Verstappen Overtakes Leclerc to Win Sprint at Imola

First placed Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands, left, talks with second placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco on the podium of a sprint race at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari racetrack, in Imola, Italy, Saturday, April 23, 2022. (AP)
First placed Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands, left, talks with second placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco on the podium of a sprint race at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari racetrack, in Imola, Italy, Saturday, April 23, 2022. (AP)
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Verstappen Overtakes Leclerc to Win Sprint at Imola

First placed Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands, left, talks with second placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco on the podium of a sprint race at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari racetrack, in Imola, Italy, Saturday, April 23, 2022. (AP)
First placed Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands, left, talks with second placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco on the podium of a sprint race at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari racetrack, in Imola, Italy, Saturday, April 23, 2022. (AP)

Max Verstappen overtook Formula One leader Charles Leclerc on the penultimate lap to win the sprint race at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix on Saturday and reignite his season.

Verstappen started the sprint in pole position after finishing first in Friday’s qualifying, but the Red Bull driver was overtaken by Leclerc’s Ferrari as soon as the lights went out, much to the delight of the "tifosi."

But Verstappen doggedly pursued Leclerc and swept around the outside of the Ferrari into Tamburello then stormed away to secure victory and top spot on the grid for Sunday’s grand prix.

He finished 2.975 seconds ahead of Leclerc and 4.721 ahead of Red Bull teammate Sergio Pérez.

"The start was very bad. I don’t know exactly what happened or why it was so bad but after that we had to stay calm," Verstappen said. "Initially, it looked like Charles had more pace but I think he ran out of tires and we could close the gap and make the move.

"I know maybe tomorrow it might be different. But today it worked out for us."

Verstappen's one point for the sprint meant he trailed Leclerc by 45. However, Leclerc actually extended his overall lead. He was 40 points ahead of teammate Carlos Sainz Jr., who moved above Mercedes driver George Russell into second in the standings.

"It’s still a front row start," Leclerc said. "We struggled with the tires at the end, so we need to analyze that for tomorrow. The main race is tomorrow and we need to make sure that we are ready. We will work and come back stronger tomorrow."

Sainz started the sprint in 10th after a crash in Friday’s incident-packed qualifying session but finished fourth, just ahead of McLaren duo Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo.

Valtteri Bottas, Kevin Magnussen, Fernando Alonso and Mick Schumacher rounded out the top 10 of the grid.

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton will start in 14th as Mercedes' miserable weekend continued.

"We haven’t got it right this year but everyone is working hard as they can to correct it," Hamilton said. "We stick together, we try to motivate everyone.

"We are obviously not fighting for the championship but we are fighting to understand the car and improve and progress through the year. That’s all we can hope for right now."

Leclerc has won two of the season's three races and will be hoping to end Ferrari's three-year wait for a victory on home soil - and at a circuit named after the Italian team’s founder and his son: Enzo and Dino Ferrari.

Imola returned to the F1 calendar in 2020 after a 14-year absence, but this is the first time in three editions that fans have been allowed in because of the coronavirus pandemic. More than 120,000 tickets have been sold for the weekend.



Lando Norris Wins, Nico Hulkenberg Makes History at British GP

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain celebrates winning the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at the at the Silverstone Circuit racetrack, Britain, 06 July 2025.  EPA/PETER POWELL .
McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain celebrates winning the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at the at the Silverstone Circuit racetrack, Britain, 06 July 2025. EPA/PETER POWELL .
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Lando Norris Wins, Nico Hulkenberg Makes History at British GP

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain celebrates winning the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at the at the Silverstone Circuit racetrack, Britain, 06 July 2025.  EPA/PETER POWELL .
McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain celebrates winning the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at the at the Silverstone Circuit racetrack, Britain, 06 July 2025. EPA/PETER POWELL .

McLaren's Lando Norris won his first British Grand Prix -- his home-country event -- in a race that had no shortage of twists and turns.

Beginning under dry skies that soon turned rainy at Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, England, the race also saw Germany's Nico Hulkenberg finish third. For the 37-year-old Kick Sauber driver, it was his first podium in 239 Formula One starts.

And the second-place finisher, McLaren's Oscar Piastri, put himself in great position when he passed polesitter Max Verstappen of Red Bull, but that all changed when Piastri was penalized 10 seconds for coming out of a safety car restart too slowly.

And for Brit Lewis Hamilton, the defending champion, it was a fourth-place finish at his home grand prix. It marked his first finish off the podium after 12 consecutive podiums at the event, with his late push falling short, Reuters reported.

Verstappen finished fifth, falling out of the top three following a spin off the course.

Norris won in one hour, 37 minutes and 15.735 seconds, finishing 6.812 seconds ahead of his Australian McLaren teammate.

Hulkenberg held off Hamilton by just over five seconds.

As expected, two of the top three finishers were overjoyed in their post-match comments -- with one not so much.

"It is beautiful. Apart from a championship, this is as good as it gets in terms of feelings," Norris said of the win in England. "Incredible race, stressful as always but the support from the fans made the difference so I have to thank them.

"The main thing is don't it up, that is rule number one. It might never happen again. Hope it does, but these are memories I'll have forever."

Hulkenberg was equally jubilant, especially since he started 19th on the grid.
"It's been a long time coming hasn't it?! What a race, coming from virtually last. ... Crazy conditions, survival mode all race. We were really on it, no mistakes," he said.

"Today, I was in denial until the last pit stop and then I heard we gapped Lewis so I thought OK, breathing space but then he was closing. The pressure was there, intense race but we didn't crack."

Piastri declined to go into details after the penalty, which he served at a pit.
"I'm not going to say much, I'll get myself in trouble," he said. "Congrats to Nico, that's the story.

"Apparently you can't brake behind the safety car anymore. I had done it for five laps before but I'm not going to say more, I'm going to get myself in trouble. I still like Silverstone even if I don't like it today."