BUDAPEST, HUNGARY – AUGUST 01: Race winner Esteban Ocon of France and Alpine F1 Team celebrates on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary at Hungaroring on August 01, 2021 in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
Esteban Ocon claims unlikely win at chaotic Hungarian Grand Prix
Esteban Ocon made the most of the chaos in Hungary to claim his first career Formula One win ahead of Sebastian Vettel.
BUDAPEST, HUNGARY – AUGUST 01: Race winner Esteban Ocon of France and Alpine F1 Team celebrates on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary at Hungaroring on August 01, 2021 in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
Changeable weather and a chaotic start to the Hungarian Grand Prix, paved the way for Esteban Ocon to claim his maiden career win in the Alpine.
Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas was the source of most of the carnage as he rear-ended the McLaren of Lando Norris after the Briton had flown past him on the grid. Having connected with Norris, Bottas, would slam into Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and make contact with Max Verstappen who saw his car severely damaged when Norris’ rudderless vehicle pushed him off the track.
Esteban Ocon claims unlikely win
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was also taken out in a second incident at the start which meant four cars were out when the race was red flagged.
An early stop by Mercedes saw Lewis Hamilton drop down the field but the reigning world champion fought his way back through the field to claim third in an action-packed race.
Ocon, who cruised through the early carnage, drove well to ensure he capitalised on the mistakes and accidents, holding off a challenge from Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel, who took second.
“What a moment! It feels so good!,” said Ocon.
“It’s fantastic, what can I say? Congrats to Fernando (Alonso) as well, I think the win is also thanks to him with the fight that he did.
“It’s teamwork, it’s been a fantastic day!”
Verstappen eventually finished 10th, leaving Hamilton to take a six-point lead in the championship.
Hungarian Grand Prix results
| POS | NO | DRIVER | CAR | LAPS | TIME/RETIRED | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | ALPINE RENAULT | 70 | 2:04:43.199 | 25 |
| 2 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | ASTON MARTIN MERCEDES | 70 | +1.859s | 18 |
| 3 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | MERCEDES | 70 | +2.736s | 15 |
| 4 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | FERRARI | 70 | +15.018s | 12 |
| 5 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | ALPINE RENAULT | 70 | +15.651s | 10 |
| 6 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | ALPHATAURI HONDA | 70 | +63.614s | 9 |
| 7 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | ALPHATAURI HONDA | 70 | +75.803s | 6 |
| 8 | 6 | Nicholas Latifi | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | 70 | +77.910s | 4 |
| 9 | 63 | George Russell | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | 70 | +79.094s | 2 |
| 10 | 33 | Max Verstappen | RED BULL RACING HONDA | 70 | +80.244s | 1 |
| 11 | 7 | Kimi Räikkönen | ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 12 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | MCLAREN MERCEDES | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 13 | 47 | Mick Schumacher | HAAS FERRARI | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 14 | 99 | Antonio Giovinazzi | ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| NC | 9 | Nikita Mazepin | HAAS FERRARI | 3 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 4 | Lando Norris | MCLAREN MERCEDES | 2 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | MERCEDES | 0 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 11 | Sergio Perez | RED BULL RACING HONDA | 0 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 16 | Charles Leclerc | FERRARI | 0 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 18 | Lance Stroll | ASTON MARTIN MERCEDES | 0 | DNF | 0 |
* Provisional results. Note – Gasly scored an additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race.
