Max Verstappen moved closer to his second consecutive world title after outlasting his competition to win the Dutch Grand Prix (GP) at his home circuit.
With Lewis Hamilton in the perfect position for his first win of the season, Verstappen used a safety car resulting from a Valterri Bottas DNF late in the race to pit for softer tires and nailed the restart to easily overtake the seven-time world champion in shades of Abu Dhabi last year.
George Russell followed the Dutchman in changing tires for a final push resulting in him taking second place while Charles Leclerc managed to pass Hamilton as well for third place on the podium.
Hamilton berated his team for failing to foresee the strategy and responding to his rivals in time.
Perez finished fifth, Fernando Alonso was sixth for Alpine and Lando Norris finished seventh for McLaren. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz ended up eighth after starting third and finishing fifth on the road, relegated due to a five-second penalty for an unsafe release in the pitlane.
Alpine’s Esteban Ocon was ninth, strengthening the Renault-owned team’s grip on fourth overall, and Lance Stroll took the final point for Aston Martin.
Meanwhile, with his Dutch GP win, Max Verstappen now leads the driver’s championship by a staggering 109 points. He has now won four races in a row after already winning the French GP, Hungarian GP, and Belgian GP.
Leclerc and Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez are tied on points in second place overall, with the Ferrari driver ahead on wins with seven rounds remaining.
