Verstappen secured second place at the Hungarian Grand Prix after a 29‑lap run on soft tyres, a move that Jérémie Vasseur admitted left Ferrari scrambling.
Red Bull dares with an extended soft stint
Max Verstappen’s decision to stay on softs beyond the first pit stop proved decisive. After switching to hards on lap 13, the two‑time champion was undercut by both Ferrari drivers, but a sharp maneuver into Turn 1 pushed him back to the front of the field, setting up a second stop on lap 41. The final switch to softs on lap 41 allowed Verstappen to stretch the stint to 29 laps, defying expectations that the ruthlessly fast tyre would fail earlier.
Ferrari’s start is a lost opportunity
Both Leclerc and Hamilton launched the race on softs, hoping for an early undercut. The strategy left them without a clear advantage; they made minimal position changes at the front and found themselves boxed in by the championship leaders.
Once Hamilton moved to hards after 13 laps, the car’s performance dropped sharply, forcing a second stop at lap 17. Leclerc followed suit at lap 20. With Ferrari on the hardest rubber available in the field, they were ill‑prepared for the persistent race pace needed to defend their positions.
VSC triggers an unexpected shift
Oscar Piastri’s stalled McLaren prompted a virtual safety car on lap 56. Ferrari opted to pit him for fresh softs, handily giving Verstappen the track advantage he needed. Red Bull chose to let Piastri stay out, saving the competition’s primary contender for the remaining time and sealing his second‑place finish.
Championship standings shifted and critics praise Red Bull
Lewis Hamilton’s six‑second pit‑lane speeding penalty dropped him to fifth, behind Kimi Antonelli, a national hero on the Hungarian circuit. Ferrari’s Leclerc finished fourth, unable to match the sprint pace of his teammates.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mékies praised the crew’s “spicy strategy calls”, noting the wisdom of keeping Verstappen on the track during the VSC period, and highlighting the earlier choice not to defend against Hamilton’s early stop. Mékies spoke of the crew’s strong starts, efficient pit stops, and winning strategy execution as part of the team’s resurgence.
Vasseur reflects on the surprise of the soft tyres
Vasseur said the team had not anticipated Verstappen’s endurance on the soft compound, which upended their initial plan. “We expected a much shorter stint, more like 14‑15 laps. The tyre performance was better than we thought for the most part,” he admitted. He added that the decision to focus on hards from the start was a mistake in hindsight, noting that the softer rubber had proven more durable amid the circuit’s demanding conditions.
Final thoughts for the weekend
Despite a sluggish start and strategic misfires, Red Bull’s bold gamble secured a podium finish for their Dutchman, while Ferrari’s gallant yet costly approach left both Leclerc and Hamilton outside the top three. The race underscored the fine line between tactical brilliance and costly hesitation in Formula 1’s highly contested Hungarian Grand Prix.
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