British Grand Prix Sprint: Kimi Antonelli denies Lewis Hamilton the win
F1 NewsSaturday, 04 July 2026 at 13:30
Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli took the win for the 2026 British Grand Prix Sprint Race, denying pole starter Lewis Hamilton a win on home turf.
The seven-time Formula 1 Champion had a fight on his hands from the start with Antonelli having a great start gunning for the lead, but Hamilton managed to keep him at bay after some aggressive defending.
Lights out in #F1Sprint!!
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 4, 2026
Watch the race start 🎥#F1 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/QowW0B5y18
From there on, the Antonelli set out chasing Hamilton who managed to defend for some time but didn't have enough grunt in his SF-26 to shake off the Mercedes youngster.
Ultimately, the Italian finally managed to make a move on the Briton and made it stick on Lap 8 after which the latter tried to hand on but to no avail.
And Antonelli take the lead! 🔀#F1Sprint #BritishGP | LAP 8/17 pic.twitter.com/I3JwlMSrmj
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 4, 2026
Antonelli gradually managed to pull himself out of overtake threat from Hamilton and went on to take the win.
Behind the top two, things were a bit interesting and Max Verstappen, starting from third had another one of Red Bull Racing's horrible starts and dropped three places.
On the other hand, both McLarens had great starts with Lando Norris jumping to third and Oscar Piastri going up to fourth as Charles Leclerc also lost places.
Verstappen tried to make amends and was as high as fourth at some point challenging Norris for third but could not make a pass.
The Dutchman soon dropped into the clutches of George Russell and Charles Leclerc and after some tussling and yo-yo racing, he ultimately finished sixth with Leclerc passing him for fifth.
The battle for P4 😮
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Russell ⚔️ Verstappen ⚔️ Leclerc#F1Sprint #BritishGP | LAP 10/17 pic.twitter.com/7GmJ22PYWk
Russell managed to finish fourth, and while he closed the gap to Norris till the end, he couldn't managed to make a pass on the reigning F1 Champion who took the final podium position.
Piastri faded out after the first few laps and finished in seventh ahead of Liam Lawson who took the final point after managing to keep a late-charging Isack Hadjar behind.
Hadjar is fighting Lawson for the final point! ⚔️#F1Sprint #BritishGP | LAP 16/17 pic.twitter.com/1wGicfkmfQ
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 4, 2026
What the top three said
After taking his first Sprint Race win in his young F1 career, Antonelli reflected on a great battle with Hamilton; he said: "It was a very fun first 10 laps with Lewis. We were both pushing very hard.
"When I got into Overtake [Mode], I knew my chance was coming. Out of Turn Four I was very close, so I went alongside into Brooklyns but he used the boost, so I decided to wait.
"Going into Stowe I used everything I had, then I was able to overtake. From that point on I tried to get into my rhythm and try to break the Overtake Mode then bring it home."
Asked about the form he had been enjoying so far, Antonelli explained: "The momentum is there. We are doing a great job together with the team but we cannot let our guard lower.
"Lewis and Ferrari are doing an incredible job. Red Bull and McLaren are coming and George is super quick.
"We just need to keep raising that bar and keep delivering performances," he concluded.
Kimi's first #F1Sprint win 💪#F1 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/w39H0PpQHz
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 4, 2026
"Tough race to keep the Mercedes behind," Hamilton lamented after missing out on the win.
He explained: "I did say that was potentially the case yesterday and obviously with it being so windy today, a big, big headwind down the back-straight, he came flying past.
"I was pushing as hard as I could, I gave it absolutely everything. But well done to Kimi and we've got work to do to try and close that gap so we can keep up," Hamilton concluded.
Norris had a great recovery after struggling in qualifying with a damaged brake duct which cost him downforce.
"That was a very good race. I'm very, very happy," the McLaren driver said. "A good start, good first lap. Not the pace to go with these guys [Antonelli and Hamilton] but I had a good battle with George and the others behind me.
"Pleasantly surprised but it's just the Sprint and we have to do it all over again," he added pointing out some issues to iron out with the car, saying: "There were a couple of little things we can certainly do better.
"It was a good race. Good points. I gave it everything I could. George was catching me pretty quickly at the end," Norris concluded.
British Grand Prix Sprint Provisional Classification
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