Tag: pierre gasly

F1 2022: Red Bull? Ferrari? Mercedes?

The wait for the start of F1 2022 is over. This weekend the season-opening race in Bahrain brings with it the start to a whole new era in the storied saga of Formula 1.

The new regulations have produced not only a completely different visual aspect to F1 but has showcased some of the brilliant engineering and design prowess up and down the paddock. From McLaren’s wavy floor to Ferrari’s scooped side pods to Mercedes seemingly complete lack of side pods the innovation has been cranked to the max.

The three days of public testing around the Sakhir International circuit has revealed at least some of what the picture could look like at the start of the season. The mid-field battle promises to be exceptionally tight with the likes of McLaren, Aston Martin, Alpine, and Alpha Tauri expected to occupy this space.

Williams looks in fairly good shape, relatively speaking, with Haas and Alfa Romeo expected to bring up the rear. For Haas it certainly hasn’t been a straightforward pre-season. First, their equipment and freight were delayed from arriving to Bahrain in time due to a broken-down plane. Then their title sponsor and one driver were removed from the team, which left them with the task of quickly finding a replacement. Although Pietro Fittipaldi, as reserve driver, seemed to be the most obvious choice Haas opted for experience instead and drafted Kevin Magnussen back into the team. The Danish driver brings with him a decent pedigree of being able to get the most out of a car and will be a good barometer for teammate Mick Schumacher.

What then of the top three. There are some who agree that Mercedes starts the season not as outright favourites. In fact, some have penned them down as in third place behind Red Bull and Ferrari. Lewis Hamilton himself has declared Mercedes as not in a position to win races. But we’ve read this chapter before, haven’t we? Mercedes downplays their chances and sandbag on track only to show up at race one and blitz the field. But there may be some truth to Sir Hamilton’s words. Firstly, the porpoising which Red Bull and Ferrari are appearing to manage is still a major problem at Merc. So much of an issue is the porpoising that Merc have taken to sawing off some underfloor strakes in a bid to change the air flow distribution not only on the forward section of the car but also into the underfloor and the rear diffuser. The front-wing angle has also been significantly altered to combat the understeer that has been plaguing the W13 throughout testing.

But Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz are not buying the line that Mercedes are struggling. Both point out that the Silver Arrows have made a habit of underplaying their position before the season starts. And despite an apparent consensus amongst the pundits in the paddock that Hamilton and co might not be the quickest the fact remains that only time will tell, literally.

Ferrari starts the season in the best shape they’ve been in for a few years. Without any reliability issues the car has run smoothly, and importantly, it’s been quick in both Charles Leclerc and Sainz’s hands. Yet team principal Mattia Binotto is remaining cautious by insisting that the Italian team remain “outsiders” behind Red Bull and McLaren.

On the final day of testing Red Bull bolted a serious upgrade package to its car and it went quite a bit faster, 7 tenths faster than anything Ferrari could manage. But headline times in testing are just that. It’s only in Q3 on Saturday where everyone’s hand will finally be shown. And as it stands right now it looks as if Red Bull and Max Verstappen are holding all the cards.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

March 14, 2022
F1 2021: Turkish Gp Review: Bottas Takes Straightforward Win

As with most F1 races in 2021 the Turkish Grand Prix was as highly anticipated as most of the others than have gone before it this season.

Halfway through the weekend the gauntlet was thrown down to Lewis Hamilton. Despite having the clearly quicker car over the weekend the Mercedes driver would drop down ten places from wherever he finished qualifying due to taking on board a new internal combustion engine. As it were, Hamilton was fastest overall on Saturday afternoon which saw him drop to eleventh on the starting grid.

Valtteri Bottas inherited the pole while Max Verstappen started alongside him in second. The Red Bull, sporting a striking white and red livery as a Honda homage, never had the pace of the Mercedes but there was still the potential for an advantage to be gained.

Condition proved testy with a damp track necessitating the start on intermediate tyres. Bottas led cleanly away from the start and never faced any sustained or serious pressure from Verstappen. The opening lap saw only one incident between Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso which saw the Spanish driver tipped into a spin at the exit of turn one. Although Gasly was adjudged at fault, and given a 5-second time penalty, the Frenchman was hard done by as he found himself sandwiched between Alonso on the right and Sergio Perez on the left.

Hamilton made steady, if unspectacular, progress at the start until he spent several laps stuck behind the Alpha Tauri of Yuki Tsunoda. But the Brit pulled off a sumptuous move around the outside of turn 4 to run sixth by the end of lap 10. Although the rain had ceased before the race start the track remained wet. As cold conditions lingered so too it delayed the drying of the track. Because no dry line was forthcoming the decision of when to pit was delayed more and more. However, albeit slow, the drying track was transforming the inters to slick tyres. It didn’t faze many drivers though as they continued to pound around the Istanbul Park circuit.

By the halfway stage of the 58-lap race, it was clear that Verstappen did not have the pace to beat Bottas. At this point Hamilton was bearing down on Sergio Perez for P4. Hamilton, clearly with superior pace, drew alongside Perez going into the turn 12 braking zone and the pair ran side-by-side through the final sequence of corners. But the Mexican held his own against Hamilton and denied him the position in a manner that will undoubtedly have pleased his Red Bull bosses.

By lap 38 both Bottas and Verstappen had stopped for a new set of inters while Charles Leclerc took over the lead of the race. The Monagasque sniffed a chance of an opportunistic win but would have to do so without making a pitstop. Ferrari rolled the dice on this strategy but quickly called Leclerc into the pits when he passed for P1, by Bottas. Meanwhile, Hamilton had initially asserted to his team that he would stay out to which the Mercedes pitwall agreed. However, despite running in third Hamilton began to lose time to Perez and Leclerc. He was called in on lap 51 and emerged in fifth place and under pressure from Gasly. Hamilton was fuming over team radio at the decision to call him. Ultimately, Mercedes decision was the correct one albeit too late. Hamilton likely would’ve been overtaken by Perez and Leclerc, on fresher rubber, and be shuffled down the fifth. If Mercedes had made the call earlier to box Hamilton, he may have had more time to catch up to and pass Perez and Leclerc. Nevertheless, the strategy error from Mercedes may seem only like a minor error but in a championship battle as close as in 2021 every point counts.

With Hamilton mostly of the equation for a race win Bottas took what could likely be his final opportunity to win, in impressive style. Lest we forget Bottas spun five-times in the 2020 Turkish grand prix. It makes his win, nearly error-free, all the more impressive then. Verstappen will be happy with a solid day’s work in second while Perez drove a brilliant race for Red Bull which netted him third place.

Charles Leclerc was fourth ahead of Hamilton in fifth while Gasly, recovering from his penalty, was sixth overall. Lando Norris ran a fairly anonymous race to seventh as Carlos Sainz recovered from the back of the grid to eighth place. Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll was ninth ahead of Esteban Ocon, who was the only driver to run all 58 laps on one set of tyres, in tenth.

October 10, 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: 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: Bahrain Gp Review – Hamilton vs Verstappen

In recent history there could hardly have been a more exhilarating start to a Formula 1 season that what was produced in Bahrain in 2021.

Saturday qualifying already put not only the paddock but fans around the world on notice that the season opening race was bound to be something special. Max Verstappen delivered a stunning lap to take pole position from Lewis Hamilton by nearly four tenths ons second. Not only did it set the stage for an epic race battle but it also confirmed that for the first time in years Red Bull were hitting the ground running.

But the more than one hundred days of waiting didn’t seem to be enough for the racing gods as the first start of the race was aborted. Unfortunately for new Red Bull driver Sergio Perez it was because his car had decided to switch itself off on the formation lap. The Mexican driver was able to restart his engine but was consigned to a pit lane start.

After another formation lap the race got underway with Verstappen leading cleanly from Hamilton. It was Valtteri Bottas who was under most pressure as he fought off the fast starting Charles Leclerc. But the Ferrari was too canny for the Finn and snatched third place on the road. Elsewhere Lando Norris pulled off a stunning move in the first sector over new McLaren teammate Daniel Ricciardo. But the racing wouldn’t even last a full lap before the safety car was deployed to enable the recovery of the Haas driver’s car who is not Mick Schumacher. Curiously, he had spun off by himself and crash into the turn 3 barrier.

The racing resumed on lap four with Verstappen able to pull a couple of seconds clear of Hamilton. Behind Leclerc and Bottas, at this stage third and fourth on the road, Pierre Gasly was running ahead of Norris and the returning Fernando Alonso. Norris, clearly in a racy mood, quickly passed Gasly. The Alpha Tauri driver was immediately under pressure too from Ricciardo and subsequently lost his front wing and ruined any chance of scoring a decent haul of points.

While Hamilton pitted on lap 13 for hard tyres Red Bull chose to extend their first stint for a few more laps. But the undercut, read fresh tyres, proved decisive as Hamilton leapfrogged Verstappen into the lead of the race as the first round of pit stops shook out. The Dutchman was able to close the nearly seven second gap to Hamilton but didnt overtake the Mercedes driver before Hamilton opted, just 16 laps later, to visit the pitlane for a second time. It appeared that the Mercedes was working its tyre far more than the Red Bull with the advantage seemingly swinging towards Verstappen. By this stage Valtteri Bottas, already off the front running pace, had suffered a slow pitstop which put him well and truly out of contention.

Fernando Alonso’s return to F1 ended before the chequered flag as the Alpine driver was forced into retirement by a suspected brake issue. Nevertheless, the show carried on with a not-so-uncommon mistake from Seb Vettel which saw the Aston Martin curiously bump into the back of Esteban Ocon’s Alpine on lap 44. Vettel not only picked up some slight front wing damage and a red face but also a ten-second time penalty for causing a collision.

By now Verstappen once again found himself in second place but with fresher tyres than Hamilton. It seemed for all money that the Red Bull would catch and pass the Mercedes and take victory. Verstappen closed the gap and by lap 53 had his best shot of taking back the lead. But the Dutchman, while overtaking Hamilton around the outside of turn 4, had run off the track. Ever the sportsman Verstappen returned the place to Hamilton but also in the process relinquished his chance of getting back in front. There has been much controversy over the enforcement of track limit at turn 4 by the FIA stewards during the race. A clip on social media shows Hamilton exceeding track limits for 29 of the 56 laps without sanction. Naturally, the lack of enforcement of the track limits rule in this case has led to much heated debate online.

Nevertheless, Hamilton drove a stellar race to somehow eke out 26 laps on a set of tyres. There are those that will look at the result and see Hamilton as the victor and dismiss it as just another win for the Brit. But this one he really had to work for, he really had to earn. And the fact that Red Bull clearly had the quicker car makes Hamilton’s drive a genuinely impressive one. He had no business winning that race but he did anyway. That was a champion’s drive.

While Verstappen finishing in second just seven tenths of a second behind Hamilton it was Bottas who trundled home in a disconsolate third. Lando Norris drove an impressive race to finish fourth ahead of Perez who went from the pitlane to fifth on his Red Bull debut. Charles Leclerc was sixth for Ferrari while Daniel Ricciardo brought his McLaren home in seventh. Carlos Sainz was eighth on his Ferrari debut ahead of rookie driver Yuki Tsunoda in ninth for Alpha Tauri. Lance Stroll scored the final point on offer in tenth in what was a decidedly underwhelming weekend for Aston Martin.

The 2021 Bahrain grand prix and the battle between Hamilton and Verstappen could not have delivered a better opening to the season. There is great hope that this is merely the opening chapter in what could be an epic fight glory in 2021. One down, twenty-two to go.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

March 29, 2021
F1 2021: Bahrain Gp Preview – Red Bull Ready?

The 2020 Formula 1 season was groundbreaking and will be remembered for many reasons. Not least of all being that it was run and completed in the midst of a global pandemic. While the world is still fighting the battle against covid-19 Formula 1 is readying itself for a record-breaking 23 race season in 2021.

Ten teams, twenty driver, and hundreds of team personnel will kick off F1 2021 F1 with the least amount of testing ever run before a new season. A total of three days was all the teams were prescribed to shake off the dust and begin the process of understanding what the respective factories have produced for the new year.

The new racing season will start at Bahrain’s Sakhir International circuit this weekend. It’s a circuit well known to all with an interest in Formula 1 and one that, more often than not, produces an adrenaline-charged and engaging race under the flood lights. It isn’t the first time that Bahrain has hosted the season opener either. Back in 2006 the first race of the season was moved to the Middle Eastern track as Australia played host to the Commonwealth Games that year.

Though the circuit might be familiar there are several enticing questions that accompany the start of the 2021 season. Mercedes has been the dominant force of the hybrid era, which was underlined by their utter command of 2020. Nevertheless, their ‘struggles’ in pre-season testing has been well documented. Lewis Hamilton himself appears convinced that Red Bull has the quicker car heading into the season and he isn’t often a man that utters untruths. Nevertheless, it remains a near unfathomable concept that Mercedes does not have the pace to occupy the front row of the grid nor the top step of the podium. But if it is the case then F1 fans are in for a monumental championship season.

Nothing so far has suggested that the Red Bull is anything but a very quick car. In the hands of Max Verstappen, and perhaps even Checo Perez, it won’t be too bad a bet to stick some money on them for a win this weekend. If it is assured that Mercedes and Red Bull will occupy the top of the timing sheets then it is equally unsure as to which team comes next.

There is quite a bit of excitement around McLaren but there is also an expectation that Ferrari has taken a step forward, especially on the power unit front. How will Fernando Alonso do in his first race back in the sport? And how will the rookies Mick Schumacher and the ever-exciting Yuki Tsunoda fare? Alpha Tauri turned an eye-catching pace in pre-season testing. But was it all just for show?

The permutations and questions are seemingly endless of the eve of the new Formula 1 season. But that is what is building the 2021 season as possibly one of the most exciting in many a year. Simply put, it isn’t nearly as predictable, very little is a certainty, and you cannot afford to miss a single second.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

March 22, 2021
F1 2020: Portugal Gp Preview – Primed for Portimao

The Circuit Algarve, known casually as Portimao, is the newest venue to makes its 2020 debut as Formula 1 heads to Portugal for the first time since the 1996 grand prix around the famous Estoril circuit.

Portimao is well known to World SBK (Superbike) fans which has been on the championship calendar since 2008. Designed by Ricardo Pina the track has hosted several motorsport series including A1 Gp, the Le Mans Series, FIA GT and World Touring Car Championship, and an F1 winter test back in 2009.

At 4.7 kilometers in length the undulating nature of the Portuguese circuit is comparable to Belgium’s Spa-Franchorchamps and Austin’s Circuit of the Americas. The circuit width should present the opportunity for some overtaking but it is unlikely to be race that overwhelmed by the number of positions changes. The lap will be a quick one due to the flowing nature of the layout and the slipstreaming effect should play a fairly big role too. The downhill braking in some sections and blind entry in others should be a test for drivers.

There is little that suggests anything other than a Mercedes win this weekend. So dominant has the team been in 2020 that development has ceased on the W11 in favour of focusing all their attention of 2021. A mammoth 180 lead over Red Bull in the constructor’s standings has made Mercedes decision to shift its focus to next year’s car all the more obvious and comfortable. There is some reliability concern however given Valtteri Bottas’s retirement at the Nurburgring being related to the power unit. Nevertheless, with a 69-point lead over Bottas it is rather when and not if Lewis Hamilton will wrap up title number seven.

The race towards the driver’s title may be over bar the shouting but the midfield battle is as tight as it has been at any point in 2020. A scant eleven points is all that covers five drivers from Sergio Perez (68) in fifth through to Lance Stroll (57) in ninth. Add into the mix Pierre Gasly and Carlos Sainz, in tenth and eleventh, only a handful of points adrift and it’s clear that the midfield is by far the most intriguing on-track battle. The mid-field has already produced numerous scintillating dices and given how close it is, on pace, between the likes of Racing Point, McLaren, and Alpha Tauri it promises to be the most exhilarating watching too.

October 21, 2020
F1 2020: Russian Gp Review – Hamilton own goal lets Bottas In

Since its introduction to the F1 calendar in 2014 the Russian grand prix has never really set the racing world alight. It wasn’t really any different in 2020 either as the 53 lap race petered out to a bit of a damp squib.

There was some commotion before lights out as stewards investigated pole sitter Lewis Hamilton for failing to follow the race director’s instructions, specifically article 19.2 of the event notes. As it were the Mercedes driver twice conducted practice start outside of the designated area at the exit of the pitlane. Though it took some time to examine Hamilton was given two five second penalties for each infringement. The effective ten-second penalty was served at Hamilton’s one and only pitstop of the race.

The opening stint of the race, led by Hamilton, made it clear though that he more than had the pace to hold off teammate Valtteri Bottas and Verstappen. But for a minor annoyance of Bottas trying to take the lead Hamilton led easily off the line and was seemingly able to up his pace at will. Several drivers didn’t make it to the end of lap one including Carlos Sainz who clipped the barrier at turn 2 when trying to rejoin and Racing Point’s Lance Stroll who had tangled with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The safety car was deployed to clear the track of debris and the reset could’ve been a good opportunity for Bottas to snatch the lead off Hamilton but the Finn isn’t exactly known for bold or aggressive or really any type of moves especially not against his Mercedes teammate.

The race re-started and after only one lap Hamilton had pulled a gap of 1.5 seconds over Bottas. Nevertheless, the ten-second penalty still loomed over Hamilton and was sure to drop him out of contention. In fact it dropped Hamilton to third and though he delivered some quick laps never really looked able to threaten Max Verstappen for second place. Further down the field the racing the in mid-field was the only true highlight of the grand prix. It might have been for the lower end of the standings at the time but Lando Norris, George Russell, and Alex Albon produced genuinely entertaining scrap between them that is a sure indication of what the future of F1 could look like.

The ever-dependable Sergio Perez delivered an impressive fourth place finish and has put himself well and truly the shop window for any team who might in the market for a 2021 driver. Daniel Ricciardo seems to have finally found his feet at Renault as he delivered a superb fifth place despite a five-second penalty for not rejoining the circuit in the correct manner at turn 2. In sixth Charles Leclerc thoroughly earned to be driver of the day as he somehow brought the Ferrari home in a position far ahead of what it should be capable of.

The second Renault of Esteban Ocon had made a bright start to the race but faded throughout the succeeding laps to eventually finish seventh overall. Daniil Kvyat delivered a strong drive on home soil to finish eighth ahead of his Alpha Tauri teammate Pierre Gasly in ninth and Red Bull’s Alex Albon in tenth. It was yet another forgettable day for Seb Vettel who finished one lap down in thirteenth place.

It came as no great surprise that Bottas was able to cruise to his second win of the season given the pace advantage that Mercedes holds. What was somewhat of a surprise however was Bottas’s post-race team radio. The Finn proclaimed that the win was a “nice time to answer his critics” and added what seems to have become his rarely uttered catchphrase: “To whom it may concern, f@#$ you”. It is sort of comical though that Bottas was this pumped. His words made it sound as if he’d wiped the floor with Hamilton when in reality he was gifted the race lead. And perhaps this is where Valtteri Bottas finds his motivation. Maybe he sees Hamilton’s own goal as a change in his fortunes and maybe it energizes him. But given that he didn’t beat his teammate in a straight-out fight his ‘defiance’ it feels rather manufactured.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

September 30, 2020
F1 2020: Russian Gp Preview – A reckoning for Bottas

In 2014 Russia make its re-entry to the Formula 1 calendar. Unlike previous plans to host a race in Moscow the race instead is situated in the Black Sea resort town of Sochi.

The Russian grand prix is likely to be the only semi-street circuit on the 2020 calendar as Australia, Monaco, Baku, and Singapore have all been cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The Sochi Autdrom is a 5.8 km semi-street circuit built around the Olympic Park, which hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics. It is doubtful that the circuit would rank highly as a favourite amongst drivers. Sector one is dominated by full throttle blast of more than ten seconds and what is likely to be the only ‘straightforward’ overtaking opportunities. Pulling out of the slipstream and under braking for turn two is the first opportunity of the lap to make a move stick but not necessarily the last. The 750m constant radius left-hander that is turn three is taken flat-out before having to get hard on the brakes for the 90 degree turn four where overtaking is certainly possible. The rest of the lap comprises of low to medium speed 90-degree corners without any genuinely obvious spots of overtaking.

In the championship Lewis Hamilton holds all the cards with a mammoth 55-point gap over Valtteri Bottas in second place. Such is his lead that even if Hamilton were to miss two races, with the assumption that Bottas would win both, he could still return in the lead of the championship. Given how Bottas has performed in 2020 there is nothing to suggest that Hamilton will be beaten or even challenge as he strolls to a record-equaling seventh title. Realistically the only challenge can come from a driver in a car equal to Hamilton’s Mercedes. But Bottas simply isn’t up to the task and wont miraculously come to life. Since joining Mercedes in 2017 this season is most likely Bottas’s most disappointing.

As a fairly young driver catapulted into a championship-winning team he could have been forgiven for trying to find his feet in a new environment. But four years down the line it is abundantly clear that Bottas just hasn’t found what he needs to win a championship. His last two race performances underline this. In Monza he had a golden opportunity to claw back some points with Hamilton down in seventh. Instead he finished a lowly fifth in the quickest car on the grid. And though he was momentarily leading in Mugello he let that win slip through his fingers. He may well rack up a P1 this weekend in Russia where he has always perfomed well. But the championship title is probably further away than it’s ever been.

While the sharp-end of the driver’s title seems to be all but settled it certainly isn’t the case in the mid-field. Behind third-placed Max Verstappen the next five positions (fourth to eighth) is covered by only sixteen points. The mid-field battle between McLaren, Racing Point, and recently Renault has been an enthralling and unpredictable one in 2020. In addition to Pierre Gasly’s unforgettable win at Monza the fact that Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz, and Lance Stroll have all stood on the podium season is indicative of just how colossal the fight has been in the mid-field. And there is every indication that it wont only linger for this weekend, but will likely go down right the to the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

September 23, 2020
F1 2020: Italian Gp Review – 100% Full Gas

At the midpoint of the 2019 season Red Bull announced that Alex Albon would replace Pierre Gasly with immediate effect. It didn’t come as much of a surprise given Gasly’s less than impressive run in the Red Bull team. But what has been most impressive about this story is the manner in which Pierre Gasly responded to being thrown out of the senior Red Bull team.

There are likely dozens of points that could be elaborated on when it comes to the last eighteen months of Pierre Gasly’s life. But what is most important and most impressive is the revelation of his incredible character and how risen to the very top of Formula 1. In dramatic fashion the 24-year-old Frenchman became the 109^th grand prix winner on unforgettable day.

The race started as normal with Lewis Hamilton leading away from pole position. Carlos Sainz, who qualified an impressive third, made short work of Valtteri Bottas to run second to Hamilton but was unable to hang on to the rear of the Mercedes. Lando Norris roared off the starting line from his sixth place grid slot and scythed past Bottas to run third behind his McLaren teammate for much of the opening stint of the race. Bottas’s dismal start left him in sixth overall and unable to even get close enough to the Renault of Daniel Ricciardo to affect a pass. It’s clear that Bottas has some big questions to ask himself after this race. Whether he will find the answers though seems doubtful.

At the front the race settled relatively quickly with Hamilton easily extending his advantage over Sainz by roughly half a second each lap. After failing to get either car in the top ten shootout in qualifying it hardly seemed possible that Ferrari’s weekend could get any worse. But it did. Sebastian Vettel became the first retirement of the race with brake failure on lap 17. By lap 20 Hamilton had built a gap of around thirteen seconds when Kevin Magnussen pulled out of the race at the exit of Parabolica with a suspected engine issue.

The Haas’s proximity prompted the deployment of the safety car and seemingly presented Hamilton with a perfect opportunity for a cheap pitstop. Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi seized the same opportunity as Hamilton but both failed to notice that the pitlane was closed to facilitate the recovery of Magnussen’s stricken Haas. Meanwhile all the other drivers stayed out and only made their stops once the pitlane was reopened. The race resumed a few laps later with Hamilton still in the lead but with Sainz now down in P8.

A hefty crash into the Parabolica barriers for Charles Leclerc not only brought an end to the Ferrari driver’s race but also necessitated a red flag in order for the car to be recovered and the tyre barrier to be mended. Hamilton and Giovinazzi’s illegal trip into the pitlane netted each of them a ten-second stop/go penalty. After a twenty-five minute delay the race was restarted with Hamilton still leading but yet to serve his penalty. Through pitting just before the Magnussen-safety car Gasly and Kimi Raikkonen found themselves at the sharp-end. The decision to put Raikkonen on the soft tyre for the remainder of the race did not pay dividends as the Finn ran out of the rubber and eventually finished thirteenth.

With Hamilton serving his penalty and emerging in last place it left Gasly in the lead while Raikkonen was quickly swallowed up by the pack. In P2 was Carlos Sainz and the McLaren had a better pace than the Alpha Tauri. But Gasly had crucially built a bit of a buffer while Sainz was making his way to second place. Meanwhile Lance Stroll was fairly secure in third while Norris, in fourth, held off Bottas in fifth. In sixth was Daniel Ricciardo with Lewis Hamilton recovering to seventh overall. Esteban Ocon, Daniil Kvyat, and Sergio Perez rounded out the points paying positions.

Though he came agonizingly close Williams’s Nicholas Latifi ultimately finished eleventh overall. It was a monumental day for F1 as earlier in the week it was announced that the Williams family would be stepping aside from the team after its sale to Doritol investment. Despite being asked to remain as team principal Claire Williams declared her decision to leave the team. Though the team will continue to run under the Williams name it is an end to an unforgettable era of the sport. As the last of the independent teams Williams reached epic heights of a staggering sixteen championship titles, 114 victories, and 312 podiums. And even during their lowest moments they never lost the ethos of what made the team great – never, ever giving up. Through Williams Racings’ 43 years Sir Frank and Claire has written an indelible part of Formula 1’s history. The sport will be irrevocably poorer without them.

As a new era dawns for Williams so does it for Pierre Gasly too. In his return to then Toro Rosso he showed incredible mental strength and gave us all a glimpse of his steely character. And again in Italy we were let into something a bit special as he delivered, under significant pressure, a stunning drive to the chequered flag and the first win of his F1 career.

It may not have been the race that Mercedes, Red Bull, or Ferrari fans would’ve wanted. But many are likely to agree that days like these reaffirm why Formula 1 is greatest sport in the world. Grandé Pierre!

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

September 7, 2020