Hamilton repels late charge by Verstappen for F1 win

SILVERSTONE, ENGLAND — Lewis Hamilton held off Max Verstappen’s late charge to win a thrilling British Grand Prix on Sunday and secure his first victory since the penultimate race of the 2021 season. Hamilton became the first F1 driver to win on any track nine times and extended his F1 record to 104 wins.

“You’ve got to continue to dig deep even when you are feeling the bottom of the barrel,” he said. “My fans around the world have been so supportive.” It was a fitting way for Hamilton to end his last British GP with Mercedes, before joining Ferrari. “I wanted to win this so much for (the Mercedes team) because I love them and I appreciate them,” he said. The seven-time F1 champ beat defending champ Verstappen by 1.5 seconds. Lando Norris was third for McLaren ahead of teammate Oscar Piastri.

A tearful-sounding Hamilton thanked his team over the radio and was still emotional several minutes later as he struggled to compose himself. “I’m still crying,” Hamilton said, addressing the crowd. “There’s definitely been days between 2021 and here when I didn’t feel I was good enough.” There were high hopes for a home win at Silverstone, with Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate George Russell on pole position ahead of Hamilton, Norris going from third and Verstappen fourth. Russell’s hopes of a second straight F1 win ended on Lap 34 of 52 with a suspected water system issue on his car. A few laps later, McLaren botched Norris’ tire change. Verstappen overtook Norris with four laps left but couldn’t catch Hamilton. Verstappen is 84 points ahead of second-place Norris in the standings.

MATTHEW VINCENT/PA VIA AP Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain celebrates after winning the British Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday in Silverstone, England, edging defending F1 champ Max Verstappen by 1.5 seconds.