Kimi Antonelli wins Sprint in Silverstone and extends championship lead

Start phase and first pressure

In the eighth lap, Antonelli opened the decisive phase. He exploited an advantage in energy management and overtook Hamilton on a straight, where Hamilton suddenly lost a considerable amount of speed. "Kimi just flew past me," said the record world champion. "I couldn't hold him off anymore, unfortunately."

After the overtaking manoeuvre, Antonelli dictated proceedings at the front. Hamilton kept the gap at around 0.8 seconds for a time, but by the finish the distance had grown to 2.7 seconds. In positions two to four followed three British drivers – Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris and George Russell – a first in the history of the Sprint format.

For Antonelli, who has already won five of eight Grands Prix this season, it was his first Sprint victory ever. At 19 years of age, he is also the youngest winner of any Sprint race in Formula 1.

Wolff congratulates over the radio

Wolff congratulated him over team radio. Immediately after the finish line, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff contacted his driver and asked with a wink: "Does the fastest lap at the end make you happy?" The teenager replied with a smile: "Yes, that makes me even happier." From the garage came further praise: "Very impressive, very well done."

"From the moment I got past, I found my rhythm. Then I found my rhythm," said Antonelli in the winner's interview. He also said: "The momentum is there, we're doing a great job with the team." The 1,000-PS cars from Mercedes and Ferrari had, in his assessment, made "an incredible step forward" in terms of pace.

Asked about the duel, the Italian said: "The first ten laps were hard, following Hamilton. The first ten laps with Lewis were really fun. When I got into overtake mode, I knew a chance would come my way soon." For the Mercedes driver, it is "the 1st success ever in a Sprint race in Formula 1."

Hamilton's home race without a happy ending

Hamilton looked back on the Sprint with mixed feelings. "It was a tough race," he said, "and it was a tough race to keep Mercedes behind me." He admitted: "Lewis is in great form." Nevertheless, he raved about the atmosphere: "It's so incredible here, I've probably never seen so many fans here in Silverstone." He could "not even describe" "what a great dream it still is to this day when you prepare for this race."

His home race suits him anyway, Hamilton stressed – he has already won at Silverstone nine times and stood on the podium 15 times. He was delighted about pole position: "Wooow. I love this place, I love these fans." When asked about the prospect of the Grand Prix on Sunday, he said: "I am grateful to have got this pole" and am "looking forward to a great race."

In the championship standings, Antonelli extended his leading position. With 179 points he continues to lead clearly ahead of his Mercedes team-mate George Russell, who finished the Sprint in fourth place and now trails by 43 points. Russell was last victorious in Spielberg.

Championship standings: Antonelli extends lead

McLaren driver Lando Norris finished third, just under ten seconds adrift, and said: "It was a good race from us, with a super start and good pace. We both gave everything. The two out front were too fast; against the others it was enough."

The remaining points positions were taken by Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari in fifth, Max Verstappen in the Red Bull in sixth, Oscar Piastri in the McLaren in seventh and Liam Lawson in the Racing Bulls in eighth. Lawson kept Verstappen's team-mate Isack Hadjar 0.7 seconds behind, although an investigation against the New Zealander is still ongoing.

There was little to gain for Nico Hülkenberg. The German, who is still pointless this season in the Audi, classified 13th. "The car was just too slow, we had no chance," Verstappen lamented, who did not get beyond sixth place. His Red Bull team-mate Hadjar also finished without points.

Voices from the paddock

Antonelli already warned his rivals ahead of the main race: "Me and the team are doing a super job, but we have to set our goals higher and raise the bar even higher, because Hamilton and the others are getting closer and closer." He also said: "I knew my chance would come. My rhythm is there, we're doing a great job with the team. But we have to keep delivering performance."

Against the backdrop of Ferrari's dominant recent update performances, Mercedes boss Wolff pointed to the level of the competition. His Ferrari counterpart Frédéric Vasseau parried questions about the budget cap: "If you think we're exceeding the cost cap, then that's where I'm going with it." Wolff was at the Austrian Grand Prix "a little surprised that Ferrari can make such huge updates on the car so quickly."

Outlook on the main race

Ferrari team principal Vasseau countered: "If Red Bull or Mercedes develop something, they're geniuses. If we develop something, we're cheating." In his assessment, "they should soon run out of money under the cost cap, because we can't afford something like that," Wolff added. However, the title fight, from Vasseau's perspective, is "within the legal framework of the cost cap of 215 million US dollars."

To open proceedings on Saturday, qualifying for the British Grand Prix was still on the programme, which can be seen live on ORF at 16:40. The main race starts on Sunday at 16:00 CEST. Emma Felbermayr also contested her first Silverstone run in the F1 Academy, which was broadcast from 19:00 on the YouTube channel of the women's series. The date is historic in any case: five years ago, the first Sprint race in Formula 1 history took place at Silverstone.