Silverstone Delivers Memorable but Controversial British Grand Prix

Formula 1 returned to the site of its very first world championship race in 1950 as Silverstone hosted a memorable British Grand Prix last weekend. Charles Leclerc broke a 20-month win drought, but the race ended in confusion for fans after the safety car — which came out after a Max Verstappen spin with four laps remaining — led the drivers home with the initial message that the race would restart with one lap remaining rescinded.

Safety Car Ending Sparks Fan Discontent

The end of the British GP left a sour taste for many fans. After the initial 'safety car ending' message was shown on the TV graphics, teasing a restart on Lap 52, which would have made the race a last-lap shootout, the safety car continued around to begin the final lap.

According to the FIA, the 'safety car in this lap' message was displayed in error. Although the track had been cleared after Verstappen's crash, cars had been instructed to lap themselves, after which there must be one extra lap completed behind the safety car.

"Nobody can plan for somebody to have an incident," George Russell said after the race. "The way F1 deals with it and FIA deals with it shouldn't be any different at the end of the race compared to the start of the race."

Essentially, what happened at Silverstone is what should have happened under the rulebook at Abu Dhabi in 2021. As for a stoppage-time pause to ensure a green flag finish, a cleaner way than having an 'extra' lap could be writing into the regulations that there must be a mandatory red flag if there is a safety car within a certain number of laps of the finish.

Verstappen Struggles with Rear Wing Issues

It was not only a tricky weekend for Verstappen. In two consecutive races, Verstappen has crashed at a high-speed corner, though neither instance was his fault. The outcome may be the same, but the Dutchman said Sunday the reasons for the crashes were different, though still related to the rear wing.

Like in Austria, it wouldn't attach/close properly, which caused a loss of downforce and Verstappen to spin. He was third when he went into the gravel at the Stowe turn and proceeded to swear over the radio, saying, "I'm stuck, mate. F*** this car, f***! Unbelievable. F*** this."

"At that point it's super dangerous, because you can really hurt yourself two times," he said after the race when asked about his radio messages. "I was lucky in Austria, I was lucky here, but that's why you get really fed up with it."

Across the entire weekend, Verstappen struggled. He pointed out how the car's balance was "terrible" and had "no top speed" compared to the other Red Bull car. Matters were so bad that Verstappen wanted to start Sunday's race from the pit lane so changes could be made.

"It would be a very zen person to be optimistic at the moment with what's happening again this weekend," he said. "I'm sorry, but it's just like that. I need a few days to reset and try again."

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said Verstappen was "right to be unhappy" but that he was confident the team could make sure this type of incident didn't happen again.

"From the early analysis, we have suffered a different type of failure," said Mekies. "It doesn't make it better, but it is clear that, in front of the succession of events, whether or not the failure is different, that doesn't really matter. We are going to review the full area to make sure we leave zero chance for that to happen again."

McLaren and Williams Continue to Struggle

McLaren and Williams, two teams that have not been as competitive this year as in previous seasons, also struggled at Silverstone.

McLaren's Development Woes

To put it simply, things aren't fabulous over at McLaren. As mentioned in the post-Austrian GP mailbag, the team is "at least two months of development" behind the other teams, according to team boss Andrea Stella, who was speaking after qualifying at Red Bull Ring.

Lando Norris went as far as to say it's "not a nice car to drive, maybe one of the hardest cars I've ever driven in Formula 1."

Oscar Piastri felt it wasn't temperature-specific but that they did struggle in the windy conditions — though with the caveat "it seemed like it just spread everyone out." But the assessment of McLaren sitting around third or fourth fastest is fair.

"We're the third or fourth quickest car but, in the right conditions, with good starts, we can get ourselves in the fight," the Australian driver continued, "almost punching above our weight."

Stella believed McLaren was about half a second behind Ferrari and Mercedes but that the team's "pace with Red Bull was closer." Upgrades are in the works and will be brought in for the Hungary Grand Prix at the end of this month, Stella confirmed Saturday at Silverstone.

Williams Sliding Down the Grid

This season was always earmarked by Williams and its team principal, James Vowles, as the year it could take a big step forward. Instead, the British team has slid down the grid.

Williams outstripped expectations last year with its fifth-place finish in the constructors' championship and pair of podiums for Carlos Sainz. Retaining that spot at the top of the midfield this year was a natural target, only for winter production delays leaving the team on the back foot.

After crossing the line 12th Sunday, Sainz explained his concern about the growing margin to the teams ahead.

"We've shed a lot of weight out of the car by now, but the gap to the front keeps increasing and the gap to the middle keeps increasing," said Sainz. "We don't seem to be finding the lap time that we expected in the weekend."

He admitted to feeling "worried" that the new front wing hadn't made much of an impact.

"We're having serious issues when developing this car and we're not bringing the performance that we thought we were," he added.

Vowles explained Friday that Williams was working on "one big upgrade" — similar to Aston Martin — that is essentially a B-spec car.