British GP 2026: Leclerc wins as Antonelli's Mercedes breaks

Charles Leclerc won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on Sunday 5 July, taking the lead from second on the grid at the start and crossing the line behind the safety car, 0.427 seconds ahead of George Russell. Lewis Hamilton was third. It was Leclerc's ninth career win, his first at Silverstone and his first since Austin in October 2024, and Ferrari's 250th in Formula 1.

How Leclerc won the British Grand Prix

Kimi Antonelli had won the Sprint and taken pole, then lost both positions in the run to the first corner as the two Ferraris got away cleanly. Hamilton got away a little too well: he moved before the signal and was given a five-second penalty. Antonelli passed him into Copse on lap 11 and settled about four seconds behind Leclerc.

The pit stops gave Antonelli the lead for a few laps. Once he had made his own stop he was 7.5 seconds behind the Ferrari, and he had cut that to 3.1 seconds by lap 41 when he reported a problem. Mercedes found a failed left-front wheel shield. Two extra stops and a five-second track limits penalty later, the championship leader finished outside the points.

The finish was settled under yellow. Max Verstappen spun into the gravel at Stowe on lap 48 and the safety car came out. Leclerc and Hamilton pitted for soft tyres; Russell, who had lost time earlier with a slow puncture, stayed out and jumped Hamilton for second. The safety car stayed out to the end, so there was no final lap of racing. Leclerc called the win "incredible" but admitted it was not the ending he had dreamt of.

Teammate duels: Russell vs Antonelli, Leclerc vs Hamilton

On F1 Duels each driver is measured against the only one with the same car. Silverstone produced four verdicts worth keeping; the full set is on our British GP page.

Mercedes. Antonelli won the qualifying head-to-head and lost the race to a broken part. Russell took the points that mattered: the gap between them in the standings fell to 25. In our count their 2026 duel is now level at 4–4 in races, with Antonelli 5–4 ahead in qualifying.

Ferrari. Leclerc beat Hamilton on Saturday and on Sunday. Hamilton's jump start cost him five seconds, his stop under the safety car cost him second place, and he still took his 16th British GP podium, keeping it after a reprimand for a yellow flag infringement. Leclerc leads 6–3 in qualifying this year, but the race tally stays 5–3 to Hamilton.

Red Bull. Isack Hadjar out-qualified Verstappen, fifth against seventh on the grid. Verstappen got ahead of him early on Sunday, then threw it away at Stowe, and Hadjar finished fifth despite a slow stop. That gives Hadjar his first race win over Verstappen of the season in our count, which now reads 1–4.

McLaren. Lando Norris qualified sixth, two places ahead of Oscar Piastri, and the race was decided on the opening lap. Piastri made contact with Liam Lawson at the start and pitted for a new front wing at the end of lap 1; he finished 11th, while Norris recovered to fourth. Their head-to-head is 5–4 to Norris in qualifying and 3–2 in races.

Further back, Racing Bulls brought both cars home in the points, Lawson sixth ahead of Arvid Lindblad. Franco Colapinto started 19th and finished ninth, one place ahead of Alpine teammate Pierre Gasly, who had dropped to 15th on the grid with a three-place penalty for impeding.

What it means for the championship

Antonelli still leads on 179 points, but this was his second race without a score in three. Russell is next on 154, Hamilton on 147 and Leclerc on 108. In the constructors' standings Mercedes lead Ferrari 333 to 255.