F1 British GP live commentary and updates - sprint race

With that we'll take a break to grab the latest news and reaction from the Silverstone paddock before we're back for grand prix qualifying which starts at 4pm BST.

Until then, don't forget to try out our new game Two Seats here.

Antonelli, Hamilton and Norris are presented with their sprint awards by three karting champions, one with a very strapped up left hand, which Norris takes great care and interest in.

Here's the provisional British GP sprint race results:

SPRINT

All Stats

 

Cla	Driver	#		Laps	Time	Interval	km/h	Pits	Points	Retirement	Chassis	Engine
1	A. Antonelli Mercedes	12		17	-				8		Mercedes	Mercedes
2	L. Hamilton Ferrari	44		17	+2.745 2.745	2.745			7		Ferrari	Ferrari
3	L. Norris McLaren	1		17	+9.783 9.783	7.038			6		McLaren	Mercedes
4	G. Russell Mercedes	63		17	+10.639 10.639	0.856			5		Mercedes	Mercedes
5	C. Leclerc Ferrari	16		17	+12.620 12.620	1.981			4		Ferrari	Ferrari
6	M. Verstappen Red Bull Racing	3		17	+16.550 16.550	3.930			3		Red Bull	Red Bull
7	O. Piastri McLaren	81		17	+17.551 17.551	1.001			2		McLaren	Mercedes
8	L. Lawson Racing Bulls	30		17	+30.233 30.233	12.682			1		RB	Red Bull
9	I. Hadjar Red Bull Racing	6		17	+30.953 30.953	0.720					Red Bull	Red Bull
10	A. Lindblad Racing Bulls	41		17	+35.110 35.110	4.157					RB	Red Bull
View full results

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is on hand to congratulate the top three finishers, as Antonelli takes in the moment of his first sprint win.

Chants of "Lewis, Lewis, Lewis, Lewis!" from a small number of very lucky fans in the parc ferme area, where usually the mechanics and team personnel come to congratulate their drivers, get greeted by a wave from the seven-time world champion.

Lawson will be investigated after the sprint race for his near-miss with Hadjar. On first look it did appear a moving under braking but we'd definitely need to see that one again.

Antonelli takes his first sprint win and duly extends his F1 world championship lead by three points over Russell - so the gap is up to 43 points.

Russell has to settle for fourth, just 0.8s off Norris at the finish line, with Leclerc fifth, Verstappen sixth and Piastri seventh.

Lawson keeps Hadjar at bay to take the final points place in eighth place - but that one is likely to be settled by the stewards given their earlier incident.

Woah! Almost a massive crash between Hadjar and Lawson into Copse, as the Racing Bulls driver chops across his former team-mate under braking. That's a big no-no.

Antonelli is comfortable in the lead as he pushes his lead to over two seconds at the start of the penultimate lap. All the other gaps seem stable.

Hulkenberg will be investigated after the sprint race for leaving the track and gaining an advantage at Turn 9 (Copse).

Hamilton isn't eating into Antonelli's lead but also isn't being dropped with the gap at 1.4s. Norris looks settled in third, while Russell is having to keep an eye on Leclerc who has kept up his pace into the late stages of the sprint.

After a breathless first 11 laps, the on-track action is starting to settle down as tyre degradation and outright car performance begins to dictate proceedings.

Antonelli is starting to move clear of Hamilton as the gap between the leaders expands to 1.2s. Norris is now having a lonely race in third, six seconds off Hamilton but three seconds ahead of Russell.

Leclerc gets the move done on Verstappen into Stowe to take fifth place.

Russell vs Verstappen - grab your popcorn when these two fight - as they trade overtakes and then Russell shows the Dutch driver the outside of the track through Village. That one will be remembered by the Red Bull driver, who is now defending from Leclerc.

At the same time Russell has pulled off a move on Verstappen to move up to fourth place.

A lap later Antonelli is able to follow much closer through the first sector, but Hamilton shows his rival the outside line into Brooklands so he has to back out of it.

But it looks like Hamilton used his battery to defend as by the time they reach the Wellington Straight he's got no answer for Antonelli who bolts by into the lead!

Antonelli has a sniff of a move into Brooklands on Hamilton but backs out of it to stay in second. The two leaders are almost six seconds clear of Norris in third who in turn is keeping out of the clutches of Verstappen and Russell.

Hamilton has stabilised the gap he has on Antonelli but the Italian is staying within one second so gets that extra boost advantage - and the use of a slipstream from the Ferrari ahead. Hamilton is weaving on the straights to break that slipstream.

Those early lap battles were definitely a show of different energy deployment strategies in use to attack and defend. Or yo-yo racing, if you prefer.

Hamilton leads by 0.5s from Antonelli at the start of lap five as things start to settle down.

The Norris-Verstappen-Russell fight continues to rage and that brings Piastri and Leclerc into the action. Leclerc gives by Piastri into Brooklands to move up to sixth.

At the front, Hamilton is being caught by Antonelli who has escaped that fight behind.

Now Verstappen joins the party as he gets by Russell into Abbey. 

Further back Alonso spun at the Loop in a potential clash with Perez who has pitted and is well off the pack.

Hamilton leads by 1.3s having shot clear of those fighting behind him. On lap two Norris gets back by Russell on the Wellington straight and this time the Mercedes driver cannot fight back.

Norris charges by Russell and Antonelli down the old pit straight, but he's clearly used all his battery and he is a sitting duck on the Wellington straight. Antonelli simply bolts by, and then Russell does the same around the outside into Vale. What an opening lap!

Go go go

Hamilton gets a good getaway to keeps the lead into Turn 1 from Antonelli but it is a nightmare start for Verstappen who is sluggish off the line and drops to sixth.

Russell is up to third, ahead of Norris and Piastri.

Hamilton leads the F1 train around Stowe and the Landostand, getting quite a few car lengths ahead of Antonelli and co, before he slams on the anchors to back the pack up before reaching the grid.

Hold on, the tyre graphic has just updated and Lawson is also on the softs, starting ninth on the grid. He's the outlier and one to watch to see if that pick works out.

Tyres

Almost every driver has opted for the medium tyre as expected. The only outliers are Bottas, Alonso and Stroll who have all opted for the softs. Massive gamble or are they also preparing for test-style run rather than a race?

The grid is clearing and the drivers are getting into their cars. This is your five-minute warning. Get ready!

Hamilton from Antonelli from Verstappen. That makes for a very intriguing top three for the British GP sprint start. 

And all three of them are nominees for F1 driver of the month in our new monthly awards. You can vote for that and five other categories here.

Just before the sprint action begins, we want to take a moment to wish the United States a happy Independence Day.

Hopefully Cadillac and Haas can put on a show! Plus, we've already had an American winner today as Ugo Ugochukwu took a dominant victory in the F3 sprint race this morning.

Valtteri Bottas, Cadillac Racing

Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images

While the anticipation builds, why not have a go at our new game Two Seats?

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Williams has made changes to Alex Albon's car so he'll start the sprint from the pitlane. He was due to start 16th, so everyone behind him (both Haas, both Cadillacs and both Aston Martins) move up one spot.