Max Verstappen concludes back-to-back home races with two consecutive victories. He wins the Dutch Grand Prix for a second consecutive time to take another huge leap to his succeeding World Championship. Last weekend’s race had more spectacles to deliver compared to a more underwhelming Belgian Grand Prix, which many fans and bettors enjoyed.

Before another weekend of exciting motorsport action, Nitrobetting takes care of the top 2022 Dutch Grand Prix storylines for everyone.

Key Takeaways from the 2022 Dutch Grand Prix

Verstappen makes a perfect start to his home race ???? #DutchGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/nMdFahMQrW

— Formula 1 (@F1) September 5, 2022

Max Verstappen strengthens hold on second Formula One title

The Belgian-Dutch driver for Red Bull further extended his lead at the peak of the Drivers’ Championship and presents good arguments for why he is a favorite to win this year’s title. Once again, he dominated the field and did so in fashion, this time after storming past Lewis Hamilton in the closing stages after a Safety Car appearance.

Verstappen had an amazing weekend as he lined up in pole position and made the ideal start. The only hurdle he had to overcome was during the first few corners, featuring slight contact between Hamilton and Sainz as they fought for P3.

Red Bull’s only threat was a strong run by his rival last season, Lewis Hamilton, who was holding onto track position in the aftermath of a Safety Car triggered by Valtteri Bottas. In the end, Verstappen and his team made the right decision to make a final tire change and pushed home to victory.

In a race interview, Verstappen said, “It was not a straightforward race, but we had to push,” Verstappen told Sky Sports after the race. “Of course with Safety Car, virtual safety car, making the right calls.

“It’s always special to win your home Grand Prix. This year, I had to work for it even more. An incredible weekend and I’m really happy we won the Dutch Grand Prix. I’m proud to be Dutch.”

A first potential win for Mercedes and Hamilton slips away

After an outburst of emotions, Lewis Hamilton said he won’t rein in his emotions while racing after strategy calls that cost him a potential Dutch Grand Prix victory. The British driver was frustrated at the decision that left him defenseless against a fast-moving Max Verstappen. He threw over the team radio as he was left on old medium compounds for the closing stages of the race, falling from P1 to P4 in a few laps’ time.

The seven-time champion insisted that his emotions were inherent to his character. “I can’t, I don’t want to apologize for my passion because that’s just how I am made and I don’t always get it right,” Hamilton said.

Nevertheless, the 37-year-old acknowledged he had gone too far and expressed regret. He added, “I was just on the edge of breaking point with emotions and my apologies to the team because I don’t even remember what I said. I just lost it for a second. But I think they know that there is just so much passion.”

Hamilton remains winless this season and this was the closest to having a shot at a victory only for a late Safety Car to introduce more late drama, making it to our list of top 2022 Dutch Grand Prix storylines. The silver lining behind all of this is Russel’s P2 victory, thanks to a swift call to switch to soft tires during the safety car. He bags 18 points to edge closer to Ferrari in the Constructors’ Standings. They currently sit behind the Scuderia by 30 points in third place.

Another Ferrari pit-stop turmoil

Mattia Binotto took responsibility for Ferrari’s messy pit stop. The first significant incident happened early into the race, particularly on Lap 15, when Sainz made his first stop to swap his soft tires to a set of mediums. He halted in front of the paddock without a left rear tire ready to be bolted on. The paddock was left waiting for one to be brought from the garage as the Spaniard endured a lengthy delay. The lengthy stint left Sainz stationary for over 12 seconds, allowing Sergio Perez to make up some lost time as he entered the pits behind him.

In a post-race interview, Mattia said “A mess. What happened, a mess,” said Binotto. “A very, very last call, the mechanics were not ready. We will revisit that at the end of the race.

“We made the call at the last corner, at the banking. Not enough time, but we will review at the end.”

The pit stop drama did not end for Sainz. He was later unsafely released by the team at a successive stop, causing a close collision with Alpine’s Fernando Alonso. The incident caused the 28-year-old a five-second penalty he served at the end of the race, which was all the more crucial due to a late Safety Car appearance that urged traffic. Although he was ready to settle with a P5 finish, the former McLaren driver dropped to P8 on a day when Ferrari made arguable strategic calls.

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