The 2021 edition of the Hungarian Grand Prix lived up to the hype yet again, with Alpine's Esteban Ocon capturing his maiden Formula 1 win in an action-packed race on Sunday. Ocon held off F1 champions Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton to win one of the most thrilling races at Hungaroring of all time.
Vettel, however, was forced to give up his place in the podium later in the day after a post-race inspection revealed his Aston Martin having an insufficient fuel load. The FIA requires teams to provide a one-liter sample from the tanks of their cars after the race to check the legality of the fuel used.
Unfortunately for Vettel, his car could only pump out 0.3 liters of fuel, though Aston Martin maintains that there are still 1.44 liters left in the tank. Aston Martin intends to appeal that decision by the FIA.
Hamilton extends lead after Vettel's disqualification
Vettel's disqualification has massive implications in the drivers' championship. With Lewis Hamilton's finish elevated to P2 and Max Verstappen to P9, the reigning champion has increased his lead in the standings from six to eight points after 11 races.
However, the day belonged to Ocon, who benefited from a massive crash in the opening lap that immediately knocked five cars out of the race. With rain pouring down on the Hungaroring, the wet conditions provided a tricky start for the drivers.
Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas locked up and rammed into McLaren's Lando Norris and Red Bull's Sergio Perez's cars. Max Verstappen did not escape the carnage as Norris damaged his car as well after the impact from Bottas' hit.
Aston Martin's Lance Stroll also locked up at the opening turn and hit Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who spun around McLaren's Daniel Ricciardo. Bottas, Perez, Norris, Stroll and Leclerc all were forced into retirement in the opening lap as the race was eventually red-flagged shortly after the massive crash to clean up the debris on the track.
Verstappen suffered massive damage to his car, forcing him to do a pit stop even before the red flag was issued. It was an advantage for Hamilton at that point with the Mercedes driver in P1 and Verstappen in P13.
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Ocon holds off furious charge by Hamilton thanks to Alpine teammate Alonso
Just when it seemed Hamilton would coast to an easy victory after the restart, the conditions once again changed the dynamics of the race. Mercedes misjudged the conditions at the restart, opting to keep Hamilton out on intermediates for the standing start. That proved to be a costly error as all of his fellow drivers pitted for medium tyres with the track drying fast.
Hamilton was forced to follow suit a lap later, but his advantage was gone as he emerged from his pit stop in 14th place. However, Hamilton showed why he is the best driver in the world as he managed to climb into the podium places before the race was over.
It could have been much better for Hamilton, but Alpine's Fernando Alonso spoiled his comeback bid late on, thwarting the Briton's repeated attempts to overtake in the closing stages. That helped his Alpine teammate Ocon preserve his advantage in the end.
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