Max Verstappen delivered Red Bull an F1 record 12th consecutive Grand Prix win as he cruised to victory at the Hungarian GP after passing Lewis Hamilton on the opening lap.
Verstappen got an excellent start from P2 on the grid to draw alongside the pole-sitting Hamilton and claim the lead going into Turn One.
The championship leader was never threatened after that as he cruised home by 33 seconds for a seventh consecutive win which also meant Red Bull became the first team to win a dozen races in a row.
McLaren Resurgence Continues
Lando Norris claimed another second place for McLaren, while Sergio Perez pulled off a number of aggressive overtakes in the other Red Bull to finish third after starting ninth.
Perez had to hold off a charging Hamilton in the closing stages as the Mercedes finally came alive again on lower fuel, but the seven-time world champion had to settle for fourth on a difficult afternoon where he lost three positions on the opening lap.
Oscar Piastri was fifth, with his and Norris’ results helping McLaren strengthen their grip on P5 in the Constructors’ Championship after Alpine suffered another double DNF after Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon collided as a result of some first-corner pinball on the opening lap.
Mercedes Falling further behind Red Bull
George Russell made an excellent recovery from 18th on the grid to finish sixth, promoted a position after Charles Leclerc dropped a place to seventh due to a five-second time penalty for speeding in the pit lane.
Carlos Sainz was unable to progress after a brilliant start had lifted him from P11 to P6 and finished eighth in the second Ferrari, ahead of the two Aston Martins as Fernando Alonso led home Lance Stroll.
Daniel Ricciardo recovered from opening lap contact to finish 13th in his first race for AlphaTauri, two places ahead of team-mate Yuki Tsunoda.
Hungarian GP result
1) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2) Lando Norris, McLaren
3) Sergio Perez, Red Bull
4) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
5) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
6) George Russell, Mercedes
7) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
8) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
9) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
10) Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
How the Race unfolded for Red Bull who set fresh benchmark as Verstappen streak continues
Despite being on the dirty side of the grid, Verstappen was immediately able to get alongside Hamilton and then overtake his former title rival at Turn One while narrowly avoiding contact.
With Hamilton pushed slightly wide, the equally fast starting Piastri from P4 was able to also get ahead of the Mercedes driver before the second McLaren of Norris overtook the pole sitter on the opening lap as well.
But neither McLaren could put any pressure on Verstappen who was twice able to pit as he retained his lead and claimed another victory and fastest lap to extend his championship lead to 110 points.
The victory saw Red Bull move ahead of McLaren’s 1988 record of 11 consecutive wins, set by Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna.
“For the team, 12 wins in a row is just incredible,” Verstappen said.
“What we’ve been going through the last two years is unbelievable and hopefully we can keep this momentum going for a long time.”
Verstappen joins Sebastian Vettel, Alberto Ascari, Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg as the only drivers to claim seven consecutive wins.
Perez charges through the field to secure a podium
Instead of challenging the leader, the McLarens would instead have their attention on Perez in the other Red Bull.
The Mexican produced a very strong recovery drive as he charged through the field from ninth on the grid through a mixture of overtakes and strategy.