F1: 5 Things We Learned From The Dutch Grand Prix

Four-time Dutch GP winner Max Verstappen finished second, and Racing Bull’s rookie driver Isack Hadjar celebrated a maiden podium in the sport.

The race came alive with several incidents, including Safety Car and Virtual Safety Car periods, as well as crashes between drivers. Here are five things we learned from the Dutch GP.

Carlos Sainz lambasts poor stewards decision

The Spanish driver finished outside the top 10 for the fourth consecutive race after a frustrating afternoon. Sainz was handed a 10-second time penalty following a clash with Liam Lawson and ultimately finished 13th after running in the points. The 31-year-old questioned the ‘level of stewarding in Formula 1’ after he was deemed to be at fault for the Turn 1 incident. Sainz’s teammate Alex Albon finished an impressive fifth to rub salt into the Spaniard’s wounds.

Isack Hadjar’s maiden podium

The French driver scored an impressive first podium in the sport after qualifying fourth. The Racing Bull’s driver showed great composure to defend against George Russell and stay close to Max Verstappen in the senior Red Bull team. When Norris’s race came to an end, the rookie duly slotted into third place and finished with 15 points.

Ferrari had a weekend to forget

Both Ferraris failed to finish the race in Zandvoort after Lewis Hamilton’s mistake at Turn 3 saw him slide the car into the barriers, and ended his race prematurely. The Italian team’s GP went from bad to worse when Charles Leclerc’s race came to an end after he was clipped by Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli on lap 53. Ferrari now heads to Monza, their home GP, needing a positive result to get their season back on track.

Piastri’s ruthlessness makes him almost unbeatable

The Australian was excellent when it mattered over the weekend. He qualified 12 thousandths of a second ahead of Norris, and started on pole to give himself track position and a great advantage. The 24-year-old led from start to finish and never gave Norris or Verstappen a sniff at the front. Piastri extended his lead over Norris to 34 points and is now the firm favourite to win his maiden title.

Norris has nothing to lose in the title fight

I can just chill out about it and just go for it,’ Norris told the Guardian. The Briton fell further behind in the world driver’s championship to teammate Piastri after an oil leak on his McLaren ended his race. Norris had won here in 2024 and would have finished second, albeit for mechanical failure.