George Russell Wins Dutch GP Sprint, Cuts Gap to Kimi Antonelli

ZANDVOORT, Netherlands —

George Russell led every lap of the Dutch Grand Prix sprint race on Saturday, holding off a train of pursuers to win from pole position at Zandvoort, according to BBC Sport. The victory trims Russell's deficit to Mercedes teammate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli to 56 points, BBC Sport reported.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc passed McLaren's Lando Norris for second place with six laps remaining, while Norris held off a late charge from Antonelli to finish third, BBC Sport reported. Antonelli crossed the line fourth after feinting a move on Norris into the Tarzan corner but could not complete the pass, according to BBC Sport.

"As soon as I saw Charles behind, I dropped the hammer a bit and the two of us pulled away," Russell said, according to BBC Sport. Norris was less satisfied with his car. "I don't think it was the tyres. We lacked pace and we have a bit of work to do," he said, according to BBC Sport.

Hamilton Holds Onto Second

Antonelli now has 224 points in the drivers' championship, extending his lead over Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton to 53 points, Channel NewsAsia reported. Hamilton sits on 171 points, three points ahead of Russell's 168, after finishing seventh in the sprint behind McLaren's Oscar Piastri and Red Bull's Max Verstappen, according to Channel NewsAsia.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff called the sprint result a confidence boost rather than a title-defining moment. "It's not a lot of points but it's a good boost of confidence," Wolff said, according to Guardian Sport. He pointed to a near-accident for Antonelli in qualifying as a reason the Italian driver was not pushing as hard in the race, Guardian Sport reported.

Rain threatened to reshape the finish. Showers arrived just after Russell took the checkered flag, during the drivers' slowing-down laps, and would have made the closing stages more chaotic had they come two laps earlier as forecast, according to BBC Sport. "One more lap and it would have been a very different end to the race," Russell said, according to Guardian Sport.

The Track's Last Dutch GP

This weekend marks the final scheduled Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, after the circuit's owners decided not to bid to keep the race beyond 2026, ending a run that began in 2021, according to Guardian Sport. That gives Max Verstappen, who signed a new contract with Red Bull this week, one more chance to win in front of his home fans, Yahoo Sports reported, though Guardian Sport noted that fewer fans than expected reached the circuit because of railway problems.

Sunday's grand prix will award the bulk of the championship points, with Antonelli, Hamilton and Russell separated by 56 points heading into the race, according to Channel NewsAsia.