Carlin’s Jehan Daruvala took his first win of the season in the second Formula 2 sprint race at Monza, leaving the field behind him with a dominant drive from the front.
Daruvala started from second on the reverse grid beside the Campos of David Beckmann, who also started Race 1 from reverse pole. And like in Race 1, Beckmann was forced into defending straight away as Daruvala got the quicker launch and took the inside line into the Rettifilo chicane.
Daruvala came out of the chicane ahead of Beckmann and set off in the lead of the race. Behind them, Bent Viscaal moved up to third by passing Juri Vips.
With the slipstream and DRS posing such a danger at Monza, Daruvala set about pulling an early lead over Beckmann with several fastest laps. He was helped by Beckmann having to switch from chasing the Carlin to defending from Viscaal, who had managed to stay within a few tenths of second place and was on the attack.
Jehan Daruvala, Carlin (Lars Baron, Getty Images / FIA F2)
At the back of the points positions, championship leader Oscar Piastri and Race 1 winner Theo Pourchaire were locked in a fierce battle over seventh place. Piastri had started there but Pourchaire nipped past up the inside of the Rettifilo on lap 3 and saw off Piastri’s attempts to fight back through Curva Grande and the Roggia chicane.
Piastri set the fastest lap on lap 6 as he tried to reel Pourchaire back in. But despite being close enough to try moves into Rettifilo and Roggia, Pourchaire was always able to defend the inside line.
Piastri’s teammate Robert Shwartzman was also making his way up the order in the middle phase of the race. After losing fifth place to Liam Lawson at the start, Shwartzman regained the position at the Rettifilo on lap 8. He then started hassling Vips in the second Hitech, who was struggling to keep his tyres alive in fourth.
Shwartzman sized up Vips through Curva Grande on lap 11 and took fourth place up the inside of Roggia. Vips then lost out to his teammate Lawson at the Ascari chicane and dropped to sixth.
A few laps later Piastri succeeded in retaking seventh place from Pourchaire with a move up the inside of the Rettifilo. That left Pourchaire vulnerable to Guanyu Zhou in ninth, who had closed up behind them as they battled lap after lap.
Theo Pourchaire, ART (Rudy Carezzevoli, Getty Images / FIA F2)
Zhou tried several times to pass Pourchaire through the Rettifilo and Roggia chicanes, but each time Pourchaire hugged the inside line and Zhou was unable to complete a move around the outside. But on lap 17 Zhou forced Pourchaire into braking too late at Rettifilo, and took eighth place as Pourchaire locked up and went down the escape road.
Back at the front, Daruvala had pulled more than five seconds clear of Beckmann by lap 17, while Beckmann was still dealing with Viscaal just a few tenths behind him. But on lap 19 Viscaal was able to do what Zhou did to Pourchaire and pressure Beckmann into locking up at the first corner, opening the door to second place.
Nursing a flat spot, Beckmann fell back into the clutches of Shwartzman and Lawson in the final laps. With just three tenths separating them at start of lap 20, Beckmann fell from third to fifth as Shwartzman passed him into Ascari and Lawson got by through the Parabolica.
Shwartzman therefore completed the podium behind Viscaal and runaway winner Daruvala. Lawson finished fourth ahead of Beckmann and Vips, and the two championship contenders Piastri and Zhou took the final points in seventh and eighth respectively.
Theo Pourchaire took his second win of the season in the opening Monza sprint race, putting in a lightning performance to overhaul longtime leader Juri Vips.
Vips jumped into the lead at the start of the race, passing reverse polesitter David Beckmann on the run down to the Rettifilo chicane. Beckmann then came close to losing second to Dan Ticktum as well, but was able to regroup himself through Curva Grande to hold the place.
Juri Vips, Hitech (Dutch Photo Agency / Red Bull Content Pool)
Ticktum then found himself under pressure from Pourchaire through the rest of the opening lap. Pourchaire was close enough to dive to the inside of Ticktum into Rettifilo at the start of the second lap, but he braked too late and went down the escape road. At the same time Ticktum spun on the chicane’s kerb and stalled the car, and was clipped by Felipe Drugovich and Ralph Boschung who both damaged their front wings and had to pit.
The safety car was brought out for Ticktum’s stranded Carlin, with Vips leading from Beckman, Pourchaire and Liam Lawson. At the restart on lap 5 Lawson moved to the inside of Pourchaire into Rettifilo but got caught out by Pourchaire’s defence and damaged his front wing.
The racing only lasted for a few corners after the safety car restart, as Drugovich spun off at Ascari on cold tyres and brought out a virtual safety car. When the VSC ended on lap 7 Robert Shwartzman took advantage of the timing to pull alongside his teammate Oscar Piastri through the Lesmos and muscle his way up to sixth. Piastri ran wide into the gravel at Lesmo 2, losing another place to Roy Nissany.
Oscar Piastri, Prema (Lars Baron, Getty Images / FIA F2)
At the front, Pourchaire set the fastest lap on lap 8 and started mounting an attack on Beckmann’s second place. Beckmann defended the inside line into Rettifilo at the start of lap 9, but on the next time around Pourchaire pressured Beckmann into locking up at the chicane and he took second place as Beckmann ran down the escape road.
With flat-spotted tyres Beckmann then began falling back through the pack. On the same lap after losing second, Beckmann was bumped off the podium altogether by Guanyu Zhou who moved up into third. But he was saved from losing any more places straight away when Nissany spun out through Ascari and brought out yet another safety car.
At the restart on lap 14 Beckmann lost fourth place to Shwartzman, while Pourchaire immediately started shaping up for a move on Vips in the lead. He was unable to get past into Rettifilo at the first opportunity, but on the next lap around Pourchaire moved to the inside and decisively took first place away from Vips.
Once out front Pourchaire’s pace carried him to a lead of well over a second, while Vips fell back to defending from Zhou in third. Zhou tried several times to get past the Hitech, first through Curva Grande and Roggia on lap 15 then again at Rettifilo and Roggia on the following two laps.
Guanyu Zhou, UNI-Virtuosi (Clive Mason, Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images / FIA F2)
Vips was able to hold the inside line each time, but on lap 18 he locked up into Rettifilo and not only let Zhou through into second but dropped back to fifth behind Shwartzman and Christian Lundgaard.
Vips then found himself in the same position Beckmann had been in earlier. Over the next few laps he was passed by Piastri, Lawson and Bent Viscaal to fall to the back of the points after leading for 14 laps.
With Zhou being held behind Vips for several laps before moving into second, Pourchaire was able to sprint clear of the pack to take the chequered flag by almost six seconds in the end. Shwartzman was third on the road behind Zhou, but a five-second penalty for gaining an advantage off-track at the start dropped him off the podium and gave third place to Lundgaard.
Piastri finished fourth, meaning he retains the championship lead by five points despite Zhou’s podium. Lawson was fifth, Shwartzman’s penalty dropped him to sixth, and Viscaal and Vips rounded out the last two points positions. Beckmann finished the race in tenth, meaning he will still the second sprint race from reverse pole this afternoon.
Kalle Rovanperä took the lead on day one of Rally Acropolis, and has a 3.7 second lead over Ott Tänak and Seb Ogier holds third after a very good drive after opening the road throughout the first day. Marco Bulacia holds the WRC2 lead and Chris Ingram leads WRC3.
Friday
Heading into the five stages for today with 89km of competitive action. The startlist looked like this –Ogier, Evans, Neuville, Rovanperä, Tänak, Greensmith, Sordo, Fourmaux, Loubet, Serderidis.
The first stage of the day then, SS2 Aghii Theodori 1 – 17.54 km and after Seb set the fastest time early on, it came down to Ott to set beat Seb and move into the lead. Welshman, Elfyn Evans who was second on the road was just 1.7 from the lead, but fell from second overall to third. Thierry fell from fourth to sixth. He was struggling with the pace, after taking two spare tyres in the car it was causing issues with the handling. At M-Sport Adrien was the faster of the two drivers, and he moved up into seventh overall.
Into SS3 Loutraki – 19.40 km and it was an amazing stage from Kalle as he went fastest from Dani and Ott. The young Finns pace took him from fourth into the lead over Ott which was second. Former rally leader, Seb, fell to third place. It was a bad start to the stage for Elfyn though, who gained a 40 second penalty for being 4 minutes late at the time control. He was now in sixteenth place.
Kalle continued to set the pace in SS4 Aghii Theodori 2 – 17.54 km, winning the stage from Ott and Seb. He’d extended his lead over Ott to 3.8 seconds as well. Elfyn, who was struggling with his gearbox stuck in one gear. Incredibly he was still seventh fastest in the stage, only 30 seconds slower than Gus. Thierry was also suffering technical problems, and the power steering had failed in the i20! The Ypres winners fell to twenty-sixth place overall. What a disaster for them. All of these problems meant that Adrien and Gus rose to fifth and sixth overall. In addition to this, the WRC2 and WRC3 crews were now into the top ten, with Andreas leading WRC2 and Chris Ingram, WRC3.
The single run of SS5 Thiva – 23.27 km saw Seb set the best time from Thierry and Dani. The Frenchman’s pace lifted him into second overall, just 2.8 seconds from Kalle. In the WRC2 battle, Marco moved ahead of Andreas with an incredible time that was just two seconds slower than Gus. Quite amazing pace from the Bolivian!
The final stage of the day then, SS6 Elatia – 11.65 km and Thierry had solved his problems clearly and he was fastest from Ott and Kalle. The Estonian’s pace lifted them back ahead of Seb into second overall. Pierre-Louis went off the road. Despite all his problems, Elfyn had made it to the end of the day and again he was going well, only 2.8 slower than Gus. Marco was going really well and increased his lead over Andreas to 5.4 seconds as they battled over the WRC2 lead.
Classification after Day One
1
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota Yaris WRC
1:01:57.1
2
O. Tänak
M. Järveoja
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+3.7
3
S. Ogier
J. Ingrassia
Toyota Yaris WRC
+3.9
4
D. Sordo
C. Carrera
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+23.9
5
A. Fourmaux
R. Jamoul
Ford Fiesta WRC
+54.2
6
G. Greensmith
C. Patterson
Ford Fiesta WRC
+1:23.3
Let’s hear from the drivers
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä (1st)
“It was a nice day today. We started more carefully, but then I could push a bit more and was enjoying it. It was really challenging conditions, with quite a lot of cleaning for us once others dropped back and we were running second on the road. Today when it was dry the conditions are more what I expected here, and the stage we did two times was really rough, so you need to take care of the car and the tyres. Tomorrow is going to be a completely different story after the weather we had earlier in the week: There is one stage that we did the recce for almost completely in fog, so it was really difficult to make the pacenotes, and there could be more grip changes and damp places.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 09 / Acropolis Rally Greece / 09-12, September 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Sébastien Ogier (3rd)
“I am delighted to be third tonight and so close to the lead. Of course, I was pretty pessimistic starting this day given our road position and the conditions, I was thinking it could be a tough one, but I think I did everything I could and managed to stay out of trouble. We were really on the limit in some sections and also a bit clever in some rough parts. It has been enjoyable to drive. Funnily enough the only stage I didn’t enjoy was the one that I won, SS5, where the grip was really inconsistent. I need to focus on myself and not on the fight for the win as we are in a good position in the championship and I cannot afford to go full risk. But today the feeling was great in the car, and if the feeling is good, I can go for it.”
Elfyn Evans (16th)
“Obviously it was not the day we hoped for today. We tried to do whatever we could to resolve the issue and obviously the team were working pretty hard behind the scenes to find a solution as well, but there’s only so much you can do in that situation, so it was a frustrating few stages this afternoon. The only positive is that we could get back to service tonight. The championship situation for me is worse than it was this morning, but at the end of the day, these things happen in rallying and it’s a really rare occurrence in this team: I don’t think I’d had one technical issue like this since I joined. I’m quite sure it’s fixable for tomorrow.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Ott Tänak (2nd)
“It has been a struggle today, and difficult to find the feeling and confidence in the car. I have tried my best to keep up the pace with the leaders, but we need to look for some improvements tomorrow if we are to stay in this fight. I have felt a bit out of my comfort zone today, so it’s hard to get to the limit without risking having a moment or a surprising situation, especially on a new rally like this when you don’t know the conditions and need the car to behave as you expect. Even so, it’s nice to be back here, driving on stages with a nice character. We’ve had amazing support from the crowds; it shows that the rally means something in Greece and this rally deserves to be on the championship.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 09, Acropolis Rally 9-12 September 2021 Ott Tanak Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Dani Sordo (4th)
“I can’t say I am fully happy with the day, or with being fourth on the classification; we always want to be higher up. I made a small mistake at the start of SS3 this morning and went a little bit before the start, so we got a ten second penalty. I was a bit excited to get going. Apart from that, it went OK. I lost a lot of time in some small parts, so there was room for improvement. It is my first WRC event with Cándido in the co-driver seat, and I am pleased with how it’s gone so far. We have a very long day tomorrow, so we have to push ourselves more.”
Thierry Neuville (18th)
“We have had a lot of problems, so it’s been a bit of a day to forget. We got hit by electrical trouble from the start this morning, and then had an issue with a leaking power steering. I was more of a mechanic than a driver at times today. We realised there was an issue in the tyre fitting zone, and our one goal was to repair the damage. We just didn’t have enough time. We managed it in the end, and I am proud of the job that we did to fix the car in time for the final two stages. Our only hope now is to try and catch back P7, or possibly P6, that’s about the best we can do. It’s going to be tough but we’re going to do our best and keep our motivation high until the end.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Adrien Fourmaux (5th) said:
“It was really tough, honestly. Some places we are enjoying but it’s about 75% really hard, rough conditions but it’s really an incredible rally and an enjoyable challenge.
“We knocked off the rear bumper and diffuser early on in the morning, and with no service we had to just live with the car when it was lacking downforce at the rear as a result of this damage. You really felt this on the faster stages later on in the day but overall, it was very good for us to end the day in fifth place, now we can make the repairs in service and then push again for the rest of the event.”
Gus Greensmith (6th)
“It was quite tricky with the weight of two spare wheels in the back on the morning stages because the extra weight affected the handling a lot more than on some other events. I was able to get more comfortable with the car and push on from there and overall, it was a good start to the event for us.
“On the second pass through the stages I felt more confident in the conditions and that was reflected in my pace. It’s been a very encouraging day for us overall. The Rally Acropolis is really a bucket list item for any rally driver, and to come here. I want to get the car right in service this evening and then go again tomorrow.”
Jourdan Serderidis (9th)
“Every stage I am learning more about this car. The stages are very narrow and complicated – all the more so at WRC speeds. But to be inside the top 10 on my home event is a fantastic start and I look forward to push a little from here through the rest of the event.”
Nikolay Gryazin (3rd, WRC2)
“I’m very happy and excited. The car is a big change for me but I will be working on my pace to see where we end up. It has been a positive first day, I made a couple of small mistakes early on but third place overnight is positive for us.”
Saturday sees the crews tackle 132km six stages with two stages repeated and it all starts at 6:33am UK time!
Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas pipped Lewis Hamilton to take the top spot for the sprint race on Saturday. Mercedes looked fastest in free practice 1 which also translated into the qualifying form for the German team as they beat Redbull by quite a margin. Hamilton will however be slightly disappointed not to have had the top spot as he will have to start much closer to championship rival Verstappen.
In a qualifying session where drivers were playing all sorts of tricks to have the all important tow in Monza, McLaren shined well. Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo managed to put in a shift and placed their McLarens at P4 and P5 for the sprint race tomorrow. Verstappen could find no answer to the sheer pace of Mercedes and has to settle with 3rd spot for tomorrow while his teammate Perez in the other Redbull will be starting P9.
MONZA, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 10: Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Red Bull Racing and Sergio Perez of Mexico and Red Bull Racing talk in parc ferme during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Italy at Autodromo di Monza on September 10, 2021 in Monza, Italy. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)
Pierre Gasly continued his stellar run this season as he has put in yet another great performance in qualifying and put his Alpha Tauri at P6 for the sprint race tomorrow. His teammate Tsunoda however has his work cut out after a deleted lap time in Q1 means that he will be starting the sprint race from P17 tomorrow.
Both the Ferraris will be starting the sprint race from P7 and P8 with Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc respectively, a result which the 50% capacity Monza crowd would probably not be too happy with. Leclerc’s Ferrari experienced some engine braking issues during Q1 but Ferrari were able to fix it during the session and the Monegasque driver managed to make it to Q3.
Antonio GIovinazzi of Alfa Romeo continued his impressive run after the summer break as he qualified P10 for tomorrow’s sprint race after some really good laps in Q1 and Q2. The Italian might just be in serious contention to retain his seat alongside the newly announced driver Valtteri Bottas with a run like this. His teammate Robert Kubica who is still the stand-in driver for Kimi Raikkonen in the other Alfa Romeo could not manage get out of Q1 and will be starting at P19.
Aston Martin had both their cars knocked out in Q2 with Sebastian Vettel set to start P11 and Lance Stroll set to start at P12. They will be followed by both the Alpine cars in Fernando ALonso at P13 and Esteban Ocon at P14. This could be an interesting little midfield battle brewing in the bottom half of the grid and could make the sprint race all the more interesting.
Williams’ Geroge Russell made it out of Q1 thanks to Tsunoda’s deleted lap time but could not make a mark in Q2 after he is set to start at P15. His teammate Latifi in the other Williams will be starting from P16. The back of the field is yet again the familiar cars of Haas with Mick Schumacher at P18 and Nikita Mazepin at P20.
With points on offer for the top 3 finishers of the sprint race, Valtteri Bottas is set to start at P1 alongside Lewis Hamilton at P2, followed by Max Verstappen at P3. Bottas who has taken new engine components which exceeded his quota of allocated parts, will be starting the Italian GP from the back of the grid. However, a tactical move by Mercedes now means he will still start the sprint race from the top spot. This could mean that Mercedes could deny Verstappen a chance of getting any points from the sprint race.
2021 Italian Grand Prix, Friday – Steve Etherington
A new F1 qualifying format is set to be put to its 2nd test followed by SIlverstone from last time around. Monza being quite the track known for its sheer speed and overtaking, the sprint race which decides the grid for Sunday’s race is set to be a thriller.
Formula 2 returns from its extended summer break this weekend, taking to the iconic Temple of Speed at Monza for Round 5 of the championship.
When F2 was last on track at Silverstone in July, Guanyu Zhou took his third win of the season in the feature race but it was Oscar Piastri who left as the new championship leader. Coming to Monza Piastri has five points in hand over Zhou and just two non-scores to his name compared to Zhou’s five.
Oscar Piastri, Prema (Michael Regan, Getty Images / FIA F2)
Zhou will be racing for more than just championship points and pride this weekend, though. After a run of major changes in the F1 driver market over the last few weeks, Zhou has emerged as one of the leading contenders to join Valtteri Bottas at Alfa Romeo in 2022.
Zhou doesn’t need to win the F2 title to qualify for a super licence. But returning himself to the lead of the championship would do a lot to impress Alfa Romeo at this crucial time, especially when his two chief rivals for the seat are former F2 champion Nyck de Vries and GP2 runner-up Antonio Giovinazzi.
Whether the prospect of landing an Alfa Romeo seat comes as extra motivation or unwelcome pressure remains to be seen. But what Zhou can depend on coming to Monza is his record so far this season — that is, the most wins of anyone and the joint-most podiums as well.
His strength throughout his time in F2 has always been his qualifying performances. That’s an area where he has the upper hand over Piastri, although Piastri has demonstrated incredible racecraft this year to make up for not always starting near the front. And with Monza being a track where overtaking is much easier than usual, that sets up a fascinating state of play for the next instalment of their title fight.
Still all to play for in the top eight
Robert Shwartzman, Prema (Joe Portlock, Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images / FIA F2)
Although Piastri and Zhou have become the clear title favourites, it’s still way too early to say that the battle will just be between them. After all, we’ve only had four rounds so far, with Monza, Sochi, Jeddah and Abu Dhabi still to go.
That means there are still plenty of drivers right behind Piastri and Zhou that are far from being written off just yet. Robert Shwartzman for one is just 12 points behind Zhou and 17 behind his teammate Piastri, with two wins under his belt. Monza is a track the Russian knows well, having won there in his title-winning F3 season, and he’ll be going all out to perform well on his Ferrari academy’s home turf.
Juri Vips is another F1 junior looking to kick off well in the second half. After a slow start with no points in Bahrain, Vips has since gone on a run of nine races in the points — the longest streak so far this year — including two wins in Baku. Vips has F2 experience at Monza, having raced there for DAMS last year in place of the injured Sean Gelael, so can hit the ground running this weekend.
The same could also be said of Vips’ Hitech and Red Bull academy teammate Liam Lawson, who won the opening race of the season but now sits eighth in the standings after being disqualified from his second win in the Monaco sprint race. Lawson’s currently lighting up the DTM series, running second in the standings with three wins, and will be fired up to restore himself to contention in F2 as well.
Zhou’s not the only one out to impress Alfa
Theo Pourchaire, ART (Clive Rose, Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images / FIA F2)
And then there’s Theo Pourchaire. After a mighty start to the year that included pole and victory at Monaco, Pourchaire has dropped back from the title fight since — not helped by that Baku crash that led to a broken wrist. After Silverstone he has 65 points on the board, putting him 20 points behind Vips and 43 behind Piastri.
But anyone who watched Pourchaire’s 2020 F3 season will know how well he comes on in the latter stage of a campaign. Last year he went from being an outside contender in Piastri’s fight with Logan Sargeant, to almost snatching the title away from both of them in the final round. And it was at Monza, where he took a pair of second places to begin a run of four podium finishes, that Pourchaire really launched himself into the equation.
It will be a tall order for Pourchaire to repeat that performance in F2. But as a Sauber academy driver he’s vying for that same Alfa Romeo seat as Zhou, and by most accounts is the team’s preferred choice for the future if he can prove himself in F2. With an F1 seat dangling before him and a lot of potential still to be seen, Pourchaire will surely be one to watch this weekend.
IndyCar will take to the Portland International Raceway this weekend, as the fourteenth round of the 2021 championship gets underway.
The action will run from Saturday to Sunday with a maximum of 54 points on offer as we approach the business end of the season. The Oregon road course forms part of the first of a triple-header of races that will see out the championship including Laguna Seca, and Long Beach.
As an incredibly close-fought championship approaches its finale, there are a number of stories to discuss as well as plenty of title hopefuls who will be looking to make their mark.
Patricio O’Ward leads the driver championship with three races remaining ahead of Alex Palou. Image courtesy of James Black.
TITLE FIGHT TIGHTENS
It’s been an incredible turnaround for championship leader Patricio O’Ward who until Nashville was over 40 points behind Alex Palou in the standings but has since enjoyed a whopping 60-point swing in his favour. They now sit on 435 and 425 points respectively.
O’Ward has been in electric form after finishing in the Top Five at the Indianapolis road course before a magnificent second-place at Gateway. And there’s nothing to say this momentum will not continue going into the triple-header after showing seriously strong pace at the mid-season test at Portland topping a field of ten cars.
He has achieved five podiums this season, two of which are victories taken at Texas and Detroit, only one podium behind Palou’s tally this year. The Spaniard has endured a horrendous run of bad luck including an engine failure and a collision that has seen the Chip Ganassi driver collect a measly ten points over the past two races.
However, they may have to look over their shoulder as another rival looks set to pounce if either one falters. Penske’s Josef Newgarden seems to have kicked off his second-half of the season charge, just as he did in 2020 where he took four podiums (two wins) in the final six races only to fall short of the title to Dixon.
The American has taken two wins since Road America and has lept up the standings sitting only 12 points behind Palou. His record at Portland leaves a lot to be desired – but Penske has shown themselves to be strong qualifiers on road courses this year so watch out for the Nashville-born racer this weekend.
Colton Herta led the race from Will Power at Gateway until a driveshaft issue forced him to retire. Photo courtesy of Joe Skibinski.
WHO ELSE TO WATCH OUT FOR?
Our picks for this weekend go to Colton Herta and Will Power who have shown evidence of incredible pace around this track and alongside their current form, stand them in good stead this weekend.
Herta could well have won three races consecutively going into this weekend if not for an array of issues. He led most of the race at Nashville before crashing under pressure while trying to overtake Ericsson for the lead. He fell just short at the Indianapolis road course but would have a potential victory taken away at Gateway following a driveshaft issue. Meanwhile, Will Power comes off the back of two podiums, one of which is a win, and a pole position.
Importantly, this was the site of a fantastic race last year which saw Colton Herta take pole position but would end with Will Power taking the win. As both drivers head into this weekend in-form, we could be in store for an incredible rematch between the experienced champion and the rising star of the future.
Callum Ilott makes his IndyCar debut with Juncos. Having once been touted for an Alfa Romeo F1 drive he has rumoured between IndyCar and Ferrari’s WEC LMP-h program. Photo courtesy of James Black.
AN EXCITING DEBUT AMIDST A RANGE OF DRIVER CHANGES
Callum Ilott makes his IndyCar debut this weekend with the newly formed Juncos Holinger Racing team. The British Ferrari Academy prospect was runner-up in the 2020 F2 season. and has spent this season as test driver for the Scuderia Ferrari F1 team and the test and reserve driver for Alfa-Romeo F1.
The highly-rated youngster follows Christian Lundgaard as the second F2 academy driver to be given an opportunity in IndyCar as a potential option for a full-time seat in 2022.
He took part in a test with the team at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course on Thursday 2nd September and will be looking to hit the ground running after Lundgaard’s impressive debut earlier this year.
Alongside him are a number of drivers changes including Oliver Askew who will feature for Rahal Letterman Lanigan for the remaining three races of the season.
Helio Castroneves returns to Meyer Shank Racing after missing Gateway while Ed Carpenter steps back to allow Conor Daly to pilot the no.20 Ed Carpenter Racing entry while Max Chilton takes his spot back at Carlin.
Also returning is Jimmie Johnson who replaces Tony Kanaan in the no.48 car and will remain there for the final three races.
The worst kept secret in the 2021 paddock has finally been confirmed. George Russell has announced he will be joining Mercedes to partner Lewis Hamilton in 2022. This comes after Valtteri Bottas announced on Monday he would be leaving Mercedes for Alfa Romeo on a multi-year deal, paving the way for Russell to sign for the vacant seat.
Whilst it was almost inevitable for the 2022 season for Russell to go to Mercedes, it has always been the intention of Toto Wolff and the Mercedes driver academy to place Russell in the top team when he joined Formula 1.
Having become a part of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport line 2017, he impressed the bosses at Mercedes by winning the GP3 title with 2 races to go. Based on this performance he had a couple of Practice sessions in 2017 with Force India, where he impressed once again and was announced as Reserve driver for Mercedes whilst competing in Formula 2 for the 2018 season.
He won the Formula 2 title in the final race of the season and it was announced in October 2018 that he would be joining Williams to compete in Formula 1 for the 2019 season. This was on a multi-year deal so also had his seat confirmed for 2020.
Lando Norris, and George Russell Silverstone, Sprint Race. Image courtesy of F2
In 2019 the Williams car was arguably the slowest car on they grid, so he didn’t achieve a point with them, but he did outperform his teammate Robert Kubica every race whilst learning the Formula 1 car as a step up from Formula 2.
With 2020 getting off to a delayed start, George became a regular of the virtual Grand Prix’s and won the series due to his dedication, along with becoming part of the so called “twitch quartet” with Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and Alex Albon. This dedication took him through to the official start of the season and put in some excellent performances, especially on a Saturday. In 2020 he made 9 Q2 appearances, out-performing his machinery and made it so close to points finishes in the Williams. He was officially dubbed “Mr. Saturday”.
2020 saw the rise of COVID and it therefore meant reserve drivers would be relied upon should any other driver contract COVID. This was the case for Lewis Hamilton, who tested positive just before the Sakhir Grand Prix. Whilst Stoffel Vandoorne was the reserve, George Russell was drafted in from Williams, who then gave Jack Aitken the opportunity to race in Formula 1. This confirmed that Mercedes saw Russell as their next driver, and this was the perfect chance to see how he would perform under pressure with the team.
George rose to the occasion, qualifying P2 just behind Bottas and arguably out-performing him in the race. He was cruelly denied the victory twice by a strategy mix up and then a puncture. However, this marked the start of the strong rumours that if Bottas left the team, Russell would replace him.
2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, Sunday – LAT Images
In 2021 so far he has put in some very strong performances. Making it to Q3 twice and into Q2 every race this season without being out qualified by his Williams teammate. He has finished in the points in Hungry and Belgium, getting a podium at Spa based off of his incredible qualifying lap.
It will be interesting to watch how Hamilton and Russell get on together in the car and how the aerodynamic rule changes will affect the cars. What ever happens he is definitely the future for Mercedes and will be looking to impress at the front of the grid.
When this event was last held in 2013, we had three manufacturers represented, with Volkswagen, Ford and Citroen all entering a number of cars based on the Polo, Fiesta and DS3. All three manufacturers were represented on the podium, with Jari-Matti Latvala winning for VW, Mads Ostberg in second for Citroen and Thierry Neuville third for M-Sport Ford.
Thierry Neuville (BEL) / Nicolas Gilsoul – Ford Fiesta RS WRC. Day one, 2013 Acropolis Rally
Only three drivers from the last event will be returning as competitors, with Seb Ogier, Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo having competed last time out. Jari-Matti Latvala returns as a team principle, but I bet he’d love to be competing.
Jari-Matti Latvala
“It’s great to have the WRC back in Greece. The last time that the Acropolis Rally was on the calendar, I actually won it, and it’s an event that I like a lot myself. You have to really think about your driving because it can be rough in places and the tyre wear is quite high. Some of the stages close to Lamia have not been used for 16 years, so they will be completely new for all of the current drivers. We know that the organisers have been working on the roads quite a lot, and the road condition seems to be much better than in the past. There’s a lot of loose gravel on top, though, so opening the road could be pretty challenging. Although this is another new rally on the calendar, we do have some good Acropolis Rally experience within the team, and I hope this helps us to have a successful event.”
Stage overview
Acropolis Rally kicks off with shakedown on Thursday morning, followed by a ceremonial start in the famous Acropolis citadel and a street stage in the city centre.
After staying overnight in Athens, crews tackle five stages on Friday before heading north to Lamia for evening service: two passes of Aghii Theodori (17.54km) and one each of Loutraki (19.40km), Thiva (23.27km) and Elatia (11.65km).
Saturday is the longest day on the itinerary with six stages totalling 132.56km. Pavliani (24.25km) and Gravia (24.81km) are followed by a tyre fitting zone for Bauxites (22.97km) and Eleftherohori (18.14km). Following service, Pavliani and Eleftherohori are repeated.
Three stages bring the rally to a close; Tarzan 1 (23.37km) and Pyrgos (33.20) – the longest stage of the rally – are run before a tyre fitting zone. A shortened Tarzan 2 (12.68km) acts at the event’s Power Stage.
Let’s hear from the drivers;
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Sébastien Ogier
“It’s nice that the WRC is going back to Greece. The Acropolis Rally is one of these events which made the history of the WRC, and we’ve missed it now for a few years. It’s definitely a country I love and I’m looking forward to going back there. Of course, we can have some idea of what to expect from the past, but it will be a new event in the sense that I think everybody will have to write new pacenotes, and it’s always nice when everybody starts from the same level like that. I know it will be a rally where opening the road will be challenging, but it’s nice to be in the position we are in the championship and we’re going to do everything we can to maintain this gap. That will be our target.”
Elfyn Evans
“I’ve done the Acropolis once before, back in 2012, but that was with a two-wheel drive car. It’s obviously going to be a very different experience going there now with a World Rally Car, and there will be a lot of new pacenotes to write. So, it’s more or less like going to a brand-new rally for me, even though Scott does have a bit more experience there. The route has a lot of stages that will be used just once, which is unusual, and that means there will be a lot of road cleaning to contend with – as with any dry gravel rally. We don’t know exactly what we’re going to be facing, but we’re going there to get the best result possible, as always.”
Kalle Rovanperä
“It’s nice to be going to another classic event in the WRC. I know that previously the Acropolis was always a really tough event. This year, from the videos we have seen, the roads look to be in a better condition than in the past, and I think it’s going to be quite an interesting event. With many stages being driven only once, it’s going to be really important to have a good setup for those first-pass conditions when it’s a bit more slippery, so this was the main focus of our pre-event test. Hopefully we can have the pace to fight for the podium places again. We just need to try and have a clean rally and see what we get.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville
“Acropolis Rally is going to be a tough event. When I was competing there back in 2012 and 2013 it was one of the roughest rallies – together with Argentina at that time. I always enjoyed it. We tested in Greece two years ago to prepare for Rally Turkey, so we have some knowledge of the terrain there. The stages have some very twisty profiles with a lot of loose stones, hot temperatures and it could be very similar to the rough conditions of Turkey. It will be very challenging as not only do you need to go flat out, but you also need to manage the car and the tyres. Strategy will be very important, but that’s something we like. We have high expectations for another good result, and we are looking forward to it.”
“It’s been a long break since the last WRC rally in Greece eight years ago. Acropolis Rally is an event with a lot of history and tradition behind it. It’s an event which belongs to the WRC, and it is good to be back. The last time I competed there was back in 2012 – a long time ago, but I have some great memories. Acropolis Rally is a good replacement for Rally Turkey which is normally the roughest event of the year. I think it’s going to be a really nice event; it will be quite demanding, but the stages are really special and flowing. I can’t wait to be back and bring home a good result.”
Dani Sordo
“Acropolis Rally was one of the roughest rallies when I competed there in the past but, overall, it is a nice rally with good stages. Normally the main challenges are the rocky surface, which is really demanding on the tyres and the high temperatures. You can have a lot of issues in this rally but now we have other similar rallies on the calendar such as Portugal and Sardinia that are similarly demanding, so maybe we are more prepared for this kind of event. Our road position is advantageous when we look at the big picture; it is good to start at the back and we will try to make the most of our running order on the first day. I can’t wait to start it. It will be the first rally with Cándido alongside me and I hope we can get a good result.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 05, Rally de Portugal 3-6 June 2021 Dani Sordo Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Oliver Solberg
“I can’t wait to take the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 to Greece. I did quite a lot of testing with the car on the gravel, so I know the potential and the speed it has. We have to remember though; we are still early in the life for the car so we have to make sure we are making a lot of kilometres. I think this is a rally where you drive more with your head than with the heavy right foot; there will be lots of big rocks waiting, especially on the second loop of stages. This is going to be especially true on the first day because we have no service in lunchtime. It’s going to be fantastic.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Gus Greensmith
“The Acropolis is on my list of events I want to do before I stop so it’s a rally I’ve been looking forward to for a very long time. I tend to enjoy rough rallies and I’ve done my best to prepare by watching old footage to get an idea of what it’s going to be like. I’ve also done nine days in a heat chamber in anticipation of the very high temperatures although the forecast is now for 30 degrees centigrade rather than 40, which is still warm but nothing out of the normal.
“If we compare the Acropolis to Turkey, we’ve seen that everyone is flat out all the way through. It means you have to commit in the rough stuff but also show a degree of mechanical sympathy because the bedrock will be hard for the suspension and the tyres. Usually when it’s rough anything can happen so it’s an exciting situation to be in.
“There are a lot of single-use stages, which means it won’t be as rough as it has been in previous years because you don’t have the second pass and we’ll have a good road position. Friday should therefore be a very good day for us and I plan to maximise the opportunities. We’ve got a good car for rough conditions and I feel we can have a very strong rally.”
Adrien Fourmaux
“Like most of the time, it’s a new rally for me but I do remember playing it on PlayStation when I was younger! Some drivers have some experience, but it was eight years ago and the cars have changed a lot since then. I’m just trying to prepare as I do for the other rallies, working on the videos and my physical and mental training. We had an issue on the last rally in Belgium, so we want to go back to our positive attitude from the beginning of the season and keep taking the experience.
“The Acropolis is in the WRC next year, so we need to get the experience of all stages. I know it will be hot, really tough with big rocks in the middle of the road that you don’t expect. It will be a big challenge and you can expect punctures, maybe some mechanical damage.
“I will take the experience from Turkey and Safari, which can also help me with the set-up of the car. I was probably too careful with the car on the Safari on the Friday but I know more about the limits of the car on rough rallies, that it’s really, really strong. I know many things can happen on this type of event so I will do my rally, do my best and try to do some good stage times. But the most important thing is to be at the end with no issue and have a good result. It was a good rally for M-Sport in the past and hopefully it will be the same in 2021.”
Look ahead
It’s going to be an interesting rally, with a very challenging set of stages which will be rough. Also, with some stages run only once, this will bring another unknown aspect to the event, and it will be the crew that best controls their pace on the hot stages that will take the win.
Hopefully Hyundai won’t suffer the rear suspension problems that they have in the other gravel events from this season, and we’ll get a good fight between all the top crews. Road position will be really important, so perhaps we’ll see Dani, or Ott at the top. Within the Toyota team, Elfyn will want to take win if he can and close the gap to Seb in their fight for the championship.
The M-Sport Ford team don’t have the drivers to fight at the front, so will have a plan I imagine like Safari Rally to get through the event, and this may mean that they’ll pick up positions as other crews drop out with problems.
Anyway, enjoy the rally, and pop back next week for my full stage by stage review.
Sure, it was not the race that we were waiting for, since it lacked the chaos, Safety Car outings and red flags that were anticipated, but it provided a good story up front, with Max Verstappen and the two Mercedes scrapping in a strategic battle, and a mesmerising, yet utterly unsung, performance from Pierre Gasly.
Although the win never seemed out of hand for Max Verstappen, Mercedes’ pitwall did what it could to turn their fortunes around, and get advantage of their 2-to-1 battle for the lead. With Sergio Perez down in the last places of the grid after a pitlane start, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas could cooperate and win the race (for the Briton, of course), by strategy.
A congested Q1 last Saturday saw Sergio Perez start 16th for the Dutch Grand Prix – Courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool
The Dutch circuit proved as difficult to overtake on as teams and drivers predicted, so everything had to be done through the undercut: both times, Mercedes pulled Hamilton for a pit stop, in order to get ahead of Verstappen, when he would stop for a fresh set of tires. However, both times this plan failed, for two different reasons.
On lap 20, Peter Bonnington gave Hamilton the ‘box’ message, Hamilton obliged, and the plan was for Verstappen to actually get stuck behind Bottas, whom Mercedes did not call for a pit stop immediately. Red Bull responded to Hamilton’s stop one lap later, and after 10 laps, the Dutchman got behind Bottas. Mercedes hoped that he would lose time to the Finn, allowing Hamilton to get closer and take advantage of the situation, to pass for the lead.
Max had other plans, though, and passed Bottas easily into Turn 1 on the first time of asking. The Mercedes driver did not defend, nor tried to block his (and, mainly, his teammate’s) opponent, making life so much easier for Verstappen and Red Bull.
Mercedes attempted to use Hamilton and Bottas to scupper Max Verstappen on Sunday – Courtesy of Mercedes F1 Media
Christian Horner, Red Bull’s team principal, highlighted the importance of this overtake in his post-race remarks:
“The crucial part of the race for Max – because the two-stop was the faster race – was to make sure that we re-passed Valtteri immediately. And he did that. That then opened up opportunities to make the second half of the race much more manageable, whereas if he’d have spent a lot of laps behind Valtteri, that could’ve opened us up to an undercut.”
On the second time Mercedes tried to do the undercut, they did not have Bottas as a bulwark, and they made a crucial mistake: they got Hamilton out on track behind a queue of drivers who -mind you- were not out of place. So, he lost precious time behind them; Red Bull called up Verstappen and got him with a fresh set of hard tires, and off he went, leading the race.
I would go as far as to say that Mercedes did the wrong thing not to put Hamilton on the hard compound for his last stint. The 32 laps remaining from his last pit stop up to the end of the race were a few more than what the mediums could do in a competitive pace.
What that shows is, Mercedes knew this race was not theirs to win, even with the numbers game on their side. Verstappen and Red Bull had a great car and a lot of support to win the first Dutch GP after 36 years. And it must go without saying that RB targeted that particular race, which in return produces consistently great performances by them.
That does not mean that a Hamilton win, his 100th, was totally out of cards. They had two opportunities to make that happen, but the gaps were marginal and the chances not on their side.
As far as Pierre Gasly is concerned, it is a great shame that this driver had one more uneventful, yet amazing race near the front pack.
When Gasly and AlphaTauri click just right at a track, they seem an unbeatable combination in the midfield pack.
He matched his best qualifying performance, starting the race from P4, and from the ‘go’ he built a substantial gap between him and his opponents, mainly Leclerc and Alonso.
With the latter he had a brief battle, too, passing him around the outside at the Tarzanbocht, bravely and decisively. It may not have been a difficult overtake, and he was on fresher tires, but he pulled it off.
And that is the gist of Gasly’s performances this year: he does the job quietly and effectively. AT is not the best team in the midfield, it rarely tops it and surely it gives its battles with one driver, since Yuki Tsunoda has been in a prolonged slump in his performance.
Zandvoort proved once again that Gasly is at his peak form, one year on from his first win at Monza. He has found himself once again, completely overcoming the nightmare that his half-a-season tenure at Red Bull was, and -maybe- getting ready for a return at Milton Keynes in 2023…
After the raucous atmosphere of the Orange Army in Zandvoort, the Tifosi will have their turn to roar on their Italian heroes Ferrari during this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix in Monza.
The 5.7 kilometre temple of speed is one of the most historic tracks in Formula One, now hosting its 71st race in the world championship since 1950, and it could hardly have come at a better time for Mercedes.
The current champions have won five times at Monza since the beginning of the hybrid era, but have not won there in any of the last three – or indeed any of the last three races this season since Silverstone.
Sir Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes are seeking their first victory since before the summer break – Courtesy of Mercedes F1 Media
This therefore presents them with the opportunity to turn the tide on a season which has slightly begun to swing the way of Red Bull in the last couple of weeks, at a track where they would anticipate a strong performance. The 11 corners coupled with long straights would ordinarily be conducive to a slam dunk Mercedes win, but even here they will find the Austrian Bulls pushing them hard.
The Honda Power Unit has proved a perennial threat to the German team’s dominance in the last couple of years, and it has competed exceptionally so far in 2021, leaving Max Verstappen top of the Drivers’ Championship, while Mercedes lead them by a narrow 12 points.
Sir Lewis Hamilton said after Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix that Red Bull were on “another level” over the weekend, but at a circuit where overtaking is a lot more accessible and a track where Mercedes are quicker on paper, the competition will be immense.
Max Verstappen’s victory at Zandvoort delighted his home fans – Courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool
Behind the battle out front, things are incredibly interesting. Ferrari carry positive momentum after the Netherlands, but they suffered a torrid time in here last year; a brake failure put pay to Sebastian Vettel’s race, while Charles Leclerc violently collided with the barrier at the final corner.
Alpine managed a satisfactory points haul too, scoring 10 points between Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon, while McLaren, who have generally been one of the better midfield campers this year, only managed a P10 courtesy of Lando Norris.
Fernando Alonso claimed a sixth-placed finish in the Netherlands last week – Courtesy of Renault Sport Media
This leaves the mid-pack in a poised position going from a track at which overtaking is at a premium, to a circuit here at which wheel-to-wheel racing is a regularity.
To mix in with all of that, this weekend sees the second sprint race weekend of the season. A single practise session will precede qualifying, before a short race determines the grid for the Grand Prix. Three points are awarded to the winner of the sprint, with two for second, and one for third. There will be no point for the fastest lap, and the winner of the sprint will be awarded pole position, and not a race win. It may therefore provide a chance for some who are usually further back to climb up towards the podium places; Pierre Gasly’s inspired performance saw him win for the home Alpha Tauti team last year, with Carlos Sainz and Lance Stroll joining him on the podium.
Pierre Gasly took a sensational win for Alpha Tauri at Monza in 2020 – Courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool
In a slight change to the track, the former Parabolica Turn 11 has been renamed after legend Michele Alboreto.
The championship now enters the final 10 rounds of the season, as Red Bull and Mercedes continue to battle toe-to-toe, and we resume that fight at the temple of speed.
