Key events
Lap 46/50: Is Ocon gaining on Hamilton for 10th?
Everything else is static … oh, wait, Tsunoda passed Gasly!
Lap 45/50: Oooooh … Tsunoda is going after Gasly for 14th! That’s the closest battle on the track. Piastri hasn’t been close to Antonelli since his overtake attempt.
Lap 44/50: Norris team to Norris on the radio: “Just do more.” Oh, is that all?
Lap 43/50: As you were.
Standings and prospects:
1. Verstappen will win, barring catastrophe
2. Norris will stay here, barring catastrophe
3. Russell will take third, same disclaimer
4. Piastri needs to hold off Leclerc
5. Leclerc needs to finish within five seconds of Antonelli
6. Antonelli, with that penalty, might not finish ahead of
7. Sainz, who’s way ahead of
8. Hadjar, who’s even farther ahead of
9. Hulkenberg, who’s comfortably ahead of
10. Hamilton
Ocon won’t challenge. Bearman is holding off Alonso for 12th.
Lap 40/50: So your top three are just about set in stone – Verstappen, Norris and Russell.
Worth noting – Antonelli still has to serve a five-second penalty or have it added to his time. So in a virtual sense, he’s not really ahead of Piastri. But in the physical sense, he is, and his defense has allowed Leclerc to come very close to Piastri!
Lap 39/50: Piastri charges at Antonelli but can’t get past. Antonelli, who has been on these tires for something like 37 laps, is proving to be quite the pain for the title contender.
Lap 38/50: Antonelli is clinging to fourth ahead of Piastri, who isn’t that far ahead Leclerc.
Lap 37/50: Alex Albon retires from the race.
Norris is not catching up to Verstappen, who just posted the fastest lap.
Lap 35/50: Antonelli is still out there in fourth on old tires.
Verstappen radio warns the leader that Lando has been told to come get him.
And there he goes … Norris is past Russell and into second. He’s five seconds behind Verstappen but cutting into the lead on each sector.
Lap 34/50: McLaren radio encourages Norris to overtake Russell and “go get Max.” Sure. Sounds easy.
Lap 33/50: Russell has a panicky voice on the radio, saying he knows Norris will be quick and he doesn’t want to risk the podium by doing anything stupid in defense.
Lap 32/50: If you’re interested in nostalgia, enjoy the battle for 10th between Hamilton and Alonso.
Never mind – Bearman interrupts his elders and passes Alonso.
Lap 31/50: The fastest lap icon is a hot potato, and now Leclerc has it.
Hulkenberg pits, and Piastri happily moves into fifth – as he posts the fastest lap.
Lap 30/50: Norris posts the fastest lap! Can he at least get past Russell?
Hamilton finally pits. He comes out 10th, but there are still a couple of cars ahead who should pit.
Beyonce and Jay-Z are hanging with the Ferrari crew.
Lap 29/50: McLaren’s Zak Brown sounds defeated as he says Norris may have the same pace as Verstappen but isn’t quickerwhich means there’s no chance of catching him.
Antonelli changed tires very early, and the commentators ask Brown if he thinks Antonelli can go the whole way without pitting again. possibly finishing ahead of Piastri. Brown says he’d be surprised.
Lap 28/50: Now Verstappen posts the fastest lap, which bids ill for Russell or Norris ever getting ahead of him.
Lap 27/50: Piastri posts the fastest lap. He surely can’t wait for the gaggle of cars in front of him to pit and let him get into the top four?
Verstappen’s pit time is 3.0, a hair slower than a lot of teams. He makes it out ahead of Russell, but Russell just posted the fastest lap.
The people in places 4-7 have not pitted: Hulkenberg, Hamilton, Antonelli, Ocon.
Lap 26/50: Verstappen goes to pit road. Will he come out ahead of Russell and Norris?
Lap 25/50: Leclerc pits. He’ll come out well behind Russell and Norris. The McLaren radio buzzes as they tell Norris they want to have better tires than Russell at the end of the race.
Lap 24/50: Verstappen leads by more than 20 seconds, but that’ll change when he pits, possibly putting Russell and Norris right on his tail or even ahead.
Lap 23/50: Norris pits, as does Sainz. Norris returns to the track in fourth.
Piastri zips past Sainz like Usain Bolt passing a traffic cone.
Lap 22/50: Piastri pits and will drop to 10th, but he’ll easily pick off a few cars after when they come in for tires themselves.
Lap 21/50: Hamilton is up to ninth.
Leclerc is about to break Sainz’s grip on the podium.
Lap 20/50: Hamilton has his eyes on ninth.
Albon gets a five-second penalty for his run-in with Hamilton. He’s already last among the 18 cars still running.
Lap 19/50: Antonelli is surprised to learn of his penalty. His team says they’re investigating.
Norris is enjoying the clean air in Russell’s absence. He posts the fastest lap of the race and gains a bit on Verstappen.
Lap 18/50: Russell pits. Then Bearman.
Top 10
1. Verstappen
2. Russell
3. Norris
4. Sainz
5. Leclerz
6. Plates
7. Hadjuk
8. Bearman
9. Hulkenberg
10. Ocon
Hamilton is lurking in 11th.
Lap 17/50: Piastri’s car spits out sparks as he passes Hadjar, who fights to regain the space but can’t do it.
How long will Sainz stay in front of Leclerc and Piastri?
Lap 16/50: NOW we have the Virtual Safety Car to pick up some pieces of car.
We have debris on the track again, and it looks like it involved Albon.
Virtual Safety Car time? Pit lane is humming.
Antonelli does indeed get a five-second penalty.
