Hungary Grand Prix: Post-Race Comments

      Pirelli

      Mario Isola, Pirelli: "The first part of the season concluded with an interesting race in which three drivers vied for victory, with Lando Norris taking the win ahead of his teammate Oscar Piastri by a whisker. McLaren employed different strategies: the British driver conducted a one-stop, while the Australian completed two.

      In theory, the two-stop strategy was faster, but the cool weather—today's temperature was about ten degrees lower than on Friday—reduced the difference between the two options, partly because thermal degradation of the tires was less than two days ago.

      We still believe the two-stop strategy is the best, just look at the gap between Alonso and Russell. An exception was Norris, who chose to limit himself to one pit stop after ending the first lap in fifth place. The small difference in performance between Medium and Hard compounds, along with the difficulty of overtaking at a similar pace, justified the risk of that strategy—at that moment, he simply had nothing to lose.

      Before the summer break, we will undertake another task—conduct two-day testing of 2026 prototype tires at Hungaroring. The program includes testing different construction options, which must be homologated by September 1, and the softest compounds from C3 to C5. On the first day, McLaren with Norris and Racing Bulls with Lawson will work with us. On the second day, Leclerc will drive the Ferrari. The Alpine team will work both days: the first with Pato O'Ward, the second with Colapinto and Gasly."

      McLaren Formula 1 Team

      Lando Norris (1st): "I'm dying— it was very tough. We never planned a one-stop strategy, but after such a first lap, it was the only option to get back into the fight.

      In the final stint, Oscar was catching me, and I had to attack full throttle. That's why the win feels especially sweet. Today we had the perfect result!

      I didn't think we could win. I expected we'd finish second. But I knew that if I reached an empty track, I could attack—and it worked. In races like this, there's always a risk factor, because to execute the strategy, we had to avoid mistakes and drive good laps—that's exactly what we did.

      Oscar and I fought hard, so it's hard to say who had the advantage. Battling Oscar is very tough, but I give him credit—he attacked excellently, and I barely managed to stay ahead."

      Oscar Piastri (2nd): "I fought as hard as I could. After seeing Lando switch to a one-stop strategy, I knew I’d have to overtake him on track, which is easier to say than done. The strategy choice was risky anyway. Unfortunately, today, we picked the wrong option.

      The team did a great job, and thanks to that, the car came alive in the second half of the race. The car was fantastic all weekend—thanks to the team for that.

      Lando's decision to race with one pit stop wasn't a big surprise, since he had little to lose in that situation. I don't know if trying to overtake Leclerc was the right decision, but we'll discuss it later.

      To beat Lando, I needed to force him into a mistake, and for that, I had to be a few hundredths closer. I felt I had a better chance and went for it—never leave a move for the next lap, because the best chance might not come again. I tried, but it didn't work out."

      Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team

      George Russell (3rd): "I'm very happy with today's race. Qualifying results were a surprise, and the entire weekend turned out a bit unexpected for everyone. I'm really glad to be back on the podium.

      Fighting Charles had a few risky moments. When you dive into a corner and the driver ahead starts to move, there's almost no room to maneuver. It seemed to me that our cars touched in the second attempt. I'm glad I managed to overtake him.

      A good result before the summer break. Definitely better than in previous races."

      Kimi Räikkönen (10th): "The final stint was very long. I felt like it would never end! I drove almost 50 laps on hard tires, and near the finish, I barely kept the car in the final turn and defended in the first. The competitors behind had more grip, but I managed to hold them back.

      It's good to earn a point, as the car had good speed on a quiet track. If I can start higher after the summer break, I’ll fight for more serious points every weekend.

      I'm pleased that, this weekend, my confidence in the car returned. I leave Budapest feeling much more confident after we went back to the previous rear suspension setup.

      It's a pity that yesterday's qualifying went badly, because the car had the pace. I’ll keep these feelings for the second half of the season, which I now look forward to with optimism."

      Scuderia Ferrari

      Charles Leclerc (4th): "Perhaps I rushed to conclusions, and when I got out of the cockpit after the finish, I was told more details about what happened to the car. I thought it was something else we had discussed earlier, but unfortunately, the problem was in the chassis. We will investigate everything to prevent this from happening again.

      Of course, that doesn't make me feel better, because when you're fighting for the win and then face issues like this… Everything needs to be carefully checked to avoid a repeat in the future. The car was just uncontrollable.

      This was a one-off incident, and we'll deal with it. I don't think such a problem will recur.

      The problem appeared around the 40th lap and worsened progressively. It's very frustrating because, initially, we had everything under control, and our pace was enough to win, but in the end, I finished nowhere. I didn't even reach the podium."

      Lewis Hamilton (12th): "I feel the same as yesterday. I'm just waiting for tomorrow. It's good that the summer break starts. I'm looking forward to disconnecting from work a bit.

      The incident with Max? I saw him at the last moment. He got very close to my rear wheel, and I tried to avoid a collision."

      Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team

      Fernando Alonso (5th): "The race went as we expected; in the end, we maximized the car's potential this weekend. All team members did an excellent job, and we're happy to have scored 16 points. The race was sometimes tough, but in the end, everything worked out.

      The result was pleasantly surprising. We need to analyze everything that happened in Spa and Budapest to understand why we were so much faster this weekend. I'll rest a bit during the holiday and look forward to the next race."

      Lance Stroll (7th): "A great day for the team. It's nice to go into the break with a good mood after earning 16 points in the race. But we need to understand why we were more competitive here than last week in Spa. Let's see how things go at Zandvoort after the break—it's a completely different track."

      Sauber

      Gabriele Bortolotti (6th): "I'm very pleased with today’s results, my best finish ever, thanks to the intense work of the entire team. We're taking the right steps in the right direction, and this is just the beginning of what we can achieve together.

      The race was tense and psychologically demanding, but I gave my all and made no mistakes. We maximized every opportunity, executed perfect pit stops—I’m happy for the entire team.

      I was racing between two-time champion Fernando Alonso and four-time champion Max Verstappen — an incredible experience and a reminder of how far we’ve come.

      Thanks to every team member at the track and at the Hinwil base for this first part of the season. We couldn’t have achieved this without all the work we did together. During the summer break, I will celebrate this achievement with my family."

      Nico Hülkenberg (13th): "A tough race. Starting from the back row, we knew it would be a tough fight on this narrow track where traffic is hard to manage.

      We chose an aggressive two-stop strategy that looked promising, but ultimately, a one-stop was more effective.

      In the end, my result was affected by poor qualifying, but I’m glad Gabriele brought the team eight points.

      Since Barcelona, we’ve made significant progress, scoring points in six consecutive races. We’re currently comfortably in the midfield, thanks to the hard work of everyone in the team. We’ll rest during the summer break and come back to fight ready for new battles."

      Racing Bulls

      Liam Lawson (8th): "I'm very pleased. The race was challenging, and traffic made it hard to find the right moment for the pit stop, but the pace was high, and we managed tire wear well—all thanks to the team’s excellent work.

      It’s not easy to keep behind a driver like Max, but our strategy helped maintain the position to the finish.

      It’s great to see more consistent performance in recent races, but our main goal is to keep this momentum after the well-deserved summer break."

      Isaac Hajar (11th): "It's a pity I didn’t earn points. Throughout the weekend, our pace was high, and I was confident for the race. Unfortunately, the start wasn’t great. I pushed hard in the first lap but lost position and was blocked behind other cars.

      A good result for the team and Liam. The car has potential; I just need to put everything together at the right moment to achieve more. I've had some bad luck recently, but I’m optimistic about the second half of the season."

      Red Bull Racing

      Max Verstappen (9th): "Unfortunately, we weren’t fast enough all weekend, and we need to understand why. The race was quite tough—I was stuck behind competitors, and the car lacked grip. In the fast corners, the speed was okay, but in slow and medium-speed ones, it wasn’t.

      After such a difficult weekend, we need to investigate—driving the car was tough, and unfortunately, we couldn’t change the situation. As always, the team will analyze everything and draw conclusions to be more competitive at Zandvoort.

      Ultimately, we didn’t enjoy this weekend, but the summer break is coming, and I’ll spend quality time with family and friends without overthinking races.

      There are many races left this season, and we hope for improved results after the break. We want more stability, but despite the disappointing result, we won’t give up."

      Yuki Tsunoda (17th): "A tough weekend for the team. We knew it would be hard to score points today, and after I damaged the front wing, my race was effectively over. Midway through, one of the winglets detached, causing a loss of downforce and decreasing grip. We lost the ability to make the right strategic calls, which could have helped.

      Nevertheless, I stay positive because we’ve made progress with the updated floor I received in Spa. My gap to Max is steadily decreasing. It might not be obvious, but I’m only tenths behind his pace. I don’t know how many other drivers are running that close to him.

      Tomorrow, I’ll head directly to the factory to work on the simulator. We need to identify what went wrong and work hard during the summer to ensure we don’t start the second half of the season as we finished this one. It’s frustrating, but we stay positive and will come back stronger."