A titanic battle at the front, Bearman's redemption and changeable weather – What To Watch For in the British Grand Prix

From a six-way fight for the win, to a track that often provides thrilling wheel-to-wheel battles, plus Oliver Bearman on the charge to the potential for rain to impact the start of the race, here are a few things to look out for during Sunday’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone ...

1 Verstappen’s fight with the McLarens

Qualifying was a thriller on Saturday afternoon, and it came down to the very final lap as Max Verstappen finished on top in what proved to be a battle between six different drivers.

Both McLarens were very much in the frame but Verstappen was able to pip Oscar Piastri and secure his first pole position since Miami with an extremely impressive final attempt. Piastri starts from second and Lando Norris from third – just 0.118s adrift of Verstappen’s time himself.

The two McLarens have their own championship situation to think of on top of passing the Dutchman, not that Verstappen is likely to prove easy to overtake, either.

The four-time World Champion never is but Red Bull’s set-up choices ahead of Qualifying saw them opt for less rear wing and therefore less drag, meaning he will be quick in a straight line.

That should help his ability to defend, as long as it stays dry, with more downforce usually preferred in wet conditions.

2 Ferrari strongly in the mix

Of the six different drivers in the fight, four will have been relatively satisfied with the way Qualifying played out. Norris referenced how exciting the race is likely to be after ending up third and George Russell secured fourth with by far his most competitive lap of the session at the end of Q3.

For the two Ferrari drivers, though, there was disappointment. Ferrari have looked competitive all weekend and McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella also had them down as favourites for victory given their race pace on Friday.

But the final part of Qualifying saw the challenge fall short, as Lewis Hamilton went from provisional pole to fourth in the space of the final two corners and then saw that become fifth with Verstappen’s last lap.

Charles Leclerc was 0.026s behind Hamilton in sixth but both were within a quarter of a second of pole position, showing how close the session was and how frustrated they both were to end up on row three.

Stella acknowledges those starting positions make Ferrari’s task harder but their pace on the long runs very much puts them in the frame at the front. Russell’s own hopes will rest on the early laps but if either Ferrari can clear him then they will believe they can go on and challenge for victory.

3 Battles that can run for a number of laps

As well as the fact that there are six different drivers from four different teams eyeing victory at Silverstone, adding to the excitement ahead of the race is the track layout that encourages close fights and can often run for multiple corners and even laps.

The first sector sees wide sections of tracks and switchbacks at slow speed that can help get a car out of position ahead of a DRS zone on the Wellington Straight, before the Brooklands, Luffield and Woodcote section allows moves on both the inside and the outside, which can then set up side-by-side action towards Copse.

Even then a fight is rarely over, with the next DRS zone on the Hangar Straight creating an overtaking opportunity into Stowe, while the final big braking point into Vale has also seen plenty of action in the past.

It’s a proven layout when it comes to wheel-to-wheel fighting and with so many drivers believing they can win, there is every chance it will deliver another thriller for the huge crowd.

4 Bearman looking to make amends

Saturday was a strong day for Bearman if you only paid attention to the final standings in each session and the outright lap times. The Haas rookie – making his first appearance in his home race in F1 – was sixth in FP3 and followed that up with an extremely strong Qualifying as he was third in Q1, and sixth in Q2.

The problem is, Bearman was guilty of a significant infringement at the end of FP3, when he crashed in the pit lane while under red flag conditions. Bearman had been trying to simulate a race-style pit entry to work out where to hit the brakes for the pit limiter line but lost control on cold tyres having been going slowly on track due to the red flag.

The stewards took a dim view of his indiscretion and handed Bearman a 10-place grid penalty, plus four penalty points that leaves him on eight for the 12-month period.

Bearman’s one-lap pace saw him finish eighth fastest in Qualifying, and with the grid penalty that means he is set to start in 18th place.

But Haas have made a bit of a habit of turning challenging Qualifying results into points this year and if the raw pace carries through to Sunday’s race, then we could see Bearman moving through the field in front of his home crowd.

5 The British weather

There have been a number of heatwaves in Great Britain in recent weeks but the warm weather of just a few days ago gave way to cooler temperatures and higher wind gusts on Saturday. There were even a few drops of rain in the early part of Qualifying, although that didn’t stop quicker lap times being set on slick tyres.

More of the same is expected on Sunday in terms of temperatures, while there is an increased risk of rain throughout the morning. The showers are forecast to have the highest risk until around 2pm local time – an hour before lights out – but if it remains cool then the track might not dry out before the race gets underway.

Let’s be honest, it wouldn’t be the British Grand Prix without a little bit of uncertainty around the weather, would it?