories…