Silverstone (United Kingdom) (AFP)

Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) won his 8th British Grand Prix, the 99th of his Formula 1 career, Sunday at Silverstone, after a mad race marked by a collision in the first lap with Max Verstappen (Red Bull), who had to give up.

Hamilton was penalized ten seconds for the crash with Verstappen.

But despite this penalty, the Briton managed to come back and then overtake Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) on the 50th lap out of 52, to the delight of the 140,000 spectators.

"It's a dream for me today," Hamilton savored.

He praised "the best, the best of the public!", Before being congratulated by Tom Cruise in person and then to slip on the podium for the British anthem.

The seven-time world champion remains 2nd in the championship behind Verstappen.

But he returned to eight small points in the standings, while he was 33 behind before this 10th round out of 23.

He had not won since May 8 in Spain.

Since then, Verstappen had won four out of five races ... and started from pole position before the accident on the first lap.

- Verstappen taken as a precaution to the hospital -

The Dutchman was "taken to a local hospital for additional precautionary tests" after an initial check "by doctors at the Silverstone circuit medical center," Red Bull said.

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The two rivals were neck and neck at every turn after a breathtaking start.

But during a Hamilton overtaking maneuver in the very fast "Copse" turn, they collided.

The 23-year-old driver was able to get out of his car quickly but was visibly in shock after the very violent accident.

He left the track in an ambulance, after having greeted the British public, and his very damaged car, testifying to the violence of the crash, was taken off the circuit.

After a long hiatus, a new start on the grid was then given, with Leclerc in the lead ahead of Hamilton.

The Monegasque has held up for a long time, despite engine problems.

On lap 28, Hamilton stopped in the pits and had to stay immobilized for ten seconds to respect the penalty received.

- "Desperate maneuver" -

Released with 13 seconds behind Leclerc, the Briton gradually recovered, carried by the public in delirium.

The countdown was on, and it ended two laps from the finish.

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A nod to the crowd, the national hero overtook Leclerc in the same turn and thanks to the same interior maneuver as against Verstappen at the start of the race.

This time without penalty.

"It was a desperate maneuver, it's disappointing coming from a driver seven times world champion, who sent a driver to the hospital", criticized, very annoyed, the director of the Red Bull team Christian Horner , who blasted an "unnecessary" penalty.

According to Hamilton, Verstappen did not "give him any space" when he was placed "completely at his height".

"I always try to stay measured, especially in the battle with Max. You know he's very aggressive" in his riding, he continued.

- First podium for Leclerc in 2021 -

Leclerc was able to sign his first podium this season, failing the third victory of his career.

Finnish Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) is 3rd.

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Formula 1 tested a new weekend format at Silverstone with an all-new 100km qualifying sprint race on Saturday to determine the starting grid for the Grand Prix, and with classic qualifying advanced to Friday.

This format, won by Verstappen on Saturday, will be tested again in Italy in September and then at another GP to be determined.

Hamilton, who has just signed a new contract until 2023 with Mercedes, matches his own record of victories on the same circuit.

Like Michael Schumacher at Magny-Cours (France), Sir Lewis has already won eight times at the Hungaroring, north of Budapest.

This is good for him, the next Grand Prix is ​​that of Hungary, on August 1st.

© 2021 AFP