British Grand Prix Preview and Predictions – Max Eyes First Win At Silverstone

The Formula 1 British Grand Prix is steeped in history. Silverstone hosted the first Formula One Grand Prix championship race in May 1950. Sean Parker has a preview and predictions for the British Grand Prix.

The race is well supported with over 400 000 spectators expected and many fans keen to see British drivers Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Lando Norris, and Alex Albon. 

2023 has been the Max Verstappen show with the two-time champion scoring five consecutive wins ahead of this weekend’s race. 

He holds a comfortable lead in the drivers’ standings over Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez. 

The Track

It’s fast. Silverstone is home to iconic corners such as Maggotts, Becketts, Abbey, and Copse. 

It’s also home to the Aston Martin Formula One Team. Furthermore, seven of the championship’s 10 teams are based in the UK.

Back to the track and things get underway with the Hamilton Straight and then onto Abbey. The first DRS detection zone is 25 metres before Village with activation 30 metres after Aintree (turn five). The second DRS detection zone is Maggotts with activation at Chapel (turn 14). 

Then the drivers head down the 1034m long Hangar Straight with cars reaching over 330km/h and into the long right-hander at Stowe. 

Full throttle is needed for 70% of the 5.891km track and the total race distance of 306km is completed in 52 laps. The tyre compounds in use for this weekend are C1, C2, and C3. 

There are several spots where overtaking can take place and that makes Silverstone one of the best tracks for spectators. There’s lots of action and drivers can be on the attack throughout the lap. 

Max can finally win the British Grand Prix this weekend. The Dutch driver’s 2020 win at Silverstone was technically called the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix. 

Max starts as the favourite. He is in stupendous form and hasn’t put a wheel wrong in the last five races. Behind him, things should be interesting with Mercedes looking for a strong performance from their British duo. 

Hamilton has won the British Grand Prix eight times, a feat no other driver has ever achieved. 

Mercedes’ team principal Toto Wolff is confident ahead of this weekend, he said: “With the next upgrades and experiments coming in Silverstone, there are reasons for optimism. Nevertheless, we are not getting ahead of ourselves. We’re focused on the job at hand, extracting performance from the car, and will see where we stand this weekend.”

Mercedes will need to watch out for a resurgent Ferrari team that saw Charles Leclerc finish second in Austria last weekend. Leclerc was near to snapping pole position in Friday’s qualifying in Austria. 

The Maranello-based team introduced updates to its SF-23 in Austria and Carlos Sainz also put in a strong performance. 

Ferrari’s team’s senior engineer, Jock Clear commented on the latest update in Austria according to ScuderiaFans.net, saying: “From the numbers, we are heading in the right direction, and it’s another incremental step.”

Aston Martin might find it difficult to handle the high-speed sections of Silverstone and the AMR23 could lose out to the higher-powered rivals. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll might find themselves battling with McLaren and Alpine for those crucial points places. 

Ferrari could be set to have another strong weekend, but ultimately Verstappen’s RB19 has proved to be quick on any circuit. 

Predictions

Winner – Verstappen

Podium – Verstappen, Leclerc, Sainz

Fastest lap: Leclerc

Pole position: Leclerc

First to retire: Hulkenberg

Most Team Points: Ferrari

Both Cars Qualify for Q3 Shootout: Aston Martin 

Practice 1/2/3 Winning Car: Verstappen/ Red Bull 

Safety Car: Yes 

Top 6: Norris, Russell, Leclerc

Top 10: Ocon, Hulkenberg, Gasly 

Sean Parker

Sean Parker is a motorsport journalist and sports content creator at The South African. He has worked for the country's premier motoring publications, and is a Formula 1 contributor to Bet.co.za, the Bet Central podcast, and Vision View Sports radio.