Lando Norris secured a landmark first home victory at the 2025 Formula 1 British Grand Prix, leading a brilliant McLaren 1-2 in a thrilling wet-weather race at Silverstone.
Norris mastered the changing conditions to take the chequered flag ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri, who held onto second despite a time penalty.
Nico Hulkenberg completed the top three for his first-ever podium finish in F1 on a remarkable day for the Sauber driver.
Max Verstappen lined up on pole after delivering a flawless lap in Saturday’s qualifying, with Piastri alongside him on the front row.
The British trio followed closely behind, with Norris and George Russell starting from the second row, and Lewis Hamilton lining up fifth for his Ferrari Silverstone debut.
Verstappen leads into Turn 1 as rain shakes up the race start
The wet weather affected Sunday’s proceedings, with rainfall hitting the circuit just under an hour before the formation lap.
Every driver started on the Intermediate tyres with the Alpine of Franco Colapinto starting from the pit lane.
The formation lap began under the Safety Car but with a standing start confirmed.
Both Russell and Charles Leclerc pitted before the race start for slick tyres, the Mercedes driver opting for the Hard tyres whilst Leclerc chose the Mediums.
Gabriel Bortoleto, Oliver Bearman and Isack Hadjar all decided to abandon the wet-weather tyres as well.
Verstappen led into Turn 1 despite Piastri getting a slightly better start at lights out.
Norris fended off a challenge from Hamilton behind as the pair continued to battle throughout the opening lap.
At the start of Lap 2, the Virtual Safety Car was called after Liam Lawson had pulled to the side of the track before Brooklands.
The Racing Bulls was hit by the Haas of Esteban Ocon, who reported damage to his car as he carried on.
Out of Turn 5, the Kiwi was hit by Ocon and sent into a spin before coming to a stop.
Amidst the chaos, Colapinto retired from the race after his A525 got stuck in second gear.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli was the next to box for slick tyres, choosing the Hard tyre like his Mercedes team-mate did.
The Italian rookie emerged ahead of Russell in 13th place as the VSC ended on Lap 4.
Bortoleto spins out and retires after slick gamble
Bortoleto, running on Medium tyres, lost control of his Sauber on the exit of the Hamilton Straight but managed to keep the car running as he recovered on the still-damp Silverstone circuit.
By Lap 5, Piastri was applying heavy pressure on Verstappen at the front when Bortoleto came to a stop just before the Maggots and Becketts complex.
The VSC was deployed once again to allow his car to be safely cleared.
The Aston Martin of Lance Stroll was next to pit, but for a set of Soft tyres, whilst the VSC came to an end on Lap 7.
Whilst parts of the track was beginning to rapidly dry, certain sections still had damp patches, and with the threat of further rain, 11 drivers stayed out on Intermediate tyres.
However, DRS was enabled on Lap 8 as Piastri continued to hunt down Verstappen for the lead of the race.
On the Hangar Straight, the Red Bull driver ran wide as the McLaren swooped past with ease.
Earlier on, Russell was allowed by Antonelli thanks to team orders, as Leclerc looked to take 14th place of the Mercedes driver.
The Ferrari driver made the move stick on Lap 10 as the slick tyre runners began to make significant progress.
Yet Antonelli came in straight away for a set of wet-weather tyres in anticipation of the imminent rain.
Meanwhile, Piastri opened up a four-second gap to Verstappen whilst Norris began to close in on second place.
Drivers on the dry tyres pitted as the rain started to pour down heavily on the Silverstone circuit.
Race leaders pit for another set of Intermediate tyres as the rain intensifies
Norris was all over the gearbox of Verstappen and the reigning World Champion, who ran wide at Chapel, allowing another McLaren to get by – both drivers pitting along with the race leader.
The British driver, however, had a slow pit stop, which allowed Verstappen to retake the position.
By this stage, Piastri had pulled out a commanding 10-second lead, while Stroll moved up to fourth after switching back to Intermediate tyres.
The rain soon intensified, forcing teams to seriously consider moving to full Wet tyres.
As conditions worsened, the Safety Car was deployed, with the order shaken up as those who had switched back from slicks to Intermediates gained positions and broke into the top 10.
Replays later showed Leclerc running straight off track before rejoining several corners further down the road.
Hulkenberg, Pierre Gasly and Ocon all benefited from the chaos, running fifth, sixth, and seventh, respectively.
Hamilton dropped to eighth, with Russell in ninth and Fernando Alonso rounding out the top 10 by Lap 15.
Piastri now lost his advantage out front as the racing action resumed at the end of Lap 17.
Verstappen tumbles down the order as Piastri receives a time penalty
With the entire field now on Intermediates, some fresher than others, Piastri continued to lead the British GP.
Russell initially got past Hamilton before the Ferrari driver retook the position, both passing the Haas of Ocon.
The Safety Car was redeployed after Hadjar rear-ended Antonelli, struggling with low visibility and poor grip on his worn Intermediates.
Despite the contact, the Mercedes driver was able to continue, but with damage to the rear diffuser – the 18-year-old pitting for a new set of tyres.
Racing resumed at the end of Lap 21, but drama quickly followed as Verstappen suddenly spun out at Stowe, dropping down to 10th place.
Piastri was under investigation for a potential Safety Car infringement after slamming on the brakes, forcing Verstappen to take evasive action moments before his spin.
Elsewhere, Bearman spun at Brooklands and rejoined in 15th, while Antonelli was forced to retire at the end of Lap 23.
Stroll, remarkably, now occupied a podium position as Hamilton ran wide into Maggots, which allowed Russell to take sixth place.
A 10-second time penalty was handed to the race leader for the incident at the restart, Norris in prime position to take the race victory at Silverstone.
Russell began to close in on Gasly for fifth, but soon found himself under pressure from behind as Hamilton reclaimed sixth place.
Yuki Tsunoda was also handed a 10-second time penalty for causing a collision after he spun round Bearman at the restart.
Hamilton on a charge as Piastri continues to lead despite time penalty
On Lap 30, into the Vale chicane, Hamilton finally overtook Gasly for fifth as the Alpine driver ran slightly wide at Stowe.
Back to the front, Piastri remained in the race lead with a three-second gap to his McLaren team-mate.
However, Norris began reeling in the leading McLaren as Hulkenberg piled the pressure on the Aston Martin running in third.
DRS was re-enabled on Lap 34, and Hulkenberg wasted no time sweeping into third place, with Hamilton close behind, ready to snatch fourth from Stroll.
The seven-time World Champion made his move stick into Turn 1, while further back, Verstappen claimed ninth from Carlos Sainz.
Russell struggled to find a way past Gasly as Leclerc passed Alex Albon for 11th place.
Alonso was the first to pit for a set of slick tyres on the Mediums as the gap between Piastri and Norris came under two seconds by Lap 39.
Russell was next as he was stuck behind the Alpine, a set of Hard tyres fitted to the W16.
As replays showed Leclerc getting past Sainz, the British driver spun around at Becketts and returned to the track on the Hangar Straight.
Norris was setting the timing sheets alight, but the crossover point remained some distance away as the race began to near an end.
On Lap 41, Verstappen passed Gasly for sixth as Hulkenberg continued to fend off any challenge from Hamilton for third, Ferrari calling him for a set of Softs.
Several drivers followed him in as he tiptoed his way back onto the circuit with Leclerc flying past still on the Intermediates.
Drivers pit for slick tyres in the closing stages
Hulkenberg came in on the next lap, as did Leclerc, and Piastri came in on Lap 44 to serve his time penalty and return to the track with a set of Mediums.
Norris pitted the following lap for the same tyres and rejoined the race as leader, closing in on victory with only a few laps remaining.
His team-mate ran wide through Becketts, with the Australian suggesting a swap to allow fair racing, believing his penalty was unjust.
Verstappen got past Stroll for fifth place on Lap 51 as Albon found himself in ninth once all of the drivers pitted for a final time.
Russell, after his spin, was in 10th with Bearman now hot on his gearbox in the closing stages.
Leclerc returned to 14th after his off moments, but it was a day to saviour for Norris as he crossed the line as a winner at Silverstone.
Piastri settled for second for another 1-2 for the papaya squad as Hulkenberg finally achieved the elusive podium he has been chasing his entire F1 career.
Hamilton came home in fourth for Ferrari, ending his consecutive podium streak at Silverstone, with Verstappen recovering to fifth after his earlier spin in the race.
Gasly stole sixth right at the death, Stroll demoted to seventh as a result and Alonso finished eighth in the other Aston Martin.
Albon secured ninth to bring home valuable points for Williams, while Russell completed the top 10 on a disappointing day at his home Grand Prix.
READ MORE – F1 2025 British Grand Prix – Race Results
… number 1 problem we have, in organized motorsport: … race rigging. Grand Prix of Britain is always (ALWAYS) rigged –