|
The Hungarian Grand Prix ended
in a one-two finish for McLaren, its fourth in a row and the sixth this
season, its 56th in total. Lando Norris secured the team’s 200th win, second
only to Ferrari on 248 on the all-time winner’s list. Completing an all-anglophone
podium in the fortieth edition of the race at the Hungaroring was George
Russell, third behind Oscar Piastri. This was the Mercedes driver’s sixth
podium finish of the season, the 21st of his career.
THE DAY ON TRACK:
All three compounds were used in the race. On the starting grid, the vast
majority of drivers (15) went with the Medium. The trio of Albon, Sainz and
Hulkenberg chose the Soft, while Hamilton and Gasly opted for the Hard. In
terms of strategy, drivers were pretty evenly split with ten going for a
one-stop and nine pitting twice. The longest stint came courtesy of Esteban
Ocon who did 55 laps on the Hard, while Gabriel Bortoleto and Liam Lawson
went furthest on the Medium (40 laps) with Yuki Tsunoda completing 17 on the
Soft.
MARIO ISOLA - MOTORSPORT DIRECTOR
“The first part of the season came to an end with a very interesting race,
with three drivers fighting for the win. In the end, victory went to Norris,
beating team-mate Piastri by a whisker. The two McLaren drivers were on
different strategies, the Englishman going for a one-stop, the Australian
two. On paper the two-stop was quicker, but the cooler, by about ten
degrees, temperatures compared to Friday free practice, slightly closed the
gap between the two options, also in part because thermal degradation was
reduced for all three compounds compared to what we saw two days ago.
Honestly, we still felt the two-stop was best, you just need to look at the
gap that Alonso built up, in fifth, compared to Russell. The exception was
Norris, who opted to only stop once, after finding himself fifth after the
opening lap. The small performance difference between the Medium and Hard
along with the clear difficulty in overtaking with cars running pretty
similar race pace, made it worth risking an unconventional strategy because
at that point, he had nothing to lose.
All things considered, today
we still managed to have a race in which different strategies were in play
for the win, which made the second half of the race particularly exciting
from a tactical point of view, even if not that spectacular in absolute
terms.
Before we too go on the summer break following a very busy
first part of the season, we still have one more task on track, here at the
Hungaroring. On Tuesday 5 and Wednesday 6 August, we will run a test session
aimed at 2026 tyre development. On the menu, validating constructions, as
these must be homologated by 1st September and development of the softest
compounds, especially from C3 to C5. Supporting us in this on the first day
will be McLaren with Norris at the wheel and Racing Bulls with Lawson
driving. On the second day Ferrari will run Leclerc, while Alpine is doing
both days, the first with Aron at the wheel, the second with both Colapinto
and Gasly."
FORMULA 2
It was a
one-two finish for Invicta Racing in the Feature Race, Leonardo Fornaroli
winning from Roman Stanek. The Italian’s win was all the more impressive as
he had to take a five second penalty during the race. It was his third win
of the season, a first in a Feature Race. In third place was the American
Jak Crawford (DAMS Lucas Oil).
On a track that was still a bit damp,
but suitable for slick tyres, 14 drivers started on the Soft and eight on
the Medium. The softer compound suffered from a bit of graining because of
the lower temperatures this morning, but it helped drivers make up some
places off the line. Pitting at the right moment was vital for everyone, in
order to still have a good performance level in the closing stages.
Fornaroli is now on 154 points and increases his lead in the Drivers’
standings with Crawford moving up to second on 137. Richard Verschoor (MP
Motorsport) drops to third on 135 points, while Luke Browning (Hitech TGR)
is up to fourth on 125 and Alexander Dunne (Rodin Motorsport) rounds off the
top five on 124 points.
FORMULA 3
Rafael Camara (Trident) was the Sunday star in Budapest.
The Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy student won the Feature Race and thanks
to the 27 points he picked up today he also clinched the 2025 FIA Formula 3
Drivers’ Championship title. The race started on a wet track but it soon
dried out. The Brazilian started from pole for what was a rolling start and
then led all the way to the chequered flag, managing the race even though
Spain’s Mari Boya (Campos Racing) was an almost ever-present threat. The
third step of the podium was occupied by another student from the Maranello
Academy, namely Finland’s Tuukka Taponen. Camara’s points total is now
unassailable, even if there is still one more round to go in early September
in Monza, as second placed Boya is 48 points behind.
The Cinturato
Blue Full Wet tyre was put to good use, featuring a new tread pattern. In
mixed conditions – the track was very wet at the start before drying out, at
least on the racing line – the tyre behaved very well, providing plenty of
useful data for future development, not just for this category of racing.
|
