International media praise McLaren: 'Now, second best machine on the grid'

Max Verstappen may have won the British Grand Prix, but the international media's focus has been on others. McLaren, for example, which showed signs of a resurgence at Silverstone. Unlike the Italian and French favourites.

Bild

Bild is known for its big headlines and this time too, the German newspaper has found one: 'Verstappen wins race full of fire', writes Bild, referring to Kevin Magnussen' s exploded power unit that triggered some flames. 'Pure dominance', is the conclusion after his eighth win in 10 races in Grands Prix in 2023. Also a word for Lando Norris, who outsmarted Verstappen at the start. "On the fifth lap, the dream of a win other than for Red Bull is over," he said.

Het Laatste Nieuws

The Belgian newspaper found the same Lando Norris to be the best man at Silverstone. The McLaren driver - who has a Belgian mother - got a nine in the ratings. "Norris and Piastri now have the second best machine in the pack.That is all it takes to really assess a driver. As Fernando Alonso did in the first races of the season, Lando Norris also took the absolute best out of his machine. Moreover, in a faultless manner. Top."

Max Verstappen received a seven for his performance. HLN states, "But seemed less convincingly dominant in just about everything than the past two races. Even made a mistake when he drove into the wall on Saturday when leaving the garage and broke his front wing. Oh well. Final sum remains: distinction, as they call a 'seven' at university."

Gazzetta dello Sport

The Gazzetta noted that Italian fans probably had "a bitter aftertaste" after the race weekend: on Saturday, Ferrari was in good shape, but during the Grand Prix the team fell way back. According to the pink newspaper, this was partly due to strategy, as Charles Leclerc (started fourth) did a two-stroke race. "Perhaps a slightly more conservative approach from the start would have been better, where Leclerc started on mediums and Russell on softs."

Indeed, Leclerc could not catch up with the McLarens in the first stint and "the two-stroke did the rest". "And confirmation of the SF-23's speed problems also came through Carlos Sainz, who finished tenth despite one less stop than his teammate. It seems this car is fast depending on the track. Silverstone, with its very fast corners, was a highly anticipated test and the prancing horse did not come through. There is still a lot of work to do."

L'Equipe

In France, of course, much attention was paid to the performance of Alpine and its French teams. "It's hard to imagine a worse weekend for Alpine. Let's forget a mediocre qualifying with a 10th place for Pierre Gasly and a 13th for Esteban Ocon. Sunday's race ended in a nightmare with two dropouts. Team morale got a boost after Monaco [where Ocon finished third], but since then it has spiralled downwards and McLaren has passed them," mused the French sports newspaper.

Daily Mail

MaX Verstappen officially won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone - according to the Daily Mail, it was "predictable" - but not actually: "He almost always wins these days, this is his sixth win in a row and eighth out of 10. But in the only battle open to normal mortals, it was 23-year-old Lando Norris who took the honours," wrote the English newspaper, which concluded, "It was also perhaps his best race and most consistent weekend."