Verstappen Wins at Home
A messy '23 Dutch Grand Prix made up for a repetitive season
The rain-slicked 2023 Dutch Grand Prix brought botched tire strategies, an unlikely third-place podium finisher and 72 thrilling laps.
In a routine first-place finish, Max Verstappen pushed his Honda-powered Red Bull past the checkered flag for the ninth time in a row this season. A sea of orange crowding the grandstands paired with hometown pressure didn’t seem to phase the Dutch driver as he topped two of the free practice sessions, qualifying and the race.
2023 marked Verstappen’s third consecutive win in the Netherlands. The weather, however, prevented Verstappen from dominating by his usual 20-second lead.
The race weekend ended with a handful of surprising winners and more than a few losers.
Alex Albon continues to consistently exceed expectations at Williams. The team was expected to perform poorly in the stormy conditions at a track with high downforce and banked corners — typical of oval circuits — but oddly stood out.
Albon made it into the third qualifying shootout session in the best starting position in his Formula 1 career. The Thai-British driver finished the race in eighth — one of his best performances all year.
“That’s the best the car’s felt all year. That’s the best the car’s ever felt in my time driving at Williams,” Albon said in a post-race interview. “P8 is disappointing because P6 was there, but I have to be very, very happy.”
While Albon’s result failed to reflect his racecraft over the weekend, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly cruised from his 12th-place starting position to a shocking third-place podium finish. The French driver last stood drenched in champagne in 2021. The weekend marked Alpine’s second shakeup of the season after Esteban Ocon secured a third-place finish in an equally chaotic and rain-soaked race in Monaco.
All three rookies from the 2019 season — Albon, McLaren’s Lando Norris and Mercedes’ George Russell — stuck close together near the top throughout the weekend. Russell qualified third behind Norris on Saturday while Albon took the fourth-place starting slot.
Russell led the 19 other drivers briefly, as did Norris and Red Bull’s Sergio “Checo” Perez, before dropping down to 17th in the race on Sunday. In a skilled save, the Mercedes driver expertly prevented the car from smashing into the barriers as it aquaplaned.
McLaren’s weekend looked promising as Norris finished first in the second free practice session. With four minutes left in the third qualifying round, both Norris and McLaren rookie Oscar Piastri held onto first and second place. The two drivers were poised to take a one-two starting position until Verstappen pulled out a 1:10.567-minute lap just shy of his record-breaking 1:08.885-minute qualifying lap in 2021.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso squeezed into Norris’ spot soon after the race began. The team stunned spectators at the beginning of the season as Alonso stood on the podium six times in the first half of 2023. The Spanish driver and two-time world champion had a rough last four races, finishing between fifth and ninth place. It seemed Alonso was back on a grind as he finished second in Zandvoort, just three seconds behind Verstappen.
For other drivers, the soggy weekend is better left behind in their rear-view mirrors.
Daniel Ricciardo’s broken hand put a damper on the weekend. With only two races in the AlphaTauri car, Ricciardo had a short stint back in the elite racing series after replacing Nyck de Vries before the summer break.
The unfortunate crash provides an opportunity for Super Formula and Red Bull Academy driver Liam Lawson to test out his F1 potential until Ricciardo is cleared to return.
Lawson had an impressive first race. Thrown in at the last minute on Saturday, the 21-year-old New Zealander finished 13th in the race, ahead of seasoned drivers like Valtteri Bottas and his teammate Yuki Tsunoda.
“I’m glad to have done it now, to be able to learn from this and take this forward,” Lawson said. “Hopefully I have the opportunity to drive again and then I can use everything I learned today for that.”
Lawson wasn’t the only reserve driver standing in this weekend.
Per F1 rules, teams must set aside driving time for a test driver at least twice each season during the first practice session. Ferrari reserve driver and GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup competitor Robert Shwartzman had his chance in the scarlet red car on Friday. Although he finished in the very back of the pack, Shwartzman was only eight-tenths of a second slower than Haas’ Nico Hülkenberg.
While Shwartzman made it to the end of free practice, not all Ferrari drivers were as fortunate.
Tragedy struck once again for Charles Leclerc. The Monégasque driver crashed out of the third qualifying session and watched Verstappen take pole position from a lawn chair on the track’s edge.
But Leclerc’s bad luck was just beginning.
The mixed weather conditions — wet to dry then wet again — tested Ferrari’s already weak strategy calls. As Leclerc came in to pit early in the race for intermediate tires better suited for the slippery circuit, the pit crew was crouched and ready for the tire swap without tires in hand. The communication fumble cost Leclerc precious time.
Following a clip to the front wing, Ferrari retired the car. Leclerc’s teammate, Carlos Sainz, has consistently finished sixth or higher eight times this season and ranked fifth at the Dutch track. Leclerc, on the other hand, secured his third retirement of 2023. Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guyanu and Williams’ Logan Sargeant joined Leclerc in the garages.
Looking ahead to Ferrari’s home race this upcoming weekend, Leclerc said he hopes the Tifosi-filled stands will give the team the motivation it desperately needs.
“It’s been a frustrating race,” Leclerc said. “It’s been an extremely difficult race with the balance and the weekend overall has been very difficult. [It’s] just disappointing. I hope in Monza, with all the support, we can have a great race.”
Photo courtesy of ANP via Getty Images