It was a slow start from pole sitter, Lando Norris as the Res Bull made a move down the pit straight.
Verstappen, starting in second, was quick off the line and usurped the McLaren driver into second place.
However, it was the fast-starting George Russell. who caught them both off guard. The Brit swooped around the outside of Turn 1 to take the lead.
The crucial toe from the second row of the grid proving hugely beneficial to the Mercedes.
In behind, the other drivers got away cleanly, with no retirements in the opening laps.
The Spanish GP has been notorious for overtaking difficulties in recent years, but the opening laps were exciting.
The Ferraris battled for 5th meanwhile Verstappen reclaimed the lead from George Russell. A simple move at Turn 1 at the start of lap 3.
As the race approached lap 20 the first round of pit stops were underway. Mercedes and Alpine had issues – leading to longer stops – which cost crucial seconds.
It cost Russell time against Norris who decided to go long in contrast to most of the field.
Home hero, Carlos Sainz, took advantage of the undercut to take a place from Hamilton. Despite this, the Brit soon took the place back with another daring move into Turn 1.
The British driver looked like a man with a point to prove after his solid performance in qualifying taking P3.
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Norris goes for glory
After dropping back from the Red Bull because of Russell, the McLaren team decided to leave Norris out.
With 6 laps fresher tyres, they hoped he would overtake the Mercedes pair, and hunt down Verstappen.
He cleared Hamilton on lap 32 shortly after dispatching Carlos Sainz – but Russell was determined not to lose 2nd place.
Russell goes deep into the first chicane and Norris goes all the way around the outside of Turn Three.
Russell came back at him on the outside of Turn Four, before Norris cut back and eventually got the move down into Turn Seven.
It was a joy to see exciting racing at the Spanish GP again with brilliant race craft shown from the frontrunners so far.
Russell took that as a cue to come in for his second stop. The team bolted on a set of hard tyres to see him through till the end.
On the other hand, his teammate, Hamilton, opted for the soft tyre in a punchier final stint to the race.
Verstappen went the same route while Norris, who had more life on his medium middle stint, pumped in the purple sectors in hope of snatching victory.
Heartbreakingly, the McLaren team – who are so often the most efficient on the grid – had a slow pit stop when they brought in Norris.
A 3.6-second did the Brit no favours as he gunned for another victory.
Crucially, he came out ahead of the Mercedes cars.
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A sprint finish
As the race entered the final 10 laps it was all to play for out in front.
Hamilton overtook his teammate to move into third while Norris continued to reel in Verstappen.
The Red Bull garage showed some signs of concern giving the Dutchman a welcome boost with a higher engine mode.
Further back, Hulkenburg was putting in another impressive drive on Sunday. The German has been unlucky this season with a string of 11th places.
He was hot on the tail of Esteban Ocon going into the closing stages in the battle for a precious championship point.
Norris continued to close but eventually ran out of laps in a frustrating day for the British driver.
In the end, it was Max Verstappen who took another victory to add to his impressive resume. Despite the Red Bull not being the fastest car at every race this season, he continues to get the best out of the car.
Norris was disappointed with P2 at the end of the race. He shouldn’t be too hard on himself.
The British driver has quickly established himself as a front runner in F1 for many years to come.
Lewis Hamilton deservedly took his first podium of 2024 after a strong drive to third.
Russell held of the Ferrari drivers in 4th but he will rue the decision to use the hard tyres in the last stint.
Piastri and Perez followed in another disappointing day for the Mexican drier.
His current form means the Constructors Championship is not guaranteed to go to Red Bull just yet.
Gasly and Ocon picked up points for Alpine in a hugely encouraging race for the French team.
They have been floundering so far this season and will hope this is a turning point in 2024.
Next week, we go to Spielberg in Austria for the second race of the triple header.