Verstappen had to negotiate a safety car and a red flag but was untroubled once into the lead at Turn One. Verstappen had said after qualifying that his confidence for the race was “good”, despite lining up third on the grid behind Leclerc and Sainz. Verstappen had stopped early for fresh tyres on lap 19 and looked as if he might be going for a two stop. He had passed Sainz for second and was six seconds behind Leclerc when the Ferrari finally pitted on lap 31. That put Leclerc 16 seconds behind Verstappen but with the Red Bull potentially having to make a second pit stop. Magnussen was uninjured, and the race was soon red-flagged for repairs to be made to the barriers, with Verstappen leading from Leclerc, Hamilton, Sainz, Russell and Ricciardo. The tension was now all behind him, as Hamilton, having chosen the medium tyres, was soon challenging Leclerc on the hard tyre.

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