Hungary – Race: Ricciardo surprises everyone, Alonso and Hamilton on the podium

Unlike the rest of the weekend, it’s a wet track that the drivers will have to tame in Hungary. With the track soaked before grid setup, some drivers completed several reconnaissance laps before lining up on the grid. The track is declared wet, which won’t require any driver to use both types of slick tires if it dries up. All drivers are on intermediate tires for the start, as showers are forecasted for 15 minutes after the start.

At the start, caution prevailed among the majority of the drivers. The big loser of this start was Sebastian Vettel, who was overtaken by Valtteri Bottas. A bit further, Lewis Hamilton spun out, even though the Mercedes driver started from the pits. Slight aquaplaning for the Englishman, who slightly damaged his front wing by brushing the barrier. A brief duel between Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso: the Spaniard had overtaken the German at the start, only to lose third place. Many skids on this soaked track but no collisions to report. In the lead, Nico Rosberg steadily widened the gap, ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Sebastian Vettel.

In the fourth lap, drivers are allowed to use DRS, while the battle for second place is intensifying. But the top speed of the Williams will make it difficult for the reigning four-time world champion. On the radio, some drivers are instructed to take care of their tires: rain could return! Many drivers deviate from the racing line to pass over the wet portions of the track, to extend the lifespan of the intermediate tires. And despite his considerable lead, Nico Rosberg continues his attack, which leads to an error: the German goes wide in the first turn after locking a wheel. The other Mercedes driver continues his comeback and gets past Kimi Räikkönen for 13th place.

At the 9th lap, the safety car is out! Marcus Ericsson has crashed extremely violently: his Caterham is completely destroyed. And there’s total chaos in the pits! Penalties are expected for McLaren and Sauber, who released one of their drivers in an unsafe manner! And the leaders are the last to stop, having already crossed the timing line at the moment the Safety Car was deployed. Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, and Valtteri Bottas have lost big in this affair! And a surprise at McLaren, who are the only two drivers to have kept intermediate tires, unlike all the other drivers on soft tires.

At the 11th lap, as the safety car was about to return to the pits, Romain Grosjean made a mistake on the other side of the track compared to Marcus Ericsson. The Frenchman was warming up his tires and lost control of his car. The safety car remains on track, as Nico Rosberg’s brakes seem to be slightly overheating.

On the 13th lap, the safety car pulls away and it’s Daniel Ricciardo leading the pack now! And Jenson Button, on intermediate tires, takes the advantage and the lead of the race, while Nico Hülkenberg makes a mistake on braking with Sebastian Vettel! The drivers are on the attack, with still fresh tires on a not fully dry track! Taking advantage of the battle between Kevin Magnussen and Nico Rosberg, Jean-Eric Vergne overtakes the German! He is followed by Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel also goes on the attack, followed closely by Lewis Hamilton.

And Jenson Button’s intermediate tires can’t hold on anymore, the Englishman returns to the pits and leaves the lead to Daniel Ricciardo. Big battle between Vergne, Rosberg, Vettel, and Hamilton! The Frenchman stays ahead in 4th position. Retirement for Nico Hülkenberg following a collision with his teammate Sergio Perez. Big contact between Pastor Maldonado and Jules Bianchi, the front-left wheel of the Lotus driver hits the sidepod of the Marussia.

At the 20th lap, Nico Rosberg continues to struggle behind Jean-Eric Vergne, while Daniel Ricciardo leads the race. In second, Felipe Massa sees Fernando Alonso returning in his rearview mirrors, followed by the four furious drivers battling for fourth place.

At the 23rd lap, the safety car is back on track! Huge loss of control for Sergio Perez at the wheel of his Force India, ending up in the pit wall after an extremely violent impact. And it’s back to the pits for Daniel Ricciardo, Felipe Massa, and Valtteri Bottas, with the Williams team opting for medium tires. This leaves Fernando Alonso in the lead, followed by Jean-Eric Vergne and Nico Rosberg. A dreary race for Caterham: Kamui Kobayashi retires.

On the 27th lap, Fernando Alonso leads the pack at the restart. The leaders remain unchanged as Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton are unable to overtake Jean-Eric Vergne and Sebastian Vettel. The Englishman from Mercedes must be cautious of Daniel Ricciardo in front of him, as the Australian has new tires. Much further back, Valtteri Bottas is in thirteenth on medium tires; the Finn lost a lot during the first intervention of the safety car. At the front, Fernando Alonso strings together the fastest laps, gradually distancing Jean-Eric Vergne, who is under threat from Nico Rosberg, unable to shake him off.

After losing many positions due to McLaren’s strategic gamble, Jenson Button climbs back into the points by overtaking Adrian Sutil for tenth place.

On the 33rd lap, Nico Rosberg pits to attempt the undercut on Jean-Eric Vergne! And right after, it’s Sebastian Vettel who makes an error on the pit straight, spinning completely, and touches the wall slightly before quickly getting back on track. Now, it’s Lewis Hamilton attacking Jean-Eric Vergne, and the Frenchman resists for a few corners, but the Englishman manages to take second position! The Toro Rosso driver then switches to medium tires to try to finish the race and comes out behind Nico Rosberg. Meanwhile, Esteban Gutierrez retires due to a power issue.

At mid-race, Lewis Hamilton attacks like a madman and gains ground rapidly on Fernando Alonso. Both Mercedes drivers are on the offensive, but Lewis Hamilton still has to make a pit stop! Fortunately for him, Valtteri Bottas, on medium tires, finds himself ahead of Nico Rosberg and will prevent the German driver’s maximum attack, as Rosberg squeezes the Finn at the first corner to overtake him. And Lewis Hamilton takes the lead after Fernando Alonso’s pit stop, who comes back in fifth. Incredible given his starting position, from the pits.

On the 40th lap, Lewis Hamilton returns to the pits and comes out ahead of Nico Rosberg, but behind Fernando Alonso. Daniel Ricciardo is in the lead, followed by Felipe Massa and Kimi Räikkönen. In the pack, Sebastian Vettel manages to overtake Jean-Eric Vergne and finds himself behind Pastor Maldonado, while Lewis Hamilton is warned that his tires must last until the end. Kimi Räikkönen makes a second pit stop for soft tires. The Ferrari driver exits just ahead of Sebastian Vettel and manages to hold his position with extremely robust defense. The Finn manages to overtake Pastor Maldonado the next lap, the Lotus driver heading to the pits while Daniel Ricciardo suffers from an energy system issue. Behind him, Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso battle for second place, with the Spaniard much faster on less worn tires. However, the battle doesn’t take place in the end, as Williams decides to call its driver to the pits for a new set of medium tires.

On the 47th lap, Mercedes asks Lewis Hamilton to let Nico Rosberg pass, as the German has an extra stop to make. The tire longevity will be the key factor for the end of the race, with drivers still having many laps to complete, sometimes without stopping. At the front, Daniel Ricciardo has a fifteen-second lead over Fernando Alonso, but nothing indicates whether these two drivers can continue on this set of tires until the end. Right behind them, Lewis Hamilton does not obey his team’s order, while Nico Rosberg complains about this situation: the Englishman’s response is clear « He just needs to catch up, I don’t have to slow down for him. »

On the 53rd lap, Kimi Räikkönen is attacking Felipe Massa, while Daniel Ricciardo is struggling with his worn tires at the front of the race. The Australian stops to switch to soft tires, rejoining in 4th position behind the two Mercedes drivers. Fernando Alonso is in the lead. But with soft tires that have been used for 19 laps, will he be able to make it to the end? Nico Rosberg is the next to pit, rejoining in 7th position behind both Williams drivers and Kimi Räikkönen. 13 laps of total attack are expected for the German.

On the 60th lap, Valtteri Bottas stops and Nico Rosberg takes advantage over Kimi Räikkönen at the first corner, and the German attacks Felipe Massa, who will give way the following lap. At the front, the gap between Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, and Daniel Ricciardo greatly decreases! And the Australian is within DRS range! The three drivers are within less than two seconds! And Mercedes gives Lewis Hamilton the green light to use 100% of his car.

And Fernando Alonso makes a mistake and has to cut the chicane, which prompts Lewis Hamilton to complain, believing that the Spaniard gained an advantage. And Daniel Ricciardo makes a superb overtaking attempt! The message is passed to Hamilton: he needs to watch his mirrors. And with Fernando Alonso’s obstruction, Nico Rosberg charges back like a cannonball on the three leaders!

With 5 laps to go, Fernando Alonso is still leading ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Daniel Ricciardo. And Nico Rosberg, 11 seconds behind, is still in the race! The German is gaining an average of 2.66 seconds per lap.

Four laps from the end, Daniel Ricciardo manages to overtake Lewis Hamilton with a beautiful maneuver, pushing on the outside of turn number 2 and 3! The Australian now has victory in front of him!

With 3 laps to go, Daniel Ricciardo gets past Fernando Alonso on the first attempt, something Lewis Hamilton couldn’t achieve in almost 10 tries! And behind him, Fernando Alonso holds back Lewis Hamilton! Nico Rosberg is only 2 seconds behind his teammate, the podium is not set!

With 2 laps to go, the German rockets up to his teammate! Lewis Hamilton is simply unable to overtake Fernando Alonso, which puts Nico Rosberg in the DRS zone!

During the last lap, Lewis Hamilton squeezed Nico Rosberg very hard to defend, allowing Fernando Alonso to escape and secure a podium for Ferrari! Nico Rosberg, the poleman, fails to get back on the podium while Lewis Hamilton, starting from the pit lane, climbs to the last step of the podium!

It is indeed an astonishing and masterful Daniel Ricciardo who wins his second Grand Prix in Hungary! The Australian remains the only driver outside Mercedes to have secured not just one victory, but two this season. Huge performance from Fernando Alonso, who completed an endless stint on worn tires to claim second position. And after this race, it is highly likely that the relations between the two Mercedes drivers will be even more strained.