Author: Natalie

F1 2021: British Gp Review – Hamilton Takes Controversial Win

Drama has been synonymous with Formula 1 racing for all of its history. And so has controversy. For the 2021 British Grand Prix an extra helping of controversy was in the offing.

It was Max Verstappen who started from pole after winning the first ever sprint race on Saturday afternoon. The Dutchman went wheel to wheel with title rival Lewis Hamilton as the lights went out all the way around the famed Silverstone circuit. The battle though would only last until the ultra-fast Copse corner. Hamilton, desperate for the lead of the race, placed his car on the inside while Verstappen took the racing line into the corner. As it were Hamilton’s left-front collided with the right-rear of the Red Bull, which ended in a 51G impact with the barrier for Verstappen. The race was red flagged in order for the barrier to be repaired and the debate begun as to who was to blame for the incident.

As it were, Hamilton offered an array of defenses that included that he was alongside Verstappen, that he was ahead, and that Verstappen had turned in on him. A review of footage disproves all of these rationalizations. In fact, an on-board with Verstappen shows him deliberately leaving Hamilton space on the inside. The reality is that not Verstappen fans nor Hamilton fans will be convinced that either of the driver that they support was to blame. Here are the indisputable facts: Hamilton was not alongside Verstappen and he not only had more than enough space but was wide of the apex. It is a certainty that he knew exactly where the other car was positioned at all times. The same cannot be said for Verstappen and his awareness of where Hamilton was. For this reason he was fully capable of knowing that a collision was highly likely but decided to carry on with the attempted overtake.

While Verstappen was transported to a local hospital for precautionary checks Hamilton was given a decidedly light ten second penalty, which is the second-most lenient penalty a driver, can be given. In another stroke of luck the red flag period also allowed Mercedes engineers to repair any damage on Hamilton’s car at no time loss. In fact, it was revealed post-race by Mercedes that without the opportunity to repair the damage to Hamilton’s car, under the red flag, he would have been forced to retire from the race.

As it were Charles Leclerc picked up the pieces from the Hamilton/Verstappen clash and took the lead. He drove a stellar race and led for the majority of it despite a software problem, which caused the engine to cut sporadically threatening the Monegasque’s race. But the Ferrari is far from a front-running car in 2021 and certainly hasn’t been anywhere near the pace of a Mercedes either. It was all but inevitable then that Hamilton would make short work of Leclerc given the superior pace of his car. Heck in more than half of the races this season Leclerc has finished more than 50 seconds adrift such is the pace deficit of the Ferrari in comparison to the Red Bull and Merc. A slow pitstop for Lando Norris meant another obstacle was removed for Hamilton who only had teammate Valtteri Bottas in between himself and Leclerc. Naturally, Bottas was told to let Hamilton through and the Finn, eager to please the team bosses and maintain his seat, obeyed and moved aside.

Leclerc, easily the best driver of the day, finished in second ahead of perennial wingman Bottas in third. Despite a slow pitstop Norris was fourth ahead of his McLaren teammate Daniel Ricciardo in fifth. Carlos Sainz, who suffered his own pitstop issues, was sixth while Fernando Alonso was seventh for Alpine. Lance Stroll was eighth for Aston Martin ahead of Esteban Ocon in ninth and Yuki Tsunoda in tenth.

The win brings Hamilton to within eight point of the title lead. Not only that but Mercedes also closed the gap to four points in the constructors’ standings, as Sergio Perez scored no points after starting from the pitlane. If you’d tuned in to listen to the radio messages between the Merc pit wall and Hamilton you’d have thought they’d beaten Red Bull by half a minute such was their boastful jubilation. Under a cloud of controversy that will not trouble either Hamilton or Mercedes the British Grand Prix has injected some dissent into the title fight. On to Hungary.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

July 20, 2021
F1 2021: British Gp Preview – Hamilton-mania to Propel Merc?

Formula 1 not only returns to the famed Silverstone circuit but also to a full capacity crowd. With the exception of Monza, and maybe Zaandvoort later this year, there is hardly a more raucous us F1 crowd anywhere in the world.

The Silverstone circuit, based in Northamptonshire, is a marvel too. It’s ultra high-speed layout and iconic corner like Copse, Stowe, and the Maggotts-Becketts complex are as iconic as they are demanding. The black and white painted kerbs become little more than a blur as the cars buzz around the English countryside at one of the most magnificent venues in all of Motorsport.

All drivers will have their supporters at Silverstone not to mention the legendary teams such as McLaren and Williams. But it’s expected that none will have a bigger swell of support than Sir Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time champion arrives somewhat on the back foot and not having won a race since the Spanish Grand Prix at the beginning of May. But it isn’t necessarily an unknown position for Hamilton to be in. After all, in 2018 Seb Vettel looked to be running away with the title before fading in the second half of the season. Nevertheless, Max Verstappen and Red Bull are a completely different equation to Vettel and Ferrari. It wasn’t that long ago that Red Bull were reeling off championship titles much in the same way that Mercedes have done in the last seven years. And it doesn’t seem like they have forgotten how to put together a championship title run.

Mercedes haven’t had an answer to Red Bull for a good few months but they have a fairly big upgrade package to run on the car this weekend. It isn’t only on-track where they’re looking for some answers either. There is also the matter of who Hamilton’s teammate will be for 2022. As is usual there are a slew of rumours making the rounds with the most vociferous of them suggesting that a certain George Russell will be announced this weekend as a works Mercedes driver for 2022. If you were to ask Valtteri Bottas the Finn believes that he has more than a good chance of retaining his seat. An argument can easily be made for and against that. It would make sense for Toto Wolff to maintain the peaceful status quo with Bottas. But they also need to think about the future. And who better for Russell to learn from than Hamilton?

Rain or shine Lewis Hamilton has always been something special around the Silverstone track. He wants to win everywhere but none more so than on home soil. As impressive as Verstappen and Red Bull have been in 2021 a win at the British Gp will be a significant step towards the title. Not only will it mean an extended points gap but also it will unquestionably introduce, if not intensify, any grain of doubt in Hamilton’s mind. And there is every expectation that Red Bull will be the car to beat at Silverstone.

A full capacity crowd anywhere is a rarity these days, almost a novelty. Another novelty will be the re-jigging of the weekend’s format. Friday’s first free practice session remains unchanged but is followed by qualifying at 7pm. This quali session will determine the grid for Saturday’s 100km sprint race. Free practice 2 will take place on Saturday at 2pm while the sprint race is scheduled to start at 5:30 pm. It is important to note than there are no mandatory pitstops in the sprint race and that only the top three will earn points. Also, the finishing order of the sprint race will be taken as the starting grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix. Teams will also not be able to make any changes or adjustments to the cars as they enter parc ferme at the end of the first practice session. The new format, including the sprint race, is considered a trial run. There are some fears that the sprint race will amount to little more than a high-speed train, so says Hamilton, but it’s certainly worth it to see what might come out of it.

July 12, 2021
F1 2021: Austrian Gp Review – Three Wins in a Row for Verstappen

If you are not a regular viewer of Formula 1 you’d be forgiven for assuming that the race around Austria’s Red Bull Ring was a replay of seven days ago at least from a Red Bull perspective.

Again Max Verstappen took the top step of the podium for a third consecutive win in 2021. But for as much déjà vu as Verstappen on the top step of the podium evokes there were some marked differences too. Not only did he win with seeming ease but also the margin, in terms of pure pace, was even bigger to Mercedes this week.

With no answer on pace or strategy the best Mercedes could do was a second place with Valtteri Bottas. For the majority of the race Lewis Hamilton ran second but some unexplained and unconfirmed damage at the rear of the car meant a lack of pace, even in comparison to teammate Bottas. Not only did he lose out on second but Lando Norris also made short work of the reigning champion to take yet another podium finish in third. Again, Norris delivered a stellar weekend, which included a first-ever front row start after missing out on pole position be less than half a tenth of a second.

Ultimately Hamilton finished fourth and seemed fairly downcast post-race. Mercedes clearly have a lot of work to do in order to catch up to Red Bull and Hamilton was reluctant to divulge in which area the car is lacking the most. In two weeks time F1 will run around the Silverstone circuit where Mercedes are expected to perform better. But the same was expected in France too. It remains to be seen what Hamilton and Mercedes can pull out of the bag against a rampant Red Bull and Verstappen.

It was a solid day for Carlos Sainz who brought his Ferrari home in fifth. The same can’t be said for Checo Perez though who banged wheels with both Norris and Leclerc on his was to a sixth place finish. The Mexican driver looked set to snatch second off Norris on lap 2 of the race but ran off track into turn 6. Norris, quite harshly, was given a 5-second penalty for forcing a driver off the circuit and Perez had dropped well down the field. A skirmish with Leclerc later in the race at the very same corner saw Perez given a 5-second penalty, which once again defied logic. As if to add insult to injury another tussle with Leclerc, this time in turn 8, earned Perez yet another 5-second penalty. The stewards certainly didn’t cover themselves in glory as they did their level best to discourage hard racing. One hopes that they’ll take a good hard look at themselves after a fairly poor showing.

Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo was seventh for McLaren with Charles Leclerc in eighth overall ahead Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly in ninth. An entertaining late-race battle between George Russell and Fernando Alonso saw the Spaniard sneak into the final points-paying position in tenth.

Never before at any level of his racing career has Max Verstappen led a world championship. But three wins on the bounce with the most recent seeming no more taxing than a Sunday afternoon cruise makes Verstappen look very much at home. As it stands there are 14 more races and an awful lot of racing that remains on the 2021 calendar. Much can change in the next six months but what is becoming ever more certain is that if it is within Max Verstappen’s control then 2021 may just be the most special year of his racing life.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

July 4, 2021
F1 2021: Styrian Gp Review: Red Bull juggernaut Wins Again

As another race is ticked off the 2021 calendar there is one question that is becoming all but impossible to ignore – has Mercedes finally met their match?

There’s only been eight races in what is slated to be a 23-race calendar but there is no denying that Max Verstappen and Red Bull are in serious form. After securing a first pole position on home soil Verstappen all but cruised to a fourth consecutive win for Red Bull in Austria. Lewis Hamilton was second for Mercedes but had no answer to Verstappen’s pace. Aside from a late race pit stop to snatch an extra point for fastest lap Hamilton was trailing by roughly 15 seconds. It was a big statement too. So far the margin, in terms of pace, has been razor thin between Red Bull and Mercedes and but for a few mistakes Hamilton could well have won in Baku and France. But here in Austria the superior pace run by Verstappen was well beyond anything Mercedes could muster.

Valtteri Bottas was handed a rather harsh 3-place grid penalty after spinning in the pitlane during practice. Nevertheless, the Finn was able to hold off a late charge from Sergio Perez to finish third. A slow pit stop dropped Perez behind Bottas but the Mexican driver, who finished fourth, continued to show impressive pace in the Red Bull, which will undoubtedly please those in charge. Aside from the championship protagonist the driver who has surely been the most impressive in 2021 is Lando Norris. The McLaren driver racked up another fifth place finish after delivering a stunning performance on Saturday too. Though he may be slightly out of the spotlight in comparison to Verstappen and Hamilton Lando Norris is turning into something quite special.

Carlos Sainz drove a brilliant race for Ferrari into sixth while teammate Charles Leclerc recovered from a first lap clash to finish seventh and be voted driver-of-the-day. Lance Stroll was eighth for Aston Martin ahead of Alpine’s Fernando Alonso in ninth. Japanese rookie Yuki Tsunoda was tenth while his Alpha Tauri teammate, Pierre Gasly, retired on lap one with suspension damage. Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen drove brilliantly to eleventh place after starting eighteenth. George Russell ran as high as eighth place before being painfully forced into retirement with a hydraulic leak. Despite being in the deeply uncompetitive Haas Mick Schumacher once again easily outdrove his teammate to finish sixteenth.

Mercedes has been challenged before but not this relentlessly. Ferrari mounted a serious attack in the first half of 2018 but then faded after the summer break. Before Mercedes even had to think about having to come up with an answer or a plan. But in 2021 it doesn’t seem like Red Bull are likely to fade. And what is most surprising is that Mercedes and Hamilton seem completely stumped. There’s no doubt that they were shell-shocked by Red Bull’s pace in France. But what is more telling about their current inability to respond is their demeanour. The way that Hamilton has spoken post-race tells a story by itself. Instead of motivating talk of fighting until the bitter end or pushing for every last tenth of a second Hamilton seems almost resigned. By saying that Red Bull is simply faster and there’s nothing he [Hamilton] can do about it is what you’d expect from a 7-time champion.

Mercedes have clearly been pushed well out of their comfort zone and they don’t seem able to provide anything to counter the Red Bull onslaught. It isn’t complacency brought on by their complete domination of the hybrid era. But perhaps they are slightly guilty of resting of their laurels and relying on what has happened before to carry them through 2021. But it doesn’t seem, at this stage, like that will be enough. They may be relying on Hamilton’s experience of winning 7 titles but Verstappen’s run is gaining a near unstoppable momentum.

Mercedes have another chance this weekend to do better around the Red Bull Ring and the season is far from over. In 2016 Nico Rosberg proved that Hamilton’s greatest weakness is his mentality. If that begins to crumble he becomes ever more susceptible. And judging by his comments it appears that he is not in a good mental space. The question is now what is Hamilton, who many have dubbed the greatest of all time, really made of when the pressure is on?

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

June 29, 2021
F1 2021: French Gp Review – Mighty Max Fells Mercedes

You’ve got to know that you are in the midst of a cracking Formula 1 season when even the usual drab French Grand Prix turns into a cracker of a race.

Pole position, the perfect race strategy, and a mighty Max Verstappen combined brilliantly to secure a sumptuous win for Red Bull in France. Though he started from pole a snap of oversteer into turn two cost him the lead of the race. Hamilton, now in the lead of the race, maintained a three-second gap to Verstappen as the pit stop phase drew closer. But a gross mistake by Merc and a stonking out-lap by Verstappen earned him back the coveted position of P1.

Some might say that there are cracks beginning to show in the Mercedes armoury and they might be onto something. The Silver Arrows were completely caught out by the power of the undercut and the reality is they didn’t need to be. All the strategists had to do was pay attention to Daniel Ricciardo undercutting both Pierre Gasly and Carlos Sainz by more than three seconds. But such is the pressure from Red Bull that it is requiring every ounce of their attention. Mercedes dropped the ball on the finer points of Sunday’s race but they will learn from this and will most definitely not lie down.

Lewis Hamilton deserves much credit. The team’s strategy placed him in a difficult position on severely worn tyres. Yet still he managed to deliver some very impressive lap times. It underlines very much that Hamilton is driving at a high level and that it requires something quite special to beat him.

And something special is what Max Verstappen’s 2021 season is turning into. The Dutchman is getting pretty used to the top step of the podium these days but this win was easily his best, so far. On paper having fresher tyres seemingly equals an easy run. But with a formidable opponent in Hamilton, the difficultly of the windy conditions, and the weight of expectation it isn’t as easy as most might think. Nevertheless, Verstappen is on an incredible run of form and he is most definitely making hay while the sun shines.

Checo Perez’s recent form has likely assured his seat for 2022. The Mexican driver eked out his tyres with a longer first stint and transformed his one-stop strategy in a third place finish. Valtteri Bottas started off the weekend seemingly on the up. But when it mattered most the Finn simply wasn’t in the mix. His frustration boiled over on team radio too as he berated the team for not putting him on a two-stop strategy. The fuming Finn eventually finished fourth.

Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo delivered some important points for McLaren in fight and sixth. The points are crucial for McLaren’s fight against Ferrari for third in the constructor’s championship. As it were neither Ferrari driver was able to score any points. Pierre Gasly was seventh while his Alpha Tauri teammate Yuki Tsunoda finished 13th. Fernando Alonso, in eighth, was able to hold off Seb Vettel who brought his Aston Martin home in ninth ahead of teammate Lance Stroll scored the final point of offer in tenth.

From an entertainment point of view the French Grand Prix could not have delivered a more intense and thrilling race. It’s a big win for Red Bull too. To beat Mercedes on a circuit where they had previously destroyed the field is a big statement. It bodes very well for the rest of the season. But Mercedes will regroup and they will find a way to strike back. And the most beautiful thing about F1 2021 is not only the upcoming Styrian Grand Prix this weekend but that this enthralling battle is set fair for the rest of the season.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

June 21, 2021
F1 2021: French Gp Preview – Can Title Battle Animate Paul Ricard?

As a travel destination the country of France is arguably one of the most coveted in the world. But when it comes to Formula 1 racing the Paul Ricard doesn’t exactly fill fans with an over boding sense of excitement.

The circuit, located between the cities of Toulon and Marseilles, made its return to the F1 calendar in 2018. Lewis Hamilton won the last race around the circuit in commanding fashion, which racked up Mercedes’s eighth successive victory of the 2019 season. In 2021 Merc and Hamilton arrive at the Le Castellet venue in quite a different position.

Granted the French grand prix has been pushed to earlier in the season but still few were likely to imagine Mercedes arriving on the French Riviera not leading on either of the driver’s and constructor championship standings. After a chaotic Azerbaijan grand prix in which neither Hamilton nor Max Verstappen scored any points the Red Bull driver holds a slender lead of four points over his rival. Checo Perez’s win in Baku also earned Red Bull a 26-point lead in the constructor’s standings.

Traditionally, Mercedes have been untouchable around the Paul Ricard circuit. So dominant were Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas in 2019 that the nearest qualifier to them, Charles Leclerc, was nearly seventh tenths off. Similarly, in the race Hamilton was roughly twenty seconds up the road from Bottas in second who had put a good twenty seconds into Leclerc as well. But if we know anything from the 2021 season it is that Mercedes have not performed nearly as clinically as they have in past years. Here and there some cracks have begun to show, some instance revealed of a team not at 100%. It isn’t a given then that the team will arrive in France at the favourites and this is exactly what Red Bull needs to take advantage of.

Max Verstappen is driving probably better than he ever has and this removes any doubt that if the car is up to the task the Dutchman will be at the sharp-end. But it’s the ominous consistently of Verstappen that is most impressive in 2021. Even if Mercedes were to be quicker on race day you can bet your house that Verstappen will be a close second, barring unreliability or freak tyre blowouts.

If Hamilton and Mercedes find themselves in uncomfortable territory it is nothing compared to what Valtteri Bottas is experiencing. The Finn has scored only 47 points and had a poor showing in Azerbaijan, which has done nothing but re-ignite the Russell-to-Merc rumours. So boisterous have the rumours become that there are a good few who believe that George Russell may well be announced as a 2022 Mercedes driver during the Silverstone grand prix weekend next month.

As the battle rages for the top honours there is a French driver who has well and truly covered himself in glory this season. Pierre Gasly’s breakthrough podium in Brazil was a true watershed moment. His subsequent win in Monza and another podium in the last race has only solidified his talent. It seems unlikely that a move back to the senior Red Bull team is in Gasly’s future but there should be quite a few teams keen to get his signature in the next few years.

It is an important race for Alpine too as they will race at their home grand prix under their new guise for the first time. Fernando Alonso impressed in Baku but has so far been outdone by French teammate Esteban Ocon. Alpine, headed by Davide Brivio, hasn’t maintained the progress gained towards the end of 2021. But an invigorated Alonso has always been to do miraculous things with cars that have no business being in the points. The question is whether his run in Baku was a once off or if the Spaniard is getting on top his car and his teammate.

Race previews are usually expected to indicate who is favourite for the win. But the best thing about Formula 1 in 2021 is that this has become all but impossible to predict. All indication, and the track layout, says that Mercedes should have the edge but it just hasn’t been that simple this season. What is a certainty however is that the fight for supremacy and victory is red-hot and might even be enough to inject some life into a circuit that has delivered rather dull races in its last two appearances.

June 15, 2021
F1 2021: Azerbaijan Gp Review – Bedlam in Baku

It’s only been on the F1 calendar since 2016 but the Azerbaijan Grand Prix has quickly become known for delivering the most chaotic and breathtaking races, bar none.

The 2021 race around the streets of Baku was already set fair when Charles Leclerc emerged out of the chaos of Saturday qualifying to secure an unexpected pole position. Lewis Hamilton too, on the back foot for most of the weekend, engineered his way to a second-place starting position. Meanwhile Verstappen, once again denied a shot at a final Q3 lap because of a red flag, was third quickest. Alongside Verstappen on the second row was a lighting quick Pierre Gasly who determinedly put his Alpha Tauri fourth fastest.

In the opening laps of the race Leclerc led briefly before failing victim to first Hamilton then Verstappen and Perez. By the first round of stops Verstappen had built a healthy lead while Perez was holding off Hamilton who sat within DRS range for nearly all of the of the race. Hamilton blinked first and swopped his soft compound for the white-walled hard tyre. He lost a smidgen of time in the pit box but Verstappen and Perez’s pace was such that he would fall behind the Red Bull pair anyway.

The race seemed to settle for a period after the stops were completed. Try as he might Hamilton simply didn’t have enough to overtake Perez and the Mexican driver would definitely not be pressured into a mistake either. Elsewhere, Lance Stroll and Aston Martin has played a blinder on strategy with the Canadian running a solid 7th with a long opening stint on the hard tyre. But a dramatic failure on the left-rear tyre pitched the Aston Martin into the barriers on the start/finish strait at more than 300 kph. While Stroll was unharmed he was clearly shaken by the violent and sudden failure.

The race resumed and so did Hamilton’s pressure on Perez but the Mexican had it well covered. With Verstappen in the lead Red Bull looked on for a one-two finish. But five laps from the end disaster struck for Verstappen as he too suffered a rear tyre failure on the start/finish strait. Because of the debris littered over the track the race was red-flagged. Verstappen’s retirement would seemingly have massive ramifications for the championship, as Hamilton looked poised to retake the lead.

In the pitlane just before the restart Hamilton reminded his team that, “it’s a marathon, not a sprint. So got to be measured on how aggressive we go”. Hamilton aced the restart and was for all intents and purposes heading into the lead of the race. But he locked his front-brake and went straight on at turn 1. The Mercedes driver rejoined last. A post-race radio communication revealed that Hamilton had left on the “magic”. It turns out that the “magic” refers to a button, which Merc uses to heat the brakes during the safety-car/warm-up lap period. It was this button that Hamilton forgot to disengage and thus his brakes were overheated. It was a rare mistake from Hamilton as in Imola. Only this time it cost him any chance of capitalizing on Verstappen’s misfortune.

To describe Valtteri Bottas’s race as woeful would be doing him a kindness. The Finn started tenth and made zero progress. At no stage did it get any better as he fell victim to a number of drivers including being overtaken into the tightest section of the track by Alfa’s Kimi Raikkonen. Eventually, Bottas finished an embarrassing 12^th ahead of only the Haas drivers.

As Checo Perez held on for an extremely popular first win with Red Bull it was revealed after the race that he too nearly didn’t reach the chequered flag thanks to an increasingly severe hydraulic issue. For the second race in a row Seb Vettel was crowned driver-of-the-day and this time he was able to celebrate the accolade on the podium with a sublime second place finish. Pierre Gasly and Charles Leclerc had an almighty battle for the final step of the podium from which the Alpha Tauri driver emerged victorious. Leclerc finished a fine fourth ahead of Lando Norris in fifth.

In sixth place was Fernando Alonso in the Alpine while Yuki Tsunoda delivered a much-improved performance in seventh. Carlos Sainz was eighth for Ferrari ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in ninth and Kimi Raikkonen in tenth.

The lack of points scored for either of the two championship protagonists is certainly big news in F1. But the drama of the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix and the breathtaking manner in which it constructed the final podium of Checo Perez, Seb Vettel, and Pierre Gasly can hardly leave anyone dissatisfied.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

June 7, 2021
F1 2021: Azerbaijan Gp Preview – Four Teams in the Mix

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix first made its debut on the F1 calendar in 2016. And all of the races since it’s debut have been packed full of drama.

Nico Rosberg who not only secured pole position and the fastest lap but also led every one of the 51 race laps dominated the first race, dubbed the European grand prix. It was an uncharacteristically messy race for Hamilton who crashed in qualifying before coming home in fifth while Sergio Perez scored a brilliant third-place finish for then Force India. A year later the drama intensified ten-fold and is mostly known for the now infamous incident of Seb Vettel bumping into the side of Hamilton under the safety-car. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo who, at one stage, was 17th in the running won this race with all of its crashes and controversies, and a red flag. It also marked Lance Stroll’s first podium finish in third. The 2018 race will forever be known for the collision between Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo on the start/finish strait. The drama wasn’t over though as race-leader Bottas suffered a late-race puncture ultimately retirement. It handed the win to Hamilton who finished head of Raikkonen and the ever-present Perez. By all previous comparisons the 2019 race was a fairly sedate one in which Bottas earned redemption with a win from Pole.

Because of the global pandemic Baku didn’t feature on the 2020 calendar. Its return in 2021 promises to be nothing short of dramatic if the previous races around the Azerbaijan streets are anything to go by. And it might not by a straight out fight only between Red Bull and Mercedes either. McLaren should fancy their chances around Baku. The car is a rocket ship and did very well, on merit, in Monaco. Perhaps it’s not quite quick enough to take the top spot but any hijinks or drama or mistakes and McLaren will undoubtedly be in position to reap the rewards.

It isn’t all about the sharp end of the grid as the plotlines of the season are beginning to take shape. A driver under pressure and who needs to impress his team boss is Yuki Tsunoda. Aside from a splashy performance in Bahrain the rookie driver hasn’t done anything worth noticing on-track. He has however revealed quite a volatile demeanour over team radio. It’s been reported that Tsunoda has been moved from UK to Italy in order to be more closely “supervised”. Which is really just a polite way of saying the young Japanese driver needs to reevaluate his approach and adjust his attitude quickly. After all Red Bull and Helmut Makro aren’t known for their patience. They’ve racked up more than a few merciless axing’s in their time from Jean Eric Vergne to Sebastian Buemi to Dannil Kvyat, Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon to name a few.

Mercedes had a nightmare Monaco Grand Prix weekend and will want to rectify it in the most emphatic way possible. Bottas has proven to be quite handy around Baku. But all indications are that it simply won’t be a straightforward weekend. Not only could McLaren be there or there about but Ferrari too has traditionally performed well on the Azerbaijan streets. The Scuderia will be buoyed by the car’s performance on the Monte Carlo streets. And with Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc clearly in brilliant form Ferrari could find themselves mixing it at the sharp end.

June 2, 2021
F1 2021: Monte Carlo Gp Review – Max Wins Monaco

On the very first of 78 laps of the Monaco Grand Prix Mick Schumacher accounted for the only overtake of the race by audaciously passing his Haas teammate into the Lowe’s hairpin for eighteenth place. Otherwise the race around the Monte Carlo streets was fairly unspectacular in literal terms.

But in terms of the story that is the 2021 championship Monaco delivered on the drama. It kicked off on Saturday afternoon as Charles Leclerc secured pole in a surprisingly quick Ferrari. But the Monegasque’s joy was tainted as he clouted the barriers on the exit of the swimming pool in the dying seconds of quali. Potential damage to the gearbox could mean a five place drop on the grid should it need to be replaced. However, after inspection Ferrari was happy to continue as is. Unfortunately, a sighting lap before the start of Sunday’s race revealed an issue with a rear drive shaft which was enough to end Leclerc’s race before it even got started.

Though Leclerc’s spot on the grid remained vacant Max Verstappen was effectively in P1 with Mercedes’s Valtteri Bottas in P2. As expected, the Red Bull easily held off Bottas at the start and from there controlled the pace without any real or sustained pressure from behind. Carlos Sainz, running third, did well to salvage Ferrari’s day. In fact, the Spaniard began to close the gap to Bottas around the time the pitstops rolled around. But he wouldn’t have to fight much longer with Bottas as the Finn was forced into retirement at his first stop. An effective cross-threaded wheelnut meant that Bottas tyre couldn’t be changed which guaranteed his retirement.

Elsewhere, Hamilton’s lacklustre qualifying performance left him down in seventh. Promoted to sixth due to Leclerc’s non-start the Brit made zero progress. In fact, after the round of pitstops his lack of pace meant that he fell behind Perez, Vettel, and Gasly. A clearly irate Hamilton demanded answers from his team. The answer he sought was fairly simple – he was simply too slow to compete with the Alpha Tauri and Aston Martin much less the Red Bull.

Bottas’s retirement promoted Sainz to second with McLaren’s Lando Norris in third. A stellar stint before his first stop meant that Perez leapfrogged several cars to run a close fourth. Checo briefly challenged Norris but McLaren’s superstar kept his head well despite struggling on the hard compound tyre.

Equally as impressive, and voted driver of the day by the fans, Seb Vettel drove an extremely impressive race to deliver fifth place to a struggling Aston Martin team. Aston Martin’s chief strategist Bernadette Collins brilliantly called Vettel’s overcut strategy which means staying out longer than your immediate rivals. The consistent Pierre Gasly was sixth ahead of Hamilton in seventh. Lance Stroll converted an alternative strategy of running the opening stint on the hard tyre to a fine eighth place finish while Esteban Ocon was ninth. Antonio Giovinazzi capped a fine weekend for him by scoring the final point on offer in tenth for Alfa Romeo.

It was a day to forget for Daniel Ricciardo who not only qualified fourteenth but also had to endure the indignity of being lapped by his McLaren teammate. Fernando Alonso’s struggles against Alpine teammate Ocon continued as he finished thirteenth overall.

At the front focus was still required from Verstappen to keep it clean and out of the barriers. But apart from this the Dutchman was all but cruising. A Monaco race win is arguably on the bucket list of all F1 drivers and now Verstappen has ticked that box. What’s more, for the first time in his F1 career he finds himself in the lead of the driver’s championship.

It is uncharted territory for Verstappen. But it is also uncharted territory for Merc who hasn’t faced a sustained challenge since Ferrari bossed the first-half of the 2018 season. Though the racing may not have been top-notch in Monaco it certainly has set up the 2021 championship in a very sumptuous way.

It took Mercedes and Hamilton five races to build a gap of fourteen points over Red Bull and Verstappen, which was completely reversed in the space of one afternoon. It indicates just how fickle a points-lead can be and it indicates too that every single point is important in 2021.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

May 25, 2021
F1 2021: Monaco Gp Preview – Mercedes Momentum

One of the most difficult things to overcome, in most sports, is momentum. It affects either competitors or teams. Not only does it infuse an incredible amount of confidence and self-belief but it can also, conversely, create a seed of doubt in the opposition. And if the tiniest bit of doubt begins to creep into the psyche it can have a snowball effect if it isn’t managed properly.

In the context of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship it is evident that the momentum currently rests with Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes. With brilliant strategy and superb driving Sir Hamilton has won three of the first four races and holds a solid fourteen point lead over Max Verstappen. Mercilessly, Mercedes’s push both 2021 titles will continue and more than likely increase in intensity. The monumental job of wresting away the precious momentum is fully on the shoulders of Red Bull.

The good news is that Red Bull are a team that has championship winning mentality and they have easily one of the best drivers on the grid in the shape of Verstappen. However, the longer it takes for Red Bull to strike back the more difficult usurping Mercedes will become. Without exception every race and every point in a championship campaign is vital. The next race only becomes more important, or vital, if you’re behind the eight ball. Thus the upcoming race, which happens to be the Monaco grand prix, is rather important for Verstappen in the grand scheme of the championship.

As has been known for several years, if not several decades, the city streets of Monte Carlo is not conducive to overtaking. Though there may be the odd chance of an overtake success in this race relies almost entirely on qualifying. There exists the slightest possibility that strategy could enter the equation but only on rare occasions.

The Mercedes and the Red Bull have been closely matched in 2021. There isn’t must to suggest that it will be any different in Monaco. If anything, Red Bull’s most apparent advantage this season has been in qualifying. It’s is an advantage, if still prevalent, that will stand them in good stead in Monaco. But Red Bull also needs Checo Perez to step up to the occasion. The Mexican’s race pace can hardly be questioned but too often his lackluster quali form has left him out of the equation in Red Bull’s fight with Mercedes. An improved quali performance wouldn’t only imbue Perez with confidence but having to fight against two Red Bull’s will also force Mercedes and Hamilton into a position that haven’t been in before.

There will be those that say that the Monaco grand prix is a must win race for Verstappen and his championship aspirations. The reality is that if you are the one trailing then every race is a must win. What’s more, for Verstappen every race is a must win regardless of his position in the standings and that relentless quality and unyielding hunger for victory is sure to stand him in good stead against what is the biggest test of his racing career.

May 18, 2021