Max Verstappen was in the spotlight again, but this time for the right reason as all eyes were on him to collect his hat-trick of wins at his home event of the Dutch Grand Prix last weekend, and the Dutchman did not disappoint his roaring local spectators despite the ultra-wet conditions throughout the race. On the other hand, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso proved why he is an old master in the tough rain circumstance in a Formula 1 race as he finished P2 behind the two-time defending world champion Verstappen, while Alpine’s Pierre Gasly managed a third-placed finish upon Sergio Pérez’s five-second penalty for speeding in the pitlane.
2023 Dutch Grand Prix: Drama From Start to Finish
The tension was building when the home-crowd favourite Verstappen was only third with a few seconds left in Q3 of the qualifying day for this year’s Dutch Grand Prix, with the first and second positions being provisionally dominated by McLaren, thanks to Oscar Piastri’s and Lando Norris’s brilliance. Nevertheless, the 25-year-old’s final effort of 1:10:567 was enough to send him to the first place at the end, ahead of both British drivers of Norris and Mercedes’s George Russell.
The race day of the Dutch Grand Prix was plagued with heavy rain after heavy rain. On Lap 1, Verstappen found no issues of getting ahead of everyone with his rapid start, but what caught everyone’s attention was 42-year-old Alonso’s outstanding speed to the race, as he passed Russell and Williams’s Alex Albon at the same corner and what followed suit was a severe downpour which forced everyone to make an early pitstop. In the said circumstance, Checo was the first racer to have pitted and changed his soft tyres into intermediate ones, allowing him to snatch the first place momentarily.
As teams were heading toward the half-way line, dark clouds began to set in again on top of the drying track, prompting racers to alter their race plan at the later part of the Dutch Grand Prix. Among the pit drama afterwards was Aston Martin’s slow stop for Alonso on his front-left tyre, meaning his old employers Ferrari get to gain an advantage over him in another Spaniard Carlos Sainz Jr. However, Sainz’s older compatriot remained the better racer between the two Spain internationals, which was seen when Alonso recaptured the third spot three laps later.
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Verstappen Bagged Third Successful Home Race at the Dutch Grand Prix
The rain started to fall with 10 laps remaining for the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix, and Verstappen was one of the quickest to react and decided to pit early to secure his lead, but the same cannot be said for his Mexican teammate Pérez, who struggled to keep his car on the track and had lockups on both of his front tyres at Lap 63, allowing Alonso to cruise into the second place. Checo’s day went from bad to worse when he was caught speeding in the pitlane later in the race and was slapped with a five-second penalty as a punishment.
The track of Zandvoort was flooded with heavy rain by the final stage of the race, causing a red flag to be given due to Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu’s crash into the barriers. The incident paused the race for a good 40 minutes, and as soon as the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix resumed, Alonso was fighting to get pass his Dutch opposition Verstappen, with more dramas happening behind the duo. The chaos started when Russell, who was aiming for a better point finish in this year’s Dutch Grand Prix after a poor start, stormed past Norris but conceded the race with a late retirement after his car had a puncture suffered during the battling scene with the latter.
The chequered flag saw Verstappen earn his third consecutive win at his home event as well as a record-equalling nine straight wins, matching former four-time world champion and Red Bull Racing legend Sebastian Vettel’s record. P2 was won by Alonso, who started fifth for the race, while Gasly received his inaugural podium with Alpine and personal first podium since 2021 due to Pérez’s penalisation.
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I feel extremely proud to win my home race again, in front of all of you, this makes this day and the victory even more special. 🙌
Thank you so much to everyone for coming to the track and sticking around through the bad weather to celebrate this win with us 🇳🇱👏#DutchGP pic.twitter.com/uYGFmLmMrF
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) August 27, 2023
Nine Races Left in 2023 After the Dutch Grand Prix
With the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix now done and dusted, drivers will now look forward to this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix at the Monza Circuit, a home event to the once-prestigious Ferrari team. The race will determine whether Verstappen is able to continue his winning streak and set a new record of double-digit consecutive wins in Formula 1 history, or perhaps there will be fitting challengers who could dethrone him at the record-setting race at Italy.
Stay tuned to OtherLeague.com for all the actions set in the 2023 Italian Grand Prix this weekend. If you are also a football fan in addition to being a F1 fanatic, then you should click here to follow the latest news happening in the world of football.
