2021 Dutch Grand Prix
Championship Context
Before Race
Max Verstappen (224.5 pts)
After Race
Max Verstappen (249.5 pts)
Title Fight Impact
Verstappen's home victory extended his championship lead over Hamilton to 3 points (249.5 vs 246.5). With 8 races remaining, the title fight remained incredibly close, but Max's momentum was building as Red Bull found their sweet spot with the RB16B.
Race Results
Podium Finishers
Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton
Full Race Results
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time/Gap | Pts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing-Honda | 1:30:05.395 | 25 | Finished |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +20.932s | 19 | Finished |
| 3 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | +56.460s | 15 | Finished |
| 4 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri-Honda | +1:05.329s | 12 | Finished |
| 5 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +1:20.045s | 10 | Finished |
| 6 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine-Renault | +1:22.528s | 8 | Finished |
| 7 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | +1:27.918s | 6 | Finished |
| 8 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull Racing-Honda | +1 lap | 4 | Finished |
| 9 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine-Renault | +1 lap | 2 | Finished |
| 10 | Lando Norris | McLaren-Mercedes | +1 lap | 1 | Finished |
| 11 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren-Mercedes | +1 lap | 0 | Finished |
| 12 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin-Mercedes | +1 lap | 0 | Finished |
| 13 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri-Honda | +1 lap | 0 | Finished |
| 14 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin-Mercedes | +2 laps | 0 | Finished |
| 15 | Mick Schumacher | Haas-Ferrari | +2 laps | 0 | Finished |
| 16 | Nikita Mazepin | Haas-Ferrari | +2 laps | 0 | Finished |
| 17 | George Russell | Williams-Mercedes | DNF | 0 | Retired |
| 18 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams-Mercedes | DNF | 0 | Retired |
| 19 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo-Ferrari | DNF | 0 | Retired |
| 20 | Kimi Räikkönen | Alfa Romeo-Ferrari | DNF | 0 | Retired |
Race Incidents & Drama
Incident #1
Lap 1: Hamilton loses the lead to Verstappen at Turn 1 despite starting from pole position
Incident #2
Lap 20: Bottas suffers a slow pit stop (11.1 seconds) due to a stuck wheel nut, dropping him down the order
Incident #3
Lap 36: Russell retires with a Williams power unit issue whilst running in the points
Incident #4
Lap 52: Giovinazzi spins and retires after contact with Räikkönen in the Alfa Romeo team battle
Incident #5
Multiple track limits violations investigated throughout the race at Turn 4
Incident #6
Post-race: Emotional scenes as Verstappen celebrates with the Dutch crowd in an extended victory lap
Race Notes
- First Dutch Grand Prix since 1985 - a 36-year absence from F1
- Verstappen wins at home in front of 70,000 orange-clad fans
- Circuit featured new banked corners at Turns 3 and 14
- Hamilton started from pole but lost the lead at the start
- Verstappen's 7th win of the 2021 season extends championship lead
- Bottas suffered a slow pit stop that cost him a potential podium
- Gasly scored his first podium since winning at Monza in 2020
- The atmosphere was electric with Dutch fans creating a festival atmosphere
F1ABY's Take
Blimey, what a homecoming! After 36 years away, Formula 1 returned to Zandvoort and the Dutch fans turned up like it was the second coming of Stroopwafels. Max Verstappen, their golden boy, delivered a performance so dominant it made Lewis Hamilton look like he was driving with the handbrake on. The circuit itself was an absolute belter - banked corners that had drivers feeling like they were on a rollercoaster, and enough orange in the grandstands to make you think someone had spilled a lorry-load of Fanta. Verstappen's victory was as inevitable as rain at Silverstone, but watching him carve through the field after a slightly dodgy start was like watching Michelangelo paint the Sistine Chapel, if Michelangelo had been doing 200mph whilst being cheered on by 70,000 people in fancy dress. Hamilton tried his best, but on this day, in this place, Max was simply unbeatable. The Dutch had waited 36 years for this moment, and by crikey, they weren't going to let a little thing like social distancing stop them from having the party of the century!