French GP 2021 | Verstappen the best after Red Bull's ultimate strategy

Verstappen fastest

The qualifying for the French GP was very exciting, but in the end it was Red Bull Racing's leader who took pole. Verstappen was almost three tenths quicker than Hamilton, followed respectively by Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez in P3 and P4. They would also play a crucial role later in the race.

At the start of the Grand Prix things went wrong for Verstappen. The Dutchman got away well and there seemed little to worry, but before the first turn the Limburger braked. This caused Verstappen to go off track and lose the leading position to Hamilton. Bottas and Perez remained in their places behind the title rivals.

Bottas was the first man to dive into the pits, trying to attempt an undercut on Verstappen. The Dutchman was quick to respond and went on the attack. While Bottas' undercut on Verstappen failed, Verstappen found himself in front of Hamilton after his pit stop one lap later.

Red Bull attack

In the lead of the race, Red Bull made a surprising and aggressive call. Verstappen was brought in for an unexpected second stop, giving up his leading position. It thus became a twenty-lap sprint race to the finish to catch Bottas and Hamilton again.

Verstappen regained third place from fourth on the grid from Perez, who was also catching up. The Mexican closed in on Verstappen and after the Dutchman had passed Bottas with relative ease, Perez also attacked Bottas four laps from the end and third place was secured.

Verstappen had longer to get Hamilton within DRS distance, but two laps from the end he managed to do so. Hamilton did everything he could to hold off Verstappen, but the Dutchman was simply too fast on his new tyres. The Red Bull driver took his third victory of the season and had a twelve point lead in the standings. Verstappen also set the fastest lap.