We are set up for some great racing tomorrow!
F1
Sure enough, we were treated to a thrilling qualifying session in ever changing weather conditions, with some surprising results! We also saw a rather frightening crash, which combined with other incidents at that corner, brings back up the question of safety.
You got the sense all through qualifying that Red Bull had a pace advantage over Mercedes, perhaps owing to more wing on their car. So, it was not a shock that Max ended up getting the pole position, giving him a clear run off the start. He may be hoping for a wet beginning to the race, to avoid being slipstreamed. Perez was looking good up until the lap that mattered most, which left him down in 7th on the grid. It will be hard to help the team from there.
Mercedes almost missed out on Q3, and had to burn another set of Inters to get through. This combined with Hamilton starting 3rd, means it wasn’t a perfect day for the Silver Arrows. It may have been even worse for Bottas, who could only manage 8th, which accounting for the grid penalty will leave him in 13th on the grid. This was not a day he needed as he vies for that Mercedes seat, because surely won’t be a great help to Lewis tomorrow. Talking of Hamilton, he needs to use the low drag set up to attack Max early on in the race, otherwise he may never catch him.
The star of the day, by far, was Russell. I still cannot believe he managed to get a Williams up onto the front row. This just shows the pure talent he has, as well as the ability to perform under pressure. If Mercedes have already made their decision, and chosen Bottas, they are going to look a bit stupid now! It is hard to say what George can do tomorrow, if he can get a good start and have a break on the midfield, he has a great chance of more points.
Another feel good result is Ricciardo ending up 4th, suggesting there is hope for an upturn in pace from him. With Perez and Bottas well down on the grid, he has a great chance at a podium too, which would boost his confidence further. Vettel and Gasly did stellar jobs as you would expect from two star drivers, outperforming their cars. Both will want to bag a haul of points tomorrow, after missing out on some in Hungary.
Ferrari played a bold strategy of predicting what the weather would do, as they did their final laps in Q2 early, expecting rain to fall after that. It didn’t work, and cost them a shot in Q3, although I am not sure they had the pace anyway for it.
After the scary crash in W Series yesterday, we saw yet another violent one at Eau Rouge today, as Norris lost the car in Q3, ruining a chance at a possible pole. At that point, the weather conditions were on the limit of being driveable, however the crash was seemingly caused by him touching the inside kerb instead. Nevertheless, it has brought up some pressing questions. Firstly, about the input of drivers on Red Flags, which I think should be the case, at least more than it is now.
The second and more difficult question is about safety at Eau Rouge and Radillon. The problem is that the geography of the landscape doesn’t allow for run offs to be extended at all really, so we are stuck with what we have. If they changed the corner in the name of safety, I would not argue massively against it, as despite the long history of that corner, we can’t simply wait for another death before we act. On the other hand, danger is a part of motorsport, and there are some things we cannot protect against, and many people will say this is why they are paid the big bucks. The decision really should be made by the drivers, not just in F1, but in all the other series that race there, as they are the ones risking their lives every lap there.
MotoGP
Silverstone also threw up some crazy results, as Pol Espargaro snatched pole, his first ever, as Honda continues to get stronger. It has been a tough year for him, but he has been improving over time, and we saw the fruits of all that work today. The race may be a different proposition, as the race pace of Yamaha, Suzuki and Ducati will be a tall ask for Pol to beat, however I am sure he will give his all to get a win.
Bagnaia continues to be one of the best qualifiers on the grid, as he was the best Ducati in 2nd. This isn’t a track which would suit them on paper, so they have clearly made improvements in the corners. As for the race, they need to upset Fabio, if they want any hope of getting the win. Martin and Miller are not far behind either, and cannot be discounted either for tomorrow.
It says a lot when we are surprised that Quartararo is only 3rd on the grid, but he just seemed to be in a class above everyone else this weekend. It sounds like the bike was too unstable on a one lap run, and didn’t give him the confidence he needed. He will surely still be favourite for tomorrow.
Marquez and Espargaro will be dark horses for the race tomorrow, as Marc especially showed good race pace in FP4. Aleix needs to make the most of the lack of long straights here, and make up as much time in the corners as he can. Suzuki would have wanted to be a few rows further up for the race, as it will be hard for them to use their race pace to full effect from there.
Finally, well done to Jake Dixon, who came into his first MotoGP race, and was pretty much on pace with the rest of the field. If this was an assessment for next year, he has done very well so far.
-M
Thank you very much for reading this article! To keep up to date with when they go out, and to see my reactions to races and other news, follow me on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/MeaningofMotor1
Also, if you want to support me, I have a Patreon Page at: https://www.patreon.com/meaningofmotorsport
Meaning of Motorsport 