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Cape Town - The 2016 Hungarian GP was, for the most part, a very predictable race. Lewis Hamilton grabbed the lead from team mate and pole sitter Nico Rosberg and dominated the race.
A great moment on track was Kimi Raikkonen showing great form.
With the halfway point of the 2016 F1 season done and dusted, and the Summer break only one race weekend away, Mercedes is strolling towards a third successive Championship. Ferrari and Red Bull are battling for second place.
Here are 6 great moments from the 2016 Hungarian GP.
1 Lewis gets the jump on Nico
Heading into the Hungarian GP, Hamilton trailed Rosberg by a single point in the Drivers' Championship. After starting the season in dominant fashion and building a substantial gap, Rosberg saw his lead shrink since his infamous first-lap crash with Hamilton in Spain.
At the Hungaroring, Hamilton performed a perfect start and positioned himself alongside Rosberg. The German, clearly caught unawares by his charging team mate, tried to defend his position, but ultimately was overtaken when the field reached turn one.
READ: As it happened - 2016 Hungarian GP
Red Bull drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen finished in third and fifth respectively. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) finished fourth.
2 Kimi destroys his front wing
The Iceman started in 14th place after a disastrous qualifying session and was given a slim outside chance to put his stamp on the race. Raikkonen grabbed his overweight Ferrari by the horns and delivered a great performance.
It was one of the Iceman’s best races since returning to Ferrari in 2013, but, much like his drive in Spain, he was stuck behind a driver half his age: Max ‘the relentless’ Verstappen.
For more than half of the 70-lap race, Raikkonen was duelling with Verstappen and could not find a way past the youngster. At one point Raikkonen was within 0.4 seconds of Verstappen but he could not move past the Dutchman.
Yet Raikkonen would not relent. With less than 10 laps left, Raikkonen attacked and unfortunately the pair collided. Raikkonen’s front wing clipped the youngster’s rear wheel though fortunately, both could continue with Verstappen staying ahead.
Verstappen and Raikkonen finished the race in fifth and sixth respectively.
3 Red Bull vs. Ferrari
With Mercedes running away with the Championship, Red Bull and Ferrari are fighting to be the next-best team in 2016. After starting the year in a strong position and almost winning on a couple of occasions, Ferrari have lost ground to Red Bull in recent races.
In Hungary the two teams were in a head-to-head battle but it was Red Bull that prevailed, grabbing the third podium spot.
Vettel battled with Ricciardo for third but the Australian veteran managed to keep his Red Bull in front while Verstappen saw off a relentless Iceman to finish in fifth place. The second half of the season will determine which of these two teams will come out on top.
Constructors' championship after 11 races:
1 Mercedes: 378
2 Ferrari 224
3 Red Bull 223
4 Williams 94
5 Force India 74
4 And the championship leader is…
Hamilton, once he is in the groove, is a difficult force to stop on track. With Rosberg winning four wins in a row earlier in 2016, pundits said that Hamilton will not defend his title successfully and that his off-track interests are distracting him.
Whether you like him or not, Hamilton is one of the best drivers on the grid.
Despite mechanical failures and crash-filled GPs, he now leads the championship for the first time in 2016. His relentless attitude behind the wheel and natural racer’s instincts pulled him saw him battle his way to the top of the Drivers' championship.
READ: Record fifth Hungary win sends Hamilton to the top
Only 10 races remain in the 2016 season and it's expected that the battle between Mercedes' duelling drivers will continue to increase.
The championship battle continues and Toto Wolff will have a tough time managing his feuding drivers.
Championship standing after 11 races:
1 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes: 192
2 Nico Rosberg, Mercedes: 186
3 Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull: 115
4 Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari: 114
5 Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari: 110
6 Max Verstappen, Red Bull: 100
5 Qualifying was a mess!
At the start of qualifying, the track was drenched in water due to intermittent rain. Conditions deteriorated to the point that first qualifying session (Q1) lasted an 1hr15min - a lot longer than the allocated 18min.
A session that should have lasted 60min ended up being two and a half hours long! Not all of the delays however were due to the rain.
READ: Rosberg trumps Hamilton in Hungary chaos
6 Crashes deserve their own special mention
Due to the ultra-wet conditions, qualifying saw several crashes and spins. Yellow flags and red flags were waved constantly; it’s a miracle the marshals did not develop a case of colour blindness!
Marcus Ericsson (Sauber), Felipe Massa (Williams) and Rio Haryanto (Manor) all crashed during Q1, bringing out the red flags and delaying the session. Alonso spun his car during the final seconds of Q3, which led to Rosberg’s controversial pole position.
The next race is the German GP, 29-31 July 2016.