F1 Spanish Grand Prix 2023 LIVE! Race result, updates and latest news as Max Verstappen wins in Barcelona

Max Verstappen recorded a dominant victory at the Spanish Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton and George Russell finished second and third for Mercedes.

Verstappen led all 66 laps at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya to record his fifth win from the opening seven rounds and extend his championship lead.

Hamilton started fourth but finished runner-up, with team-mate Russell completing the podium places on a strong afternoon for the Silver Arrows after recent changes.

Sergio Perez finished fourth after moving ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz with a dozen laps remaining. He was, however, unable to close the gap on Russell in third.

Lando Norris saw his race hopes ended quickly after colliding with Hamilton at Turn Two in what was a hugely disappointing day for the Briton.

Verstappen’s title lead over his Red Bull team-mate Perez now stands at 53 points with a week off before the next round in Canada on June 18.

Barcelona Grand Prix updates

• Race report

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17:06 , Jonathan Gorrie

Thank you for joining Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of the Spanish Grand Prix.

Find our full race report below!

16:25 , Jonathan Gorrie

16:16 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lewis Hamilton looks back of a brilliant day for Mercedes

16:00 , Jonathan Gorrie

“What an awesome crowd. What a result for our team. The Bulls are still a bit ahead but we’ll keep chasing them down”

George Russell speaks out

15:54 , Jonathan Gorrie

“Kudos to the team for giving me a really great car today. That was a fun race for us starting in P12 and coming all the way to P3. Hopefully a sign of things to come for us”

Verstappen sails to routine win but signs of promise for Mercedes

15:50 , Jonathan Gorrie

Max Verstappen of Red Bull won the Spanish Grand Prix from pole position on Sunday to strengthen his hold on the Formula One championship.

The two-time defending champion was never challenged on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya after beating Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari to the first turn.

Lewis Hamilton crossed the finish line second in his Mercedes to equal his best finish of the season. Fellow Mercedes driver George Russell completed the podium on a positive day for the Silver Arrows.

It’s over - Max Verstappen WINS the Spanish Grand Prix

15:35 , Jonathan Gorrie

And there we have it! A 5th win of the season for Verstappen.

Hamilton and Russell also on the podium.

LAST LAP!

15:32 , Jonathan Gorrie

Here we go!

Closing in now

15:31 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 65: This is the moment for Perez!

Russell still some way ahead but the Mexican has been saving his tires for exactly this moment...

Verstappen gets the black and white flag

15:28 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 60: The Duthchman is pulled up for exceeding track limits.

Still, such is the strength of his lead, a penalty wouldn’t be a huge disaster.

All kicking off

15:22 , Jonathan Gorrie

16 second lead for Hamilton

15:19 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 54: The Red Bull driver has not had to worry at all.

Hamilton trails by almost 20 seconds, while Russell has been warned to watch out for Perez in the closing stages.

So strong from Mercedes

15:11 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 48: They’re on course for a double podium, a huge vindication of the changes they made last month.

Ferrari going for this

15:01 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 42: Sainz has been told to really go out at Perez in second.

Hard tires bolted on as the Ferrari driver looks to make a statement.

Really impressive from Piastri

15:00 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 39: Having started 9th, Piastri has really impresed.

With Norris a victim of early drama with Hamilton, he’s keeping a hold of the 8th spot in commanding fashion.

Some confusion

14:51 , Jonathan Gorrie

Russell thinks its raining in Barcelona....

(It is literally just sweat)

Both Mercedes drivers box

14:41 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 26: Both Russell and Hamilton box, allowing Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz to move into second and third respectively.

Very little danger for Verstapppen as things stand.

Sainz into the pits

14:34 , Jonathan Gorrie

Sainz into the pits

Lap 21: Sainz onto medium tyres now and is not particularly happy about it, having spoken so fondly of his early pace.

Verstappen continues to set the pace.

Ferrari tell Carlos Sainz to keep a cool head

14:25 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 14: “Be patient, pace is good” rings out on the Ferrari team radio.

George Russell recovering

14:24 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 12: It was certainly a disappointing start for Russell down in 12th but the Mercedes driver is really going for this now.

Up into 5th after the Mercedes driver picks off Ocon.

Further good news with Lewis Hamilton now tracking down Sainz in second.

Nice work from Leclerc

14:15 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 7: Having started in the pit lane, Leclerc has moved up to 16th with a lovely move past Alex Albon.

Verstappen’s lead over Sainz now approaching four seconds.

Norris has tumbled

14:12 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 3: Not the quickest of pits for te Brit, who has now tumbled down the order following that collision with Hamilton.

Replays show they clashes at Turn Two, with Norris’s front wing endplate flying off.

Verstappen still holds a two-second lead over the chasing Sainz.

Verstappen ahead

14:06 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 1: Verstappen ahead!

Really good start from the Red Bull driver, who will take some stopping from here.

Early drama

14:04 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lap 1: Norris and Hamilton make contact as Verstappen gets away well!

LIGHTS OUT!

14:04 , Jonathan Gorrie

Away we go!

Almost there!

13:50 , Jonathan Gorrie

National anthems coming now as we get set for today’s race in Barcelona.

Fernando Alonso refuses to give up in title fight as Max Verstappen wins again in Monaco

13:43 , Jonathan Gorrie

Fernando Alonso is adamant the title race is not over despite Red Bull making it six wins from six in 2023 at Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen had warned the grand prix at the principality would be the toughest challenge to his hegemony this F1 season before surviving the rain to win comfortably by 28 seconds from Alonso.

Read the full story here!

Lewis Hamilton encouraged by Monaco Grand Prix upgrades after ‘amazing’ practice run

13:26 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lewis Hamilton expressed his encouragement by his upgraded Mercedes after the first day of Monaco Grand Prix practice on Friday, even though the principality’s tight and twisting streets were no place for a meaningful assessment.

The seven-time Formula One champion, who has not won a race since 2021, was third fastest in the first session and sixth in the second.

“I’ve generally had an amazing day, I really enjoyed driving today,” he said.

Read the full story here!

‘Intrigued’ Hamilton eagerly awaits acid test of Mercedes upgrades

12:56 , Jonathan Gorrie

Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix should give Mercedes a better picture of the true potential of its upgraded Formula One car, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton said on Thursday.

Mercedes introduced the upgraded car for last weekend’s F1 race in Monaco, with changes to the sidepod and suspension, but the nature of the slow and twisty street circuit made it hard to draw any conclusions.

“You can’t really tell a lot from Monaco, you would never choose to test an upgrade at Monaco,” Hamilton told reporters at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Read the full story here!

Verstappen offers F1 advice on how to curb Red Bull’s dominance

12:30 , Jonathan Gorrie

Max Verstappen has told Formula One how it could consider putting a halt to the dominance of his Red Bull team.

All six races of the 2023 season have been won by the Anglo-Austrian outfit with championship leader Verstappen taking four of them, including last weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix.

F1 is now in Barcelona for the second part of a double-header and Verstappen has outlined why a constantly changing rulebook - which was most recently altered to combat Mercedes’ superiority - can have adverse affects.

Read the full story here!

Verstappen tops practice in Spain as Hamilton labours

12:26 , Jonathan Gorrie

Max Verstappen completed a Friday practice double for the Spanish Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton finished only 11th on a disheartening day for the seven-time Formual One world champion and his Mercedes team.

As Verstappen predictably set the pace for Red Bull at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Hamilton, 12th in the day’s first running, ended second practice six tenths off the pace.

Home favourite Fernando Alonso raised hope that he could challenge Verstappen and his all-conquering Red Bull team after he finished second for Aston Martin, just 0.170 seconds back.

Hamilton accuses Russell of dangerous driving after 200mph collision

12:04 , Jonathan Gorrie

Lewis Hamilton accused George Russell of “dangerous” driving after the Mercedes team-mates collided at 200mph in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen will start Sunday’s race from pole position ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz with British driver Lando Norris an impressive third for McLaren.

Hamilton lines up in fourth, despite a bizarre coming together with Russell, who qualified 12th, on the main straight at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya.

Read the full story here!

Spanish Grand Prix weather forecast

12:01 , Jonathan Gorrie

There is a mix of sunny weather and light rain scheduled for Barcelona on Sunday.

22 degrees is expected to be the top temperature, with a 30 per cent chance of rain during the course of the race.

Starting grid

12:00 , Jonathan Gorrie

1) Max Versappen

2) Carlos Sainz

3) Lando Norris

4) Lewis Hamilton

5) Lance Stroll

6) Esteban Ocon

7) Nico Hulkenberg

8) Fernando Alonso

9) Oscar Piastri

10) Pierre Gasly

11) Sergio Perez

12) George Russell

13) Zhou Guanyu

14) Nyck De Vries

15) Yuki Tsunoda

16) Valtteri Botas

17) Kevin Magnussen

18) Alexander Albon

19) Charles Leclerc

20) Logan Sargeant

How to watch the Spanish Grand Prix

12:00 , Jonathan Gorrie

TV channel: The full weekend will be broadcast live on Sky Sports, with race coverage on Sunday starting on Sky Sports F1 at 12.30pm BST and Main Event at 2pm. Free highlights are available on Channel 4 at 6.30pm.

Live stream: Sky Sports subscribers can tune in online via the Sky Go app.

Live blog: You can follow every minute of the race with Standard Sport’s live blog.

Welcome

11:57 , Jonathan Gorrie

Good afternoon and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of the Spanish Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen once again leads the way as Red Bull look to assert their dominance once more.

Lights out at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is at 2pm BST.