Leclerc ends 624-day win drought at British GP as Ferrari celebrates 250th F1 victory

Leclerc's long-awaited return to the top step

Charles Leclerc had not won a grand prix since the 2024 United States GP, a drought of 623 days. The Monegasque driver had struggled with the SF-26, failing to finish in Monaco and Spain, and finishing eighth in Austria. After the Silverstone sprint race, he and his team made a fundamental setup change, moving the car toward his aggressive driving style rather than copying teammate Lewis Hamilton's approach. "I felt like I had found something between the Sprint and Qualifying but I had to confirm that today," Leclerc said. "And today, the feeling was back where it needs to be."

He had not stood on the podium since Japan in late March, and two DNFs in three races had fueled negative narratives. "When things get tough, and that's the situation I've been in the last few races, there's a lot of negativity around me in general. With narratives being created, it's never a nice environment to work in," Leclerc explained.

Race decided by reliability and a late safety car

Leclerc started second and immediately passed polesitter Kimi Antonelli into the first corner. Antonelli, the championship leader, was mounting a recovery drive when his Mercedes suffered a technical failure with around a dozen laps remaining, forcing him out of the race. A crash by Max Verstappen then brought out the safety car, and the race finished under yellow, drawing boos from the 200,000-strong Silverstone crowd. George Russell took second for Mercedes, while Lewis Hamilton completed the podium in the other Ferrari.

Ferrari's 250th victory, 75 years after the first

The win marked Ferrari's 250th in Formula 1, coming at the same circuit where José Froilán González gave the Scuderia its first victory in 1951. President John Elkann was present at Silverstone and praised the team's unity. "Congratulations to all of Ferrari, this is an important moment because here we won the first race and here we are celebrating the 250th. It shows that when Ferrari is united, we win," Elkann said, ending with "Forza Ferrari."

Championship tightens as Mercedes falters

Antonelli's retirement, combined with Russell's second place, trimmed the Italian's championship lead to 25 points over his teammate. Hamilton sits third with 147 points, while Leclerc's win moves him to 108 points, keeping Ferrari in the title fight. The result also highlighted Mercedes' reliability concerns, which have now cost Antonelli valuable points on multiple occasions this season.