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Antonelli Trumps Hamilton in Thrilling Silverstone Sprint Race
Andrea Kimi Antonelli claimed victory in the Silverstone sprint race after an intense battle with pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton, extending his championship lead.
By Michael de Vries - 2026-07-04T11:51:29.000Z - 2 min read
Andrea Kimi Antonelli won the sprint race at Silverstone, securing his first Saturday victory of the season. The Mercedes driver managed to trump pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton following an intense battle, consolidating his championship lead. Hamilton had surprisingly set the fastest time in sprint qualifying just a day earlier.
At the start, Hamilton narrowly held onto the lead by squeezing Antonelli tightly to the inside of the Abbey corner. Halfway through the race, once Antonelli was close enough, he overtook his Mercedes rival using Overtake Mode. "Once he got Overtake Mode, I couldn't hold him off any longer," Hamilton admitted afterwards. Behind them, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc endured difficult starts.
The opening stage featured a flurry of position swaps in the midfield, with names like Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, George Russell, Charles Leclerc, and Oscar Piastri trading places. Norris held his ground admirably to finish third, despite receiving a warning regarding his fuel consumption. Verstappen gradually lost pace, allowing Russell and Leclerc to pass him with relative ease, while Piastri dropped back to seventh.
Questions arose, however, regarding Ferrari's sudden speed. After a disappointing weekend in Austria, where Hamilton's car was by his own account over half a minute behind the winner, the team looked back in form at Silverstone. This circuit, with its high- and medium-speed corners, shares similarities with Barcelona, where Hamilton previously scored a convincing victory. Minor upgrades and the inherently strong Ferrari chassis appear to make the difference here, although teammate Leclerc is still struggling to unlock the car's full potential.
Beyond the main action, the sprint saw two incidents placed under scrutiny: Liam Lawson received an official warning for a late defensive move on Isack Hadjar, while Nico Hülkenberg remains under investigation for gaining an advantage by driving off track. With his victory, Antonelli expands his championship lead over teammate Russell to 43 points, with Hamilton a further four points adrift. Teams get the opportunity to alter their car setups following the sprint, which could make Grand Prix qualifying later on Saturday intriguing.