Live: Rain falls before F1 Dutch GP, Piastri starts fourth

G’day StevoR.

If there is more rain, who is the best driver in those conditions?

Max Verstappen is one of the greatest wet-weather drivers ever.

Lewis Hamilton is excellent in tough conditions.

Lando Norris showed last year in Melbourne that he can handle wet races.

Drivers used intermediates to get to the grid after earlier showers.

What tyre will be the right one for the start of this race?

Have we seen the last of the rain?

Aussie drivers like the Dutch Grand Prix. There have been five Australians who have won a grand prix in Formula 1 — Sir Jack Brabham, Alan Jones, Mark Webber, Daniel Ricciardo and Oscar Piastri.

Three of those — Brabham, Jones and Piastri — have won the Dutch Grand Prix.

Brabham did it twice in 1960 and 1966, both years he went on to win the drivers’ championship.

Jones secured Dutch Grand Prix victory in 1979, and Oscar Piastri claimed last year’s race at Zandvoort.

The Dutch Grand Prix was not held during Webber’s career, while Ricciardo had a best finish of 10th from his three races. Ricciardo missed the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix after suffering a broken hand from a crash during practice.

Zandvoort is old school.

The circuit sweeps and flows through the sand dunes at Zandvoort, with corners coming rapidly at drivers.

The track is also undulating, and banked corners are also a feature of this track.

Tarzan Corner (turn 1) is the most famous turn of the track, and provides the best overtaking opportunity and the end of the start-finish straight.

Hugenholtzbocht (turn 3) and Arie Luyendykbocht (turn 14, final turn) are banked up to 18 degrees, an oddity in modern F1.

There are two sections of track — the start-finish straight, and between turns 10 and 11 — where Straight Mode can be activated.

The Overtake Mode detection point is in the approach to turn 13, and can be activated into turn 14 and used for the remainder of the following lap.

• Circuit length: 4.259km
• Number of turns: 14
• Number of laps: 72
• Race distance: 306.587km
• Lap record (in race): 1:11.097s — Lewis Hamilton (2021)

392 — Mercedes

316 — Ferrari

230 — McLaren

180 — Red Bull

66 — Racing Bulls

62 — Alpine

21 — Haas

12 — Audi

11 — Williams

1 — Aston Martin

0 — Cadillac

We mentioned earlier that the forecast was clear, but showers can form quickly at Zandvoort.

Well. It’s happened.

There are umbrellas out with 45 minutes until the start of the grand prix.

224 — Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes

171 — Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari

168 — George Russell, Mercedes

145 — Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

134 — Lando Norris, McLaren

112 — Max Verstappen, Red Bull

96 — Oscar Piastri, McLaren

68 — Isack Hadjar, Red Bull

43 — Pierre Gasly, Alpine

43 — Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls

23 — Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls

19 — Franco Colapinto, Alpine

18 — Oliver Bearman, Haas

10 — Gabriel Bortoleto, Audi

6 — Carlos Sainz, Williams

5 — Alex Albon, Williams

3 — Esteban Ocon, Haas

2 — Nico Hülkenberg, Audi

1 — Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin

0 — Lance Stroll, Aston Martin

0 — Valtteri Bottas, Cadillac

0 — Sergio Pérez, Cadillac

G’day, Dermie.

Most of the day at Zandvoort will be dry, but it is by the sea, and showers can form very quickly.

So we anticipate a dry race, it most likely will be dry, but there is always a chance of a shower.

In case you missed it, we have a change on the grid this weekend.

Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar suffered a wrist injury while training during the mid-year break.

This means Kiwi Liam Lawson will drive in his seat this weekend. Lawson had two weekends as a full-time Red Bull driver at the start of last season, before being demoted to Racing Bulls.

Lawson is back in the top team.

With Lawson getting called up to Red Bull, reserve driver Yuki Tsunoda will drive in the Racing Bulls car.

Tsunoda was the driver who replaced Lawson after two weekends last season, before he was dropped at the end of the year.

G’day Phillip.

I just love to work, mate.

Thanks for reading ABC Sport’s live blogs.

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Here is when the lights will go out at Zandvoort, wherever you are in Australia.

• 11pm: NSW, Victoria, Queensland, ACT, Tasmania
• 10:30pm: South Australia, Northern Territory
• 9pm: Western Australia

Goedenavond — Good evening, Australia.

Welcome back to ABC Sport’s live digital coverage of the 2026 Formula 1 championship season.

The mid-year break is over, and racing returns in the town of Zandvoort for the Dutch Grand Prix.

Teenager Kimi Antonelli resumes the season as the drivers’ championship leader, holding a 53-point lead over Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton.

Antonelli’s Mercedes teammate, George Russell, is a further three points adrift.

Australian Oscar Piastri is seventh overall in the drivers’ championship standings, after a year filled with promising moments and bitter disappointment.

Tonight Lando Norris starts on pole position, while Piastri begins from fourth on the grid.

Be part of the conversation, and let me know your thoughts on all things F1, in the comment section.