Verstappen on painful British GP qualifying struggles
Max Verstappen said his seventh-place finish in British Grand Prix qualifying was “extra painful” after a “double whammy” of poor balance and an unexpected lack of straight-line speed. Verstappen said: “[There were] two things. The whole session, of course not a good balance, but at the same time terribly slow on the straight for whatever reason, even compared to the other car. We couldn't fix it from the first run until the end. When you're slow on the straight here… it's just like a spiral and it gets worse and worse throughout to the end of the lap. It's like a double whammy, so it's extra painful.”
Verstappen details ‘double whammy' Qualifying issues
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Ocon keeps 17th after no penalty
Esteban Ocon has escaped a penalty for an alleged yellow-flag infringement in British Grand Prix qualifying at Silverstone, meaning he keeps 17th on the grid. The Haas driver was investigated after appearing not to slow sufficiently under yellows triggered by Franco Colapinto’s spin at Turn 15, but the stewards said telemetry showed Ocon lifted earlier, braked more and “demonstrably reduced speed” in the relevant sector, so “no breach was established”.
Esteban Ocon learns fate after Silverstone qualifying investigation
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Leclerc on feeling back in the Ferrari at Silverstone
Charles Leclerc said his “feeling was back” in the Ferrari SF-26 during British Grand Prix qualifying, describing it as the first time he has had that connection since his drop in form began as he secured a front-row start at Silverstone. Charles Leclerc said: "It feels like today, this feeling was back. Where I'm focused now is to keep that feeling, because I know how much it relies on fine tuning and small details. But I feel like today we've done a step forward. But today, we did quite a few changes from yesterday's sprint qualifying and sprint race, and I felt more at ease. But it's only a small part of the job."
Charles Leclerc Ferrari breakthrough at British GP as new goal set
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Antonelli on unnatural driving style to manage energy deployment
Kimi Antonelli said he had to drive in a way that felt “unnatural” to manage energy deployment as he took pole position for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Antonelli said: "It was not easy, but I think if you say I didn't actually, but for sure it's tricky, because with this power unit, you need to, sometimes driving in a certain way, that feels a bit unnatural. Sometimes, going on throttle later, so in high speed, you carry more speed and you go on throttle later, then you may lose a little bit on exit, but then you regain it, because by delaying your throttle point, then you get more energy."
How Kimi Antonelli overcame ‘unnatural' F1 issue to score British GP pole
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Antonelli on Silverstone pole despite final Q3 lap stress
Andrea Kimi Antonelli says being first to start his final Q3 lap left him "stressed" despite taking pole position for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Antonelli said: "I was a bit stressed because I never really like going first for the last run but the last lap was very tidy. It came all together. It was very tricky with the wind because it was very gusty and unpredictable. But yeah, we built our way through qualifying, and to bring home pole is very satisfying."
Antonelli admits team call made him 'stressed' on Silverstone pole lap
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Norris on McLaren not being good enough at Silverstone
Lando Norris admitted McLaren’s MCL40 is “not good enough” after qualifying sixth at Silverstone, 0.766 seconds behind pole-sitter Kimi Antonelli. Norris said: "Just tough, we still don't have any pace. So we're just slow, the car was slow in the straights, we're slow in all the corners. There's nothing more I can say apart from that. There's no excuses, the car's not good enough, and we know that, and we just have to keep working hard, that's it."
Norris delivers damning “no excuses” verdict as McLaren MCL40 “not good enough”
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Hamilton on deployment problem and braking inconsistency in British GP qualifying
Lewis Hamilton said a deployment problem and inconsistent braking cost him time in Q3 as he qualified third for the British Grand Prix in his Ferrari. Hamilton said: "I had a massive… I lost my deployment. There was a problem with the deployment, basically, and I lost three tenths down the back straight, but that got fixed for towards the end. Yeah, those two [issues] and then braking, for example, for turn three [Village]. That was quite inconsistent for me today with the settings that we ended up choosing."
Lewis Hamilton finds culprits behind disappointing British GP qualifying
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Hamilton on Ferrari strategy with Leclerc against Antonelli
Lewis Hamilton says he and Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc will try to work together on strategy to challenge pole-sitter Kimi Antonelli at the British Grand Prix. Hamilton said: "It's definitely great to have both of us [me and Leclerc] here. Whether or not we can fully keep up with Kimi, we will see. But hopefully we can play with the strategy and work as a team to try to topple them. We will do our best for sure."
Hamilton plots Ferrari teamwork to 'topple' Antonelli in British GP
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Hamilton ‘happy' despite Q3 setback as Ferrari eyes strategic fight
Russell on running a dragier Mercedes at Silverstone
George Russell says he thinks he was running a “dragier” Mercedes after losing straight-line speed compared to his team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli in qualifying for the British Grand Prix, where Antonelli took pole and Russell will start fourth. Russell said: "If the deployment looks OK, I'm just offset on speed in the straight. It just looks like I'm running more of a dragier car. If you look at the speed trace of qualifying yesterday and you look at the speed traps from today, it's the same."
George Russell searches for answers after ‘compromised' F1 British GP qualifying
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Racing Bulls fined for unsafe release
Racing Bulls has been fined €5,000 after Arvid Lindblad was released into Oscar Piastri’s path in qualifying at the British Grand Prix, forcing Piastri to take evasive action to avoid a collision. The stewards said the team accepted the unsafe release was “the result of an error of judgement” and, with Lindblad “merely following the team's instructions”, imposed the fine on the competitor.
FIA confirms €5,000 fine after Arvid Lindblad, Oscar Piastri incident
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Racing Bulls punished after 'error of judgement' in Silverstone pit lane incident
Russell on unusual Silverstone qualifying lock-up
George Russell said he did not know what caused his unusual lock-up and light crash at Turn 7 in the first part of qualifying at Silverstone. Russell said: "I don't know. I've raced here for 12 years, and I've never locked up once in that corner before. So we made some changes to the setup. It was probably more extreme than before. I don't know what happened. It was weird."
George Russell sheds light on bizarre Silverstone qualifying shunt
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Verstappen on Silverstone's energy-management demands
Max Verstappen joked that “life” and “breathing” are what keep him motivated at the British Grand Prix, saying the energy-management demands at Silverstone bring him “no enjoyment”. Verstappen said: "But for me, no enjoyment, unfortunately. The problem is that you slow down so much before the corners. It makes it a lot less interesting. Life. Yeah, it's actually that. Life. Breathing!"
Max Verstappen motivated by only 'life' and 'breathing' at British GP: 'For me, no enjoyment'
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Domenicali on adding cancelled Bahrain or Saudi race to 2026 calendar
Stefano Domenicali says Formula 1 hopes to find space on the 2026 calendar to run one of the races cancelled earlier this season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Domenicali said: "If there is something that we can announce also related to the possibility of seeing if there is any space for what has not been done so far, we're going to do it, in the right moment and the right conditions. That is really the hope, because if all the conditions are right, we're going to go ahead with our plan. If there is a chance, why not?"
F1 chief reveals hope of restoring cancelled race to 2026 schedule
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Leclerc on sticking with his own driving style
Charles Leclerc said he considered copying Lewis Hamilton’s driving style during a difficult run of form, but chose to stick with his own approach after qualifying second for the British Grand Prix. Leclerc said: "I kind of had two options. One was to change my driving style and basically copy Lewis, because that seems to be working very well. The second was to keep my driving style and try to find a way around the car, and that's the option I chose. Today it paid off. I hope it'll pay off tomorrow as well."
Leclerc considered copying Hamilton's driving style amid tough run
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Norris on McLaren's pace deficit at Silverstone
Lando Norris said McLaren are “in a pickle” on pace after qualifying sixth for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Norris said: "We're just slow. I thought we improved the car in some areas but we need to understand… like we're just slow in the straight, we're slow in every corner. It's just the car's not very efficient. We lack downforce and we have too much drag. So yeah, we're in a pickle."
‘We're in a pickle’ – Norris on McLaren performance concerns
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Brundle on Lawson warning in British GP sprint
Martin Brundle said the stewards were right to give Liam Lawson a warning rather than a penalty for his late defensive move against Isack Hadjar in the British Grand Prix sprint, while noting both drivers race for Red Bull-owned teams. Brundle said: "I didn't call it as a penalty on commentary; I said I need to see it again, because they've got different battery deployments. He did leave some space on the inside, and he was taking the racing line, and he left a car's width on the inside, just about. And if you read the report, Hadjar, the injured party on the inside, said, 'I don't think this warrants a penalty'; of course they are both driving for Red Bull teams, we have to remember that... But no, I think the warning is fair enough on that."
Liam Lawson defended despite key Red Bull point 'to remember'
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Brundle on Hamilton's Ferrari form
Martin Brundle believes Lewis Hamilton’s upturn in form at Ferrari in 2026 is down to the seven-time champion finally building trust with the team after a difficult 2025. Speaking on Sky Sports F1, Brundle said Hamilton initially “looked completely lost and struggled to integrate at Ferrari” after spending his career in UK-based teams, adding: “It’s just taken him a while to trust Ferrari and vice versa.”
Martin Brundle explains why Lewis Hamilton is finally thriving at Ferrari
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Hamilton on Ferrari deployment problem in Silverstone qualifying
Lewis Hamilton said a deployment problem in his Ferrari cost him “three tenths” in qualifying for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, after he ended up third on the grid for Sunday’s race. Hamilton said: "No, not particularly [that there was more time to extract from his Ferrari]. My run two [in Q3] was pretty decent, but there was a problem with the deployment and I lost like three tenths down the back straight. But that got fixed towards the end. I struggled more in this qualifying session with the car. A lot more understeer, but I'm still happy."
Hamilton reveals cost of Ferrari problem in Silverstone qualifying
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Verstappen on overnight Red Bull car changes at Silverstone
Max Verstappen says Red Bull should consider changing his car overnight, even if it means a pit-lane start for the British Grand Prix, after qualifying seventh at Silverstone with concerns over top speed and his engine. Verstappen said: "I'd love to [make changes]. If you start here, you're going to keep driving it anyway. You'll even drop more spots. In that regard, I'd rather we make some adjustments. The engine just isn't running right. We were too slow on every straight. On a track like Silverstone, it's obviously extra painful when you don't have top speed."
Max Verstappen calls for major Red Bull changes
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Antonelli on stress before pole lap at Silverstone
Kimi Antonelli said he was “a bit stressed” before his pole-setting lap in qualifying for the British Grand Prix because he does not like being first on track for the final run. Antonelli said: "I was a bit stressed because I never really like going first for the last run. But yeah, the last lap was very tidy, I have to be honest. It all came together. It was very tricky with the wind because it was very gusty and unpredictable. But yeah, we built our way through Qualifying, and to bring home pole is very satisfying."
Why Antonelli was ‘a bit stressed' on Silverstone pole lap
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Round-up: Verstappen unhappy with balance and top speed after qualifying, and more
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The battle for pole between Charles and Kimi was very tight! 🤏
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Russell on Mercedes investigating straight-line speed loss
George Russell says Mercedes are trying to understand why he has been “losing lots of time in the straights” at the British Grand Prix after qualifying fourth at Silverstone. Russell said: "All weekend we've been losing lots of time in the straights. Yesterday in SQ3, it was almost three tenths I lost in the straights. Again, today in qualifying, if you look at the speed traps, it's 3km/h down in the middle sector, 6km/h down in the last sector, compared to my team-mate and compared to the McLaren cars. The team are working super hard to understand why that is."
George Russell perplexed by top speed deficit at F1 British GP
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Gasly given three-place grid penalty
Pierre Gasly has been given a three-place grid penalty for the British Grand Prix after the stewards ruled he impeded Lance Stroll in Q1 at Silverstone. Gasly, who qualified 12th, will start 15th after being found to have “remained on the racing line at a slow speed” on his in-lap, forcing Stroll off line to pass. Although the stewards accepted Gasly had no functioning radio and received no team warning, they said “the absence of a radio warning does not remove the driver's responsibility”. Nico Hulkenberg, Oliver Bearman and Carlos Sainz each gain a place.
Pierre Gasly handed British GP grid penalty after qualifying infringement
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Gasly handed grid penalty after Silverstone Qualifying
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