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British GP
F1 British GP Live Commentary and Updates - Race
Minute-by-minute updates for the 2023 Formula 1 British Grand Prix
F1 enters double figures for the season with Silverstone hosting the 10th race weekend of 2023 as Red Bull looks to extend its perfect win record.
Max Verstappen has been dominant this term with a personal victory haul of seven creating an 81-point lead at the top of the drivers' standings.
The Dutch driver starts from pole ahead of McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
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Rain is in the air... lots of teams are reporting it will hit the circuit in a couple of minutes. Spicy.
Russell is reporting drops of rain on his visor... so, if his Spanish GP experience is to be followed, there's a 100% chance of sweat in that Mercedes cockpit.
Stroll's afternoon and season takes another turn for the worse, as Perez gets past for P11.
Just one more place for Perez before he hits the points-paying positions.
Just one more place for Perez before he hits the points-paying positions.
Norris confirms over McLaren team radio he is going for Plan A, which is expected to be a one-stop race. So he'll be looking after his tyres to push out this stint.
Tsunoda is the first driver to make a planned pitstop from P13.
Verstappen has pushed out his lead to 3s over Norris, his last lap half a second quicker than the McLaren driver.
Medium tyres off and soft tyres on for Tsunoda.
"Light drizzle," Verstappen reports on his radio.
Lots of tyre management going on at the front, while Russell still cannot find a way past Leclerc in fourth place despite running half a second back.
Into the points for Perez. He moves past Albon and into the points using DRS along the Hanger Straight.
Sainz didn't do his homework last night. He's asked to go for Plan B by Ferrari but admits he cannot remember what that is... oh dear.
Pit stop
Leclerc pits at the end of lap 19 to ditch his mediums for hards.
Gasly is now stuck behind Alonso with the Alpine driver swarming all over the Aston Martin's gearbox.
Verstappen is 4.1s in the lead and clearly bored as he spots on the big screen Leclerc pitting. He's told not to worry about that.
Stopwatch
Verstappen is leaning on his tyres now, as he puts in a new fastest lap of 1m32.295s to push his lead to 4.6s on lap 21.
There's some big and threatening clouds looming over the track but that promise of rain isn't coming yet.
As Gasly drops back from Alonso, he is falling back into the clutches of Perez.
Red Bull could well be tempted to try the undercut here with the Mexican.
Red Bull could well be tempted to try the undercut here with the Mexican.
Verstappen's unrelenting march at the front continues with another new fastest lap that grows his lead to 5.5s over Norris. Remember that time Norris was leading the British GP? Feels like a while ago now.
News from Alpine, as it is confirmed that Ocon's car was retired with a hydraulic leak.
Norris and McLaren are content with their current pace but they are losing half a second per lap to Verstappen now. But, in reality, their race isn't with the Red Bull driver, as they are keeping an eye on what's behind.
After stopping for hard tyres, Leclerc is not showing anything like spectacular pace. He climbs past Stroll into P11, but his example will not tempt others into stopping anytime soon.
Pit stop
Sainz pits at the end of lap 26, locking up at pit entry a little, before swapping his mediums for fresh hards.
Russell is the tyre whisperer right now as his softs begin the 30th lap of their existence. It could give him a huge opportunity later in the race when he pits for fresh mediums.
Pit stop
Russell duly pits for fresh mediums but it is a slow stop and he comes out in ninth and behind Leclerc.
Pit stop
Perez stops from P8. Medium tyres off but interestingly, the softs go on. This will provide those at the front with data on whether the soft compound is a viable option to take to the chequered flag.
Pit stop
McLaren reacts and pits Piastri from third place. It is a smart stop of 2.4s and he rejoins in sixth place, comfortably ahead of Leclerc and Russell.
Here comes Carlos Sainz. He's rapidly catching Russell and Leclerc, and should clear Hamilton when the Mercedes driver pits.
Stopwatch
On soft tyres, Perez is going for it and sets a new fastest lap of the race with a 1m31.408s.
At the front, it is easy going for Verstappen as his lead grows to nine seconds over Norris.
A thrilling battle between Leclerc and Russell, as the latter goes around the outside of the Ferrari man at Luffield, and climbs to P8.
Leclerc tries to come back but his much older hard tyres are no match for Russell's recently fitted rubber.
Leclerc tries to come back but his much older hard tyres are no match for Russell's recently fitted rubber.
Safety car
VSC deployed
Safety car
And now it's the full safety car after Magnussen stops on the Wellington Straight with his Haas on fire. It's safe to say the Ferrari power unit in his Haas has expired.
This virtual safety car has given Albon and Leclerc a very cheap pitstop - but it was called just at the wrong time for Verstappen, Norris, Hamilton and Alonso who all missed the chance to pit.
Pit stop
But the full safety car has now been deployed, as Verstappen, Norris, Hamilton and Alonso all get the chance for their cheap pitstop.
Hamilton is the biggest winner in all that, as he takes on fresh softs and comes out in third place ahead of Piastri and Russell.
This intervention has been a disaster for Ferrari, with Sainz now P7 and Leclerc relegated to P10. For Williams and Albon, this has played out perfectly, pushing the Thai-British driver up into the points places.
Norris is on a set of fresh hard tyres, so in theory he has a big tyre deficit to Verstappen ahead of him and Hamilton behind him as they are both on softs.
Magnussen's Haas has been moved to the side of the track but it is still smoking. This will take a few more laps to clear properly.
The TV feed flicks to the McLaren garage to show Piastri's grandparents, and his grandmother looks spooked by it so grabs her husband's hand. Aww, bless them. Either that or they've just seen the Ashes test result.
Behind the safety car, Zhou has stopped again after complaining about a brake issue.
By: Autosport Staff
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