Silverstone, England: Charles Leclerc claimed his first Formula 1 win in nearly two years as the British Grand Prix ended in chaos behind the safety car on Sunday and stewards leader Kimi Antonelli missed out on points again with a damaged car.
Leclerc passed Antonelli at the start as the Mercedes driver dropped to third but the Italian was chasing Leclerc in the final lap when he reported a steering problem. Leclerc took the win under the safety car after a gravel lap from third by Max Verstappen.
“Finally!” Leclerc said on the radio after winning.
“This felt really good, even if I wish it was a normal ending.”
Leclerc jumped from his car and ran into a crowd of Ferrari employees who rushed forward to embrace him, knocking down a crowd barrier for their driver. Leclerc’s last F1 victory was at the United States Grand Prix in October 2024.
After Antonelli reported issues with his car, he went into the pits, but that didn’t help and he started backtracking through the field. Later, Verstappen’s lap rocked the race again.
Antonelli’s Mercedes team-mate and title rival George Russell went into second place to deny Ferrari a one-two finish, staying out on old tires when Lewis Hamilton pitted under the safety car.
Hamilton had new tires but was unable to use them because he finished the race behind the safety car. He crossed the third line.
Hamilton was also under investigation after the race for allegedly breaching yellow flag conditions when he lost ground to Russell.
Antonelli was ninth after ignoring the team’s request to retire the car so he could fight for the final positions. He ended up out of points anyway. The Italian dropped to 16th place with a time penalty for going off course while crashing his damaged car in a corner.
AP
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