F1: Verstappen wins the Hungarian Grand Prix
Max Verstappen made it two wins out of his last two races as he won the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday. Verstappen won the race despite starting it in the tenth position. Lewis Hamilton and George Russell of Mercedes took the remaining podium places.
Verstappen started the race in the tenth position due to a disappointing qualifying session on Saturday. George Russell took pole position at the start of the race for the first time in his career. Verstappen's nearest challenger for the title Charles Leclerc started the race in third.
Verstappen made a good start pushing himself up to eight on the race's first turn. And more was to come from the 24-year-old as he continued climbing up the leaderboard to second place in the 41st lap by racing past Charles Leclerc.
Disaster almost struck a lap later for Verstappen as he spun on a turn allowing Charles Leclerc to retake second place. "I dropped the throttle, and I just spun!", Verstappen told his Red Bull team after the incident. But it was no problem for the season leader, who retook the spot just three laps later.
Verstappen took the lead after 52 laps when Lewis Hamilton went into the pits for a pit stop. Verstappen was left with a race against time to finish the race before the rain started coming down in Budapest, Hungary. Still, fortunately, the reigning champion could do just that and cap off an impressive victory.
"I was hoping I could get close to a podium, but we had a really good strategy, we were really reactive. Even with the 360, we won the race! I was battling a lot of guys, it was a lot of fun out there. Crazy race, very happy we won it", Verstappen told reporters after the race.
F1 will now take a three-week summer break. The next race is scheduled in Liege, Belgium, on the 28th of August. Verstappen will go into that race with a 70-point lead over the nearest challenger Charles Leclerc.