Mercedes has shown resurgent form in Spain, with both Hamilton and Russell on the podium as Ferrari continues to struggle.
Max Verstappen put on another dominant display to win the Spanish GP and win his 40th F1 race. This leaves him just one win behind Ayrton Senna. Mercedes’ updated W14 has shown much improved form, with Lewis Hamilton coming in second ahead of teammate George Russell.
- Verstappen wins, 24,090 seconds ahead of Hamilton
- Russell goes from P12 to P3
- Perez is 53 points ahead of Verstappen
Verstappen journey to Spanish GP victory
Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya has a revised layout this year, with the previous turn 14-15 having been removed to return the section to its original layout. This tweak brings plenty of action across the field, but no competition ahead.
Starting from a pivotal position, Verstappen started first, albeit at an average, against Carlos Sainz on soft tyres behind him. The Red Bull driver made a commanding drive, leading every lap to take his fifth win so far this season. However, he narrowly escaped punishment after collecting several fouls for exceeding the track limit.
Win a Mercedes goal
The Spanish GP gave Mercedes its first real chance to see the capabilities of their updated car. Barcelona has traditionally been a strong Mercedes venue, and that proves it once again.
Hamilton survived a first-round clash with McLaren’s Lando Norris to finish second. Russell crossed the line behind him in third, fighting to rise from 12th on the leaderboard. After a poor knockout session got him started in P11, Sergio Perez attempted damage control and finished fourth in the race.
Home team hero Carlos Sainz was unable to convert his P2 starting position into a podium finish and had to finish in fifth. Both Ferrari drivers appeared to be still struggling with their cars, and Sainz slipped to the ground as the race continued. His teammate Charles Leclerc finished just outside of the scoreline in P11. He started from the pitlane after Ferrari opted to change his gearbox and other parts following a disastrous qualifying session that left him in P19.
Lance Stroll finished sixth, ahead of his Aston Martin teammate Fernando Alonso. Following them was Esteban Ocon of Alpine. A five-second penalty awarded to Yuki Tsunoda (for forcing Zhou Guanyu off the track) sent the AlphaTauri racer down to 12th place. This promoted Zhou to ninth and Pierre Gasly to 10th.
McLaren’s Lando Norris started the race in high spirits, with his P3 starting spot. But his race quickly derailed after open lap contact with Hamilton forced him to look for a new front wing. He finished in 17th place.
F1 Championship Rankings 2023
Verstappen has now extended his championship run to 53 points (more than two race wins) from Perez. Alonso remains third overall, 18 points behind Perez.
The next race is the Canadian GP on June 16-18.
Spanish GP results 2023
| Spanish GP results 2023 | ||
|---|---|---|
| posture | Driver | Team |
| first | Max Verstappen | red bull racing |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes |
| 3 | George Russel | Mercedes |
| 4 | Sergio Perez | red bull racing |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari |
| 6 | Lance goes for a walk | Aston Martin |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin |
| 8 | Esteban Ocon | high mountain |
| 9 | Chu Quan Vu | Alfa Romeo |
| ten | Pierre Gasly | high mountain |
| 11 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari |
| twelfth | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri |
| 13 | oscar piastrian | McLaren |
| 14 | Nyck de Vries | AlphaTauri |
| 15 | Nico Hulkenberg | haas |
| 16 | Alex Albon | Williams |
| 17 | Lando Norris | McLaren |
| 18 | Kevin Magnussen | haas |
| 19 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo |
| 20 | sergeant logan | Williams |
Also see:
Verstappen wins Monaco GP in mixed conditions; Alpine on the podium
