Can this season get any crazier?
It was a crazy 48 hours for F1 over the weekend, so I thought it was best to put it all into one article, in which we have a lot to talk about, after probably the best sprint race yet, and a colossal redemption arc.
It is probably best to start with the news that caused all the chaos, in that disqualification. Basically, due to an overly worn part, the DRS gap in Hamilton’s rear wing was 0.2mm over the allowed limit, and as this broke a sporting regulation, there was only really one outcome. Yes, it could be seen as unfair as there was barely any gain from it, however the line must be drawn somewhere. Lewis was allowed to change the wing under parc ferme, as there was an issue with reliability, just like we have seen for Red Bull in the past few races, yet because his wing had contravened the rules, unlike Red Bull’s ones, it caused a DSQ. The fine for Verstappen was probably also the correct call, as given how drivers have been touching cars in the past, to demote him now would have been harsh, but the FIA needed to show a precedent for the future.
Looking back over the weekend for Mercedes, it is mostly positive, with some huge peaks, yet there are some little things they could have handled better. That is mainly their view on the DSQ, as I can’t see how they could expect any other result than what happened, they clearly broke a major part of the sporting rules, and reliability or not, it has to be policed strictly. As for everything else, we saw Mercedes come together, and use the pain to fuel them to an incredible result at the end of Sunday. In the sprint, Bottas did his job to perfection, as he used the softs to get past Max, and just about held on, which meant they actually gained points on Red Bull. If only we had seen this Bottas over the previous few years at the team. Then there was Hamilton, who showed that Qualifying was no fluke, and that the failed wing wasn’t the key to his result. The race craft was exemplary, and even as a neutral fan, you have to appreciate what he did, despite how good the car was.
Then comes race day, and it seems that 2nd on the grid is better than 1st, as Max this time got up the inside of Bottas, and squeezed him out, which let Perez get in on the action. When Red Bull got into a 1-2 position, the race looked over, but thanks to the Mercedes pace, and some Safety Cars, they were brought right back into the fight. Perez couldn’t really do anything, as Lewis was so much faster, and Bottas used the virtual safety car to pass him. Now it was time for the battle we had all being waiting for, as the two title rivals battled again, and I thought it would end in disaster. It nearly did to be fair, as when Lewis almost got past him the 1st time, Max just careered back up the inside, forcing them both off the track. As the Red Bull was clearly not under control at the apex, I was surprised he did not get a penalty, but in the end, it didn’t matter, as Hamilton did get past, to take an astonishing win! This title fight is by no means over, Mercedes has the fire back under them, and this magic straight line speed could be key for them.
There wasn’t much Red Bull could do really to stop Lewis, they did the right thing in protecting from the undercut in the race, and the medium was the safe bet for the Sprint, they were just boxing against an opponent in another class. The next 3 tracks should be less power dependant; however, I would not say Red Bull are clear favourites by any means. I do think that Max was too aggressive with that first move at Turn 4, it was desperation from him really. The back and white flag for moving on the straight was weird, as he stopped doing it by the time Lewis got near him, I think it was the FIA trying to calm Max down for the earlier incident.
It was another near perfect weekend for Ferrari, as Sainz took advantage of his soft tyres in the Sprint to grab a point, before the team maximised the Sunday with a 5th and 6th. The car seems to work everywhere now, and with a 30+ gap to McLaren, I can’t see them being overhauled, unless things go dramatically wrong. Leclerc was a bit lost in the Sprint with his tyres, and in both races his defending is on the limit, as we usually see from him. The Lap 1 incident with Sainz and Norris is a hard one to call, Sainz was starting to come over to give Lando the room, but the McLaren was coming over faster. A racing incident was probably the right call, as neither car could exactly disappear in that situation.
One point for McLaren is a disaster, especially given they both started in the points. I just talked about the move at the start, and after that Lando’s race was ruined, it was one of those things both drivers can learn from. As for Daniel, it was going fairly well with him sat in the points, but they suffered more engine woes, which caused him to retire, and cost the team a load of points. After the start to the year they had, 4th is a bit disappointing for the team.
The momentum for AlphaTauri faltered slightly, as Gasly could not take advantage of his excellent qualifying, first with a poor start to the sprint, despite starting on the softs, and then his race pace was no match for the Ferrari’s. 7th is still strong, but with both Alpine’s behind him they are still level on points. Tsunoda had another missed opportunity, this one being more of his fault, as he pulled a rash move on Stroll, which cost him his front wing. It was more on the Japanese driver, but he penalised himself, so the penalty probably wasn’t necessary.
On a power dependant track, I didn’t expect Alpine to do so well, as many people think they have the worst engine. They were partially aided by issues for other cars, but it was still a great day for the team. Alonso had a spirited battle with Gasly but couldn’t hold on, as the team do all they can to stay 5th in the constructors. Vettel just lost out on points, and given how bad tyre wear was here, plus with their Mercedes engine on this track, I did expect them to be where Alpine were, as it should have played to their strengths.
I am sure many people were the same as me, in that I was too fixated on the lead battle, I didn’t see that Alfa Romeo and Williams got close to the points once again. The weekend looked like a loss on Friday, especially for Williams, but it is nice to see the pace of most of the grid being fairly close. The crash between the two Alfa’s was not nice to see, and it looked as though Kimi just turned down on Giovinazzi, which ruined their races.
Brazil always delivers, I don’t know what it is about the track, but we must never leave this place in the future. It has given us another pivotal moment in a box office season, and with two new tracks coming up, both titles are completely up in the air! I cannot wait for next weekend!
-M
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