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If you tuned into Sunday’s British Grand Prix expecting a routine Max Verstappen masterclass or another Piastri/McLaren parade, then buddy, you clearly forgot what Silverstone does when it gets wet. This race was absolute mayhem from the jump — we’re talking rain-soaked grid, weird tyre calls, chaos off the line, and a podium so wild it reads like fan fiction. Nico Hülkenberg? On the box? In 2025? Somebody check the multiverse.

The drama started before the lights even went out. Rain dropped early enough to throw strategy out the window, but not enough to commit to inters cleanly. A bunch of midfield teams went full send with slicks and hoped for divine intervention. Others played it safe and then got burned by the timing. Classic British GP roulette.

Right out of the gate, the wet track turned the first few laps into an ice rink. There were cars sliding, a couple of minor taps, and one big victim — Liam Lawson, who got dumped into the wall after Ocon bumped him mid-turn. Virtual Safety Car came out, everyone pretended to breathe, but it was just a teaser for the real chaos.

Up front, Oscar Piastri looked like a stone-cold killer. The Aussie got past Max, gapped the field, and looked like he was about to drive off into the rain-soaked sunset. McLaren was flying. But then, Oscar went and did the dumbest thing he’s done all year. Coming out of a safety car restart, he absolutely parked it in front of Max like it was a school zone. Verstappen, who had nowhere to go, almost rear-ended him, and race control basically went “yeah no” and slapped Oscar with a 10-second penalty.

That’s where the race turned into a full-blown fever dream.

Verstappen lost it shortly after, spinning himself from P2 to no man’s land. Norris inherited the lead, and with Piastri needing to serve that brutal penalty, Lando suddenly had a shot to win his home GP without even fighting for it. He took it. Clean, fast, efficient. The kind of drive that screams “I’m not just vibes anymore, I’m a title guy.”

Meanwhile, in the midfield blender, Nico freaking Hülkenberg was just casually slicing through the pack. At one point, he passed Stroll like it was F2 and Hulk was the only one who read the weather report. On slicks. In wet patches. At Silverstone. I had to double-check what year it was. The man’s got more Grand Prix starts than Verstappen’s got career DNFs, and here he was, finally landing his first-ever podium. Unreal.

And don’t let the penalty take away from Piastri’s drive — kid still came home P3 on pace even after the time hit, and honestly, he and Norris had the McLarens looking untouchable today. Even with the blunder, he’s still top of the standings… barely. But the lead shrunk. Norris is lurking.

As for Bearman? Absolute gut-punch weekend. Took a 10-spot grid drop for impeding in quali and never got a clean run in the race. Just chalk it up to the Silverstone chaos gods. They weren’t interested in rookies this week.

Also worth a nod: Lewis Hamilton ran a weirdly quiet race, floated in the top five for a while, and probably left a podium out there with a mistimed tyre call. Verstappen salvaged points, but Red Bull looked very un-Red Bull. And shoutout to Alonso and Albon for sniping points in a race where half the grid probably wanted to just go home after Lap 10.

So yeah — what did we learn?

We learned that McLaren is absolutely here. That Piastri is a killer but still has rookie lapses. That Norris is starting to believe in his own hype. And that if you leave even the smallest window open in a rain race, Nico Hülkenberg will crawl through it like Andy Dufresne in Shawshank.

Silverstone reminded us why we watch this sport. Unpredictable, messy, emotional — the kind of race you can’t script, even if you tried. One minute you’re betting Verstappen wins by 10 seconds; the next, you’re watching Hülkenberg climb out of a car in tears and Lando chucking LEGO trophies into the crowd like it’s Sunday brunch.

Next up, Spa. If it rains there — and it probably will — buckle up.