Max Verstappen made Formula One history as he won an action-packed 2023 Dutch Grand Prix that delivered plenty of drama throughout.
The Red Bull driver eventually eased home to claim a ninth successive victory in the sport - the most in a row since Sebastian Vettel set the modern day record at nine back in 2013 - despite the race witnessing some heavy rain downpours and a late red flag.
From lap one, this race in Zandvoort brought the intrigue as the rain began to fall shortly after the lights went out. That led to a number of drivers pitting straight away as others stayed out which ultimately saw the grid order severely shaken up.
The safety car then entered the action as Williams’ rookie Logan Sargeant hit the barrier for the second time over the weekend which again saw drivers dive into the pit lane.
A large chunk of the race then subsided with a number of drivers making fantastic overtakes as they attempted to make up lost places on the grid before the heavy rain returned on lap 65.
In the poor conditions, Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu collided with the barriers at corner one which saw the FIA wave the red flag to halt proceedings until the weather improved.
After a subsequent stoppage of around 30 minutes, the race resumed behind the safety car for several laps before Verstappen made the perfect restart to get away from Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez to claim his ninth consecutive race victory. That keeps the Dutchman well on track to claim his third World Drivers’ Championship title in 2023.
Despite coming over the line in P3, Perez was subsequently dropped a place due to a five-second penalty for speeding in the pitlane which promoted Alpine's Pierre Gasly onto the podium behind Verstappen and Alonso.
Perez, Carlos Sainz, Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, Alex Albon, Oscar Piastri and Esteban Ocon rounded out the points-paying positions.Â
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 25 |
| 2 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 19 |
| 3 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 15 |
| 4 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 12 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 10 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 8 |
| 7 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 6 |
| 8 | Alex Albon | Williams | 5 |
| 9 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 2 |
| 10 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 1 |
| 11 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | - |
| 12 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | - |
| 13 | Liam Lawson | AlphaTauri | - |
| 14 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | - |
| 15 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo | - |
| 16 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | - |
| 17 | George Russell | Mercedes | - |
| DNF | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | - |
| DNF | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | - |
| DNF | Logan Sargeant | Williams | - |
