Max Verstappen withstood everything Mercedes threw at him to win the Dutch Grand Prix – his home race – at the first attempt, much to the delight of a sea of orange.
The Red Bull looked the slightly better car over the course of the weekend – at least in the hands of Verstappen – and it was the 23-year-old who narrowly secured pole position on Saturday.
Lewis Hamilton impressively closed to within 0.038 seconds of his title rival, after a tricky weekend where he missed almost all of Practice 2 with an engine issue, but the margin should have been larger with Verstappen’s DRS failing to open after he had also missed fifth gear earlier in the lap.
On Sunday, as soon as the flying Dutchman had successfully navigated the run to the first corner, it was to be a tale of strategy.
Sergio Pérez in the other Red Bull had been caught out in Q1 and would be starting from the back, which left Mercedes able to utilise two-versus-one tactics.
Image credit: Sutton Images
They attempted to take advantage, bringing Hamilton in for an attempted undercut, whilst teammate Valtteri Bottas ran long on a one-stop. The Finn made his Mercedes as wide as possible when Verstappen caught him, but was unable to stop him sailing past after one lap, despite the Zandvoort circuit proving predictably difficult to pass on.
Once again, Mercedes attempted the undercut with Hamilton, pulling the trigger unexpectedly early on lap 39. It was poorly executed, though, with the reigning champion emerging into traffic and Verstappen was easily able to cover him.
From there, it was plain sailing for the home favourite and car number 44 eventually gave up the chase to pit and secure the fastest lap.
A six-point swing in the title battle leaves Verstappen three points ahead in the standings heading to the season’s second sprint-qualifying weekend at Monza. On paper, it is a track that should favour the Silver Arrows. But how often have things followed the script this season?
Image credit: Getty Images
A Tough Weekend for McLaren
Behind the most common podium trio of all time, Pierre Gasly once again excelled in the AlphaTauri, backing up his excellent fourth in qualifying with a lonely but flawless race.
Behind him, the Ferraris finished fifth and seventh – split by Fernando Alonso, who judged his tyre life to perfection to pass Carlos Sainz on the last lap – which sees them open out an 11.5-point gap to McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship.
The crowd may have been wall-to-wall orange, but things did not go the way of the papaya team in the Netherlands.
Unusually, Lando Norris struggled for pace throughout the weekend, and was then caught out by the pair of Williams crashes in Q2, leaving him 13th on the grid. Teammate Daniel Ricciardo did make it through to Q3 but could only manage 10th and, after nearly not starting the race at all, struggled for pace during it.
Norris extended his first stint well and caught the Honey Badger towards the end of the race. Team orders allowed him past but, after a tough battle with the recovering Pérez, Norris would only finish one place in front of a mildly disgruntled Ricciardo to claim the final point.
Image credit: Motorsport Images
Monza will give them an excellent chance to bounce back immediately, however. They are renowned for their straight-line prowess this season and could even find themselves mixing it with the big boys next weekend at the Temple of Speed.
The Dutch Grand Prix in 60 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
Will Red Bull or Mercedes come out on top at a track that is somewhere between the Red Bull Ring and the Hungaroring? It was pretty tight, but Red Bull appeared to have a slight edge.
How will the drivers cope with a very unique circuit? They all seemed to love it. Along the lines of Mugello last year – a thrilling rollercoaster but not designed for modern F1 cars to overtake.
Will there be any overtaking? See above. Although Pérez produced some inventive moves to make his way back through the field.
Max Verstappen was declared the winner of the Belgian Grand Prix after the requisite two laps amidst a never-ending downpour at Spa.
After a spectacular qualifying session on Saturday, which saw George Russell very nearly snatch the unlikeliest of pole positions, fans waited for hours as the race was continuously delayed.
Eventually, with light fading fast and the rain showing no sign of dissipating, the drivers went out behind the safety car on what were – officially at least – reconnaissance laps, only for the race to be red flagged once again.
Around three and a half hours after the lights should have gone out, it was confirmed that the race would not restart and Verstappen was announced as the winner. That also meant a first ever podium for Russell in second and a 174th podium for Lewis Hamilton in third, with the field awarded half points.
A Bad Day for Formula 1
Image credit: Getty Images
Either side of the summer break, we went from one of the best races in years, to one of the worst ever.
If you can even call it a race.
The situation was clearly a very challenging one for all involved, but the way in which those in charge dealt with it left a lot to be desired. This is not simply a case of having the benefit of hindsight – it was clear to see at the time that many of the procedures were farcical.
Team strategists radioed Michael Masi, clueless of the situation, and received conflicting answers; the commentators did their best to inform the viewers but repeatedly found out that they were wrong.
This writer was just as confused as Martin Brundle upon discovering that the race had been shortened by one lap for each ‘delayed start’. Race start times have been changed in the past without it being classed as such. And then there was the debacle of the various clocks that may or may not have started, and were ultimately paused by the stewards anyway.
Image credit: XPB Images
It felt as though the rules were often being applied far too literally and that all common sense had been washed away by the biblical rain.
And finally came the laps that were classed as ‘the race’. As Hamilton stated in his post-race interview, they were sent out for “one reason and one reason only”: to ensure that there was an official result at the end of the day.
It is a result, however, that leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. For most of the teams and drivers, for those watching at home, and particularly for those in the grandstands. It is particularly painful to read first-hand accounts such as this one of fans who had paid hundreds of pounds or euros to sit in the rain for hours and then, in theory, not receive a refund as – they officially at least – witnessed an ‘event’.
We can only hope that F1 will do something to reimburse them. And that it will learn from this shambles for the future.
The ‘Belgian Grand Prix’ in 30 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
What madness happens on the first lap this time? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Will Red Bull decide to get an almost inevitable engine penalty out of the way here? Nope.
Are we set for a typical wet and wild race in Spa with showers forecast all weekend? It was too wet and wild…to the point that there was no race.
Esteban Ocon took his maiden Formula 1 victory in a chaotic Hungarian Grand Prix after a first corner pile-up.
Rain started to fall half an hour before the lights went out and caused chaos at Turn One. Valtteri Bottas, after a poor getaway, braked too late and ploughed into the back of Lando Norris, in turn punting the young Briton into Max Verstappen. Bottas himself then slid into the other Red Bull of Sergio Pérez.
That had left Charles Leclerc looking at second place, only for Lance Stroll to crash into him after also missing his braking point. This time, rather than being the projectile, a McLaren was on the receiving end, Daniel Ricciardo being spun round by the helpless Ferrari.
Bottas and Pérez retired immediately with Norris joining them during the ensuing red flag. Verstappen and Ricciardo were able to continue but with significant damage, despite the best efforts of the Red Bull mechanics during the stoppage.
The drama was far from over, however.
As the drivers followed the safety car round for a standing restart, still on intermediate tyres, it became apparent that the sun had dried the track out incredibly quickly. Lewis Hamilton lined up once again in his pole spot…but nobody followed him…
So, it was lights out and away just Hamilton went, but knowing that he would have to stop at the end of the lap. Having done so, he rejoined in last place.
The Hungaroring is a notoriously difficult track on which to overtake and the World Champion was struggling. He had successfully passed Antonio Giovinazzi and Mick Schumacher but was unable to get close enough to Pierre Gasly‘s AlphaTauri to fashion a move.
Mercedes decided a two-stop strategy was the way forward and pitted Hamilton on lap 20. Once in fresh air, he was immediately the fastest car on track by a fair margin and crucially undercut Verstappen and Ricciardo when they stopped a lap later.
Hamilton gradually picked drivers off, either when they pitted or on track – an audacious move around the outside of Yuki Tsunoda at Turn 4 the highlight – and soon enough found himself up to fifth.
Meanwhile, at the front, a leading pair of Ocon and Sebastian Vettel had emerged after Hamilton’s overdue tyre change. The Williams of Nicholas Latifi held on to third for an impressive spell, allowing them to open up a gap. The unlikely leader eventually pitted on lap 38 – a lap after Vettel – and emerged narrowly ahead of the four-time champion.
Hamilton spent a few laps stuck behind Carlos Sainz in fourth but built enough of a gap to pit for medium tyres and rejoin in fifth. At this point he was three seconds faster than any other car on track, but in his path lay a formidable obstacle – Fernando Alonso.
Image credit: XPB Images
The Spaniard is never one to back down from a wheel-to-wheel battle, and here he was further incentivised to help protect his teammate’s lead.
The old rivals produced a thrilling battle as Alonso used every trick in the book to keep the faster Mercedes behind. He somehow succeeded in doing so for 10 laps before a lock-up into Turn One finally released Hamilton.
But, by that point, there were only six laps remaining. Hamilton quickly dispatched Sainz in third and closed in rapidly on Ocon and Vettel, but it was too late. Ocon completed an incredibly mature drive, keeping his head whilst leading a race for the very first time, to take the chequered flag.
Behind the top five, the AlphaTauris finished line astern in sixth and seventh, with Gasly stealing the point for fastest lap on the final tour, and Williams finally got their first points since Germany 2019 with Latifi eighth and Russell ninth.
There was more drama to come after the chequered flag, however, as Vettel was disqualified. His Aston Martin had developed a fuel pump issue late on and the FIA were unable to take the one-litre sample required by the regulations. The disqualification is under appeal, but it looks likely that Vettel will sadly lose a well-deserved podium.
Sainz is promoted to third, which means – bizarrely – half of his four podiums have now come belatedly.
Why Didn’t Hamilton Pit?
Mercedes basically found themselves between a rock and a hard place.
With Hamilton at the front, it would have been brave for Mercedes to pull into the pits and potentially hand over pole position not knowing what everyone behind you is planning. And, more importantly, if they had done so and everybody had followed them in, they would have struggled to release their driver into a stream of cars coming down the pit lane.
Image credit: Getty Images
Hamilton said after the race that the team had believed more rain was coming and their was no radio traffic between driver and team during the lap behind the safety car. Perhaps they thought it was banned – as some on social media also initially thought – with that being the case for the regular parade lap.
But as this was the effective third lap of the race, no such regulation was active. That is a silly mistake if so that may have contributed to what, in hindsight, was clearly the wrong call.
Either way, it set up a vintage Hamilton comeback. One which appeared to have taken a lot out of him as he visibly struggled to remain standing on the podium. Hamilton later revealed he fears he may be suffering from ‘long COVID’. Let’s hope the summer break gives him some time to continue his recovery.
More Sparks in the Title Fight
Tensions between Red Bull and Mercedes were already beyond simmering heading into the Hungarian Grand Prix, and this will not have done anything to calm them.
For the second race in a row, a Mercedes made contact with a Red Bull. Aside from the obvious implications in terms of points, the cost of the ensuing damage is piling up for the Austrian team, in the first year of a budget cap.
Image credit: AFP
Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff apologised to his opposite number, Christian Horner, but the Red Bull boss didn’t appear to be particularly appeased and asked if Wolff would be paying the bill.
“I’m sure he wasn’t that sorry to see the result. I’m sure he didn’t tell Valtteri to do that but the consequences of that for us are brutal. In a cost cap environment, that needs looking at by the FIA.”
In addition to Hamilton reclaiming the title lead, Mercedes have also passed their rivals in the constructors’ standings. And the update brought to Silverstone by the reigning champions appears to have moved them back level on performance. The Silver Arrows had the edge all weekend on a track which has not been their strongest in recent years.
For all the drama we have had to the halfway point of the season, it is effectively back to square one with both championships practically level.
Four weeks to rest and recuperate now, and then we go again.
The Hungarian Grand Prix in 60 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
How will Hamilton and Verstappen act in the wake of their controversial clash? As it was, they were not the source of the drama into Turn One. Whilst there were still a few barbed remarks, the relationship seemed respectful enough in the public eye.
Who will come out on top at a track with similar characteristics to Monaco but where Hamilton has won eight times? Well, Ocon actually, as we all predicted…
Can Ferrari keep up their impressive recent form? They showed strong pace again. Leclerc was bumped out of what would have been second place, but an eventual podium for Sainz will make up for that.
Lewis Hamilton delighted his home fans with victory at the British Grand Prix after recovering from a first-lap clash with title rival Max Verstappen.
Saturday’s sprint qualifying experiment had put Verstappen on pole, leaving Hamilton disappointed after a great performance in the regular qualifying format on Friday evening.
When the lights went out on Sunday, though, it was the World Champion who got away better. The pair fought tooth and nail for half a lap, regularly wheel-to-wheel and once brushing tyres on the Wellington Straight. Hamilton took a wide line around Luffield to get better drive and closed in on Verstappen down the old pit straight. The Red Bull defended but Hamilton sold him a dummy to move up the inside as the pair approached Copse at nearly 200 mph.
And then the clash – which has been narrowly avoided on numerous occasions this year – finally occurred.
Hamilton’s right front and Verstappen’s left rear touched and the Dutchman was sent spearing into the wall at a terrifying speed. Whilst clearly winded and shaken, he was able to walk away from the accident and transported to hospital for cautionary checks.
The Mercedes, meanwhile, had survived with minor damage and the race had been red flagged.
Once the barriers had been repaired, we witnessed our third standing start of the weekend with Charles Leclerc the unlikely polesitter. Hamilton sat in second – the damage to his car repaired with a bit of superglue – with his teammate, Valtteri Bottas, in third and fellow home hero Lando Norris in fourth.
The Ferrari held Hamilton at bay on the run to the first corner, but behind them Norris started well and passed Bottas for a provisional podium spot.
That would – somewhat surprisingly – remain the order through to the pit stops. Hamilton was generally within two seconds of the leader but couldn’t get close enough to fashion a move, despite occasional power issues for the Ferrari.
The Briton had been given a ten-second penalty as a result of his first-lap collision so an undercut was out of the question. He ran longer than those following, pitting on lap 28 and rejoined in what would effectively become fourth place.
A slow stop for Norris had left him behind Bottas and he didn’t fight as his compatriot stormed past into Copse on lap 31.
As Hamilton closed in rapidly on fresher tyres, his teammate was asked to move aside and that left just Leclerc – nine seconds up the road with 12 laps remaining.
By lap 50 of 52, Hamilton was within the slipstream of the Monegasque. Once again he found himself pulling alongside the leader on the run to Copse. This time, slightly further back, he backed out of it but Leclerc – aware of his competitor’s presence – ran wide and Hamilton was through.
Image credit: AFP
The crowd roared and the World Champion repaid their support with his first victory since the Spanish Grand Prix back in May.
Leclerc came home an excellent second for his first podium of the year, with Bottas in third and Norris fourth – the young Briton now impressively moves up to third in the standings.
This collision had been coming. For months, if not years.
Hamilton and Verstappen have come within millimetres of each other on more than occasion this season.
Generally – throughout their time in F1 – Hamilton has been the one to back out. His approach has more often than not been focused in the long term, on the championship. Verstappen, on the other hand, has usually been in a position where he has nothing to lose.
This time, crucially, those roles were reversed, but Verstappen’s approach remained the same.
This season, Hamilton was shoved wide at the first corner in Imola, and was very accommodating as his rival launched a divebomb up the inside a few weeks later in Spain. He learnt a long while back – and the hard way in 2011 – that staying out of trouble is often the best way to earn titles. But now, with the Red Bull the class of the field recently and Verstappen having opened up a 33-point lead, he found himself in a position to take risks again.
That has not been the case for a long time, and perhaps Verstappen thought he simply had the better of Hamilton. The Dutchman’s approach has always been comparable with Ayrton Senna‘s mantra of ‘Either you back out or we crash’.
Here at Silverstone, Hamilton did not back out and they did crash. And it was Verstappen who came off worse.
In hindsight, as the man with the significant points advantage, he should have been more circumspect. But his natural competitiveness and youthful hotheadedness – which has clearly not been totally ironed out just yet – saw him continue to take risks. Twice before their collision, Hamilton had avoided the Red Bull.
At the first corner, Verstappen came back onto the track sharply after running wide and then used up all the track at Brooklands despite entering the corner behind Hamilton.
In the end, a small penalty for car number 44 felt about right. It follows the precedent set by recent incidents where a driver on the inside has clipped the wheel of one on the outside, with an extra five seconds perhaps for the speed involved.
The comments made by Christian Horner and Helmut Marko – who claimed Hamilton should receive a race ban – were frankly ridiculous, inflammatory and unnecessary.
Whatever your opinion on the incident, it has undeniably reignited a title battle that looked to be slipping away from Mercedes and likely provided a real spark between the two protagonists. Hamilton lifted the trophy on Sunday, but F1 was the biggest winner.
What Did We Make of Sprint Qualifying?
This was due to be the main talking point until the lap 1 drama unfolded. But it’s still worth mentioning on a weekend where F1 trialled the biggest change to its format for decades.
Personally, I remain unconvinced. It didn’t sit right with me that the fastest driver over one lap didn’t earn pole position. The sprint on Saturday cheapened the regular qualifying session and acted as a spoiler for the main race, revealing certain elements of teams’ race pace and tyre life that would normally remain a mystery until the headline event.
As for the sprint itself, the first couple of laps were, of course, thrilling, but the remaining 15 were something of a procession as those out front were barely seen and a DRS train formed in the midfield. Fernando Alonso‘s extraordinary start provided most of the remaining entertainment as he slowly fell backwards after moving up from 11th to 5th in the first few corners.
Ross Brown and co are clearly determined to add more events to the race weekend, but they must be wary of quantity over quality on an ever-increasing calendar.
However, a close friend who has never really been interested in F1 messaged me after the race – initially commenting on Hamilton’s “big ball energy”… – to say that he had been drawn in by the new weekend format, with it sounding more interesting to a casual viewer. So, it has clearly had the desired effect.
If something like this ends up as a special occasion at three or four races a year, that could certainly work. The sprint race itself needs some tweaking. Perhaps a reverse-championship-order sprint for a few points to really embrace the mayhem; although the budget cap means teams are unlikely to go for that. Whatever they choose, for the love of god, just call it a race rather than ‘Sprint Qualifying’. It’s quite clearly a short race, and all the members of the media desperately trying to avoid calling it as such was a bit cringeworthy.
The British Grand Prix in 60 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
Will the Sprint Qualifying format be a success? A disaster? Somewhere in between? See above. Let’s go with somewhere in between.
Can Mercedes get back on terms with Red Bull at one of Hamilton’s most successful tracks? One way or another, yes.
Will their long overdue upgrades make a big difference? The updates certainly seem to have brought them closer. With Verstappen out of the race and Sergio Pérez stuck at the back, though, it was hard to tell.
More Austrian dominance for the man becoming the clear title favourite.
Image credit: Getty Images
Seven days after his first domination at the Red Bull Ring, it was a similar serene drive to the win for Max Verstappen at the Austrian Grand Prix.
As predicted, with no freak mechanical issues or weather to intervene, the Dutchman delighted the swathes of fans clad in orange.
Mercedes hoped to have found something to reduce the gap to their rivals in the days since the Styrian Grand Prix. But that was clearly not the case when they found themselves down in fourth and fifth on the grid, behind both Red Bulls and the excellent Lando Norris.
Once the lights went out, Verstappen sailed off into the distance and did not look back. He had a gap easily large enough to pit late on and earn himself the fastest lap – by nearly two seconds – and took the first grand chelem of his career, having also claimed pole position and led every lap.
Lewis Hamilton probably would have settled for more damage limitation in the shape of a second place, and he looked on for just that once he’d found a way past Norris on lap 20. But, just before his pit stop, a piece of crucial aero fell off the back of his car, leaving him with massively reduced rear downforce and costing him half a second per lap.
Image credit: Motorsport Images
It remains something of a mystery what caused this. The World Champion did not run especially wide when the bodywork made a break for it – he was running over the kerbs at Turn 10 as normal. Team Principal Toto Wolff believes it was simply a case of fatigue as teams are forced to make parts last longer amid the new cost cap for 2021.
So, further bad luck for Hamilton and he was helpless to defend as teammate Valtteri Bottas and Norris repassed him. That left the 36-year-old in fourth and he is now a massive 32 points behind his title rival in the standings.
The Future May Be Orange, but It’s Also British
Whilst Verstappen demonstrated once again what we all know – that he will be a superstar for many years to come – there were two other drivers who showed their considerable potential.
Norris’s qualifying lap was extraordinary. He took his McLaren to within five hundredths of a second of the all-conquering Verstappen to take his first ever front row grid slot.
Image credit: Motorsport Images
And Russell was equally impressive, dragging his Williams into Q3 for the first time and ending up eighth on the grid after a Sebastian Vettel penalty.
On race day, Norris defended against the Mercedes pair with nous and composure far beyond his years, even prompting Hamilton to say over the radio, “Such a great driver, Lando”. That is something you very rarely hear from a driver mid-race.
Bottas would only succeed in passing Norris after the young Briton received a debatable penalty for forcing Sergio Pérez wide following a safety car restart early in the race. And the Mercedes driver hardly disappeared into the distance once in front as Norris tailed him home to finish just two seconds back and earn his fourth career podium.
Further back, Russell had recovered from an iffy start to run in a legitimate 10th place through solid race pace and was heading for his first point with Williams. But then came Fernando Alonso. The 23-year-old defended hard from the man he has formed an unlikely bromance with, but eventually had to concede to the Alpine‘s far fresher tyres with just three laps to go.
After a mechanical retirement in the previous race removed Russell from eighth, his luck may not have improved but he continues to earn fans, including Alonso: “I felt a little bit sad for George because he drove an amazing weekend. When I saw P10, I was hoping anyone apart from him…but that’s the sport. He will have more opportunities hopefully for podiums and wins in the future.”
Image credit: Getty Images
Earning compliments from legends like Hamilton and Alonso shows just how much respect these two young drivers have earned over their two and a half years in F1.
In Verstappen, Norris, Russell and Charles Leclerc, the future of the sport looks in safe – and exciting – hands.
Were the Penalties Fair?
The move for which Norris earned his penalty, was mirrored by Pérez himself as he ran Leclerc wide twice later in the race. Each incident earned a five-second penalty.
It is good to see consistency from the stewards for once – though perhaps not in the long term – but were they consistently right or wrong on this occasion?
It’s tricky. The issue is Turn 4, where the two main incidents happened. It is a demanding corner with significant adverse camber and a gravel trap on the outside. So, this was not simply a case of Norris opening the steering up and running Pérez out of road – something we have seen go unpunished many times before anyway. It was more a case of the McLaren naturally understeering towards the edge of the track.
So, the only way to avoid contact or forcing the car on the outside wide would be to get off the throttle and cede the position. Is that something the lead driver on the inside line should ever have to do?
Image credit: Getty Images
The penalty seems more harsh given that it was on the first full lap of racing, when incidents are normally treated with more leniency due to cold tyres, cold brakes and the general mayhem. Case in point: Leclerc not even being investigated for clumsily ending Gasly’s race a week ago, a few seconds earlier in the lap.
Whatever your opinion on the decisions, the penalty points system is clearly broken.
Two penalty points for the incident leaves Norris on ten points – although two will be wiped before the next race – which is just two away from a race ban.
I have touched on the penalty points system as recently as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix – when Norris and Nicholas Latifi were each given three points for tricky situations in which they found themselves somewhat helpless – and they remain unfit for purpose.
Can Mercedes find anything to challenge Red Bull more than last weekend? Nope.
Will the softer tyres make much of a change to the pecking order? Alpine appeared to find some more pace but events conspired to prevent them utilising it.
Any chance of some rain this time? *sigh* Of course not.
Max Verstappen strengthened his grip on the championship with a dominant win in Red Bull‘s back yard at the Styrian Grand Prix.
It was a weekend where the Red Bulls ruled, topping every session except Practice 3, and once Verstappen had successfully navigated the start and the first couple of corners, it looked unlikely that he would be challenged.
In truth, a challenge looked unlikely as soon as the forecast rain failed to appear.
Mercedes may have been able to compete in terms of race pace seven days earlier, but that was at Paul Ricard. The French track has been a strong track for the Silver Arrows since it returned to the calendar; the Red Bull Ring generally has not.
Image credit: Getty Images
In the early stages of the race, Lewis Hamilton managed to keep his title rival close enough to see the now sturdier Red Bull rear wing a few seconds up the road. But as they approached the pit stop window, Verstappen began to turn the screw. And once into the second stage of the race, any hopes of Mercedes utilising a tyre wear advantage to make a race of it also dissipated as Verstappen extended his advantage without drama.
Unlike in France, there was nothing Hamilton and his team could have done differently on strategy this time – Verstappen simply had them covered on outright pace.
The Dutchman eventually reached the flag over 30 seconds ahead of Hamilton, once the Britain had stopped for a set of softs and a consolation bonus point for fastest lap. And it should have been a double podium for the home team.
After all the talk of pit stop regulations – more on that later – it was ironically a botched Red Bull stop which cost Sergio Pérez. Having navigated past the once again excellent Lando Norris, Pérez appeared to have Valtteri Bottas covered in their fight for the final podium spot. But a slow stop dropped him back behind the Finn and a gamble to switch to fresh medium tyres narrowly failed. One more lap would have done it. Pérez broke into the DRS window on the last lap but stood no chance of passing through the final five corners.
Image credit: Getty Images
Norris ran a lonely but effective race to finish fifth and impressively remain above Bottas in the standings. The Ferraris reversed their form from the last grand prix. In France, they started well but fell badly through the field. Here, a poor qualifying from Carlos Sainz and a clumsy opening lap by Charles Leclerc were rectified by impressive race pace which saw the pair recover to sixth and seventh respectively.
That means Ferrari narrow the gap to McLaren slightly after Daniel Ricciardo failed to score points. The Aussie struggled once again in qualifying and, after he had made amends with an excellent opening lap, a temporary loss of power saw him plummet back down the order. The Honey Badger just can’t catch a break right now.
It’s back to Spielberg again in a week’s time and Mercedes won’t be enjoying the prospect of another chastening dent to their title defence. Can we hold out any hope for a more interesting race? Perhaps. The tyres are a step softer and the tworaces in Silverstone last year showed how much of a difference that can make. And who knows – maybe it could even bloody rain when it’s supposed to this time…
“This is an outrage!” screamed large portions of social media. “It’s the FIA trying to help Mercedes against Red Bull!” yelled armchair experts as their tin foil hats slipped over their eyes.
The reality is that this will make very little difference and – more to the point – if it does affect any teams, they were exploiting a loophole and endangering their own pit crews.
The technical directive mandates a minimum 0.15-second delay between the wheel nuts being confirmed as tight and the mechanic operating the jack dropping the car, and 0.2 seconds from the jack going down to the driver receiving the signal to leave the pits.
Christian Horner, of course, piped up – windbag that he is – to claim that, “To have to hold the car for two tenths of a second, you could almost argue it’s dangerous because you’re judging your gaps. The guy that’s releasing the car is having to make that judgement, and I think that it’s not been well thought through.”
Image credit: XPB Images
That is nonsense. There will be no judging a 0.15-second gap. For the same reason that an Olympic sprinter or an F1 driver starting in less than that is deemed to have jumped the start. That is quite simply the absolute fastest a human being can react.
All this clarification does is ensure that there are no automated systems in play. Systems that would speed up times but reduce safety. It’s very easy for Horner to give his two cents, sat on a comfy chair on the pit wall… But it’s a different matter entirely when a 900kg, 1000 bhp Formula 1 car is millimetres away from doing you significant damage.
Let’s not forget, it was only three years ago that a Ferrari mechanic had his leg broken when an automated system gave Kimi Räikkönen an errant green light.
And again, if there are no illegal systems at play, Horner should have nothing to worry about. So, let’s just all move on shall we? It will probably all have been forgotten about by the time it comes into play at the Hungarian Grand Prix anyway.
The Styrian Grand Prix in 60 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
Can Mercedes turn around their form on Red Bull’s home track? Nope.
Will we see a wet and wild weekend? As is tradition, the likelihood of a wet race went from 90% on Friday, to 40% on Saturday, to 0% on Sunday morning. The best we got was a few drops in Practice 2. Typical.
Can Ferrari solve their race pace/degradation issues? Yes, Sainz produced an impressive first stint to overcut most of the midfield.
Max Verstappen and Red Bull bested their title rivals in a strategic rollercoaster at the French Grand Prix.
Paul Ricard had historically been a Mercedes track – Lewis Hamilton comfortably winning both races since it returned to the calendar in 2018 – but Red Bull were immediately on the front foot this weekend.
Mercedes, and Hamilton in particular, once again struggled to find a setup for their car. But the World Champion did what he so often does and produced the goods when it really mattered to join Verstappen on the front row.
And that front row soon became the lead when Verstappen was caught out by a tailwind into the first corner; the Dutchman running wide and handing the advantage to his rival.
Image credit: AFP
Hamilton held that lead through the first stint and had extended his advantage to around three seconds when Mercedes triggered the front-running pit stops by bringing in Valtteri Bottas. Red Bull responded a lap later to protect against the undercut but Mercedes, crucially, left Hamilton out.
When car number 44 stopped on the next lap, it became evident that the Mercedes strategists had severely underestimated the power of the undercut. Verstappen swept by into the first corner with the helpless Hamilton left frustrated as his team apologised over the radio, saying they “didn’t really know what had happened there”.
Hamilton channelled his frustration into an immediate attack. The Mercedes pair stalked Verstappen, following within two seconds in an attempt to force him to use up his tyres. It worked, but it ultimately forced Red Bull into a race-winning call.
Wary of another situation like Spain this year or Hungary 2019, Red Bull decided to make what Team Principal Christian Horner later described as a “ballsy call” to pit Verstappen from the lead. The Dutchman emerged with an 18-second gap to chase down in 20 laps.
Image credit: Getty Images
But chase them down he did. The gap initially reduced at a rate of two seconds per lap, and Bottas failed to slow him down on tyres which were now well past their best. But Hamilton had done his trademark tyre whispering and for a brief moment the gap appeared to be holding steady at around five seconds as they navigated through backmarkers.
Once in clear air, however, Verstappen upped his speed and Hamilton was once again helpless as the Red Bull dived to his inside to reclaim the lead with a little over a lap remaining. A crucial 14-point swing in the drivers’ standings which leaves the Dutchman with a healthy lead heading to Red Bull’s home track in Spielberg.
Behind the leading pair, Sergio Pérez had been easier on his tyres and passed Bottas for the final spot on the podium. The McLarens had also shown excellent race pace to move up to fifth and sixth, Lando Norris leading home Daniel Ricciardo on a far stronger weekend for the Honey Badger.
It was a shocking day for the Scuderia as the red cars fell from fifth and seventh on the grid to finish outside the points in 11th and 16th. Ferrari got their strategy all wrong and have now lost third in the standings to McLaren.
More Mercedes Mistakes
Speaking of strategy… The Mercedes strategists are on a horrible run of form.
First, they undercut when they should have overcut in Monaco. That lost Hamilton two places on a circuit where strategy is of the utmost importance and condemned him to seventh place. In Azerbaijan, another undercut and a sluggish pit stop saw Hamilton fall from first to third. And now, in Le Castellet, they were mugged twice by a far sharper Red Bull team.
The power of the undercut was evident. Before the front-runners had pit, Ricciardo undercut both Gasly and Carlos Sainz when his team had only been attempting to jump the former. But Mercedes inexplicably chose to leave their leading man out for an extra lap, overly confident in his three-second cushion.
And to what end? Tyres which were one lap younger than those of Verstappen?
Image credit: Mercedes
Once the first mistake had been made, there was still a chance to make amends. The other thing that had been clear to see during the race was that tyre degradation was far higher than expected. But it was again Red Bull who reacted more quickly, bringing in Verstappen and forcing Mercedes to attempt to make it to the end. The usually cool Bottas vented his frustration over the radio that his pleas for a two-stop had been ignored.
Is this just a few bad races, or is Mercedes’ strategy actually the most significant chink in their armour?
For years, the seven-time World Champions have been described as a well-oiled machine, but their superiority over the field has often masked their strategic deficiencies. It doesn’t particularly matter when you mess up if the only competition is your other car…
In a genuine title battle, they have been exposed before.
Image credit: Getty Images
During their fight with Ferrari in 2018, there were numerous mistakes. They miscalculated the VSC delta in Australia, losing Hamilton a win. In China, they failed to pit him under a Safety Car. The same thing happened in Austria. They kept him out too long at the US Grand Prix and handed Kimi Räikkönen a win. The list goes on.
Even in such a dominant march to the title as 2020, there were many operational errors. Be it failing to see that the pit lane was closed in Italy, advising Hamilton he could do a practice start in the wrong place in Russia, or the pit stop debacle in Sakhir.
Red Bull, on the other hand, come across as ruthlessly efficient at the moment. And they also appear to have the slightly faster car.
So, if Mercedes want to stand a chance of winning either title this year, they will have to make sure these issues are ironed out sharpish. Even with Hamilton to occasionally flatter their decisions.
Image credit: Getty Images
The French Grand Prix in 60 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
Can Mercedes recover from two tough weekends? It was better, but Red Bull completed their hat-trick nonethless.
Will we see any more tyre dramas? No explosions thankfully, but the degradation spiced things up.
Will the new wing tests have a noticeable effect on the competitive order? Not really. That whole drama has basically been forgotten about already.
Charles Leclerc had made it back-to-back pole positions against the odds on Saturday. Hamilton was ecstatic to have recovered to second on the grid, after a very challenging start to the weekend for Mercedes, and Verstappen was just behind in third.
The order at the front remained the same as the lights went out, but it was always going to be a matter of time before the Ferrari succumbed to the faster cars behind. Hamilton used his extra straight-line speed to take the lead after two laps and Verstappen followed suit at the start of lap 7. Pérez had made good progress from sixth on the grid and was also able to dispatch the Ferrari a lap later.
Hamilton was just about able to hold the chasing Bulls at bay. His low-downforce setup meant that he had the top speed to keep out of reach on the straights but was unable to break away as he lacked his rivals’ grip in the middle sector. With Verstappen closer than ever and Hamilton’s tyres long past their best, Mercedes brought him into the pits on lap 12. However, the World Champion had to be held in his box as Pierre Gasly trundled past and, with a pair of quick in-laps, the Red Bull drivers were both able to overcut him.
Over the next hour, Hamilton pressured Pérez but never looked close enough to truly challenge him. Even a safety car on lap 31, when Lance Stroll had a scary crash as his tyre exploded at over 300 kph on the main straight, didn’t change much at the front. It looked as though we had our finishing order wrapped up as Verstappen delivered a fastest lap with five laps remaining. But then…
Image credit: XPB Images
Just as Stroll’s left-rear tyre had failed him, Verstappen’s decided it too was done for the day. The Red Bull speared into the barriers at an equally terrifying speed, leaving shrapnel scattered across the track. Verstappen was unhurt but understandably distraught to have had a win snatched away so late on.
With questions now very much being asked of the stability of the Pirelli tyres, Race Director Michael Masi deployed the red flag.
After a considerable wait, and with all the cars now on soft tyres, the field lined up on the grid for a two-lap sprint to the finish. As the lights went out for a second time, Hamilton got away well and was immediately alongside Pérez. But this race had one more significant twist in its tale.
Image credit: Getty Images
As Pérez came over to defend the position, Hamilton swerved to the left. In doing so, he accidentally knocked a switch on his steering wheel which is designed to warm up the brakes. It brings the brake bias forward to around 90% and that meant, as Hamilton touched the brake pedal, he instantly locked up and went straight on at Turn 1, rejoining at the back of the field. A tiny mistake with massive consequences.
Pérez successfully held onto his lead to take the chequered flag and earn his second F1 victory. It would transpire that his car was minutes – if not metres – from failing him, as his team asked him to park the car seconds after he crossed the line.
An unusual podium was completed by Sebastian Vettel and Gasly. Vettel drove an incredible race, from 11th on the grid to second at the line. Starting on fresh tyres, he pulled out the longest first stint of anyone to move up to fifth, before passing Gasly after the first safety car. A well-deserved Driver of the Day performance as the four-time champion continues to look more at ease in his new, green machine.
Gasly was also excellent, following up an impressive fourth in qualifying with genuine race pace. He then came out on top in an enthralling last lap battle between himself, Leclerc and Lando Norris to earn his third podium.
Image credit: XPB Images
Fernando Alonso produced his best result since returning to the sport, snatching sixth from Yuki Tsunoda after the restart. Nonetheless, it was a much-improved weekend for the Japanese rookie, who has struggled since his impressive debut in Bahrain. Carlos Sainz – whose race was ruined early on when he took an unscheduled trip down an escape road – finished eighth, ahead of Daniel Ricciardo and Kimi Räikkönen.
So, in the end, it was all a bit much-ado-about-nothing for Verstappen and Hamilton in terms of the title battle. After both drivers significant ups and downs over the weekend, they leave Baku with the same number of points as when they arrived.
As much as that costly slip of a finger will have hurt Hamilton, if you had offered him the opportunity to leave this weekend with as many points as Verstappen on Friday – when Mercedes were struggling to even break into the top 10 – he would likely have taken it…
Who Said the Second Red Bull Seat Was Cursed?
After a hit-and-miss start to his Red Bull career, Pérez thoroughly proved his worth this weekend.
Image credit: Getty Images
On Friday, the Mexican said he now finally felt at home in the car, and he backed that up with his level of performance throughout the event. He was legitimately ahead of Verstappen on more than one occasion and then did exactly what he was brought into the team to do on Sunday. That is, provide support to Verstappen in the fight for the win and be there to capitalise should any unforeseen dramas befall the lead driver.
In Baku, the usual roles were reversed with Mercedes outnumbered two to one in the fight for the lead. And the difference that made in the strategic battle was clear to be seen.
Pérez is now only 30 or so points behind the leading pair. One more shock result like this – twinned with the consistency for which he is renowned – and he could even consider himself genuinely in the title battle.
Penalty Points and Late Calls
Along with the questions to be answered by Pirelli, Masi and the FIA will have a few of their own.
Leclerc described the delay in deploying the Safety Car for Verstappen’s incident as “a joke”. It took nearly 20 seconds for double-waved yellow flags to appear and almost a minute and a half for the Safety Car, just as Pérez was approaching the start-finish straight again.
This came after Lance Stroll had been heard on the radio, pleading for a red flag as he sat in his wrecked car, rightly terrified of the cars screaming past him at full speed.
Norris was handed three penalty points after finding himself in a tricky situation, with the stewards even acknowledging that he had almost no time to react to a red flag. And Nicholas Latifi was then also handed three points after receiving a clearly misleading radio call from his engineer in which he was told repeatedly to “stay out” when the intended message had, in fact, been to come through the pit lane but not stop.
F1 is, of course, a team sport, but if Latifi were to amass the 12 points required for a race ban, Williams would still race – just with a different driver. If this situation happened four times and Latifi remained blameless in each one, how is that remotely fair on the driver?
How will Hamilton and Mercedes respond after their tough weekend in Monaco? Not that well…
Will the ‘flexi-wings’ actually make a difference? People just kind of stopped talking about them amid the drama.
And will Toto Wolff follow through on his threat of a protest? Seemingly not.
Can McLaren’s straight-line speed help them challenge for a podium? They seemed to have untapped potential through the weekend but will be content with P5 and P9.
Ecstasy for Verstappen, agony for Leclerc, frustration for Hamilton.
Image credit: Getty Images
Max Verstappen took his first win at the Monaco Grand Prix as all his main challengers gradually fell by the wayside.
It appeared that Charles Leclerc had broken his Monaco curse when his gearbox was deemed safe to start the race after he had crashed in qualifying on his way to claiming pole position. But the curse returned with a vengeance on his installation lap and the Monegasque was cruelly consigned to watch his home race from the garage by a terminal driveshaft issue.
That left Verstappen effectively on pole and, once he had survived Valtteri Bottas‘s attack into the first corner, the race was his to lose. Bottas shadowed him for the first few laps as all the drivers managed their pace to conserve tyre life but, as they moved closer to the first stops, the Mercedes started to fall away from the Red Bull and into the clutches of Carlos Sainz in third place.
Out front, Verstappen was having no such dramas and serenely sailed to the chequered flag, keeping a comfortable gap to the chasing Sainz throughout. The Spaniard provided some consolation for Ferrari after Leclerc’s heartbreak with a strong second place, but was a little disappointed as he felt that he could have challenged for pole and victory without the Q3 red flag caused by his teammate’s crash.
Lando Norris completed another excellent weekend – sporting the beautiful, one-off Gulf livery – and held off a late charge from Pérez to claim his second podium of the season and move up to third in the standings.
Image credit: Kym Illman
Vettel, Gasly and Hamilton predictably stayed in that order for the remainder of the race, Hamilton successfully pitting late on to claim the bonus point for fastest lap. Behind him, Lance Stroll made an alternative strategy work, starting on the hard tyres and moving up from 13th on the grid to finish eighth. Esteban Ocon finished a further half a minute down the road in ninth and Alfa Romeo‘s Antonio Giovinazzi claimed the final point – his first of the season.
It was a weekend not lacking in drama but the racing on Sunday was a typically mundane affair. And the Monegasque director – Monaco is the only race to use its own broadcast director – cut away from the one bit of wheel-to-wheel action that we did get… None of that will bother Verstappen and Red Bull, however, who have taken the lead in both championships. The momentum in the title battle switches once again.
Now, how will a very different street circuit – Baku in two weeks’ time – suit the cars?
Where Did That Ferrari Pace Come From?!
The Ferraris often flatter to deceive with their Friday pace, but this time they remained at the top of the timing charts throughout the weekend. So, how did that happen? Did they bring a major upgrade?
Image credit: DPPI
Well, I’m afraid to say – to any members of the Tifosi currently throwing their red caps in the air and declaring an imminent title charge – that is likely to be a one-off.
Ferrari have often gone well around the streets of the Principality – Vettel came home second in the previous two Monaco Grands Prix and 2017 saw a Ferrari 1-2. Their traditional short wheelbase makes the car nimble through the tight turns and, this year, the Monaco layout masked their still considerable deficiency when it comes to straight-line speed.
Even so, the drivers were surprised by their competitiveness.
“It is quite a big surprise,” Leclerc said. “Surely we were very competitive in Sector 3 in Barcelona, but again it’s a very different track and we were maybe expecting Red Bull and Mercedes to have something more for here, but apparently they didn’t and we were just very competitive from the start. So it was good, but until quali we didn’t believe we could fight for pole, so it’s a surprise.”
Whilst this likely isn’t the appearance of an unlikely championship contender, Ferrari can be very pleased with their progress since last year’s hugely disappointing campaign. Even the confines of Monaco wouldn’t have saved the SF1000. They can expect to compete at or near the front again in Hungary and Singapore – if that race happens – and now appear to be in a private battle with McLaren for third in the title. A feel good story for the two former giants of F1.
Vettel Finds Form, Ricciardo Loses It Again
Image credit: DPA Picture Alliance
It has been well documented that the drivers who switched teams for 2021 have been struggling to adapt due to the lack of testing. But Vettel appears to have finally made a breakthrough in the Aston Martin. He was far closer to Lance Stroll in Portugal and Spain than he had been at the first two grands prix of the year, and in Monaco he showed his experience, comfortably outperforming the Canadian in every session.
An impressive eighth in qualifying was turned into an even better fifth on Sunday, thanks to smart strategy and some guts during that wheel-to-wheel battle with Gasly. Vettel earned a well-deserved ‘Driver of the Day’ and will now look to build on this for the coming races.
Daniel Ricciardo, however, went in the opposite direction. After a much-improved performance in Spain saw him take a solid sixth place and finish ahead of teammate Norris for the first time, the wheels came off at what is his most successful circuit. The Aussie won here in 2018, after being robbed of victory in 2016, so moving aside to be lapped by Norris on Sunday will have been a bitter pill to swallow.
Image credit: Motorsport Images
Most worrying of all, he is at a loss to explain his lack of speed. “All weekend, even crossing the line a lot of laps I felt good, I was like that’s a good lap. And I think at one point I was 1.2s slower than say what Lando had just done, so no answers at the moment.”
He will need to find some answers quickly, or he risks having his reputation questioned in the manner Vettel’s was when Ricciardo joined Red Bull in 2014 and consistently outperformed him.
The Monaco Grand Prix in 60 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
Will Mercedes or Red Bull be on top around the twists of the Circuit de Monaco? Red Bull, if not Ferrari!
Can Max Verstappen make up for the many laps he spent stuck behind Lewis Hamilton in 2019? He can, in some style.
Will any teams surprise with their performance at this unique track? See above…
Who will have the best unique helmet design? The Williams drivers’ designs in honour of the team’s 750th race were nice, as were the McLaren Gulf specials, but I’m going for Bottas’s cartoon design.
What had been threatening to become a trademark soporific Spanish Grand Prix was reignited by a Mercedes strategy gamble, which paid off in the form of a fifth consecutive victory for Lewis Hamilton at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Saturday saw Hamilton claim his 100th pole position in Formula 1 – a simply mind-boggling achievement – and many assumed he would move one step closer to a century of wins on Sunday. But that assumption was immediately brought into question thanks to a bullish move into the first corner by Max Verstappen.
The two title rivals got away fairly evenly – the Dutchman aided by an unusual level of rubber on the normally dirty side of the track – and, with the Red Bull in his blind spot, Hamilton felt unable to move over and claim the inside line. Verstappen is not a driver that requires more than one invitation. He braked very late and, not for the first time this season, got his elbows out at the first corner, leaving Hamilton nowhere to go on the outside.
Verstappen and Hamilton streaked away at the front, the Mercedes driver hounding his rival but never getting quite close enough to threaten a pass. With Sergio Pérez too close behind for Mercedes to attempt an undercut, it was Verstappen who pitted first.
It was unscheduled – Verstappen sensing Hamilton was about to pass him on the straight – and resulted in an uncharacteristically slow Red Bull pit stop. That offered Mercedes an opportunity, but they declined – they had a different plan in mind…
Hamilton extended his stint a further four laps, rejoining a little over five seconds behind Verstappen. But, with the Mercedes clearly well-suited to the medium tyre, Hamilton was once more closely inspecting his rival’s rear wing within a few laps.
As ever, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya provided little in the way of passing opportunities, though – especially since the recent reprofiling of Turn 10 – and it appeared likely that we would watch Hamilton follow on the brink of the DRS window for the next 45 minutes.
But this is when Mercedes produced their surprise.
Hamilton darted into the pits on lap 42 to fit another set of medium tyres. This had been in Mercedes’ thoughts throughout the weekend and they were the only team to have kept two fresh sets of the medium compound for the race. So, it was to be a repeat of the 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix, as Hamilton set about closing down a gap of more than 20 seconds in just over 20 laps.
The Red Bull computers predicted that Hamilton would catch their driver on the last lap, but that would prove to be an optimistic forecast as Hamilton took nearly two seconds per lap out of the gap. Despite not getting much help from his teammate – more on that later – the Briton was on the back of Verstappen by lap 59.
The Red Bull weaved along the start-finish straight, desperately trying to break the tow he was providing, but the pass was an inevitability, Verstappen later describing himself as a “sitting duck”. Hamilton used the extra grip from his much younger tyres to brake later and comfortably claimed the lead as they entered Turn 1.
Image credit: XPB/PA
Behind them, Bottas had pitted in an attempt to claim the fastest lap, but in doing so allowed Verstappen to do the same. There was to be no repeat of his mistake in Portugal this time and the Dutchman took the extra point with ease. It was Hamilton who took the chequered flag, however, and extended his lead in the championship to 14 points.
Is the Mercedes Now the Fastest Car?
It has only been six weeks since Verstappen took pole by four tenths in Bahrain and the F1 status quo appeared to have been turned on its head. And yet now, without us really noticing, Hamilton has equalled his best ever start to a season. Three wins and one second place were also his results during the first four races of 2015 – a season that would prove to be one of his most dominant – so are we kidding ourselves that there is such an exciting title battle?
In a word, no.
But for some small yet costly mistakes – and some luck on Hamilton’s part – Verstappen would be the one leading the championship. Bahrain was his race to lose, but he did. Hamilton was very fortunate to recover to second in Imola, and the complexion of the race in Portugal would likely have been different had Verstappen not lost pole position due to a track limits violation. These are the minute differences that can swing a championship one direction or another, and Mercedes are very experienced in ensuring that they swing their way.
Image credit: Honda Racing
However, in terms of pure speed, the Red Bull looks a genuine match for them this year. Spain has always been a Mercedes circuit – that’s five wins in a row for Hamilton – but Red Bull were right there with them, three hundredths of a second behind in qualifying and leading for 90% of the race.
Monaco in two weeks time will be a very different challenge. The Mercedes car has looked strong in slow corners – of which Monaco, obviously, has many – but it also has a very long wheelbase and Red Bull have performed well through the streets of the Principality in recent years. The circuit provides such a unique test of a Formula 1 car that there’s no way of knowing who will do well until the cars are being driven in anger, millimetres from those infamous walls.
Hamilton may have the edge right now, but this title battle remains very much in the balance.
The Best of the Rest
Leclerc had another excellent weekend. He qualified in fourth for the third time in four attempts this year and the predictable combination of Ham-Ver-Bot is almost now extendable to Ham-Ver-Bot-Lec.
Image credit: Getty Images
After his excellent early pass, he kept the far superior Mercedes of Bottas behind for the first stint and eventually finished a comfortable 10 seconds ahead of Pérez to move to just one point behind Lando Norris in the standings.
Norris himself was a little anonymous this weekend on his way to eighth and, for the first time in 2021, was legitimately beaten by teammate Daniel Ricciardo. The Honey Badger’s trademark smile was very much back on his face as he finished a solid sixth, holding off Carlos Sainz in the final laps.
Alpine initially appeared to have picked up where they left off in Portugal with Esteban Ocon qualifying an excellent fifth but, on Sunday, their strategy was lacking and their pace disappeared. Ocon clung onto a points finish in ninth, but Fernando Alonso tumbled back through the field in the dying laps and eventually finished behind a Williams in 17th. There is still work to do for the French team.
Pierre Gasly recovered from a clumsy five-second penalty, for parking his AlphaTauri beyond his allocated spot on the grid, to earn the final point for 10th. But it was the rookie on the other side of the garage who made the headlines on Saturday. One of his infamous, expletive-ridden radio messages was followed up by an interview where he questioned whether he had the same car as his teammate. Undoubtedly, Team Principal Franz Tost will have had some very stern words with the youngster, who it appears has some growing up to do.
The Bottas ‘Block’
Image credit: XPB Images
As previously mentioned, Hamilton’s pursuit of Verstappen late in the race was made a little harder by his teammate. As the World Champion approached, Bottas was told by his engineer, “Don’t hold Lewis up”. But he did just that. Hamilton followed closely for the best part of a lap – losing at least a second to Verstappen – before somewhat having to force a pass into Turn 10.
“I definitely could have let him by earlier,” Bottas said after the race. “But I was doing my own race. I’m not here to let people by, I’m here to race.” He said at the start of this season that he would be more selfish and single-minded; it would appear he is following up on that promise.
Does his mindset reveal anything about Mercedes’ plans for next year? Is this a man who knows his time is up and, thus, is now going to do everything in his power to take the title in what would likely be his last ever chance? That is just conjecture for the moment. But, whether he likes it or not, Bottas has held onto his seat at Mercedes by being the ideal driver for their second seat. One that is fast enough to keep Hamilton on his toes and help with strategic battles during the race, but one that is also compliant when required.
If he ceases to be that driver, his chances of remaining with the team beyond 2021 look slim at best.
The Spanish Grand Prix in 60 Seconds
Answering the Burning Questions
Can Verstappen strike back in the title battle? Not quite, despite a valiant effort.
How will the teams fare without having had their usual pre-season testing at Barcelona? There was no noticeable difference and just the one retirement.
Can Alpine continue their good form from Portugal? On Saturday, yes. On Sunday, not so much.
Will the Aston Martin updates bring them back towards the front of the midfield? Nope, they still have quite a bit of work to do.
