This weekend marks another entry into the already chequered history of the British Grand Prix, a stalwart of the Formula One calender. Many memories from many races and circuits throughout the years can make the claim to be the greatest, but which ones have I picked? Keep reading to find out!

5. Johnny Herbert takes his first win

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It took many years of hard work and perseverance for British crowd favourite Johnny Herbert to get a seat at a top team, and when he joined Benetton in 1995 it was seen by many to be the opportunity he had worked to hard to achieve. But as future team-mates of Michael Schumacher found out, second fiddle was the best he could expect. When the season got to Silverstone, a coming together of Schumacher and arch rival Damon Hill promoted to him to the lead of the race, but with Hill’s team-mate David Coulthard closing fast. Coulthard would pick-up a stop-go penalty however, and Herbert was free to cruise home for an emotional first win, epitomised by every team waving him over the line.

4. Aryton Senna hitches a lift back to the pits

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1991 was the last time the great Brazilian would claim the World Drivers title. Dominant at the start of the year, it took a strong effort from the Williams team and lead driver Nigel Mansell to prevent it from being a total walkover. By the time the British Grand Prix came round, Williams had fixed their reliability gremlins and Mansell duly put his car on pole, with Senna close behind. As predicted, these two scampered off into the distance, until the final lap when the McLaren slowly ground to a halt. Mansell, seeing Senna stranded and a track invasion imminent, stopped to give his great rival a lift back to the pits, with the Brazilian gripping onto the airbox throughout the Victory Lap.

3. Lewis Hamilton dominates in the wet

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A more recent entry on the list is also the last British winner of the race. The English summer of 2008 delivered a rainy day for Lewis Hamilton’s second attempt at winning his home race, and what occurred that afternoon was one of the most dominant displays of wet-weather driving by someone without the surname Schumacher. By the time Hamilton crossed the finish line, he was a monumental 68 seconds ahead of second-placed man Nick Heidfeld, and another 14 ahead of third placed Rubens Barrichello. Everyone else in the race had been lapped. No one had dominated a Grand Prix in such a manner for over 13 years, and it set the ball rolling for the young Brit to claim the World Drivers crown many months later in Brazil. On that wet day in July, a new superstar was born.

2. Michael Schumacher wins in the pitlane

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How can we have an F1 list without a little sprinkling of Michael Schumacher controversy? In 1998, the Red Baron had been battling with Mika Hakkinen for the title all season long, and moving into the British Grand Prix, both drivers were at the sharp end of the grid. Yet again, race day was rainy and damp, and both drivers moved ahead of the field, Hakkinen was in front and built a heavy gap. A mistake led to a spin and fron wing damage though, and a safety car period would define the race in the history books. Schumacher would lap Alexander Wurz under the safety car whilst keeping up with Hakkinen, and the race stewards issued a penalty at the very end of the race, but it was unclear whether it was a 10 second stop-go, or 10 seconds added to his race time. Making sure they obeyed protocol, and now that Schumacher had a healthy gap ahead of Hakkinen, Ferrari brought their lead driver in for a stop-go penalty, crossing the line in the process. Due to the race stewards bungling, the result stood, even after McLaren protests, but yet another controversial decision had been attributed to the German’s already chequered past.

1. Nigel Mansell and the “Silverstone Two-Step”

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No driver has captured the British public’s imagination quite as much as Nigel Mansell. In 1985, he finally secured his maiden win, on British soil at Brands Hatch at the European GP, and then made it one better a year later by winning at Silverstone. But, another 12 months later would prove to be his most impressive victory. By the time the 1987 season began, it was plain to see that the Williams-Hondas of Mansell and Nelson Piquet were the cars to beat, as they traded wins and podiums throughout. Silverstone that year was no different, as both drivers worked their way to the front. By mid-distance, Mansell had picked up a wheel vibration and made an unplanned stop for tyres, and rejoined 29 seconds behind his team-mate with 28 laps remaining. In that period, not only did Mansell catch Piquet, but also broke the lap record a stunning eleven times. On lap 62, while being right behind Piquet, Mansell faked to pass right, only to dive down the inside left, taking the lead and holding on until the end. On his Victory Lap, Mansell’s car ground to a halt, petrol tank empty, and the Silverstone crowd engulfed their hero.

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