Spanish GP winners
F1 – After a disapointing Russian GP two weeks earlier, the fans finally got to see some action with plenty of overtakes and on track action with the help of Pirelli also we got to see 2-3 pit stops, allowing for different strategies to add to the intrigue. Also letting that small Kimi fan into the paddock was an excellent gesture from a sport looking to find its human side once again.
Force India – Fantastic early season form continued for the pink panthers, with a strong race ending with Perez and Ocon finishing fourth and fifth. They kept their noses clean throughout the race while their rivals took each other out and had problems of their own. They extended their lead from over Williams in the constructors championship, and are on course for another superb season.
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel – What another fantastic battle we witnessed from these to great guys. Right from lights out when Vettel got the jump at turn 1. Then after Vettel made his pit stop rejoining the track squeezing Hamilton out wide fairly and then we had 6 laps of Lewis chasing down Seb finally getting past him in turn 1. Hope this battle will continue all season long.
Nico Hulkenburg – starting p13 finishing p6 and keeping out of trouble, it was another strong showing for Hulkenberg who scored more points for an upwardly mobile Renault team, with teammate Jolyon Palmer yet to open his account for 2017. The car seems to be getting better and better each race with the team bring small upgrades. Will we soon see him fighting Perez again.
Pascal Wehrlein and Sauber- Wehrlein took eighth and the best finish of his career – as well as Sauber’s best finishing position since 2015 – mainly thanks to their strategy when the Virtual Safety Car was deployed to switch him to a 1 stop strategy. It was a very important points finish for the team and their battle with McLaren for ninth in the constructors championship.
Losers
Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen – both men were unlucky victims of a chain reaction as Bottas tapped Raikkonen sending him into the path of Verstappen ending both of their races, with Ferrari falling behind in the Constructors’ Championship as a result.
Valtteri Bottas – race winner two weeks ago in Russia for the first time, Bottas suffered a DNF with engine failure after technical problems throughout the weekend.
Jolyon Palmer – It was another case offeast or famine in qualifying for the beleaguered Brit as he failed to get out of the first qualifying session for the fourth time in five events. Finishing in 15th while his teammate finished in a strong points finish will have done him few favours either. Palmer is a man fighting for his seat after an error-prone start to the season.
Williams – This was a poor weekend all round for the team. They failed to score while Force India bagged 22 points. With Massa getting a puncture on lap 1 after contact with Alonso, he dropped right to the back of the pack and could only finish 13th. Teammate Lance Stroll struggled once again, and the 18-year-old looks ever more troubled during his first season in Formula One. In this unforgiving business, the young Canadian is under pressure to improve – fast.
By Richard Hindson