Keep up to date with all the highlights of the race in our post Live F1 Updates: Spain 2023 which outlines the race as it unfolds.

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FINAL PODIUM

  1. Verstappen
  2. Hamilton
  3. Russell

CHEQUERED FLAG

Max Verstappen crosses the line in first place to win the Spanish Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton secures second place while Russell successfully fends off Perez to take the final spot on the podium. Sainz finished the race in P5, ahead of the Aston Martins of Stroll and Alonso.

LAP 62/66: PEREZ GOES ALL OUT

The Red Bull pit wall has told Perez to go all out till the end of the race. He is currently around 5 seconds behind Russell, with just 4 laps to go. At the current rate, Perez should catch Russell on the final lap.

LAP 54/66: PEREZ OVERTAKES SAINZ

Perez has made good use of his new softs to overtake Carlos Sainz. This puts him around 9 seconds behind Russell, with just 12 laps to go. All eyes will be on the Mexican to see if he can claim a spot on the podium.

LAP 52/66: PEREZ VS MERCEDES

Max Verstappen is in a league of his own and leads the pack by over 30 seconds. However, this is due to Hamilton coming in for a second pit stop where he moved to softs. This is to protect against Perez that has been making progress in the field. Russell slots into P3 and now must defend against the Red Bulls. Max Verstappen has also come into the pits and changed to a new set of soft. This should secure the victory for Max as long as he makes no errors.

LAP 46/66: RUSSELL IN FOR SOFTS

George Russell has come in for a set of soft tyres. These tyres should be able to take him to the end of the race. This hints at what the possible strategy could be for the Mercedes drivers. Max has also been warned for track limits twice, one more strike and he could get a 5 second time penalty.

LAP 43/66: SAINZ PITS

Sainz comes into the pits to change his mediums for a set of hard tyres. The Spanish driver has made it clear that he wants to do everything he can to stay ahead of Perez. Leclerc has also come into the pits to change to a set of hard tyres.

LAP 34/66: PEREZ MAKING PROGRESS

Sergio Perez may have had a terrible qualifying session, but the Mexican driver has quickly made his way through the field. Perez has pit for hard tyres, allowing him to also go to the end of the race with Max. His pace is incredible, passing Ocon for P5 with ease. At the same time, Russell has made the move on Sainz to claim the final spot on the podium. The Mercedes has amazing pace around this circuit, and both drivers are making it clear that these new upgrades are working.

LAP 30/66: HAMILTON VS SAINZ

Hamilton managed to close the 3 second gap to Sainz in the matter of 2 laps. This saw the Mercedes sail past the Ferrari into turn 1. Hamilton is on mediums, with Verstappen being the only car to have more pace than him. However, Verstappen is on hards, which opens the door for Mercedes to challenge for the win if they stick to a two-stop strategy and Red Bull commits to a one-stop.

LAP 25/66: HAMILTON PITS

Hamilton is called into the pits to change his soft tyres for a fresh set of mediums. The 7x World Champion comes out in P4, around 3 seconds behind Sainz. However, he has 10 laps of fresher tyres, which should make the overtake easy. Russell also comes into the pits and comes out in P6.

LAP 16/66: SAINZ PITS

Carlos Sainz has come into the pits to protect against Hamilton. The Spanish driver comes back out behind his teammate, Charles Leclerc. However, Ferrari has called Leclerc in to change his hard tyres to a set of softs.

LAP 14/66: OCON PITS

The soft runners have started to come in to replace their tyres. Since the pit window opened for Ocon, the French driver took the opportunity to hopefully undercut Russell when the Mercedes eventually comes in. Hamilton has also made progress and is within 1 second from Sainz.

LAP 11/66: RUSSELL MAKING PROGRESS

George Russell may have started down the grid but is quickly making progress. The Mercedes clearly has some pace as Russell managed to overtake both Alonso and Ocon within a few laps.

LAP 8/66: STROLL VS HAMILTON

Stroll managed to capitalise on Hamilton’s contact with Norris to claim P3. Stroll and Hamilton are both on soft tyres, with the Mercedes showing incredible straight-line speed. Perez is also making his way through the field and currently sits in P8.

LAP 3/66: A BUMPY START

Sainz and Verstappen get off the line well and fight into turn 1. However, Max managed to edge the Ferrari and retain first place. Behind this action, Hamilton took full advantage of the slipstream to overtake Lando Norris into turn 1. Norris tried to stick close to the Mercedes but ended up making contact and losing parts of his front wing. Lando had to come into the pits for a new front wing, slotting him into P20.

FORMATION LAP

All 20 drivers get off the line and make their way around the track. Max Verstappen has a clear run into turn 1, but all eyes will be on Sainz to see if the new Ferrari upgrades can close the gap. Max starts the race on medium tyres while everyone around him is on softs. This should make it more challenging for the Dutchman to retain the lead on the first lap.

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