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Tyres NorthamptonThe Dutch champion again looked wholly unchallenged during the race once he snatched P1 in the opening metres, eventually crossing the line with a vast 33-second margin over second place.
Mercedes' Brazilian victory last year now represents the only non-Red Bull triumph in a 12-month period to highlight the level the Milton Keynes constructor is operating at. McLaren, the previous holders of the record since 1988, were Verstappen's closest challengers for the second week running, but Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were powerless to stop the relentless march of the RB19.
Lewis Hamilton began the race in pole position after a scintillating qualifying session that had the Brit snatch P1 by just 0.003s over Verstappen. However, Hamilton's disastrous first corners had him slip from the lead to P4 as he struggled to find as much grip on his Pirelli tyres as those around him.
A drag race between Hamilton and Verstappen had the two rivals side-by-side going into T1, but Verstappen had the inside line to take the lead before Piastri followed the champion-in-waiting to take P2. A plucky move from Norris on the outside of T2 had two McLarens in podium positions, with Hamilton left to lick his wounds in P4.
For all the trouble Hamilton had, it wasn't as bad as Alpine's first lap; both their drivers were at the end of a domino-effect crash that saw a double retirement. Guanyu Zhou's slow start from a career-best P5 qualifying required anti-stall to get his Alfa Romeo going, but his late braking into T1 had him nudge the returning Daniel Ricciardo's AlphaTauri, in turn hitting Esteban Ocon, whose wheels then went over Pierre Gasly's car to cause irreparable damage to each Alpine.
With no safety car requirements, the first stint saw relatively little overtaking aside from Sergio Perez fighting forwards from his P9 start. Instead, the key moves happened in the pit lane as McLaren pitted Norris to cover off the undercut threat from Hamilton behind. This early stop somewhat inadvertently meant the 23-year-old British racer could benefit from fresh Pirelli rubber. As such, Norris made the undercutting move on teammate Piastri when the Aussie pitted one lap later.
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As Verstappen checked out with plenty of clear air in first place, the race became a question of how far up the order Perez could get the second Red Bull. The speed advantage of the Mexican's car, coupled with DRS and a later pit stop than his rivals, meant he could benefit from better pace and grip than the cars around him. He soon overtook Carlos Sainz and George Russell in quick succession in the first sector and began reeling in Hamilton's fourth place thanks to the extra performance of his medium compound tyre.
Sturdy defensive driving from the seven-time champion meant Perez's moves at Turns 2 and 3 didn't work, so Red Bull pitted their Mexican to undercut the Mercedes instead. This move brought Perez out behind Piastri, who had also made his second stop. The pair went wheel-to-wheel around the outside of Turn 2, with Piastri resorting to the grass to avoid contact, but Perez had muscled by and looked to try and close down the eight-second gap to Norris to take P2.
Hamilton's day finally improved after his final pit stop, though, and his 20-lap run to the finish line on the medium tyre allowed him to attack for the first time in the race. He eased by Piastri down the main straight with the help of DRS. Incredibly, the late-race pace from the low-fuel Mercedes suddenly had him become the hunter to Perez rather than the hunted, with Perez making slow progress to catch Norris in P2. The final two podium positions looked like they could change with one slight mistake from any of the lead drivers.
It wasn't to be, though, with Verstappen taking the record-breaking win, beating Norris and Perez. Hamilton came home in fourth, ahead of another stellar showing from rookie Piastri, and Russell crossed the line in P6 to make it three Brits in the leading six positions. The only blight on Verstappen's day was Norris' enthusiastic podium celebrations breaking the race winner's trophy. Still, with the Belgian GP coming up this weekend, it won't be a long wait for Verstappen to fight for another piece of silverware for his ever-growing collection.