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Formula 1 British GP

F1 British GP Live Updates - Race day

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At the end of lap 7, Hamilton's already got 1.4s on Bottas, and Verstappen's an extra 2s behind them.
At the end of the first lap after the safety car period Albon pits from 12th to switch to the hard tyres. It might have been a necessary stop if his tyres were potentially damaged after his hit with Magnussen.
Stopwatch
Hamilton does a 1m30.533s to set the fastest lap.
Both Mercedes are comfortably setting high 1m30s times. Verstappen's in the 1m31s, Leclerc and Sainz in the 1m32s, everyone else in the 1m33s bar Albon - who's also in the 1m32s.
Bottas is clinging onto Hamilton's coat-tails, he's 1.7s behind Hamilton at the close of lap 10, with Verstappen nearly 4s further back.
Despite lots of chopping and changing of positions in the early laps, Vettel is somewhat stuck not going forwards or backwards in 10th place. It was always going to be a tricky race for the Ferrari driver, but few would have predicted Gasly in the AlphaTauri to comfortably keep pace just behind him.
Radio Comms
"The field is quite compressed, so plan A, target lap", Sainz is told. One stop plan, it seems.
Stopwatch
Fastest lap for Bottas to hit back, grabbing a 1m30.518s to close the gap.
Kvyat gets by Giovinazzi to move up to P12 and close up behind team-mate Gasly.
Crash
Oh no! Kvyat, having just got ahead of Giovinazzi, has crashed heavily. Safety Car!
This is going to open the pit floodgates now.
Pit stop
Hamilton pits, as Mercedes double-stack. Verstappen pits, as does Leclerc, et al.
Kvyat is already out of his AlphaTauri and walking away which is great to see. TV replays show the Russian driver suffered a tyre puncture going through Maggots which left him a passenger when he hit the wall.
So, as a result, Grosjean's in P5. Haas electing not to pit this time. He's the only man on medium tyres.
Albon also didn't pit under the safety car, having pitted earlier, and he has moved up to P14.
Everyone else is on the hard compound, presumably to go until the end of the race.
Kvyat's AlphaTauri looks more like Homer Simpson's attempt at building a barbecue than an F1 car. Bits everywhere.
Hamilton's getting very close to the safety car in Luffield. I think he wants Bernd Maylander's job...
There will be a lot of new parts needed from Faenza over the next week because there isn't much of Kvyat's AlphaTauri left that won't need replacing. It was a huge impact against the barrier. The Russian driver pushes a TV cameraman out of his way as a sign of his frustration after the incident.
There's a few skidmarks on the road at Maggots after Kvyat's accident. One suspects they aren't the only ones.
Radio Comms
"The safety car needs to speed up," says Hamilton. Other drivers concur.
Radio Comms
"Daniel’s leaving way more than 10 car lengths. He leaves a massive gap to Carlos, like three, four, five seconds, and then pushes”, says Norris.
Information
And the safety car's about to head in.
Green flag
The Mercs absolutely bolt, as Grosjean gives Leclerc a few things to think about...
Information
Albon has been handed a five-second penalty for causing a collision - his opening lap clash with Magnussen.
Lovely scrap between Norris and Ricciardo - Norris grabs the outside line around Luffield and snatches P7.
Sainz being preoccupied by Norris helped Grosjean slink off into a bit of an advantage, but the Haas driver is now being caught back up...
Ricciardo has dropped off the back of the McLaren pair after being overtaken by Norris and is now fending off pressure from Stroll in the Racing Point.
Stopwatch
End of lap 21, and Hamilton has set a fastest lap of a 1m30.188s to extend his advantage over Bottas to 1.4s.
Sainz has a crack at Grosjean, attempting to dip past at Stowe - but the Frenchman resists his advances and hangs onto P5.
Radio Comms
Grosjean holds the McLaren off at Brooklands on the following lap, picking his lines very well indeed. Not that Sainz agrees, who says that he "changed direction, dangerous driving" on the previous run.
But Sainz now steals past with the DRS tow on the Hangar Straight, grabbing fifth place.
Grosjean's going to be DRS fodder now if Sainz can open the gap, with Norris, Ricciardo and Stroll all lined up behind.
Information
The Grosjean-Sainz incident is being investigated following a small weave from the Haas driver. Not quite on the level of Alex Smolyar in the F3 race, but a weave's a weave.
Now it is Ricciardo's turn to try to get ahead of Grosjean having seen both McLaren drivers pull off moves up the inside at Stowe. The F1 midfield pack is still tightly contested on lap27 with under 10 seconds covering Sainz in P5 to Albon in P14
Gap at the front 2.1s between Hamilton and Bottas, then, as lap 27 ends. Verstappen's five seconds further back.
Stroll gets away with one, as he runs wide and puts two wheels on the grass, which Ocon needs no second invitation to have a look at move but he thinks better of it.
Grosjean has been shown the black and white flag so he needs to be on his best behaviour for the rest of the race. The Haas driver is still fending off Ricciardo for seventh place.
Norris hasn't been able to drop Grosjean, nor has he been able to go after Sainz after launching an assault earlier on. Both McLarens in the top six, though.

By: Jake Boxall-Legge

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