Hungary - Race

Lando Norris surprised everyone when he took the pole position during Saturday's qualifying. In a season marked by Mercedes dominance, seeing a front row without a single silver arrow only made the fans more excited to watch the last race before the summer break. The Hungarian Grand Prix did not disappoint, delivering a race filled with surprises, heartbreaks, and, as has often been the case in the 2026 season, penalties. 

Although Norris began the race at the very front, he didn't get to enjoy the lead for long, as he was almost immediately overtaken by his teammate, Oscar Piastri. Behind the battle of the two McLarens, Charles Leclerc noted a terrible race start that put him behind both Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. Still, he was not the driver for whom the first lap was the most disappointing. Due to a failure of his anti-stall system, George Russell could not get his Mercedes moving and thus fell towards the very back of the grid. Although he slowly made his way up the field throughout the race, the early incident virtually erased his chances of a truly satisfactory result. 

The top cars stayed relatively close together, all chasing each other in hopes of improving their position, until time came for the first wave of pit stops. Due to the high degradation on the track, most strategies included changing the tires at least two times, providing ample opportunities for race-changing strategic decisions. Hamilton was the first driver battling for the podium to visit the garages, doing so after only 13 laps and bolting on a set of softs. The decision to call him in ended up being incredibly beneficial, as it allowed him to undercut Verstappen, who pitted a lap later, and thus put him in net second position. The joy did not last long, as the Dutchman regained his previous place on lap 16. 

The two McLarens pitted a few laps after their immediate contenders, giving the provisional lead to Kimi Antonelli, who had not yet driven in for a change of tires of his own. The Italian only did so on lap 22, coming out sixth, behind Leclerc. Little changed in the order of the top six before Hamilton inaugurated the second wave of stops on lap 31. The early pit was supposed to give him a second opportunity to undercut Verstappen, but ended up not working out as Ferrari may have intended, since the driver came out behind Red Bull's Isack Hadjar, and thus lost precious time with every corner. 

Piastri pitted on lap 33, making his teammate the new race leader. His race was, however, derailed by an incident involving one of the backmarkers, Carlos Sainz. Although the Williams driver was shown multiple blue flags, he did not remove himself out of Piastri's way, and the two cars made contact. Sainz was given a 5-second penalty, but that was of little comfort to Piastri, whom the incident cost enough precious time to allow Norris to overtake him, having completed a second stop of his own. 

Verstappen and Antonelli, both of whom had pitted only once, stayed at the front of the field for quite a few laps before Norris managed to catch up to them. On lap 54, Antonelli pitted, falling to P6, behind Leclerc. The decision ended up being costly as only two laps later, Piastri lost his gearbox and parked on track, joining the previously retired Cadillacs in the unfortunate group of drivers who could not finish the Grand Prix. A virtual safety car was called in, allowing some drivers to change their tires one last time. Norris took the chance, as did the two Ferraris. Verstappen stayed out, securing his P2, but also setting himself up for a tough few laps on his incredibly used tires. 

Racing resumed on lap 57, and Antonelli quickly overtook Hamilton for the last podium position. The Brit tried to regain the position but to no avail. Soon it was revealed that his efforts would not have mattered either way, as he was given a 5-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane. Due to the added time, he finished the race fifth, behind his teammate. He was not the only driver to see a penalty-caused fall in the order. The same fate befell Oliver Bearman, who was penalised for ignoring blue flags. 

Norris brought fans back to the 2025 season when he crossed the finish line first. Although many counted Verstappen out due to his incredibly old tires, he proved that nothing was impossible for him, finishing second, ahead of the current WDC leader, Antonelli. 

Order of the grid:

1. Lando Norris

2. Max Verstappen

3. Kimi Antonelli

4. Charles Leclerc

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Isack Hadjar

7. George Russell

8. Liam Lawson

9. Nico Hulkenberg

10. Arvid Lindblad

11. Oliver Bearman

12. Pierre Gasly

13. Lance Stroll

14. Fernando Alonso

15. Franco Colapinto

16. Esteban Ocon

17. Oliver Bearman

18. Alex Albon

19. Carlos Sainz

DNF: Oscar Piastri, Sergio Perez, Valtteri Bottas