Esteban Ocon drives to a maiden victory

Vettel second; Hamilton retakes championship lead

August 02, 2021 02:36 am | Updated 02:36 am IST - BUDAPEST

Thrilled: Esteban Ocon is joy personified .

Thrilled: Esteban Ocon is joy personified .

Frenchman Esteban Ocon fended off Sebastian Vettel to take a maiden Formula One win for Alpine in a chaotic Hungarian Grand Prix, that saw Lewis Hamilton charging through from last-to-third to retake the championship lead from tenth-placed Max Verstappen.

The 24-year-old Ocon crossed the line 1.8 seconds clear of his Aston Martin rival, while Hamilton nearly caught the pair up but fell 2.7 seconds short.

Still, the Briton put himself six points clear of Verstappen, who scored just the sole point after being caught up in an opening lap incident.

The Dutchman, who had made a good start on a wet track from second on the grid, was right behind Hamilton heading into the first corner when he was collected by McLaren’s Lando Norris. The Briton was himself tagged by the slow starting Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas that sent him sliding into the Red Bull.

The results: 1. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) 1:32:54.762s, 2. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin), +1.859s, 3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +2.736, 4. Carlos Sainz Jr. (Ferrari) +15.018, 5. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) +15.651, 6. Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) +1:03.614, 7. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) +1:15.803; 8. Nicholas Latifi (Williams) +1:17.910, 9. George Russell (Williams) +1:19.094, 10. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +1:20.244. 1 lap: 11. Kimi Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo), 12. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren), 13. Mick Schumacher (Haas), 14. Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Romeo); DNF: 15. Nikita Mazepin (Haas), Lando Norris (McLaren), Sergio Perez (Red Bull), Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin).

Standings: Drivers: 1. Hamilton 192 pts., 2. Verstappen 186, 3. Norris 113, 4. Bottas 108, 5. Perez 104; Constructors: 1. Red Bull 289, 2. Mercedes 285, 3. McLaren 163, 4. Ferrari 148, 5. Alphatauri 49 .

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