Max Verstappen Gives Red Bull a Record 12th Successive Win in Hungary: How It Went Down

The race saw Verstappen deftly outmaneuver pole-positioned adversary Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes before easing into the lead. With an impressive nonchalance, he widened the gap between himself and the followers, bagging a comprehensive victory that added to his points lead over teammate Perez.

This feat amplifies Red Bull's perfect scorecard for the 2023 season, as they established a new record for consecutive race victories, edging past McLaren's 1988 run of 11 wins with Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. Norris lagged behind as Verstappen captured the chequered flag with a significant lead. Despite trailing behind McLaren co-driver Oscar Piastri initially, Norris maneuvered his way back to the second position during the initial round of pit stops.

Meanwhile, on hard tires like George Russell, Perez ascended from ninth to third with another robust comeback drive. Hamilton's dream of converting his 104th pole into his 104th victory was shattered as Verstappen, Piastri, and Norris overtook him in quick succession, only to be aggravated when Perez's strategy outplayed him. However, the seven-time champion managed to clinch the fourth spot through a last-minute overtaking maneuver on rookie Piastri.

Charles Leclerc crossed the finish line in the sixth spot but fell behind Russell's Mercedes - who impressively advanced from 18th position - after receiving a five-second penalty for exceeding the pit lane speed limit. Leclerc's Ferrari teammate, Carlos Sainz, finished eighth. Aston Martin concluded an understated race weekend with a modest double-points finish. Fernando Alonso was the last driver to complete the race on the same lap as the unstoppable Verstappen, securing ninth place, while teammate Lance Stroll rounded off the points table, finishing a lap behind in tenth place.

In the wake of their recent scoring spree, Alex Albon and Williams tasted a more modest 11th-position victory, trailed by Valtteri Bottas from Alfa Romeo, who finished 12th. Despite an impressive qualifying performance, the Hinwil team experienced a dismal race day due to mishaps and an overall sluggish pace. Specifically, Zhou Guanyu's promising fifth-place starting spot dwindled to a disappointing 16th on race day. His ambitious efforts to recover from a sluggish start resulted in a collision with returning F1 veteran Daniel Ricciardo, instigating a four-car pileup and leading to the premature retirement of both Alpine drivers.

Ricciardo, undeterred, secured 13th position in his first comeback race since the 2022 finale in Abu Dhabi, leading Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg, AlphaTauri's Yuki Tsunoda, Zhou, and Kevin Magnussen, who closed out the finishes. Williams' newcomer, Logan Sargeant, along with Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly, were forced into an early pit stop following a late skid and the substantial damage sustained by their vehicles in the havoc caused by Zhou.

With the penultimate round before the summer intermission done, Verstappen sits comfortably atop the 2023 title race with a robust 110-point lead over Perez. He also claimed the bonus point for clocking the fastest lap in the 70-lap race. Intrigue was rife over race-day performance and pit stop strategies, particularly following an adrenaline-charged qualifying session, where Hamilton outpaced Verstappen and Norris for the pole position.

As the tire covers were removed, it became evident that the majority of the drivers, including the top eight, were equipped with medium compound tires, while Sainz, Stroll, Gasly, and Tsunoda chose softer options, and Perez and Russell preferred harder ones.

The race commenced with Verstappen spectacularly overtaking Hamilton, nailing the first turn and maintaining the lead. Simultaneously, Piastri capitalized on the situation, slipping into second place. Hamilton, however, continued to lose ground, falling behind Norris, who skillfully navigated Turn 2. Further back, Zhou, off to a slow start, bumped into Ricciardo, causing a domino effect involving Ocon and Gasly.

The incident spelled disaster for Alpine as both Gasly and Ocon – their cars seriously damaged – were forced to retire, marking a second consecutive double withdrawal for the Enstone squad. Unaffected by the turmoil, Verstappen continued to dominate, leading Piastri and Norris. An apologetic Hamilton trailed, followed closely by Ferraris' Leclerc and Sainz, the latter impressively gaining several positions on his soft tires. Meanwhile, Alonso and Perez engaged in a heated battle for the seventh and eighth spots, with Perez pulling off a DRS-boosted move on Lap 8. Hulkenberg and Stroll held the last spots on the points board.

The Alfa Romeo team, unfortunately, bore the brunt of the race's start. Zhou, who faltered off the line and had a run-in with Ricciardo, faced a five-second penalty, while Bottas was caught in a Turn 1 jam, falling to 12th position. Russell, who replaced Bottas at Mercedes, was close on his tail after making his way up from 18th. On the ninth lap, Albon switched his medium tires for harder ones in the pits, followed by Stroll, Bottas, and Tsunoda on the next lap. Sainz, however, remained steadfast on his initial set of softs, ignoring Ferrari's calls to box.

By the 15th lap, Verstappen established a comfortable five-second lead over Piastri, with Norris lagging a bit further behind. Hamilton remained in fourth, with Ferraris' Leclerc and Sainz close on his heels, the latter being steadily hunted down by the hard-tired Perez.

The 23rd lap marked a crucial juncture for Verstappen and his Red Bull team. The Dutch sensation chose this moment to pit and exchange his medium tires for the more durable hards. His savvy strategic decision, combined with his leading advantage, allowed him to maintain his pole position. Perez and Russell, who had yet to stop, were the only two drivers in sight, running in second and fifth, respectively.

Perez chose the 24th lap to swap tires, followed shortly by Russell on the 29th, both opting for another stint on medium tires, contrary to the 16 other racers who were confidently maneuvering on their hard tires. Verstappen, in the lead, had a comfortable five-second gap over second place, while Norris maintained a similar distance over Piastri, escalating the inner rivalry within team McLaren. The pole starter, Hamilton, now found himself lagging more than 20 seconds behind the frontrunner.

Perez emerged from his pit stop with renewed vigor, executing an assertive series of overtakes on Sainz and Russell, earning him the fifth position and marking Hamilton as his next prey, setting the stage for a potential podium finish. Ferrari's Sainz and Leclerc held the sixth and seventh spots, while Alonso, Stroll, and Bottas held onto the remaining points positions. The relentless Russell, at 13th, initiated his climb to the top with a strategic pass on Tsunoda at Turn 1 on his fresh hard tires. As the race continued, Verstappen managed to extend his lead over Norris to 10 seconds, while Piastri began to fade, falling prey to the formidable Hamilton and the relentless Perez. The halfway mark also saw tension within team Ferrari, who muted Leclerc's radio communications as he was tailing his teammate Sainz, assuring him that they were "on it" while maintaining a distant sixth and seventh position.

The 43rd lap witnessed Piastri and Perez's decision to pit and opt for medium tires. Red Bull's pit crew executed an astonishing 1.9-second stop, propelling their driver back into the race just behind the McLaren racer who had suffered a minor delay during his service. Two laps later, Norris was back in the pit for a fresh set of mediums, reentering the race comfortably ahead of the late Piastri and the relentless Perez as Verstappen and Hamilton continued to squeeze every bit of performance from their hard tires.

However, misfortune befell Aston Martin's Alonso, a sluggish pit stop undid all his effort to keep pace with the Ferraris, and Leclerc was penalized for speeding in the pit lane – a five-second penalty that would have to be served at the pits or factored into his final time.

By the 47th lap, Perez was hot on Piastri's tail, executing a clever maneuver at Turn 1 to overtake him and then demonstrating his aggressive tactics at Turn 2 to keep the Australian rookie at bay, further advancing his pursuit of the podium. Hamilton made his second stop on the 50th lap, opting for medium tires for the race's final leg. Verstappen followed suit two laps later; both pit stops were executed flawlessly, and their standing positions remained unaltered.

With fewer than 20 laps left, Hamilton made a push to cut down Piastri's lead and found himself within DRS range. His overtake seemed imminent on the 57th lap, but Norris managed to pull away once again, maintaining his position and securing a place between Verstappen and Perez, confirming the final podium positions. Hamilton seemed poised to challenge Perez in the final laps but fell short by 1.5 seconds, finishing fourth ahead of Piastri and Russell, who managed to overtake Sainz towards the end and then profited from Leclerc's time penalty.

The last of the points positions went to Alonso and Stroll, who had a rather uneventful race but managed to keep Albon, Williams, Bottas, and Alfa Romeo at bay. Ricciardo secured 13th position after an early race melee, followed by Hulkenberg, Tsunoda, Zhou, and Magnussen, while Sargeant's late spin sent him to the pits, leaving Ocon and Gasly merely spectators on the sidelines.