Max Verstappen’s march towards a third consecutive Formula 1 championship faces its biggest challenge yet, as he will try to win the British Grand Prix for the first time in his career this weekend.
Red Bull may have been the dominant team in 2023, but they have yet to record a win at Silverstone in quite some time.
That’s not to say that they aren’t the favorites to win, but considering their prior history at Silverstone, one can anticipate Mercedes and Ferrari putting up a strong fight this weekend.
With Red Bull pulling away from the pack, primarily because of Verstappen’s dominance, Mercedes and Ferrari are under pressure to deliver positive British Grand Prix 2023 results, especially as we’re slowly approaching the end of the 2023 campaign.
Contrasting fortunes of Mercedes and Ferrari in Austria
Mercedes appeared to be Red Bull’s closest challengers these past few weekends, but their momentum was halted when they came out flat in Austria.
After placing third in the Canadian Grand Prix and leading a 2-3 finish with teammate George Russell in the Spanish Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton finished P7, and Russell was right behind him at P8 in Austria after a string of penalties for track limit violations were handed down.
Hamilton, in particular, lamented that the W14 didn’t have it in the Red Bull Ring. He’s right because the W14 didn’t have the balance, as they took out a part of their front wing, which meant that the car was slipping in certain corners, and they also didn’t have a strong rear end for the track’s high-speed turns.
In contrast, Ferrari had one of their most competitive weekends of the season thus far, with Charles Leclerc finishing P2, his first podium since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. actually finished fourth on the grid but was demoted to P6 due to the track limit penalties.
The introduction of their new front wing and the improvement of the SF-23’s raw pace were steps in the right direction because they only missed out on pole by 0.048 seconds behind Red Bull.
Ferrari are reportedly bringing in another raft of upgrades for this weekend’s race, hoping that their car will do better than it did in Austria.
Can Norris inspire McLaren on home soil?
After finishing 17th and 13th in Spain and Canada, Lando Norris caught everyone off guard when he placed fourth last week, his best finish so far this season.
Norris started slow from fourth on the grid, as he lost out to Lewis Hamilton on Turn 1. However, he fought his way back to finish fifth on the grid, which eventually became P4 after the track limit penalties were handed out.
Austria saw a major upgrade on Lando Norris’ car, unlike his teammate Oscar Piastri, which was the main reason for his remarkable performance. McLaren improved the MCL60’s aerodynamics when they revamped its floor and sidepods.
Norris’ outing in Austria gives McLaren something to work with moving forward. And with more upgrades coming soon, we could be looking at a different team than one that has started its campaign on the back foot.
History
Lewis Hamilton has a lot of fond memories of Silverstone because he is mainly responsible for Mercedes’ dominance on this track this past decade, winning seven out of the last 10 races and eight total.
One of his most memorable performances was in 2020, when he held on to win despite driving half of the final lap with only three tyres while Max Verstappen was chasing him down.
Silverstone will also hold a special place in Carlos Sainz Jr’s heart because he recorded his maiden win here last year, where he took advantage of several lucky breaks.
Mark Webber was the last Red Bull driver to win in Silverstone (2012), his second (and last) career Formula 1 race victory.
What are the odds?
Red Bull are poised to finally win in Silverstone this weekend, as Max Verstappen is priced at 1.30 and Sergio Perez is at 1.60 in the 1X2 market.
However, they can expect heavy resistance from Mercedes and Ferrari, as Lewis Hamilton is installed at 1.45, while his teammate George Russell is at 2.05, whereas the combo of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr. is at 1.77 and 1.80, respectively.
Lando Norris took everyone by surprise last time out, but the SBOTOP British Grand Prix 2023 odds aren’t expecting him to finish as high as he did in Austria, as the McLaren racer is pegged at 2.58.
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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