Tag: Formula 1

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Ferrari dominate the USGP while the championship hots up.

Ferrari dominated the race after an excellent start from Leclerc, which put him in the prime spot to pick up the pieces of the turn 1 battle for the lead. 

After an interesting sprint race, qualifying had a dramatic end. Russell collided with the barrier, preventing Verstappen and most of the runners from completing their final laps. This meant Norris started on pole with a great lap, but Russell started from the pitlane after a full repair, with his teammate only in P17.

The race start. Courtesy of RedBull content pool

Norris is becoming infamous for his starts. Despite making progress in the sprint, he went backwards at turn 1. Verstappen lunged down the inside, but while pushing both of them wide, Leclerc slipped straight through into the lead, with his teammate having to settle for P3. 

There was drama in the middle of the pack with Ocon spinning round, ending up last of the runners, while Lawson was following Hamilton, who made up 5 places in the first few corners. 

The battle at the front carried on as Sainz had speed in the car closing on Verstappen at the end of the main straight, leading to a very entertaining six-corner battle with the RedBull coming out on top. However, just as Sainz was looking for his next move, the safety car came out for a stranded Hamilton at turn 19.

With 4 laps of the safety car complete, at the restart, Leclerc had Verstappen with him all the way and struggled to create a gap. There were no major moves, but Lawson continued to make progress, gaining a place into P12.

The back of the pack provided plenty of overtakes for the first half of the race. They were fighting it out after the safety car, with Stroll taking a short trip into the gravel, Russell gaining places, and Albon very tight on Ocon, but Stroll came back looking to go around the outside of both of them. 

Russell hunting down Bottas. Image courtesy of Stake F1 Team

Lap 13 and Russell makes a move on Bottas into P14 in what appeared to be a good move, but the Mercedes received a 5-second penalty for the move. While Lawson continues to give RedBull something to think about as he was only one place behind Perez who has been in P9 since the restart. 

Having been behind Tsunoda for 10 laps, Perez finally makes it past the RB which now had dead tyres. Hulkenberg also tried to get past the RB with a battle from turn 12 to 16 consisting of very close but great racing. Just as Hulkenberg had to back out and get ready for the next attack, Tsunoda pitted.

As the pitstop window opened on lap 20, Ferrari looked to try an undercut on Verstappen with Sainz in P3. He pitted on lap 22 in an attempt to undercut Verstappen. RedBull decided to leave Verstappen out for 4 laps while Sainz and the McLarens caught the front runners. The undercut was successful for the Ferrari with a 4-second gap while Leclerc reacted to Verstappen’s stop from the lead. He came out behind the two McLarens but crucially in front of his teammate and Verstappen.

Meanwhile, Albon continued to have a great race as he battled Alonso with Gasly was in the best seat in the house to watch just behind them. Alonso held off an initial onslaught from the Williams, who took too much out of his tyres. Gasly was able to make a move but had to take to the outside of turn 12 to complete the pass. This means he received a 5-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.

At 31 laps, the US GP became a battle of strategies, with the McLarens yet to pit, Leclerc and Verstappen having pitted only 4 laps before and on a one-stop while Sainz appeared to be on a two-stop. 

After the McLaren stops, Norris was able to work well on the hard tyres. Gaining fastest lap after fastest lap and taking a second out on Verstappen on a few of those. Verstappen was also not happy on the hard tyres and struggled for grip. This hunt was on. 

Colapinto taking on the track. Image courtesy of Pirelli

Magnussen received a very urgent pitstop request from his team, but after a change of tyres came back out. Colopinto, who was having a great race, pitted one lap later and came out just ahead of the Haas. This led to a very exciting battle between two drives who both have nothing to lose. 

While they were getting close, Tsunoda took a quick spin at turn 1. Colopinto locked up but missed the RB and stayed ahead of Magnussen. Tsunoda was able to get going again.

At the front, Norris had closed the gap on Verstappen and was within the DRS zone of the RedBull on lap 44. All eyes were pinned to to these drivers as a podium place and vital championship points were at stake. Norris calculated the move and waited until the right moment on lap 47 after Verstappen locked up.

What ensued was a battle from turn 12 to turn 16 where there was close racing but both were sensible. Verstappen forced Norris around the outside of turn 12 which meant the RedBull could stay ahead through the next set of corners. Undeterred, Norris regrouped and tried again at turn 1 a couple of laps later, but Verstappen was placing his car in all the right places. 

Lap 52 and Norris was much closer on the exit of turn 11 and Verstappen had worse traction. Verstappen forced Norris around the outside and ended up off the track. The stewards immediately began to look at it and the radio messages began between the drivers and the pitwall. On the final lap, Norris received a 5-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. 

Drama between Norris and Verstappen. Image courtesy of RedBull content pool

While that drama unfolded, Leclerc and Ferrari were dominating out front, coming home with a 1-2 and now only 4 points behind RedBull in the constructors for P2. They drove a great race and Leclerc put in a lovely drive to stay ahead. 

Verstappen did finish in P3 with Norris having to settle for P4. With one extra lap, he may have been able to get ahead of the penalty, as he finished 0.9s ahead of the RedBull. However, a shoutout to Colopinto who did get a fastest lap during the race and a point for the team. Lawson also came back in P9 on his first outing back in the RB.

The championship is getting spicy, with RedBull now having to watch for Ferrari in the constructors championship, or they may end up third. Only 6 days until Mexico, can Perez make an impact at his home race?

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Opinion: Red Bull’s Cursed Second Seat

Four years ago, I wrote an article about how Red Bull’s special treatment of Verstappen meant they may never win a constructors’ title again. They went on to win back-to-back constructors’ championships in 2022 and 2023. There’s me told.

And yet, four years later, we are still talking of the Red Bull second-seat curse as Sergio Perez languishes six places and 146 points behind his teammate at the mid-season break.

So, where has this “curse” come from, and what is really behind it?

Gasly in the RedBull outfit. Image courtesy of RedBull content pool

It all started in 2019, when Daniel Ricciardo left Red Bull for pastures anew at Renault. Pierre Gasly was promoted into the seat after comprehensively outscoring his teammate, Brendon Hartley, the season prior.

But Gasly failed to hit the ground running in 2019. In his first race for the team, he finished 11th in a car that should easily have made the top six.

Over the course of the next 11 races, Gasly recorded a best finish of 4th, and only made the top six on five occasions. Red Bull had had enough, and he was demoted back to Torro Rosso, to be replaced by rookie Alex Albon.

Gasly has since claimed the reason for his poor performance was a lack of support he received from the team. Writing on the Player’s Tribune in 2021, he said: “From the moment I made my first mistake in a car, I felt like people there slowly began to turn on me.

“I’d had a crash in winter testing, and from that moment on the season never really got going.

“The car wasn’t perfect, and I was doing my best to try to improve and learn each week.

” I didn’t feel like I was really supported and treated the same way as others there have been. And for me … that’s something that I just can’t accept.

“I was working my ass off every day, trying to get results for the team, but I was not being given all the tools I needed to succeed.

“I would try to offer solutions, but my voice wasn’t heard, or it would take weeks to see changes.”

Under those circumstances, it’s easy to see why Gasly had such a difficult stint at Red Bull. But surely they’d learnt their lesson?

Well, not really. As soon as Albon stepped into the second Red Bull seat, there was an improvement. In his opening race, the Thai driver came from 17th on the grid to 5th, cutting through the field where Gasly couldn’t.

Albon taking his turn in the second seat. Courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool

For seven of the remaining eight races, Albon finished inside the top six, with the only exception the Brazilian Grand Prix, in which he was spun round by Lewis Hamilton whilst being on for a podium. Ironically, Pierre Gasly in his Torro Rosso did get on the podium in Brazil.

But in the following season, Albon struggled to kick on. Just seven top six finishes 17 races, including two podiums, meant he was dropped for the following campaign.

For Albon, it again appears that he received a lack of support. Speaking to the official F1 media, he said: “I struggled with the media attention to begin with. I also didn’t have a manager, I didn’t have anyone around me.

“So in terms of my personal support, I had my family but I was just going about it alone. I’d go to the racetrack by myself – I had my trainer to be fair, but it was just us two going around.”

With such an inexperienced driver (Albon was a rookie when he first joined, don’t forget) this seems like a huge failure from the Red Bull side.

As a team it is their job to protect their driver from the media, and support them when they’re trying to improve. Red Bull were unwilling to do that, so unsurprisingly they faltered.

Having decided they didn’t want to have to babysit their drivers, Red Bull turned to the experienced Sergio Perez for 2021.

Perez has had a few successes with the team over the years. Image courtesy of RedBull content pool.

And Perez’s first season at the team was a success. The Mexican finished the year fourth in the standings, picking up one win and four podiums along the way. It wasn’t enough for Red Bull to beat Mercedes in the Constructors Title, but they weren’t far behind.

His second season at the team was a little less impressive. Despite having comfortably the quickest car, he finished third in the standings, behind Charles Leclerc. He did, however, help the team to the Constructors title, so Red Bull would have had few complaints.

Last year was less impressive still. In a year where Red Bull won every race bar one, Perez won just two races and made the podium a further six times. Verstappen won constructors title by himself.

His poor performances and frustration from the fans that he wasn’t quick enough to stop Verstappen dominating, meant his seat was being called into question going into this year.

With the other teams rapidly closing the development gap, Perez currently sits in seventh position in the championship, with a best result of 7th from his last 8 races.

The gap is closing between RedBull and the other teams. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

The driver market has been awash with rumour suggesting Perez could lose his seat over the break, though these have been denied by the team.

With McLaren snapping at their coattails, both Red Bull and Perez are under pressure to improve performances. But until the culture at the team changes, it’s hard to see how any second driver could perform to the levels the team expect.

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BRITISH GP: Arise, Sir Lewis Hamilton!

Sir Lewis Hamilton emerged as the winner on Sunday afternoon at Silverstone in a classic British GP as he took his record 9th win at a single venue. It was a Mercedes front row to start the race with George Russell on pole and Hamilton in 2nd. The race had a threat of rain hanging over it right from the start and it became real from as early as lap 6.

George Russell taking the lead from pole. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Media

Russell started the race well and the top 4 kept their order until lap 6, as the rain began and the conditions changed quickly for everyone’s liking. Lando Norris in the McLaren and Max Verstappen in the Redbull picked up right where they left off in Austria, albeit a lot cleaner this time. As the rain picked up, Hamilton pipped his teammate Russell to the lead of the race before Lando Norris was quickly over the back of both the leading Mercedes’ as they went off in turn 3 due to tricky conditions.

Norris was leading the race in wet weather with both the Mercedes and Verstappen chasing him. The rain intensity increased as Verstappen and Sainz in the Ferrari were the first ones to pit for inters. McLaren were 1-2 at this point before they got it horribly wrong with Piastri’s pitstop timing and the Australian was relegated to P6. He ultimately salvaged P4 towards the end of the race but could’ve been much higher if not for the mishap. It was the switching of the conditions from wet to dry that changed the fate of McLaren as a brilliant Mercedes undercut meant that Hamilton assumed the lead of the race on lap 40. It was a three-way fight to the finish as Hamilton was in the lead on soft tyres, Norris was 2nd on soft tyres with Verstappen chasing them both on hard tyres. At a stage it seemed that Verstappen would take the win but he just about ran out of laps towards the end and could only finish 2nd to Hamilton.

Perez with the first stop on to inters. Image courtesy of RedBull Content Pool

Elsewhere, George Russell’s day ended in a horrible fashion as he started from pole but had to retire on lap 34 due to a water system issue in his car. Sergio Perez in the other Redbull and Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari had a bad day out in rainy Silverstone as they were experimented with tyre strategy to battle in changing conditions. Perez finished a lowly P17 while Leclerc could only manage a P14 and the Monegasque will hope for a much better showing in Hungary in 2 weeks time after a sorry couple of weeks in the Ferrari.  Carlos Sainz in the other Ferrari managed a quite race amidst the chaos and racked up a handy P5.

Haas continued their good showing with Hulkenberg finishing P6, not losing any ground from yesterday’s qualifying. Kevin Magnussen in the other Haas could not manage a points finish and could only manage P12. Aston Martin had a decent home race as they finished in double points with Lance Stroll at P7 and Alonso at P8.  Among the points, were ‘home’ team Williams with Alexander Albon at P9, the Thai driver suffered early damage to the bodywork of his car but had an impressive drive afterwards. Logan Sargeant in the other Williams was just one position shy of points as he ended up in P11. It was Yuki Tsunoda who claimed the final points spot after a P10 finish, while his teammate Ricciardo finished P13.

Alpine had a day to forget, with Gasly retiring on the formation lap and Esteban Ocon only managing a P16 finish. Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas finished P15 while his teammate Zhou finished P18.

Max Verstappen has increased his lead at the top of the championship standings in his bid for the 4th title but  with about half the season to go, it would be wise to not think that the title is wrapped up, as McLaren seem promising in fighting for wins alongside Mercedes, who have picked up back to back race wins. A lot at play awaits in 2 weeks time in Hungary before the summer break, as Mercedes will be looking for a hatrick of wins and Verstappen himself will be itching to get back to the top of the podium.

 

The top 3 and Bono on the podium. Image courtesy of RedBull content pool.
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Verstappen takes pole ahead of Japanese Grand Prix

Max Verstappen has taken pole ahead of tomorrow’s Japanese Grand Prix, with team-mate Sergio Perez making it Red Bull’s 27th front row lock-out.

It was perhaps closer than most were expecting between the duo, with just +0.066 separating them at the chequered flag. In comparison, the gap from Verstappen to P2 last year was over half a second.

Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool

McLaren’s Lando Norris initially split the Red Bulls after the first runs in Q3, but Perez eeked out more of an improvement in the second runs to leapfrog the McLaren into second.

The top five was rounded out by Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. The other Aston Martin of Lance Stroll, in contrast, missed out on advancing to Q2 by only +0.061 and will start tomorrow’s race down in P16.

Oscar Piastri will start P6 with Lewis Hamilton in P7, the Brit sounding more buoyant about the set-up of his Mercedes than he has in recent weeks.

Charles Leclerc ran out of sync with the rest of the top ten in Q3, setting his only lap of the session with the entire track to himself. His time initially put him P7, but with the rest of the field re-emerging a few minutes later for their second runs he slipped to P8 by the time the chequered flag was brought out.

George Russell qualified P9. He was released into the path of Piastri in the pits during Q1 but has escaped a grid drop, with Mercedes instead receiving a €5,000 fine for an unsafe release.

Home favourite Yuki Tsunoda rounds out the top ten.

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Verstappen on another level in Bahrain.

Verstappen dominated the Bahrain Grand Prix, leading his teammate and Sainz as he crossed the line to take what could be the first of many wins this season.

The 2024 season has begun. Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool

Lights out and Leclerc got a good start managing to get alongside Verstappen into turn 1. However, the Red Bull forced the Ferrari to take the outside line where Leclerc had to back out and let Verstappen go. Perez also got a great start as he gained a place in one lap. 

Further back, Stroll was spun round and went from P12 to last at turn 1. At the pinch point Bottas bumped into the back of Hulkenberg who then tapped the back of the Aston Martin. Hulkenberg and Bottas picked up front wing damage, causing Hulkenberg to pit while Bottas was able to cope with the damage for the rest of the race.

It didn’t take long for Norris to gain places as he made a move on Alonso into turn 1. This left the door open for Piastri who was able to take advantage just a few laps later.

Meanwhile, Russell spent the first few laps pressuring Leclerc and was able to make a move around the outside of turn 4 on lap three. Perez was not far behind but took his time to take on the Ferrari. Leclerc was suffering with some brake issues which haunted him all race, but on lap seven Leclerc locked up and went wide out of turn 10. This made the move easier for Perez, who took the place from Leclerc. 

The Monegasque problems didn’t end there, Leclerc had a big lock up out of turn 1 just a lap later, which gave Sainz hope to turn 4 but Leclerc was still inside the DRS of Perez meaning he just kept ahead. It didn’t take long though for Sainz to use DRS into turn 1 on lap 11, taking on his teammate in a very close wheel to wheel battle, no teams orders at play here.

It was then time for the first round of stops. Every car swapped for hard tyres, with Russell and Leclerc pitting at the same time and Perez choosing to stop one lap later. The undercut can be very powerful at Bahrain and it very nearly worked for Perez but he came out just behind Russell.

On new tyres though Perez had better grip up the hill after turn 1 and down into turn 4. Russell took a very defensive line but couldn’t make it work for him on the exit and the Red Bull completed the switch back with perfection.

Close racing. Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool

Sainz was unable to make the undercut work for him, he stayed out a couple of laps but came out behind his teammate. Meaning another close fight was imminent. It therefore only took a couple of laps before Sainz lunged from very far back down the inside of turn 1, taking the place from Leclerc.

While Verstappen pitted without a single car around him, Russell was defending his podium position from Sainz but was unsuccessful as Sainz took the inside line into turn 4. The chase was now on for Sainz to take on the Red Bulls.

Leclerc wasn’t the only driver nursing issues. Both Mercedes were told to lift and coast around lap 24 to control the power unit temperatures. Albon was also experiencing similar issues with the Mercedes engines. However, when not in traffic all these problems improved and were much easier to manage.

During the second round of pit stops Bottas came in for a switch of tyres, however this was set to be his second slowest ever stop. This time it was less than a day but he was stationary for 52.4 seconds while the team had to get a new wheel nut as the one they had refused to go on the rim. 

As of lap 44 the unhealthy cars of Leclerc and Russell appeared to make a recovery, with Leclerc all over the back of Russell at every corner. Russell locked up under the pressure in turn 10 and went very wide. Side by side down to turn 11, Leclerc had enough confidence with his brakes to take the position from the Ferrari.

Tsunoda not happy with his team. Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool

Further down the pack, the RBs asked for a driver swap despite Tsunoda being within DRS to Magnussen in front with his teammate behind in DRS. Despite protests Tsunoda complied on lap 53 but this hurt both drivers as Verstappen lapped them a few corners later. Ricciardo lost time to Magnussen and neither RB got past the Haas before the end of the race.

Verstappen ended the race as he began, in P1, with Perez in second and Sainz rounding out the podium. The Dutchman finished 20 seconds ahead of his teammate, which is six seconds less than 2023 but still a large gap to the rest of the grid. He is going to take some beating again this year.

A shoutout to Stroll who had solid performance to recover from the back of the pack after turn 1 lap one, to finish in P10 and gaining a point for his efforts.

The top 3 for the Bahrain Grand Prix 2024. Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool
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Verstappen on pole in Bahrain but Ferrari not far behind.

Verstappen took pole in Bahrain but was closely followed by Leclerc and Russell in P2 and P3. The most exciting part, by the end of Q3, the top 9 were covered by just over half a second.

Starting with Q1, anticipation was high as each practice session produced a different fastest three so far. It was set to be unpredictable at both ends of the grid.

The Ferrari’s and Red Bull’s were swapping times at the time with the odd lap from the McLaren’s. Stroll put in a stunning lap to make it to P2 just behind Sainz at the very end of qualifying.

Bottas not able to make it out of Q1. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

After looking slow in testing, Haas picked up pace in practice and showed their true colours during qualifying were able to make it into Q2 just beating both Sauber’s who qualified in P16 and P17 respectively. Sargent followed this pair, not able to make any improvement on his lap.

The story for Alpine is very different. After struggling all weekend, they couldn’t make it out of Q1, qualifying last and second last on the grid. Over the radio Ocon had some words of encouragement for his team despite only getting one proper run in Q1. 

Out in Q1 – Bottas, Zhou, Sargent, Ocon, Gasly.

Q2 gave us hope for a tight battle for pole in Q3. Verstappen topped the times after the first runs with a 1.29.374, closely followed by his teammate. However, on new tyres, there was a glimmer of hope for Norris, who was half a second back from the pair of them.

With the second runs being completed Sainz was only two tenths from Verstappen and Leclerc put in a stunning lap to go P1 with a 1.29.165. Hulkenberg was also enjoying his Haas by placing it in P6 and making it to Q3.

Lewis Hamilton trying to improve in Q2. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

The Mercedes looked in trouble as they couldn’t compete with Ferrari, RedBull but were able to get P4 and P7 to get into Q3. They were competing with the RB’s who were quick in FP1 but both couldn’t get any further in qualifying. Tsunoda was just out qualified by the McLaren’s by 0.007s but importantly for him, beat his teammate. 

Despite putting in some strong laps earlier, Stroll couldn’t improve during Q2 and was eliminated while Alonso put in a solid lap to put himself between Hamilton and Hulkenberg. The other Haas driver, Magnussen rounded out those completing qualifying in Q2.

Out in Q2 – Tsunoda, Stroll, Albon, Ricciardo and Magnussen.

It was all to play for in Q3. After the first runs the gap was only 0.059 between Verstappen and Leclerc, meaning the fight was on. Russell was in P3 and driving well, beating Sainz to that top 3 spot. 

Alonso heading out on new tyres. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

Hope was alive as we waited for the second run with the clock counting down. Keeping us entertained was Alonso, who put on new tyres in the gap and went for his quick lap. With the track to himself he moved up into P3 with a 1.29.542.

Alonso headed back in, everyone else came out of the pits to start their last flying laps. Russell improved his time to take back P3 while his teammate finished down in P8 but has said his car is set up more towards race pace. At the very top Verstappen improved his time to a 1.29.179 which was slower than the lap Leclerc completed in Q2. 

It was down to Ferrari to take pole, however, Leclerc improved but not enough to take pole from Verstappen. Sainz couldn’t get any closer either but moving up into P4, pushing Alonso down to P5. The McLaren’s followed behind, Norris ahead of Piastri and Perez finished down in P9, despite his teammate taking pole. Hulkenberg rounded out the top 10 but only completed laps on used tyres in Q3, saving a new set for the race.

The top 3 in tomorrows race. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

The grid is set for the first race of the season. RedBull don’t look to have completely run away with qualifying but the race could be a completely different story. The race starts at 3pm GMT, don’t miss it.

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Sainz Wins an Interesting Singapore GP

Carlos Sainz wins the Singapore Grand Prix through some intelligent driving under immense pressure from behind. Verstappen made up places but the Red Bulls were not in good form while the Mercedes team made an impressive strategy call to challenge for the lead.

The Ferrari’s away cleanly at the start. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

Lights out and Sainz got away cleanly but behind him Russell bogged down meaning Leclerc made it past the Mercedes before turn one. The challenge was now on for Leclerc, who started on softs, to keep up with his teammate in the first stint.

Slightly further back Hamilton had a great start to out-break Norris before heading around the outside of Russell but having to take to the escape road and then back on track. Hamilton eventually gave back both places and then settled into his P5 position for a while.

It wasn’t all clean racing on lap one as there was a small amount of contact between Tsunoda and Perez which led to the Alpha Tauri retiring a few corners later. Luckily for the drivers he was able to pull off the circuit safely and the race continued.

Verstappen had gained a place in the first couple of laps and was now on the tail of Magnussen. It was a tight battle between the pair but Verstappen took advantage of DRS to make it into P8. His next job was to chase down Gasly, however, on the hard tyres the Red Bull was still sliding around so Verstappen was told a few times to back off and cool the car down.

Verstappen trying to gain places early on. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

The race began to settle down while we waited for the first pit stop window to open. Sainz was managing the race well by keeping the pack close together, however, this meant that even 15 laps in, if the Spaniard had pitted from the lead, he would have come out in P17.

Just a few laps later Sargent ended up hitting the barrier around turn eight and damaging his front wing. Sargent was able to get back to the pits but not without leaving debris along the track and causing a safety car.

Ferrari took this opportunity to double stack. Most Ferrari fans waited with bated breath as this was the sort of thing that could ruin a Ferrari race, however they managed to pull it off… to a certain extent. 

Leclerc had backed up the pack in order to create himself a gap to allow the double stack to happen. Because of this a queue of cars formed behind him and all filed into the pit lane as the MonĂŠgasque needed to leave, so he had to be held in his pit box until there was a gap, which cost him track position.

In an interesting strategy call, Red Bull didn’t pit either of their cars as they had started with the hard tyres. However, Sainz came out ahead of Verstappen after his stop so the plan hadn’t paid off for the World Champion. This meant that he and Perez were on old tyres with everyone else of fresh hards around them at the restart.

The safety car restart. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

On lap 23 the safety car came in and Sainz had the lead from Verstappen who was struggling to defend against Russell. Just behind them Perez had to fend off Norris and Hamilton who were closing rapidly. 

Almost synchronised, Russell overtook Verstappen and Norris gained a place on the other Red Bull. Perez nearly left the door open for Hamilton but the Mexican was able to stay ahead for a few more corners before the Mercedes made a move stick using DRS.

This then became the trend for a few laps. The Red Bulls began to tumble with Norris and Hamilton gaining places on Verstappen in quick succession. Perez was at the start of a train of cars which led to an interesting battle between the Red Bull, Alonso, and Ocon. 

On lap 37 Alonso dived up the inside of Perez but went in deep and Perez was able to fight back. This opened the door for Ocon to join the fight which was getting closer and closer to the wall. Perez defended the inside of turn eight from Alonso but Ocon went around the outside of the Aston Martin to go side by side into the next few turns.

Ocon was able to make the move on Alonso stick for P8, and was able to pull off a switch back on Perez just a lap later. Alonso then saw his opportunity and overtook Perez a few corners later before the Red Bull headed into the pits for his tyre change.

Sainz at the front had been controlling the race at a decent but slow pace which meant the pack were still quite close together. By the time Perez exited the pit lane, he went from P9 to P18. The story wasn’t much better for Verstappen who came in one lap later from P6 to come back out P15.

Two laps after both Red Bulls changed tyres, the virtual safety car was deployed for Ocon who had stopped just before turn two with a gearbox issue. The top five had already passed the pit entry when the VSC came out but that didn’t stop Mercedes making a bold move.

They double stacked their cars on the next lap for some new mediums to come out P4 and P5 in clean air and only the top three ahead of them. Russell was ahead of Hamilton and it was a very aggressive call but as they headed out the VSC ended and both Brits were on a charge, closing in by two seconds per lap to the leaders. 

With 17 laps left it was now an incredible strategy race to see the Mercedes pushing in full force for the podium. Something we haven’t seen for a few seasons. Because of this, it wasn’t long before both cars were within the DRS range of Leclerc in P3.

Out of the corner Russell pulled out a switch back and won the battle of traction against Leclerc to take P3. One lap later and his teammate made a similar move to take P4 from the Ferrari. Now the hunt was on to claim P2 from Norris ahead.

The Mercedes were gaining on the leaders. Image courtesy of Mercedes AMG F1

The Mercedes were closing at an alarming rate, so Sainz came over the radio to ask for the gap to Norris on every lap for the last five laps. When told Norris was 0.8 seconds Sainz replied with ‘that’s the point’. In some very clever driving, Sainz kept Norris within DRS range to give the McLaren some help with speed down the straights. This not only helped Norris but also meant Sainz would likely keep hold of his win.

It was the final lap and the top four were still within 1.5 seconds. Both Mercedes were moving all over the road in a bid to get past Norris. However, with only a few corners to go, Norris tapped the wall on his rear right but came away unscathed. Russell behind him was not so lucky as he clattered the wall with his front right, breaking the suspension and going head first into the barrier. He was ok but had lost P3 right at the end for his teammate to claim the podium.

Sainz was able to break the Red Bull 2023 win streak by taking the win, Norris finished on the second step of the podium while Hamilton took P3.

It was a fascinating race which intrigued not only this Formula 1 fan but many around the world. We are at Suzuka next weekend which will likely see the Red Bulls back on form.

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Verstappen Breaking Records at the Italian GP

Max Verstappen takes the win at the Italian Grand Prix, which means he has taken the record for 10 consecutive wins in a season. It wasn’t plain sailing for him and his teammate, but they came home with a 1-2, while Sainz rounded out the podium after starting on pole. 

The camera showed the stricken Alpha Tauri of Tsunoda as the front row began to line up on the grid after the formation lap. Unfortunately for him and the team, there was an immediate engine failure, which left the car in gear and therefore led to a second formation lap.

However, an aborted start meant that confusion ensued as the cars were parked on the grid with engines off while the teams were waiting at the gate to be let back onto the grid. The red flag was never brought out, but there was a delay of a few minutes before the engineers could be let onto the grid.

Despite this, after a 23-minute delay, we could get going with another formation lap.

The eventual race start. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

Lights out, and Sainz got off to a great start by cutting off Verstappen into turn one and holding on to the lead. Just behind them, Leclerc had tried to dive up the inside of Verstappen, but the door closed, and the attempt left room for Russell to put pressure on the Ferrari. Russell couldn’t make a move stick.

Both McLarens had a good start, with Piastri making up a place on Albon into turn one as the Williams driver got boxed in. Although the Willams in a straight line is very slippery, just one lap later, Albon was back up into P6.

It didn’t take long for Verstappen to become a hunter with Sainz the hunted. Leclerc couldn’t keep up with the leading pair as the Red Bull pushed the Ferrari all the way. Verstappen was always within the DRS zone and tried to make a move around the outside of turn one on lap six, but it didn’t pay off with Sainz defending well.

Slightly further back, on lap eight, Verstappen’s teammate was mounting a charge on the Mercedes of Russell as he tried a move that didn’t pay off. He built up pressure until lap 14 when Perez tried a move around the outside, outbraked himself, and went straight on which meant he had to give back the place he gained. Two laps later though, the Mexican took the inside line into turn one and this time the move stuck.

Sainz locked up before losing the lead to Verstappen. Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool

Meanwhile, the Dutch Red Bull driver was closer to Sainz by a couple of tenths heading into the main straight. He tried around the outside of the Ferrari, and even though the move didn’t work, Sainz locked up, which meant Verstappen had better traction coming out of the corner. On lap 15, the inevitable happened into the chicane as the Red Bull had more speed than the Ferrari.

With the world champion unleashed, he gained a 1.5-second lead within one lap. The race began to settle as the pit stops started.

Struggling with tyres after locking up, Sainz was the first of the Ferrari drivers to come in. One lap later, the team pitted Leclerc; however, it was tight between the teammates, and they nearly touched as Leclerc came out of the pit lane. The Monegasque ended up staying behind his teammate, with Perez coming out behind them after his stop.

A similar story was unfolding with the two McLaren’s on lap 24. Norris was the first to pit, with Piastri changing his tyres the lap after. However, Piastri was on the inside of Norris into turn one as he came out from his stop, but unlike the Ferraris, the McLarens made contact. Luckily for both drivers, they were able to carry on, and the stewards decided to take no further action.

Hamilton was the last driver to stop, as he started on the hard tyres so he could go for a longer stint. Coming out from his stop, it didn’t take too long before his new mediums warmed up and he began to gain places on those now on hard tyres. He started with Alonso into turn one on lap 29.

The Mercedes wasn’t the only one on a charge. Norris had been chasing down Albon for several laps, when on lap 38, Norris made a move around the outside but went off the track and gained an advantage. He managed to give the place back and unfortunately for the Brit, this is where he would stay.

A few laps later, Hamilton could smell the chance to make a move on Piastri but couldn’t make it stick. Towards the end of the lap, Hamilton was within the DRS zone of the McLaren and looked for a move on the inside but opted for the switch back, getting better traction out of the corner. Hamilton was mostly in font heading towards the chicane but, crucially, not completely past. 

As Hamilton moved towards the racing line, his back wheel made contact with the front of Piastri’s car, damaging the McLaren’s front wing. Both drivers were able to carry on, but Piastri did need to pit for a new front wing, and Hamilton got a five-second time penalty for causing a collision.

While this was happening, Perez had gained a place on Leclerc to put him on the podium and was chasing down P2. It wasn’t long before Perez was within the DRS zone of Sainz, and he used that to his advantage on lap 46, where he made it past Sainz.

This meant the final five laps were all about which Ferrari would be in P3. The radio call came saying, ‘Still race, but no risk’, However, the teammates knew what was at stake. Leclerc kept the pressure on right until the final lap, where he had a huge lockup and nearly took out both cars, Luckily, he avoided an accident, and Sainz finished in P3 with Leclerc in P4.

However, no one had an answer for Verstappen’s performance, as he crossed the line with a substantial lead over his teammate. A new record was broken, and the speed of the Red Bulls continues to be unmatched.

Next up is Singapore, which Verstappen has never won. Is that an omen or another record to extend?

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2023 Italian GP Qualifying

Carlos Sainz has made the Tifosi’s dreams come true and secured pole position for tomorrow’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza. Celebrating on the track in front of the Ferrari fans the Spaniard who has been very quick all weekend put in one of the laps of his life to beat Max Verstappen by the smallest of margins.

Q1 began with everyone on the Hard Pirelli compound as this qualifying session was being used for the new mandatory tyre allocation strategy trial of hards being used for Q1, mediums for Q2  the softs for Q3.

Max Verstappen’s first lap of qualifying was deleted for exceeding track limits, He immediately pitted, came back out and went quickest by 0.338 from team mate Sergio Perez. They were followed by Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin and then the Williams of Alex Albon.

The track was getting quicker as the session went on meaning the final runs would be crucial.

Ocon out after damage in Q1. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

As the final runs ended Albon moved up to P2 with Leclerc also up to P3. At the other end Zhou, Gasly, Ocon, Magnussen, and Stroll were all out of qualifying.

Q2 started with both Ferrari drivers under investigation for not being under the new maximum time to get round for a lap to prevent everyone going slowly on their outlaws, This would be investigated after the session so the result of qualifying might be decided in the stewards room.

Once again Verstappen was first on track and immediately went to the top of the time sheets, Shortly after that Sainz in the Ferrari sent the Tifosi wild and went quickest by 0.044, Behind them was Leclerc and Albon in the flying Williams.

Surprisingly the Mercedes pair went out to the track later than everyone else, Even with the clear track they could only manage 6th and 12th.

All 15 cars left the garages at the same time leaving the pitlane looking like the worlds most expensive car park.

When the last runs finally began the Williams of Sargeant was at the front of the pack, he didn’t improve though and stayed 14th. Joining him in not making it trough were Tsunoda, Lawson, Hulkenberg and Bottas.

Hamilton making his way into Q3. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

The top of the timesheet had a familiar look about it with Verstappen fastest with a 1.20.937 ahead of Leclerc, Sainz and Perez. Albon was next up continuing to impress in the Williams, Hamilton improved to 6th ahead of his team mate Russell. Completing the top 10 and making it to Q3 were Piastri, Alonso and Norris.

Q3 brought the inevitable excitement with Verstappen dipping a wheel into the gravel on his first lap but still managing to make the top 3, At the front it was Sainz from Leclerc, then Verstappen and Russell, Behind them were Albon, Perez, Norris , Piastri Hamilton and then Alonso.

The final runs of the session would be the ones to determine the grid for Sundays race.

Charles Leclerc went first and moved to provisional pole, then came Verstappen who beat him but he was then beaten by Sainz in the Ferrari with a scintillating lap time of 1.20.294, the top three separated by just 0.067

4th was George Russell, then came Perez, Albon, Piastri, Hamilton and Norris and Alonso closing out the top 10.

Sainz gets a pole at the home of Ferrari. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Area

Almost immediately after the session was completed it was confirmed no further action was necessary for the Ferrari’s earlier transgression meaning Sainz had pole in a Ferrari at Monza.

Can the Tifosi get their dream result tomorrow or will Max Verstappen continue his run and win a 10th successive race.

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Hamilton takes record ninth pole for Hungarian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton has taken pole for tomorrow’s Hungarian Grand Prix – his first since 2021 – setting a record for the most number of pole positions at one circuit by one driver. He lines up ahead of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, with the trio separated by only +0.085.

It was the first try-out of a new qualifying format, with drivers mandated to use only hard tyres in Q1, medium tyres in Q2 and soft tyres in Q3.

2023 Hungarian Grand Prix, Friday – Steve Etherington

McLaren locked out the second row, further delivering on their upgrades from the last round in Silverstone. Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu had a strong showing in fifth, having topped Q1 earlier.

Slightly further down in the top ten, Perez finally put an end to his run of Q1 eliminations and lines up P9 on the grid for tomorrow’s race.

In his first qualifying session back in F1 – having been brought in as a replacement for Nyck de Vries at Alpha Tauri – Daniel Ricciardo ended up P13, with team-mate Yuki Tsunoda in P17.

Although Mercedes have reason to celebrate with Hamilton’s pole, it was not an entirely great day for the team. George Russell complained about traffic on the build-up to his last Q1 lap and wasn’t able to improve, finding himself all the way down in P18.

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