Former title rivals Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were involved in a frantic tussle in the Hungarian GP, with Verstappen's uncontrolled move sending him airborne and out of contention for a podium position.
Starting third on the grid, Verstappen's race unfolded into a gritty battle with Hamilton as the two McLarens shot into the distance. Scrapping for the final podium spot, the reigning champion was disadvantaged by strategy, with Mercedes undercutting him in both pit cycles.
On lap 63 of 70, Max Verstappen was chasing Lewis Hamilton for the third spot and attempted a divebomb into Turn 1. Carrying excessive speed into the corner, he locked up his brakes, resulting in contact between Hamilton's front wheel and the rear tire of the Red Bull.
The contact sent Verstappen airborne, reminiscent of Sergio Perez's Turn 1 crash in Mexico last year. Despite the scary incident, Verstappen and his car escaped unscathed, though he lost his position to Charles Leclerc.
Take a look at the scrap in the below video:
Max Verstappen endured a frustrating race marred by poor strategy execution, allowing the Mercedes to undercut him on both pit stops. Ultimately, he had to settle for a fifth-place finish behind Charles Leclerc.
The incident between Verstappen and Hamilton was noted by the stewards, and both drivers have been summoned. Should Verstappen receive a time penalty, he will likely drop to sixth position behind Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz Jr., who finished just two seconds behind the Red Bull driver at the checkered flag.
Lewis Hamilton comments on his "hair-raising" battle with Max Verstappen
The seven-time world champion, Lewis Hamilton, survived the feisty scrap with Max Verstappen to clinch a well-earned third-place finish, marking his record 200th F1 podium result.
Hamilton reflected on Verstappen's pace in the final stint and admitted that a wheel-to-wheel scrap was unavoidable, but he deemed the collision a "racing incident." Speaking to Sky Sports F1, the Mercedes driver said:
"Obviously the close battle we had the end was a bit hair raising, but that’s motor racing. It’s not nerve-wracking. When you see the pace at which they closed the gap in certain corners, you just laugh to yourself because it’s not something I can do."
Elaborating on the Turn 1 incident, he added:
"I saw him coming from a long way back and he was able to brake a lot later than me, but he sent it up the inside, I stayed still, and he clipped the wheel and went over. I think a racing incident."
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen had no answer to the pace displayed by the McLaren drivers, who shot into the distance. Oscar Piastri took his maiden Grand Prix victory ahead of teammate Lando Norris.