By Ben Langley
Silverstone is the venue of round nine of the Formula 1 World Championship as the British Grand Prix looks set to deliver another thrilling weekend on a legendary circuit. George Russell will look to clinch his first home win after his first win in seven races last weekend in Austria. If Russell wins at Silverstone, it will be three different British winners in the last three years following Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris’ successes in 2024 and 2025 respectively.
The favourites for this weekend will once again be Mercedes after winning seven out of eight races so far this campaign. Silverstone is a track that Mercedes love, even during their more uncompetitive years of the past. Russell will be looking to cut the championship deficit to Kimi Antonelli for the third consecutive race, but the Italian still appears to have the edge in pace when both are avoiding any reliability problems.
Hamilton is another wise choice to win this weekend. The seven-time champion has been in strong form of late and he heads to a track where he has won nine times, a record for any driver at a single circuit. The question marks over Hamilton’s ability to challenge Mercedes remains the power deficit of the Ferrari engine. This deficit was exposed on the power-sensitive circuit of Spielberg last weekend and Silverstone is another track where power is key. However, the increase in corners and the requirement for a strong aerodynamic package and chassis may bring Ferrari back into the fight this weekend.
The other two big teams of McLaren and Red Bull cannot be counted out either. Like Mercedes, McLaren are another team who have gone well at Silverstone in the past, and it was Norris who led a papaya 1-2 ahead of Oscar Piastri in last years’ race. Max Verstappen could challenge too, after his ability to challenge Mercedes in Austria. It is a race where Verstappen has won twice in the past, as he searches for his first win this season.
Silverstone is the host for this season’s fourth sprint weekend of the season which means extra points are up for grabs. Despite Antonelli holding a 40-point lead in the drivers’ championship, the Italian is yet to win a sprint this season.
It is difficult to look past Mercedes to take the spoils this weekend and if Antonelli can maintain a clean weekend, he has to be the favourite to win and extend his championship lead. A thrilling weekend awaits.
WHEEL2WHEEL REPORTS 