Lewis Hamilton exorcises Abu Dhabi demons as years of pent-up fury evaporates at Silverstone

Waving to the 140,000 soggy-but-elated fans packed into Silverstone’s grandstands, sobbing uncontrollably into his helmet, telling his race engineer he loved him, thanking his team over and over, it was as if Lewis Hamilton had released the pressure valve on three years of pent-up emotions. Which, of course, he had.

What a British Grand Prix. What an afternoon. Hamilton may have won his home race a record nine times now, more than any driver has won any other grand prix. He may have 104 race wins to his name in total. But winning never gets old. Not when you have been through what he has.

The last time Hamilton won, 31 long months ago, was in Saudi Arabia in 2021. He left Jeddah that day level on points with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. We all know what happened at the next race in Abu Dhabi. “Honestly, when I came back in 2022 I thought I was over it, ” Hamilton admitted an hour or two after crossing the finish line, 1.4sec ahead of Verstappen at the end of a breathless, wet-dry, topsy-turvy race. “I wasn’t.”

It is difficult to overstate the effect that Abu Dhabi 2021 had on Hamilton; the cruel manner in which that championship was ripped from his grasp. The last two seasons have found him traipsing around the world in a mostly uncompetitive car, initially seething at the injustice of it all, then despairing at Mercedes’ inability to get him back to the front of the pack.

He admitted there were times when he struggled with his mental health, when he doubted himself, when it was “a challenge even to get out of bed”.

This was as raw as we have ever seen Hamilton. Drivers do not, as a rule, tend to cry after winning. Hamilton admitted he could not recall ever crying following a victory before. “It just came out of me,” he said. “And it is a great feeling and I am grateful for it.”

The two drivers sitting on either side of him in the press conference, Verstappen and McLaren’s Lando Norris, both looked nonplussed. Not at Hamilton’s win, necessarily. In fact, both made a point of pulling up alongside Hamilton at the finish to congratulate him.

For Verstappen, though, this race was further evidence that Red Bull’s momentum has stalled. First McLaren and now Mercedes are right on their case. “I was slowly dropping back when it mattered in the beginning so it didn’t look great,” admitted the Dutch driver, adding he was thankful his team “made the right calls” in terms of when to switch to intermediate tyres, and back again, during the race. For Norris, this was yet another race he could have won but ended up looking back on with regret.

After a grid packed with more celebrities than an Oscars after-party, including Hollywood A-lister Brad Pitt, who continues to shoot his F1 film due for release next year, the grand prix got underway on a track still drying from an earlier downpour.

Norris, starting third behind the two Mercedes, immediately lost a place to Verstappen in fourth. But McLaren had the fastest car in the first stint, and Norris had made his way to the front by lap 20. With the rain falling more heavily, then stopping, it became a question of when to switch to intermediate tyres, when to switch back to slicks, and which compound to switch to when you did. McLaren got the big decisions wrong.

Norris was brought too late for his second stop, overshot his marks by a full metre causing a slow wheel change, went on to the wrong compound, and ended up not only losing the lead to Hamilton but being passed by Verstappen behind him. He was honest enough to admit that he was partly to blame for the catalogue of errors. “I hate ending in this position and not having excuses for doing a good enough job,” he said. “I blame myself today for not making some of the right decisions.”

Hopes that we might see the first all-British podium for 56 years had already ended, on lap 33, when Hamilton’s teammate George Russell had to retire with a water system issue.

So Verstappen extended his lead in the championship once again. It now stands at 84 points, despite Red Bull not having had the fastest car for most of the last month. It is a long way back from here, albeit there is still half the season remaining.

But this race was not really about the championship. “GOAT,” wrote four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel on Instagram after Hamilton had crossed the line. “Congrats Lewis.”

The man himself was initially speechless. “This one means a lot,” Hamilton eventually managed, through tears, on his warm-down lap. “It means a lot to us all,” his engineer Peter Bonnington said. “I love you, Bono,” Hamilton replied.

After getting out of his car and draping himself in a union flag, Hamilton held his father Anthony in a long embrace, sobbing on his shoulder. Then his mum Carmen. The magnitude of what he had just done, in his final season with Mercedes, before his move to Ferrari next year, hit him like a train.

Was it as special as his first British Grand Prix win, in 2008, when he mastered even trickier conditions in one of the all-time great displays of wet-weather driving? Hamilton smiled. “I don’t feel I am able to compare,” he said. “But that is the longest stint that I have not had without a win - 945 days - and the emotion has accumulated over that time. This could be one of the most special ones for me, if not the most special one.”

The 2024 British Grand Prix, as it happened

05:08 PM BST

Listen: Hamilton tears up on the radio after his win

04:53 PM BST

A contrast for the Mercedes-driving Britons

An emotional Hamilton hugged his father Anthony for at least 20 seconds, and was then left wiping away tears as he celebrated success.

Meanwhile, after his water system failure, team-mate George Russell cut a more dejected figure - watching the last laps from the media mix zone as Hamilton roared home.

04:51 PM BST

A couple of points for Alexander Albon, too

Decent result. An improved showing for Aston Martin, too – seventh and eighth. Stroll getting the better of Alonso this weekend.

04:48 PM BST

Earlier in the week Hamilton had been slightly taciturn in press conferences

Giving a few one-word answers and, whilst not looking miserable, not exactly being full of the joys of sprint. It has been a tough couple of years and perhaps a tough season in many regards too – his final with Mercedes. I think he may be a little more verbose in the aftermath of this one.

04:45 PM BST

Hamilton embraced by both his parents

What a special moment.

Hard lines for George Russell who had a very strong race and may well have been in contention at the end. Still, his time will come here, I am sure. It was not to be today.

04:40 PM BST

Lewis Hamilton reacts to a 104th Grand Prix win

04:37 PM BST

Norris leans onto his podium stand as Verstappen speaks

Staring into his helmet. A lot to consider and I think he is more disappointed than he let on in the interview.

04:37 PM BST

Verstappen speaks after his second place

04:36 PM BST

Lando Norris speaks, first congratulating Hamilton

04:34 PM BST

BRITISH GP - Top 10

1. HAM

2. VER

3. NOR

4. PIA

5. SAI

6. HUL

7. STR

8. ALO

9. ALB

10. TSU

04:34 PM BST

Hamilton embraces his father Anthony not long after getting out of the car

You can tell it is the most emotional of embraces. And it is a lengthy one. Congratulations had just been delivered by his rivals just before. He then wipes away the sweat and probably his tears before running over to the grandstands and saluting the crowd as he has done so many times before here.

04:31 PM BST

Hamilton with a Union Flag in his cockpit

It’s an emotional in-lap to the pits. A 104th win, but will it be his sweetest? One of them, surely.

04:27 PM BST

Hamilton in tears on the radio

“Thank you so much. It means a lot. It means a lot to get this one. A big thank you to all the fans here, love you guys,” he says.

04:26 PM BST

LEWIS HAMILTON WINS THE 2024 BRITISH GRAND PRIX!

HIS FIRST WIN SINCE SAUDI ARABIA 2021! It has been a long-time coming but he wins a Silverstone classic. Norris, in the end, did not have enough. Russell, the Brit who was on pole had to retire the car.

Two wins in two for Mercedes now.

04:25 PM BST

FINAL LAP

Lewis Hamilton has done this so many times before. Just a handful of corners remain between him and a record ninth win at Silverstone.

Verstappen will have to settle for second, it seems. Where would Norris have been without waiting to change for intermediates and overshooting his pit box? In the lead? Maybe...

04:24 PM BST

Lap 51 of 52 - Hamilton leads Verstappen by 2.8sec

Verstappen isn’t going to run out of laps as such because I don’t think he has the pace to really challenge Hamilton at the moment. It’s a tenth or two here or there.

04:22 PM BST

Lap 50 of 52 - Verstappen not making a huge impression on Hamilton

The gap has just slipped under three seconds but he’s not a great deal faster currently. Hamilton has to lap some backmarkers but that shouldn’t be too much of a problem...

04:21 PM BST

Lap 49 of 52 - Hamilton leads Verstappen by 3.3sec

Norris, I am afraid, is no longer in contention for the win.

04:20 PM BST

Lap 48 of 52 - Verstappen within DRS range of Norris for second now

Hamilton has extended his lead over Norris, but Verstappen is closing in on him.

The pair go through Copse and the Maggots/Becketts complex. Verstappen will have DRS on the Hangar Straight and will surely get the move done.

Yes, he does! Around the outside and Norris didn’t really have anything in response to that move. Shame. 

Verstappen now hunts leader Hamilton, who is 3.3sec ahead.

04:18 PM BST

Lap 47 of 52 - Top six and gaps

1. HAM

2. NOR +2.9

3. VER +4.0

4. PIA +14.4

5. SAI +28.8

6. HUL +51.1

04:17 PM BST

Lap 46 of 52 - In fact, Norris needs to look behind him now, not in front

Verstappen is just 1.1sec behind him. Norris hasn’t really lost any further ground to Hamilton, though. Verstappen is, in cleaner air, a few tenths faster than the pair of them.

How does this race end? With a Verstappen/Hamilton duel on the final lap?

04:16 PM BST

Lap 45 of 52 - Bold prediction time?

I think Hamilton has got this one. Norris doesn’t quite seem to have the pace to close up yet.

04:13 PM BST

Lap 44 of 52 - Norris marginally quicker than Hamilton

It is comparable on pace, though. Verstappen is faster than them both as Hamilton loses a little bit more time the last lap around, half a second to Norris and 0.6sec to Verstappen, who is still in with a shout here.

04:12 PM BST

Lap 43 of 52 - Hamilton leads Norris by 2.6sec

Verstappen sets the fastest lap, about a tenth and a half faster than Hamilton in the lead. 5.5sec separates the top three, who are all still in this race. Will tyre degradation come into it with both the top two on the softs? Perhaps.

Hamilton is aiming for an ninth British GP win.

04:10 PM BST

Lap 42 of 52 - McLaren finding some pace here

Norris and then Piastri set fastest laps, about 0.4 and 0.6src faster than Hamilton. Piastri on the mediums. Hamilton and Norris on the softs. Verstappen on the hards.

04:09 PM BST

Lap 41 of 52 - Top six and gaps

1. HAM

2. NOR +2.3

3. VER +5.6

4. PIA +16.4

5. SAI +26.0

6. HUL +47.9

04:08 PM BST

Lap 40 of 52 - HAMILTON TAKES THE LEAD!

Norris gets to the end of the pit lane but Hamilton is already out ahead and in the lead! Norris was the leader so had more to lose in coming in early but I think everyone else knew the track was dry enough for slicks. It was a slow stop as well, that would have cost him too.

They are both on the same compound of tyres. There’s 2.6sec in it.

04:06 PM BST

Lap 39 of 52 - Norris leads Sainz

Neither of them have stopped for dry tyres. Norris is coming in at the end of the lap but he might just be able to squeeze it. Problem is that the drivers behind will have warmer tyres and will be right behind him. Will he go onto soft or mediums? Verstappen is on hards and Hamilton on softs. It’s a slow stop as he misses his marks and that might cost him. Norris goes onto the softs... will he keep the lead?

04:04 PM BST

Lap 38 of 52 - Verstappen the fastest man on track

A few drivers at the back switch to dry tyres including Magnussen and Ricciardo. Hamilton comes into the pits. Verstappen is also in but Norris stays out.

04:03 PM BST

Lap 37 of 52 - Hamilton is closing in on Norris

Not at a rapid rate of knots but steadily. Would suggest, with the sun out, it isn’t too long before we could switch to slicks. That said, with only 15 laps to go, worn inters might work just as well and you don’t lose the time for a pit stop, or track position.

04:00 PM BST

Lap 36 of 52 - Top six and gaps

1. NOR

2. HAM +2.0

3. VER +9.6

4. SAI +19.7

5. PIA +21.6

6. HUL +41.0

7. STR +44.6

8. ALO +53.4

9. TSU 58.0

10. ALB +61.7

03:59 PM BST

Lap 35 of 52 - The rain is easing slightly

Crossover for dry tyres is probably around the late 1:30s, perhaps.

03:57 PM BST

Lap 34 of 52 - RUSSELL IS OUT!

He has been told to retire the car. We do not yet know why but he is understandably not happy. His comments are not broadcastable. A suspected water system issue, according to Mercedes.

03:56 PM BST

Lap 33 of 52 - Top 10

1. NOR

2. HAM

3. VER

4. RUS

5. SAI

6. PIA

7. HUL

8. STR

9. ALO

10. TSU

03:55 PM BST

Lap 32 of 52 - Norris leads Hamilton by 3.5sec

Verstappen a further seven seconds behind. Russell hasn’t made much progress. Hamilton says his front tyres are falling apart.

03:54 PM BST

Lap 31 of 52 - Hamilton says “there’s no rain anymore” when told it’s lasting for another six laps

I can tell you there is, because I can see it out of the media centre window. I would suggest it’s in getting a little heavier, or at least the track is getting wetter because lap times have dropped off a tad.

03:51 PM BST

Lap 30 of 52 - Russell closing in on the back of Verstappen

The Red Bull driver says his tyres are degrading a lot. He was 0.8sec slower than Russell that last time round and 1.4sec slower than leader Norris.

03:50 PM BST

Lap 29 of 52 - Hamilton is told “this is your time”

This is the new order:

1. NOR

2. HAM +3.3

3. VER +7.8

4. RUS +10.6

5. SAI +13.6

6. PIA +18.6

That has cost Piastri a lot of time. Probably 20 seconds, at least. The rain doesn’t look hideously heavy but it is sticking around. It’s not wet at all in the  first sector. Rain is ending in 15 minutes, apparently. It will then be about switching to slicks at the right time.

03:47 PM BST

Lap 28 of 52 - Inters definitely the tyres now

How does this pan out for Piastri... not very well I would suggest. Norris is already on the back of him by the end of the Hangar Straight and that was with pitting at the end of the last lap. Should they have stacked them? Probably, yes.

03:45 PM BST

Lap 27 of 52 - Piastri closes in on Norris

He’s within half a second but DRS is distbled. Verstappen is told to box and he will do, surely going onto the intermediates. Not sure they are quite the right tyres now but they might be soon.

Norris gets a bit twitchy out of Luffield and into Woodcote and there is spray being kicked up as they go through Copse. They could all be humping into the pits now as the rain gets heavier.

Norris and Hamilton pit. As does Russell. Piastri stays out but can he lose not too much time as they rain gets heavier?

03:42 PM BST

Lap 26 of 52 - Top six and gaps

1. NOR

2. PIA +1.3

3. HAM +3.2

4. RUS +5.4

5. VER +12.5

6. SAI +13.0

Sainz then makes a mistake to drop a further second or so behind Verstappen.

03:42 PM BST

Lap 25 of 52 - Perez is now lapped

It’s not going well, his last lap was 15 seconds slower if you were wondering how the intermediate runners are doing.

Leclerc is on the inters but still runs wide.

03:40 PM BST

Lap 24 of 52 - The next, heavier, band of rain...

...is apparently going to last 30 minutes. That could significantly change the race.

03:39 PM BST

Lap 23 of 52 - Norris leads Piastri and Hamilton

Verstappen slipping back a bit.

03:36 PM BST

Lap 22 of 52 - A few drivers go onto the intermediastes

Including Perez, who immediately regrets his decision. “It’s too dry man, it’s too f------ dry,” he says.

03:36 PM BST

Lap 21 of 52 - Hamilton declines to move to intermediates

“It’s dry in a lot of places,” he says.

Here’s an updated top 10. Verstappen hasn’t quite lost touch with Russell but is 2.5sec behind.

1. NOR

2. PIA

3. HAM

4. RUS

5. VER

6. SAI

7. HUL

8. ALO

9. STR

10. TSU

03:34 PM BST

Lap 20 of 52 - Norris takes the lead!

Both Mercedes cares are struggling here and Norris gets Hamilton at turn one for the lead! Piastri isn’t far behind and gets bold, taking Russell for third! Hamilton isn’t too far ahead of him either and before the lap is over the McLarens, who look superior right now, are now 1-2! It’s fantastic action out there in slippery conditions.

03:32 PM BST

Lap 19 of 52 - Both Mercedes cars go off at turn one!

They follow one another off track. Norris is there to pounce on Russell and take second and complains that both Mercedes cars rejoined the track “very unsafely”.

03:31 PM BST

lap 18 of 52 - Hamilton is closing in on Russell!

He’s within a few tenths and is very close as they go through Copse. He will get DRS on the Hangar Straight and now it’s his turn to put it up the inside at Stowe! Hamilton takes the lead!

03:29 PM BST

Lap 17 of 52 - Piastri gets Verstappen!

Same place as Norris, up the inside of Stowe and the Dutchman is falling back and fast... not sure if it’s rain related but it doesn’t look too slippery out there at the moment.

03:27 PM BST

Lap 16 of 52 - “We expect heavy rain now”

“It’s going to happen soon,” is a team radio message. The ponchos are going on in the stands...

03:26 PM BST

Lap 15 of 52 - The rain has arrived

Currently light. Norris is very close to Verstappen now, though. And he puts a move up in the inside of Stowe to move up into third! And sets the fastest lap of the racer with it. We are back to a British 1-2-3. He came from a fair way back but would have had DRS.

03:24 PM BST

Lap 14 of 52 - Feels like we are in a holding pattern

03:23 PM BST

Lap 13 of 52 - Leclerc within DRS range of Stroll for seventh

Verstappen has dropped back to nearly three seconds behind Hamilton, who is 1.5sec behind leader Russell.

03:22 PM BST

Lap 12 of 52 - Perez still in 16th

In case you were wondering...

03:20 PM BST

Lap 11 of 52 - Drivers being informed of the weather now

Norris not exactly under pressure from Piastri but he’s keeping within a second. Verstappen is told this next rain will last five minutes before a gap of 10 minutes followed by a longer “cell” of rain.

03:19 PM BST

Lap 10 of 52 - Top six and gaps

1. RUS

2. HAM +1.5

3. VER +3.9

4. NOR +5.3

5. PIA +6.1

6. SAI +9.2

A long distance shot shows rain falling in the near distance. Whether it is heading this way I do not know. I hope so as things are looking a little stale.

03:17 PM BST

Lap 9 of 52 - Russell leads Hamilton by 1.7sec

Rain expected in seven laps, lasting for 10 minutes, apparently. Sergio Perez makes his way up to 16th with a move on Zhou up the inside of Copse.

03:14 PM BST

Lap 8 of 52 - That said...

...the gaps out front are increasing a little, as usually happens at this stage. 1.7sec between Russell and Hamilton, 1.8sec between Hamilton and Verstappen and 1.1sec between Verstappen and Norris. Piastri within DRS range of his team-mate, though.

03:13 PM BST

Lap 7 of 52 - Russell leads Hamilton by 1.6sec

Verstappen is keeping a steady 1.5sec behind Hamilton and in third which perhaps suggests that he is managing his tyres and biding his time for when he can unleash.

03:11 PM BST

Lap 6 of 52 - Verstappen gets a weather forecast

The “increased rain” is expected on lap 16. It’s not raining currently as far as I can tell, so not sure what the “increased” bit means.

03:10 PM BST

Watch: Russell keeps the lead at the race start

Replays show Norris just got squeezed out by Hamilton and ran off at turn three and that set up Verstappen for the pass quite easily.

Nothing in it, though.

03:09 PM BST

Lap 4 of 52 - Top 10

1. RUS

2. HAM

3. VER

4. NOR

5. PIA

6. SAI

7. STR

8. LEC

9. HUL

10. ALO

03:08 PM BST

Lap 3 of 52 - Russell extends his lead slightly

He’s not quite out of DRS range from Hamilton behind yet, though. Verstappen has dropped 1.4sec behind Hamilton and Norris is only 0.7sec behind the Red Bull and looks to be closing in on him.

Sargeant says he saw team-mate Albon lose a big piece of bodywork. Meanwhile, Hulkenberg has been noted for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.

Hamilton loses half a second to Russell by the end of the lap...

03:06 PM BST

Lap 2 of 52 - Russell leads Hamilton by 0.6sec

Then it’s Verstappen, Norris, Piastri, Sainz, Stroll, Leclerc, Hulkenberg and Alonso. Gasly retired before the formation lap was even over.

03:05 PM BST

THE 2024 BRITISH GRAND PRIX IS GO!

It’s a good start for Russell who keeps the lead over Hamilton. Not a good start for Norris, though, who loses out to Verstappen at the Loop and then down the Wellington Straight. The Dutchman looks like he’s about to pounce on Hamilton in second but he drops back slightly...

Not a disaster for Norris but he would have wanted to keep Verstappen behind him, quite clearly.

03:03 PM BST

Chris Hoy on the grid

Had a catch-up with Sir Chris Hoy on the grid. Was great to see him with his wife Sarra. He’s a big motorsport fan of course - he was telling me he had a win at Donnington only a couple of weeks ago.

03:01 PM BST

The formation lap is go

Everyone but Zhou, Ocon and Perez on the mediums.

02:56 PM BST

Brad Pitt was on the grid

And they have just released the first trailer for the new Formula One film which is simply called F1.

02:54 PM BST

Into the final 10 minutes before the race

And there is still no rain.

02:46 PM BST

Verstappen has been hard to get a read on all weekend

He has not maximised what he had and yes, you could say he was unlucky in sustaining floor damage after running wide and into the gravel at Copse in Q2... but the reality is it was a mistake and he paid a price for it. Would he have had the pace to challenge for pole without the damage?

Maybe, but he was nearly four-tenths off the ultimate pace. Was the damage worth that much? Maybe, maybe not. It is sometimes easy for the teams to say that it cost them more time than it did. You would expect him to be a feature in this race. It is probably the case that the two fastest cars are starting third and fourth, so hopefully that will provide some intrigue.

02:42 PM BST

This was a nice moment: Russell and Hamilton watch England win on main stage

Silverstone, sensibly, took the decision to show the England vs Switzerland Euro 2024 quarter-final on numerous big screens around the track. And Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, fresh from their front row in qualifying, were there to witness England’s penalty glory. Not sure how much of the preceding 120 minutes they caught, though.

02:39 PM BST

THE FINAL STARTING GRID

1. RUS 2. HAM
3. NOR 4. VER
5. PIA 6. HUL
7. SAI 8. STR
9. ALB 10. ALO
11. LEC 12. SAR
13. TSU 14. ZHO
15. RIC 16. BOT
17. MAG 18. OCO 
19. GAS

PIT LANE: PER

02:35 PM BST

Perez, meanwhile, will now start from the pit lane

He has fitted new ICE, energy store, control electronics outside of his allocation after parc ferme so will start from the pits. The full grid coming up shortly.

02:32 PM BST

Slicks are the order of the day currently as the rain stops

Lewis Hamilton has just done another lap to the grid on a set of soft tyres. Ferrari tell Charles Leclerc that there is “no more rain” except “maybe an hour into the race”. The Met Office radar I am looking at suggests a significant shower in the next 30 minutes or so that could pass just after the race start.

02:29 PM BST

Perez has another stinker

It was not too long ago that Sergio Perez signed a contract extension for Red Bull. The announcement that he would partner Max Verstappen in 2025 came not too long after he retired from the Monaco Grand Prix and things have been little better since. There was a retirement in Canada, before eighth in Spain and seventh in Austria. It’s not out of the question that he scores points from down in 15th on the grid today, but it is unlikely to be a great many of them.

It comes after he started the season reaching, if not exceeding, expectations with four podiums, a fourth and a fifth in the opening six races. Yet in the following five he has scored just 15 points. It is form like this that puts Red Bull’s hopes of winning a third consecutive constructors’ title in doubt should McLaren keep their form up.

02:24 PM BST

The track they will be racing on today

02:23 PM BST

The gazebos are up on the grid...

...as the drivers leave the pit lane on the intermediate tyres. That said, it will dry pretty quickly now because the sun is out, it has stopped raining. Charles Leclerc says the track is drier than he expected.

02:15 PM BST

Spotted in the paddock

Brian May and Adrian Newey outside the Red Bull hospitality.

No Queen puns from me. May famously has a PhD in astrophysics. Newey a dab hand with physics of the terrestrial variety.

02:13 PM BST

Weather updtae

It is raining again at Silverstone. Not that heavily or steadily but certainly more than just drizzle.

02:11 PM BST

How much have Mercedes progressed?

These are their points totals and qualifying positions (in brackets) for the season so far.

1. 16pts (3,9)
2. 10pts (7,8)
3. 0pts (7,11)
4. 8pts (7,9)
5. 18pts* (8,18)
6. 12pts* (7,8)
7. 15pts (6,8)
8. 17pts (5,7)
9. 28pts (1,7)
10. 27pts (3,4)
11. 45pts (3,5)
12. TBCpts (1,2)

In other words, before Montreal they had a car on the front two rows of the grid once and averaged 9.8 points per round. Since then they have had a car on the front two rows six times and average 33.3pts per round. And you would imagine they might score at least 25-30 today.

There are some caveats, like Verstappen and Norris coming into trouble in Austria, which inflated their points total. Yet this is a kind of sustained progress that the team have failed to achieve since these new regulations came into effect in 2022.

01:59 PM BST

The big question on everybody’s lips is the weather

Well, that is one of them, at least. It has been at times a soggy weekend here on the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border, though the F1 has mostly been run in dry conditions. After a few showers earlier in the day the rain really started bucketing it down at about 11.30am this morning just before the Porsche Supercup race.

Since then it has cleared up significantly with the sun coming out for a period of time. At time of writing the track is completely dry. The race starts in just over an hour and there are mixed signals on the chances of rain, depending on your provider.

The Met Office are predicting a pretty dry race, with just a 10 per cent chance of rain in the couple of hours until 5pm. That said, their radar shows a shower approaching in the next hour or so, though it may just skirt the circuit. BBC say that there is a 50-60 per cent chance of rain during the race. It is warmer today than yesterday, in any case, so any dampness will clear up sooner.

01:48 PM BST

Russell elated after one of his finest days in F1

This was George Russell’s third pole position in F1, second this season and first at his home race. It also extended his qualifying record over team-mate Lewis Hamilton to 10-2. That extends to 12-3 if you include the sprint qualifying which, frankly, you should because it is measuring the same discipline – pace over one all-out lap. Here’s what he said about the car yesterday.

01:42 PM BST

Final times after qualifying

1. George Russell (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1min 25.819secs

2. Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1:25.990

3. Lando Norris (Gbr) McLaren 1:26.030

4. Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 1:26.203

5. Oscar Piastri (Aus) McLaren 1:26.237

6. Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Haas F1 1:26.338

7. Carlos Sainz Jr. (Spa) Ferrari 1:26.509

8. Lance Stroll (Can) Aston Martin 1:26.585

9. Alexander Albon (Tha) Williams 1:26.640

10. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Aston Martin 1:26.917

11. Charles Leclerc (Mon) Ferrari 1:27.097

12. Logan Sargeant (USA) Williams 1:27.175

13. Yuki Tsunoda (Jpn) RB 1:27.269

14. Guanyu Zhou (Chn) Kick Sauber 1:27.867

15. Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) RB 1:27.949

16. Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Kick Sauber 1:32.431

17. Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas F1 1:32.905

18. Esteban Ocon (Fra) Alpine 1:34.557

19. Sergio Perez (Mex) Red Bull 1:38.348

20. Pierre Gasly (Fra) Alpine 1:39.804

01:38 PM BST

Good afternoon F1 fans

Welcome to our coverage for the 2024 British Grand Prix. As far as home interest goes, qualifying yesterday could not have gone any better. George Russell took pole position – his third in F1 and his second this season – ahead of Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton and McLaren’s Lando Norris.

Was it a surprise? A little bit, as Hamilton expressed afterwards. That said both drivers said how great the car felt and, although the conditions in the first two parts of qualifying were changeable, Q3 was run entirely in the dry.

Norris would have been strong favourite for pole before the session but a small mistake cost him time on his final run (having trailed Russell by just 0.006sec after his first hot lap) but he was already a tenth down at that point.

This all underlines the progress that Mercedes have been making in recent months. For at least two years it was a case of one step forward and sometimes two steps back, with little real progress on their cars. Now, they are starting to look like a match for Red Bull and McLaren. They are certainly faster than Ferrari, whose progress has stalled in recent months and are now the fourth fastest team.

What about Verstappen, who will line up fourth today? Throughout the weekend it was hard to get a read on his ultimate potential. That remained the case in qualifying as he ran wide in Q2 and picked up some damage to the floor. How much did that cost him? The amount of time that would have put him in a fight for pole? Perhaps, but I am not sure even Verstappen had enough for that this weekend.

We were used to Mercedes front-row lockouts for their dominant years but the question is whether they can hang on to it after the lights go out. That Norris was not too disappointed with third suggests he knows he has a fine car in race trim and one that is probably faster than the Mercedes. Indeed Russell said he thought on race pace they were a tenth behind their rivals. There is a chance of the odd shower this afternoon so either way it could be an interesting race and with a decent chance of a British winner.