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Category: Formula 1
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F1 calendar for 2021 is out
Today F1 has announced the provisional race calendar for the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship which will be submitted to the World Motor Sport Council for approval.
The release from F1 said: “We are planning for 2021 events with fans that provide an experience close to normal, and will continue to work closely with our promoters and partners. We look forward to the start of the season on the 18th March 2021 in Australia.”
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Mercedes dominance over one-lap and race pace continues: Imola Race analysis
Lewis Hamilton won at the 29th different circuit in his Formula 1 career as Valtteri Bottas completed a Mercedes 1-2 and Daniel Ricciardo completed the podium, a second time in three races, at the history-ridden Imola circuit. A 1-2 finish for Mercedes fetched them the constructor’s champions for a seventh-consecutive season, breaking Ferrari’s record of six-straight championships.
London, 3 Nov 2020: Hamilton took his 93rd F1 career victory. In the process, he also set the fastest lap and led more than 5000 laps. A P2 was a consolation for Bottas, and Ricciardo achieved his second podium of the season. Kvyat finished a brilliant P4 for AlphaTauri, ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in P5. Sergio Perez rued the decision of pitting as the team gave away a podium finish. McLaren got a double points finish as Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris finished in P7 and P8 respectively. Alfa Romeo had their best race of the season, as they too, achieved double-points, finishing ninth and tenth, Raikkonen, ahead of Giovinazzi.
Williams’ Nicholas Latifi was ever so close to points in P11, ahead of Sebastian Vettel who would have finished in the top 10 if not for the slow pit stop. Lance Stroll finished in P13, and Haas driver Romain Grosjean in P14. Alex Albon spun around his Red Bull trying to maintain his position after the safety car restart, ultimately finishing last in P15.
2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix action, Sunday – LAT images for Mercedes Mercedes clinched a historic 7th consecutive constructor’s championship, breaking Ferrari’s record of 6 consecutive titles. They have taken all the pole positions in 2020 so far and have maintained an advantage in race pace over rivals Red Bull. Red Bull were unable to close the gap to Mercedes at Imola, especially in qualifying as Max Verstappen never looked in contention for pole position. Ferrari’s one lap and race pace has improved significantly since Nürburgring as Leclerc has finished in the top 10 for three consecutive races. They could have achieved a double-points finish, if not for Vettel’s slow pit stop.
Renault looked like the lead midfield car as they qualified in the top-5 and Ricciardo managed a podium. Racing Point still have the best race pace, as evident from Perez’s overcut. They threw away a podium by pitting for fresh soft tyres. McLaren looked to have lost ground to Racing Point and Renault, as they lacked both the qualifying and race pace to challenge them. AlphaTauri have improved their qualifying pace significantly as they qualified P4 and P8. It remains to be seen if it is track specific or they have genuinely made a step up.
Alfa Romeo achieved double points finish as they have unlocked pace by exploring different set up directions. They still lack qualifying pace owing to the slow Ferrari power unit. Williams are making marginal gains in race pace which will help them for 2021 and they still have decent qualifying pace as Russell once again made it to Q2 on Saturday. Haas revealed a fundamental problem with their car, regarding the rear suspension. The rear suspension overheats due to which they have to raise the rear ride height, which compromises their aero performance. It is not a quick fix, but the team hopes they can rectify it for 2021, even though it will be the same chassis.
For the first time, Formula 1 experimented with a two-day weekend. One practice session on Saturday, followed by qualifying and the race on Sunday.
The predicted fastest strategy was mediums to soft tyres.
The start was hectic as Hamilton lost out to Verstappen. And had to settle for P3. Meanwhile, behind Gasly was squeezed by Hamilton and subsequently lost a position to Ricciardo. The other Renault of Ocon tagged Stroll’s front wing, resulting in damage as the Racing Point had to pit. Vettel tagged Magnussen as well which resulted in the Dane spinning and Vettel losing a part of his front wing endplate. Giovinazzi from the back of the grid was up to P14.
As the race settled the top three were covered by 2.5-3s, as Bottas lead with Verstappen 1.5s behind in P2 and Hamilton hot on his heels. There was sad news for Gasly as AlphaTauri had to retire his car due to terminal damage on lap 8. Norris, Ocon and Leclerc started the round of pit stops as they pitted on lap 13. The degradation on soft tyres was worse than expected, therefore, the early pit stops. Ricciardo, Kvyat and Albon followed suit one lap later.
Verstappen was the first to pit, in an attempt to undercut Bottas on lap 18, changing onto a set of hard tyres. Bottas did the same next lap, emerging 1.5s ahead of Verstappen. Meanwhile, Hamilton told the pit wall not to box as he carried on, setting fastest laps in the process and extending his gap to Bottas and Verstappen. Bottas’s car had picked up damage as well, which cost him around 0.7s per lap. Verstappen was held up behind the damaged Mercedes, as Hamilton extended his gap to over a pit stop.
Ocon retired on lap 30 due to a gearbox issue due to which a VSC was deployed for a half a lap. Hamilton made full use of VSC to pit and come out in the lead 4s ahead of Bottas. Verstappen was hounding Bottas for P2, and due to his ailing car, Bottas locked up and ran wide in second to last corner. This allowed Verstappen to close up and pass on the main straight using DRS for P2. Behind, Perez was running in P4 after making a pit stop, overcutting Ricciardo, Leclerc, Sainz & Kvyat. Meanwhile, a mammoth stint from Vettel and Raikkonen on mediums gave them points potential. A botched pit stop by Ferrari robbed Vettel of a top-10 finish, whereas Raikkonen pitted on lap 48 to emerge in the top 10.
Bad luck struck Verstappen on lap 50 as his rear right tyre blew up and pitched him into the gravel trap. Russell, by then running in the points, made a rookie error and crashed behind the safety car while warming his tyres. Both Mercedes pitted under the safety car for soft tyres, and so did Perez- giving up P3- and Kvyat. Ricciardo, Leclerc and Albon stayed out on hard tyres. Green flag running resumed on lap 58, as Hamilton and Bottas made clean getaway. Behind, Ricciardo was running in P3 and Kvyat gained three positions, running in P4, courtesy of the new soft tyres. Perez was unable to do the same as he was stuck behind Leclerc in P6.
Earlier on Saturday, Mercedes locked out the front row as Bottas claimed pole and Hamilton had to settle for P2. Behind, Verstappen lined up in customary P3. Alongside him, a fantastic qualifying saw Pierre Gasly start P4 and AlphaTauri teammate Daniil Kvyat started in P8. Renault’s Ricciardo started in P5, alongside the second Red Bull car of Albon with Leclerc qualifying one position ahead of Kvyat in P7. McLaren duo of Norris and Sainz completed the top 10. Both Racing Point cars were unable to make it to the top 10 as Perez started in P11 and Stroll in P15. Ocon started P12 in his Renault. For the second race in a row Williams’ Russell out-qualified Ferrari’s Vettel as they started P13 and P14 respectively. Haas drivers Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen started 16th and 17th respectively. Alfa Romeos of Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi started P18 and P20, sandwiched Latifi’s Williams in P19.
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Hamilton-Bottas 1-2 seals record 7th Constructors’ title for Mercedes AMG Petronas
Imola, 1 Nov 2020: Lewis Hamilton won Formula 1’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix ahead of team-mate Valtteri Bottas as Mercedes sealed a seventh consecutive Constructors’ title. Daniel Ricciardo finished third for Renault as a late safety car for a puncture that took Red Bull’s Max Verstappen out of the race shuffled the order at the flag as Sergio Perez of Racing Point lost position and a possible podium due to a misjudged pit-stop call in the 13th round of the FIA Formul 1 World Championship here on Sunday.
When the lights went out for the start, pole position man Bottas got away well but second-placed Hamilton made a poor getaway, and as the field surged towards Tamburello Verstappen was able to get past to claim P2.
Behind the top three, Ricciardo rose to fourth place as AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly was forced wide by a defensive Hamilton.
The front three began to quickly pull away from the pack and after seven laps Ricciardo was already 5.8 seconds behind third-placed Hamilton. Behind the Australian, Gasly led Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. However, on lap 9 Gasly was told to box and retire his AlphaTauri due to a loss of water pressure.
Verstappen pitted and made a switch to hard tyres on lap 19 and Mercedes responded by pitting Bottas for hard tyres on the following lap, keeping the Finn ahead of the Dutch driver. Ahead, Hamilton stayed out on his starting mediums and he soon began to pull away at over half a second a lap.
On lap 31 the race swung towards Hamilton when Renault’s Esteban Ocon stopped at the side of track on the exit of Turn 13. A Virtual Safety Car was deployed and Hamilton took the opportunity to pit for hard tyres. He resumed in the lead ahead of his team-mate and Verstappen.
Bottas was nursing a car wounded by a collision with debris on the second lap, however, and by half distance Verstappen was beginning to exert heaby pressure on the Mercedes driver. On lap 42 he forced Bottas into a mistake at Rivazza. The Finn locked up and ran wide and the error allowed Verstappen to sweep past the Mercedes at the start of the following lap and reclaim P2.
Kimi Räikkönen was the last of the medium-tyre starters to make his pit stop with the Alfa Romeo driver stopped on lap 50 for soft tyres and it appeared then that the order might settle.
However, just a lap later disaster struck Verstappen when he suffered a tyre failure and spun off track at Tamburello. The Safety Car was swiftly deployed and cars flooded towards the pit lane.
Ricciardo and Red Bull’s Alex Albon in though, stayed out on track and behind the Safety Car the Renault rose to third and the Red Bull drive to fifth place behind the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc.
When racing resumed at the start of lap 58, Hamilton held his lead from Bottas but further back Albon was immediately put under pressure by Racing Point’s Sergio Pérez, who had pitted from third for softs under the SC.
The Mexican got past around the outside into Tamburello and as he tried to fight back Albin spun off. He was able to rejoin but dropped to the back of the field, where he would eventually finish.
At the front, Hamilton was in total control, and five laps late he took the chequered flag, 5.7s ahead of Bottas as Mercedes sealed their seventh consecutive Constructors’ Championship title.
Ricciardo, benefiting from staying out during the safety car, took his second podium finish of the season. Behind him Daniil Kvyat used a new set of softs tyres to good effect to charge through to fourth at the flag ahead of Leclerc and Pérez. Carlos Sainz was sixth ahead of McLaren team-mate Lando Norris, while Alfa Romeo scored a double points finish with Räikkönen taking P9 ahead of team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi.
2020 FIA Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – Race
1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 63 1:28’32.430
2 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 63 1:28’38.213 5.783
3 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 63 1:28’46.750 14.320
4 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri/Honda 63 1:28’47.571 15.141
5 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 63 1:28’51.541 19.111
6 Sergio Pérez Racing Point/Mercedes 63 1:28’52.082 19.652
7 Carlos Sainz Jr. McLaren/Renault 63 1:28’52.660 20.230
8 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 63 1:28’53.561 21.131
9 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 63 1:28’54.654 22.224
10 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 63 1:28’58.828 26.398
11 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 63 1:28’59.565 27.135
12 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 63 1:29’00.883 28.453
13 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 63 1:29’01.593 29.163
14 Romain Grosjean Haas/Ferrari 63 1:29’05.365 32.935
15 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 63 1:29’29.714 57.284
George Russell Williams/Mercedes 51 1:09’44.149 Spun off
Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 50 1:06’23.648 Puncture
Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 47 1:04’14.971 Physical
Esteban Ocon Renault 27 36’58.496 Clutch
Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 8 10’56.787 Overheating
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Not just Toto, I may not be there next year; Team is not just one person, says Hamilton
DRIVERS
1 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)
2 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)
3 – Daniel RICCIARDO (Renault)
TRACK INTERVIEWS
(Conducted by Paul Di Resta)
Q: Daniel, you’re getting pretty used to being up here. Another third place in three races. How did that pan out?
Daniel RICCIARDO: It was a bizarre one. I got into fourth off the start and I felt that was obviously the best we could do with the three at the front. But then Pérez had really good pace. He passed us through the pit sequence and then I think he pitted for the soft at the end with the safety car. We obviously kept track position. I’m not sure what happened to Max but that obviously put us in the fight. Kvyat came out of nowhere in the last few laps, but it was fun. Two podiums in three races as you say. It all just happened very quickly at the end there. It was fun.
Q: Good opportunity to do another Shoey. Is Cyril going to get another tattoo on the other side now as well?
DR: He actually just said: “congrats, but I’m not getting a second tattoo”. So maybe someone else in the team. But today I won’t forget the shoey.
Q: Is it a cool track to race on?
Daniel RICCIARDO: It is. It obviously is pretty difficult for overtaking but the actual circuit itself is awesome. It’s mega.
Q: Valtteri, you started on pole, you got away perfectly. But you were fighting wounded there. I think you picked up some damage up towards Turn 7 that you couldn’t avoid?
Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, I think that made quite a big effect today. The start was good. That was one of the main things to get right today. But on lap 2, suddenly, out of Turn 7, there was debris. I didn’t have time to avoid it…
Q: Did you see the debris then?
VB: Yeah, I saw it. I aimed in the middle of the car, at least I tried to no run over that with the tyres but obviously it caused some damage or something that made the car quick difficult to drive.
Q: I guess it was very difficult because we saw Max pressuring you towards the end – a few mistakes and lock-ups – but I guess we can put that down to a lack of downforce?
VB: I was really pushing hard to try to avoid Max getting through. I had to push over my limits and that led to a few mistakes so unlucky.
Q: Lewis, outstanding. You obviously broke the record for wins last time out but to come here, perfectly managed on the radio, your strategy, how it all played out and I guess you are delighted?
Lewis HAMILTON: It was an exhausting race, the speed we were having to go. Obviously I had a poor start. It’s just very overwhelming right now because I look at my crew, this team here. And I know all the guys and girls… the men and women back at the factory, back at the factory in Brackley and Brixworth who… They are the unsung heroes. They are the ones that have really grafted away and never given up. They have just continued to push and elevate and innovate. People watching maybe think we are used to it but it always feels like the first with this team and I think that’s because of the spirit and so I am forever grateful to everyone to be a part of it, to be a part of breaking a breaking record like this. No team has done this before. We have a great leader in our team and also a big thank you to Mercedes, Petronas and all of our partners. We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without them.
Q: Seven consecutive Constructors’ Championships. That’s mighty force behind you?
LH: It’s unbelievable. To come back year on year… I’ll tell you, whilst we have great performance it’s not easy to deliver weekend-in, weekend-out, and for everyone, they are so precise with how they take the car apart and put it back together. Whoo! Seven-time champs. That’s something I’m going to be able to tell my grandchildren one day.
Q: Toto, can you come in please. Toto, we don’t often see you as elevated as you are. That’s seven consecutive Constructors’ Championships. Lewis broke the record for wins last time out, you can see what that means to all those involved here and equally back at the factory?
Toto WOLFF: Yeah, I’m not so much into numbers but this is something to be proud of really. We have a group that is just amazing together. We’ve stayed together, we’ve tried to push the benchmark to new levels and we’ve achieved that and it’s just a super proud moment with all these guys and being part of it.
Q: Where do you go from here? I guess you just regroup and you just set that bar even higher again?
TW: Yeah, as long as we stay motivated and energised, and you see that within these guys, then I think we can push it furthermore. There will be competition, no doubt, next year, with Max and Honda trying to do a really good job towards the end of the season, so we are looking forward to a new challenge.
Q: You don’t win these championships without having two good drivers. Valtteri was wounded today though. What happened there?
TW: Valtteri had a, I think it was a Ferrari piece or a Racing Point piece, about that size, stuck underneath his car. It was debris his overran on lap two. He couldn’t avoid it.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Lewis, another great win to add to your collection – and a shoey! Be honest, what did it taste like?
LH: Hahaha! Toe jam!
DR: Not as bad as you thought?
LH: It definitely didn’t taste great. I mean I don’t really like Champagne as it is, but it definitely tastes worse. But what’s positive is that Daniel’s mum thinks I was a good sport, so I’m grateful for that. I think Daniel had said that I’d once said never, that I would never do it. So there’s a lesson – never say never. It was a good moment… I don’t know I’m just feeling incredibly proud of this team and you know, to live in a moment where we see a team so successful and to be a part of it is quite phenomenal. Something that it the real honour of my life, working for this team and for all these people back at the two factories, Brixworth and Brackley. You know they really are the unsung heroes that are not on TV every weekend. They’re the guys that are working flat out every day during the weeks, crazy hours, to build and to innovate, to raise the bar, so that we can come here and do what we have done today and this year. I really don’t take it for granted that we have had this success. People could say ‘oh, you must be used to it’, and obviously maybe the fans are used to it, but from working inside the sport, you never get used to it. From tomorrow we’ll be focused on what’s next. We’ll be focusing on how we can be better. On Wednesday we’ll be having a big team meeting, trying to understand what could have been done better. We’ll have an analysis of what the next car looks like and what’s needed to raise the bar with the engine, with the driveability, with the ride, with tyre usage, all these different things. That’s because at the core of this team is some real heart and so a big thank you to everyone.
Q: How different does winning the Constructors’ title feel to winning the Drivers’ title?
LH: It’s almost more exciting winning the team one. It’s a very strange sport in the sense that it is as team sport but there are two championships and then there is an individual championship, but what is at the core our job is to deliver points and results for the team. So when you win a team championship I think it’s almost better than an individual because it’s something you do collectively, with a large group of people and whilst we are the ones standing on top of the podium we are not above anybody. We are on the same level, we are all part of the chain links. You can tell that everyone is so happy when they get the Constructors’ title. When we do the Christmas party and we celebrate with everyone, everyone just knows that they did a remarkable job and that they have done something that nobody else has done before. That’s cool to be a part of. Even if I was to stop today that would be something that I would be able to share with that large group of people for the rest of my life.
Q: And a quick word on the race. What was it like in the cockpit?
LH: It was incredibly intense, very hard, physically quite draining as well, and mentally, mainly because it’s a very fast circuit, very bumpy. Valtteri got a great start. I thought I would get a better start today but it didn’t turn out the way I would have liked and I fell to third. My next strategy was to try and get by the Red Bull but it was just impossible to get close and in trying to get close I was killing the front tyres. So I backed off and just tried to keep within distance. Then Max stopped much earlier than I thought he would and Valtteri stopped to cover him and there was no way I was doing the same. Naturally, at the beginning of the race we get given a bunch of different options of strategy and I understood that if I was in that position the only way to do something was to do something different – to extend as long as I could. But I didn’t know how long that tyre would go, but I think that’s where the race was won today.
Q: Valtteri, before we talk about your race, can we just have a few words from you on the team’s achievement this year? You’ve been at Mercedes for four years. Four world titles.
VB: Yeah, for me it’s crazy to think that I’ve now been part of the team four years in a row to be part of winning the Constructors’ Championship. It’s quite unreal – but I think everything that Lewis said. For me, I’m just really thinking the same. I’m so proud of every single team member, what they’re doing. All the factories and in the race team. We keep raising the bar for every single team member but we do it united. We support each other but the spirit the team has, it’s making these things possible. And I’m really, really proud to be part of it. I think for all of us in the team, it takes a bit of time to understand what we’re doing and what we are achieving – but we should definitely enjoy it because it is amazing and I’m really proud of everyone. So, thanks, team.
Q: And looking at your race. As Lewis said, you made a great start – but then you were carrying debris for a large chunk of the race. How did that affect the performance of your car?
VB: Actually it was lap two, out of Turn Seven. Like, on the racing line, I didn’t have enough time to react. I saw a big piece of carbon, so I decided the only chance… what I had to do, what I had time to do was aim at least how to hit it. I decided to go straight over it instead of hitting one of the tyres and possibly getting a puncture but, unluckily, it got stuck on the floor – under the floor – and apparently it was like 50 points of downforce which, in lap time, is quite a big chunk. How it affected me, I would say mainly in high-speed corners. I could feel that the car was sliding a bit and in some brakings it was a bit unpredictable, so sometimes I would lock the wheels and sometimes it would stop pretty quickly. It was not really consistent, the downforce I had in the car. It made it really tricky and I could see I just didn’t quite have the pace and Max was putting a lot of pressure and in the end he got through because I had to push over my limits to try and maintain the position. I had a lock-up and that was it. Not my day. I didn’t have a chance with that debris in the car to fight for the win today, unfortunately. But at least we could secure a 1-2, which is a perfect way to secure the seventh title for the team in a row.
Q: Daniel, great to see you back on the podium. Second time in three races. How satisfying is this third place?
DR: They’ll all pretty good, for sure. As Lewis touched on, with the wins, I’m also not going to take this for granted. It’s the second in three races but I’m as excited as I was in Nürburgring. It was a bit more… I feel it was a bit more unexpected, this one. We were running P5 with roughly 15 laps to go, I think, and then there was the issue with Max, so that brought out the Safety Car. So I guess that put me in fourth on track, and then Pérez pitted which, yeah, obviously I was smiling about because I was ‘well, that’s given me third on track’ and I knew hanging on with the Hard on the restart was going to be tricky but I was more than happy to fight for it at the end. Track position’s obviously very important around here, so yeah, I think both myself and the team were very willing to keep me out on track. We held on. I think the threat at the end was Kvyat and that was very surprising. I wasn’t sure where he came from but I was told he was on the Soft and he was coming on obviously very strong – but held on and just very, very happy. It’s pretty surreal actually, the first one and to get two now in such close proximity. It’s awesome.
Q: And now Renault third in the Constructors’ Championship, one point ahead of McLaren.
DR: OK. It’s so close! That’s awesome. Obviously I saw Esteban off fairly early in the race I believe with a mechanical, so that’s a shame. I don’t know where he was on track but I know he would have had the pace to collect points today I’m sure. So, obviously it’s great that we got big points with one car but I think if we’re going to keep our nose in front for sure we need both cars in the points. It’s a shame, I guess he had some reliability issues today but still got a few races to go and I think we’ll fight until the end for sure – so I’m excited for that.
VIDEO CONFERENCE
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) It’s a question for Lewis. Do you might talking us through what happened at the start. It sounds like it didn’t quite go as you expected. And also, there was a stage under the Safety Car where the team was quite concerned about you and the delta time – what was happening there?
LH: The start, I don’t really know. Just poor grip and… I’d have to look back it but it just felt like it wasn’t particularly fast and obviously I lost ground to both Valtteri and Max. Max, I think, was fortunate to be in P3. In hindsight I could have done a different job. Now I know. Hindsight’s a great thing but I’ll know for next time. And delta, I think just overly cautious and, for whatever reason, the Safety Car was out and the delta wasn’t an issue at that point. We were quite down on the delta.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) Question to Lewis please. I believe that before the 2014 engine era started, Aldo Costa said internally at Mercedes that the targets hadn’t been set high enough and the team should aim for multiple titles in a row. Obviously, I would imagine, this has surpassed anybody’s wildest expectations at the beginning. Could you just explain how you believe the team has evolved from when you joined in 2013 and made this success possible?
LH: There’s been a lot of changes over the time. What’s really crazy – for me – is that I was brought in, ultimately, to replace Michael, which was such a strange position to be in because, obviously, I’d watched this man dominate the sport and achieve such great things and he was stopping and I was going to be taking his place. The guys that I worked with were his previous mechanics and engineers and what a privileged position to be in. However, they had had quite a difficult time and the car hadn’t been good. I think what was really great was that, when I joined, I was personally able to put my stamp on the car and make a lot of alterations, particularly in 2013. And then we just collectively worked together. I knew that we would have a great engine because they had already started developing the engine before I’d even made my decision to join the team, before I’d signed the contract. Being that I was with Mercedes at McLaren, I was able to go to the factory, I knew what Mercedes was doing, I knew that McLaren was coming out of contract with Mercedes and I knew that I wanted to be with Mercedes-Benz because I think it’s such an iconic brand and I think they were so passionate about what they wanted to achieve. They’ve got such a great history and I knew that they had the power to turn things around. But it took so many incredibly hard working people to collectively come together to really innovate and design some incredibly… some of the most incredible bits of the car… to come together… the puzzle. It’s obviously a big puzzle. To watch it all come together is a real joy and, at the end of the day, there’s only two of us that get to drive it. I think also, the guys are just very level-headed. Even when you’re on the podium, the guys are never too overly-excited. They’re not out celebrating; they’re back at their desks already right now. I know for sure they’ll be back at their desks right now, already doing emails, working on what spares there are for the next race, working on what’s next to try to get ahead of the curve. And that’s what this team’s always been about.
Q: Lewis, were you surprised that Toto Wolff didn’t come on the podium today with you guys?
LH: I thought that he was so I was a bit surprised. I thought that’s why he was at the front. We very rarely see him at the front there and he came and did an interview, so I thought that he was coming up – but I think whilst it would have been nice for him to be up there with us, I think that’s a real showing of a leader. He’s not trying to be at the front of every photo. He’s not trying to claim anything. He puts the team first. I think that’s… without doubt he is the best leader here. It doesn’t matter what anyone says, no-one has done as good a job as he has. I think it’s his mentality, the balance of drive, compassion, understanding and ego. All of them come together to create the best boss you could have. Every single person in the team, no-one’s below him, and he really cares about how everyone is doing: ‘how’re things away from the track?’, ‘how’s things at home with your family – is there anything we can do so you can be better at the office?’ He’s a great guy and I feel privileged to have him as our leader. We wouldn’t have been able to do this without his guidance.
Q: (Ben Hunt – The Sun) Kind of following on from Lewis’s comments there, I wanted to ask… Toto’s just been on Sky saying that he’s reached the end of his shelf life in his current position. He’s earmarked a replacement, he’s not saying who it is, the big indication, of course, is that he’s not going to be within the same role next year. With that in mind, just how concerned are you about next year and – obviously we’re a long way off – but the fact that he won’t be there… you talk about what big effect he in the team, if he’s not there to lead the team, are there any concerns going forward that he won’t be able to repeat this same level of success that you’ve had this year?
LH: I don’t even know if I’m going to be here next year so it’s not really a concern for me at the moment. No, I think I understand and we have a lot of deep conversations, Toto and I, so I’m very, very aware of where he is mentally and we share a lot of … and carry a lot of the weight together, I think. Jeez, yeah, I’ve been in a long, long time. I can definitely understand wanting to pull back and give more time to family and those things. I don’t know who he would be replaced with but again, he’s a leader, he’s not going to put anyone that’s not going to be able to do the job, not going to be up to it, who’s not going to be geared up. He will find the right people. That’s why we have the success we have, we’ve found the right people and put them in the position to be able to shine as bright as possible. He’s just empowered every single person in the team, to be the best they can be. So he will find somebody that’s able to take on and continue… But you know, it’s not one person. The team is not about one person, it’s a collective of a lot of people. Toto doesn’t build the car, it’s a real team effort. But I’m supportive of him, whatever he wants to do, moving forwards.
Q: Valtteri, can we get your thoughts on Toto? You’ve worked with him for many years, even before you were at Mercedes.
VB: I think, to be honest, Lewis said everything. I just copy paste it, because I really think the same, that he’s going to be a tough guy to replace in the future and the way he leads the team, he’s a smart guy and he knows exactly what kind of support each team member needs, how much they need, criticism and how to help them to be a better version of themselves and that applies to every single team member and he can really read people well and he’s supportive and he’s done something incredible and I’m fortunate that I’ve known him since 2008 so quite some long time now and he was a bit part of my early career as well. He’s a great guy and whatever he’s going to do in the future I’m going to respect that as well because in the end you’re living for yourself in this life and that’s how it goes.
Q: (Christian Nimmervoll – motorsport.com) Valtteri, are you a bit surprised, in a way, that last week in Portimao you were not allowed to change onto the softs which you actually demanded on the radio whereas this week Lewis was allowed an offset strategy? Is that in line with what you call racing intent?
VB: It was two different scenarios, I would say. We went through the plans this morning, what happens if one of us gets under pressure and there’s a possibility that Red Bull could undercut and that was me today, so obviously I had to react and it would have been the same case if I was in Lewis’s position that the only thing I wanted to do is to go long and seek the opportunities and it really paid off for Lewis today and if we were the other way round it would have been the same for me. Obviously Lewis, he had the pace advantage, I think, honestly, partly, for sure today because of the debris I had but we were pretty strong but two completely different scenarios and actually in Portimao, even though I asked for the soft but I couldn’t achieve the target lap anyway, to get the soft to last until the end. The racing intent is good and is working and we are following the rules and it’s completely fair. It’s one of the thing that allows us as a team to actually do the things that we’re doing.
Q: (Christian Menath – motorsport-magazin.com) Valtteri, we’ve seen the debris that was caught under your car, it’s quite a massive part. Are you surprised that no one realised it and that we didn’t see a VSC or a yellow flag or whatever? And are you asking these questions to Michael?
VB: Actually, I got a warning from my engineers that they could see some gravel, maybe, on lap two in turn seven because they could see some kind of warning somewhere but there was no yellow flag but it was big piece of debris and I didn’t have enough time to react, to go around it so I would have time to decide how I’m going to hit the debris and I decided to go, like, straight over instead of with the tyres. Yeah, it would be good to get more of an understanding why there was not any sign of big piece of carbon because obviously it’s dangerous if there’s flying things around but it sure didn’t help my race today.
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Lewis, I don’t know if you’ve had a chance already looking at the trophy but obviously it’s the circuit layout and then there’s a diamond where the Senna tragedy happened. What do you think of the trophy? Does it mean something to you?
LH: Well, every trophy does, for sure. When we came back, just before we came in the podium, we saw there was a lady there doing the engraving, which is probably the first time I’ve seen that being done, just before… do they always do that? There was a time when trophies were… when you’re from the young days, from karting, little plastic… but they’re so special, they all had such a great meaning and then as you get through the categories they would get nicer, they would get more expensive and you got to Formula 1 and they were so stunning and… but then we went through a patch where they really did a cost-cutting scheme and we had some really dodgy, really flimsy trophies, those ones did not survive the time but this one, particularly, I think, being that we’ve not had a race here for a long time, it is where I remember the day when I was in karting in ’94 at Rye House when Ayrton passed away so to think that we’re here, 26 year, whatever it is, 26 years later and to be able to win here as he had done many times and so yes, the trophy definitely is a keeper and it felt it had good weight to it so it felt like a… it didn’t feel like a cheapy.
Q: (Rebecca Clancy – The Times) Lewis, just wanted to follow up on something you said earlier, you said you don’t even know if you’re going to be here next year. Most take it as a given that you’re going to sign another contract with Mercedes but is there actually a real chance that you won’t be racing in Formula 1 next year?
LH: Well, we’re in November and I’m still… it’s crazy that it’s Christmas isn’t that far away. Naturally, I feel great, I still feel very strong, I feel like I could keep going for plenty of months but you know, you mentioned about Toto and shelf-life so there’s multiple things that do stay on the top of my mind but I would like to be here next year but there’s no guarantee of that, for sure. There’s a lot that excites me of the after life so time will tell.
Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Lewis, the World Championship is now on the horizon, you can take the title in Turkey next time out. How does it feel to be on the brink on further history and what do you think it says about your performances this year, that you can seal the title in a 17 race season with three races to spare?
LH: We, as a team, have done such a remarkable job, so I fully acknowledge that it’s a collective and we wouldn’t be able to get these one-twos if it wasn’t for these great people behind us. But still, I’ve got a phenomenal driver and teammate who comes in weekend in and weekend out and makes my life very very difficult and so this year, I think it’s… being that you’ve seen the different steps that Valtteri’s taken, he’s getting stronger and stronger, he’s picking up his game, every year, it’s been a great challenge to race alongside him. I definitely think these last couple of years I’ve been able to step into a different… really step it up, quite big strides, I would say, in positive areas and I think that’s come with age. I’m getting older now and whilst not letting my physical side drop off, I’ve been able to really… you’ve seen in the race today… I think getting stronger which feels good. I think this year has been feeling that, being getting stronger and stronger. Definitely really proud of this year’s performances but I couldn’t have done it without these great people working behind me who really provide us with the solid foundation of a reliable car, a fast car, to do what we’ve done, so it’s pretty awesome.
Ends
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Bottas does the talking on the track, I have great respect for him, says Hamilton
Imola, 31 October 2020: The following drivers attended the post-qualifying FIA press conference on Saturday.
1 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes); 2 –Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes); 3 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull).
TRACK INTERVIEWS (Conducted by Johnny Herbert)
Q: Max, that was a bit of a tough session for you, obviously you had that problem earlier on. Tell us about getting yourself into third position?
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, it was not a great qualifying because of that. I only did two laps in Q1 and then you want to go out and get that run in in Q2 and then with the trouble it was a bit tricky. Also, on the medium tyres: OK we got through and we did our lap but then it just doesn’t give you a good reference to get into Q3 and we definitely seemed to struggle a bit with that. The first run in Q3 – just not a lot of grip. I think the second run was a little bit better but yeah, just difficult. At the end of the day P3 – not bad. I personally expected to be a little bit closer, to be able to fight them a little bit more but I think after Q2 we just lost our way a little bit.
Q: What about the race track itself. It’s great that we have come back to Imola but is there a particular part of the track where you think: “this is good fun round here”?
MV: The track is really cool. It’s really enjoyable to drive. I initially though it was going to be a bit too narrow for these cars but it’s fine. I really enjoy it. I hope that tomorrow we can also have a really cool race here.
Q: Valtteri, pole position man, you must be a happy one because that’s your 15th, but you had to fight for it.
Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, you always have to. It’s never to get pole positions. I really enjoy this track when you push flat out; it’s beautiful. I knew I had to improve on the last lap and I found those small gains that were needed and it’s a great feeling when you get those and definitely I had the shakes after. It’s good fun.
Q: Tell us about that. It seemed to be that last sector that was not quite there. What did you do differently to get that extra bit of speed?
VB: For me it was Turns 2 and 3, that’s something I was really working on today and only got there at the end. And the last couple of corners as well. I struggled when I tried to risk and go for it. I struggled with a bit of instability with the car. But I knew that on the last lap I had to try so I risked it and the car it just managed to turn in nicely. It was good.
Q: That must give you a lot of confidence taking it into tomorrow. What are you expecting to have from your team-mate going into Turn 1? And again your race is something. It’s going to be interesting to see how the race pans out for you?
VB: Yeah it’s going to be a good fight. It’s one of the longest runs on the calendar into Turn 1, so no doubt Lewis and Max will be chasing me but it’s a good place to start and hopefully the pace is good and yeah, game on.
Q: Lewis, second position, you must be a bit frustrated about that. But he just finally pipped you on that last lap you did.
Lewis HAMILTON: Yeah, Valtteri did a great job and it was a pretty piss poor lap from myself! But these things happen. You can’t always get it perfect. But what a beautiful place we’re in here in Italy. The track: it’s unbelievable the speeds we are going round this track. Grateful to be here. Grateful for the performance we have, which is really remarkable. It feels better than it did in the last race. Yeah, it was a real challenge out there, but I enjoyed it.
Q: What about the race, because your team-mate is always going to be a threat but Max? They had a few problems in that session but overall do you think he’s going to be a bigger threat tomorrow compared to last time?
LH: Yeah, they were very strong on their race runs. What is unfortunate really with this track is that it is so beautiful to drive but you are going to see… I’m pretty certain you are going to see a pretty boring race tomorrow. You can overtake on this long straight but it’s quite narrow. But you can’t follow. Once you get into Turn 1 there is no single place to overtake anywhere else. It’s going to be a challenge for people following but as I said the DRS will hopefully give some overtaking opportunities into Turn 1 for people. For us, that means… as you see we are within half a tenth of each other and to have an opportunity of overtaking I think you have to have a gain of something like two seconds or something to the car ahead to have a chance. Nonetheless, I’m going to give it everything I’ve got tomorrow and fingers crossed.
Q: What’s the best part of the track and why?
LH: I would say location. They don’t build tracks this anymore. I don’t know why the new guys can’t build a track like this. It’s just a classic and it has the history, which helps, and I would say location, it’s in one of the most beautiful places here in Italy.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Valtteri, many congratulations. So close between you and Lewis. How good was that final lap of Q3?
VB: Well, obviously I didn’t have much experience of this track but once we got down to the qualifying session and the laps keep getting faster and faster and you really start to appreciate this track more and more and towards the end of qualifying when you are flat out on this track it’s really beautiful and enjoyable to drive. A proper old school track and that’s what we all like. The last lap it was good enough. I think no one, I doubt they had perfect laps with the short amount of practice and having to be on the limit just in one day, getting the rhythm quickly. But it was good enough and definitely better than the first lap I had in Q3. There were a few places on track where I had to make big gains and luckily most of the losses I managed tyo minimise and the areas I was quick I tried to make them even better.
Q: With only practice session ahead of qualifying, how much of an unknown is the race tomorrow?
VB: For sure it’s unknown. We got some long runs in practice. I think quite a lot of cars had graining on the soft tyre. That’s one of the reasons we qualified on the medium tyres. That felt OK. For surer there are questions marks but at least the starting point for the race is good.
Q: Lewis, it was a great battle between team-mates for pole position. In the end, just less than a tenth between you. You didn’t seem happy immediately after the session. Were there any particular issues on your laps in Q3?
LH: What do you mean ‘I didn’t seem happy?’ I’m second! I think I was fine. Valtteri did a great job today, so ultimately in Q3 both laps weren’t that great, to be honest. The first lap was OK and the second one was pretty poor. To only have been that far away, considering, it’s not so bad. We live to fight another day tomorrow.
Q: You’ve said it’s a beautiful track. Can you give us some idea of the challenge of Imola?
LH: The speed that we’re doing from Turn 2 onwards. It’s really intense. The lap is just non-stop, medium-high speed. The grip is very, very high and so, naturally, the faster you’re going, the harder it is to be inch-perfect. And so, Valtteri did a great job today. It’s not going to be a great race circuit, that’s for sure. I’d be really surprised if it’s a great race to watch tomorrow – because once you get into Turn 2, you can’t follow. Yeah. I hope I’m wrong.
Q: So the key to winning the Grand Prix is the start?
LH: Qualifying is… it’s perhaps a little bit like Monaco in that sense. I think the strategy as well. It’s going to be interesting tomorrow. There are usually only a couple of options. It won’t be as good as the last race in terms of the opportunities to overtake, places that you can follow. But, as I said, maybe we’ll be surprised.
Q: Max, coming to you. It seemed like a tough qualifying. First up, what was the issue in Q2 that kept you in the garage for so long?
MV: I don’t know exactly what it was. Of course, the bodywork had to go off and I think the mechanics did a very good job to fix my car but it ruined, a bit, my qualifying because you have to go out on a Medium, try to nail the lap. We just managed to go through, of course, on that, but yeah, the reference was a bit off. The first lap then in Q3, the tyres were too cold because I was a bit in the middle of the train. I never really got into a nice rhythm where you know that, ‘OK, I have a bit of time left here, I can push a bit harder’ It was all a bit messy so, even in Q3, the last lap, I was, ‘well, I think we could have done a bit better here if we just had a smoother qualifying. But if you have that in Q2 and you have to qualify on a different tyre as well, mid-way through then yeah, it’s not great. I didn’t expect, of course, to beat them in qualifying. I just wanted to be a bit closer, make it a bit more exciting – but today, it was just very tricky and I never really found that rhythm that you get throughout qualifying, that you know ‘OK we put a new tyre-set on and I know where to find my lap time’. I was just still learning to go faster. Bit of a shame but still, P3, so back in my seat!
Q: Do you expect to be closer to these guys tomorrow?
MV: Long run was alright, so hopefully we’ll be a bit similar tomorrow. Let’s hope that, top-speed-wise, we’re on a good position tomorrow. I don’t think it’s going to be very easy to pass anyway but we’ll see. We’ll see what we can do.
VIDEO CONFERENCE
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Question for Valtteri please. You mentioned when you got out of the car that you had to really risk it on that last, final lap. Could you explain where in particular you felt you had to take those extra risks – and how close to the edge did you come with those? Thank you.
VB: There’s a couple of points on this track – every track but this one especially with such a limited practice and experience – I had some issues sometimes in Turn 2 with locking up, trying to brake too late. Sometimes into the last two corners, the downhill braking, I braked too late, and that’s why I lost a bit of momentum out of those corners, so it’s just small things like that. There was no time to be wasted under braking, which I wasn’t in places yet quite comfortable – but I’m glad I could get there eventually and, in the last run for sure you’re not holding back. You either go for it or go home. I’m glad it was a good-enough lap.
Q: (Christian Menath – motorsport-magazin.com) First part of the question for Max. Can you explain how it felt in the car in Q2 when you lost the power? Was it feeling like you don’t have the MGU-K power? And then for all three of you, how was the programme today in the only practice session with the long runs? How many did you do compared to a normal weekend? Thank you.
MV: No, I had power. Then not. Then it kicked in again. Then not. They told me to keep going but I said, ‘guys, I’m losing quite a bit of lap-time here on the straight’ because at one point I aborted because it didn’t make sense to continue. We’ll have more detailed look what exactly went wrong. I didn’t speak to my engineers yet because it doesn’t make sense to go through qualifying discussing what broke. Just focus on the job. It’s not so lovely but luckily we’re still here.
Q: And Max, your programme today?
MV: Yeah, it was nice. We hit the ground running, quite smoothly. I didn’t really have a lot of problems with the car, like no balance issues, so then of course it’s great when you have only one practice session but of course when you’re struggling a bit more with the car then you would like to have another practice session, so I guess sometimes it’s good, sometimes you will experience a bit more trouble.
VB: For sure, it’s always a compromise. You know you can’t only do short runs or only do long runs, so you have to compromise the time a bit but what was a nice thing was actually to have three sets of tyres so it meant we could run pretty much the whole practice instead of… we see sometimes on Friday that we’re sitting around quite a bit because of the limited tyres so that was nice and put up the session, but for sure a compromise between short and long runs.
LH: The same as theirs. It was great. I much prefer just the two days.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) Question for the two Mercedes drivers: Valtteri, you’ve had some choice words for your critics at times. This is, I think, your fourth pole this year and on an old school track as well so do you think your performances are under-rated? And Lewis, you often speak about how hard Valtteri pushes you. Could you just give your view on how high a level he’s performing at, please?
VB: I don’t really think about that, how people rate me. It’s something that I think is a wrong area to focus on and for sure, sometimes we get criticism – I think everyone does, that’s normal in life and there’s always people who want to drag you down but I just try to turn it into positive energy and try to use it was a strength. So I’m not really one to comment if I’m under rated or over rated, whatever. It’s not something that I should think about, I’m just focusing on my driving, trying to get pole, trying to get wins, that’s my job, that’s what I like to do.
LH: I don’t really think I need to say much. I mean, Jeez, he just got pole position. He’s ahead of me. I have more poles than anyone here so it’s not like I’m a slowpoke, so he’s doing an amazing job and I think his result today speaks for itself. I don’t really need to say much more. He does his talking on the track and that’s the great thing about Valtteri, but I don’t think there’s many people who can do what he’s doing, if I’m really honest, so I’ve got a huge amount of respect for him.
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Max, you seem to be a lot closer to the Mercedes in qualifying but not so much in the race. I know what you said just now that you hoped to be closer, but if we look at the past couple of races it appears as though you’re closer in qualifying, not so much the race. Do you put this down to a difference in the hybrid systems or what do you put it down to? And then the other question is given the number of issues you’ve had with Honda recently, do you really believe it’s the right way for the team to go with Honda engines in the future, under their own brand or whatever independent engine they’re going to have?
MV: Well, first of all, that last bit: I don’t know how to comment on that, to be honest. I guess we just have to wait and see what’s going to happen. OK, we have had two retirements this year but I think in general they’ve done a great job and I’m very happy to work with Honda, they’re great guys and they are very, very motivated and they will never give up and I like that mentality. I think it’s a bit track-dependent, so where, for example, you are clipping a lot, it seems that we are a bit more prone to that so of course you lose a bit more lap time on the straights so if you compare to last year as well, it seems like last year from qualifying to the race we would gain a bit and it seems like maybe now qualifying seems a little bit better and then in the race we struggle a bit more with that. But yeah, it’s not on every track. To be honest, I mean, Nürburgring wasn’t that bad. I think we were quite competitive. It was just a few corners where it seemed like we were struggling a bit and that’s why Lewis was just opening the gap on me. Last race, I don’t know, I just found it very tricky to comment on that one because of first of all the first lap but also the tarmac and everything. I was on a different strategy. I don’t think there is a trend. I just see that when you are a bit more limited with the energy you can lose over a lap in the race, it seems like it’s… yeah, we don’t have the same amount of release, at least on the straights, so we’ll have to work harder to try and improve that.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Again, to the two Mercedes drivers: again, you’re starting on the medium tyres at the start of the race. Obviously a harder compound, we saw what happened last weekend. Are you expecting a similar thing to happen, or is that negated by the softer tyres this weekend and a different track surface. And also, to Valtteri, it looks as if pole position is slightly off the racing line; does that give you a little bit of a disadvantage compared to starting second?
VB: I don’t know the facts: is there more grip on the left or right hand side? For sure it’s maybe not as clean as some other places. There are some different bits of tarmac on the grid in some places, so it’s an unknown. That’s something we’re going to find out tomorrow. Yeah, for sure, try and get more heat than last weekend. I think the rain played quite a big part in Portimão and the new tarmac. I’m sure we will try everything we can. I think even though it could be tricky at the beginning of the race, I really hope and there’s always a reason why we go for the medium, that it is a better race tyre but we’ll see.
LH: Yeah, pretty much the same as Valtteri. It should be different here; the surface is different.
Ends
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Valtteri Bottas takes pole at Imola
Valtteri and Lewis lock out the front row of the grid for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team in close qualifying session at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
- Valtteri clinched pole position, marking his 15th career Formula One pole position, and fourth pole of the season
- Lewis finished the session in P2, just under a tenth of a second behind his teammate
- The result marked the 10th front row lockout of the 2020 season for the team
- Valtteri and Lewis will both start the 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on the Medium tyre
Imola, 31 October 2020: Valtteri Bottas beat Lewis Hamilton by less than a tenth of a second to grab pole position at Imola for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Hamilton looked to be in charge after he took provisional pole with his opening lap of Q3, but in the final runs, Bottas found more pace in the first sector to set himself up for a lap that edged his team-mate by the small margin of 0.097s even as Hamilton also improved. Third place in the session went to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen with Pierre Gasly fourth for Alpha Tauri, in the 13th round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship her on Saturday.
Bottas took top spot in Q1, with the Finn setting a time of 1:14.221. Mercedes team-mate Hamilton followed in P2 despite having a final flying lap deleted for a track limits infringement at Turn 9, while Verstappen made light work of the opening session with a lap of 1:15.034 that proved good enough for P3 at the end of the segment.
It was less straightforward for Alex Albon, however. The Thai driver took P8 with a lap of 1:15.539, but the time was quickly deleted due to a track limits infringement at Acque Minerale. That left him in P19 and requiring an error-free final flyer. And though Albon once again flirted with the limits at the same location, this time he made the lap count and he went through to Q2 in P8 with a time of 1:15.402.
There was no escape for Kimi Räikkönen, however. The Alfa Romeo driver jumped to safety with his final flyer but he soon plummeted back to P18 as his time was deleted for a track limits breach in Turn 15. He exited behind the Haas cars of Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen. Behind Räikkönen, Latifi was eliminated in P19 ahead of the second Alfa Romeo of Antonio Giovinazzi.
At the start of Q2, Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull sent their drivers out on medium tyres and again it was Bottas who went quickest in the session, with the Finn’s lap of 1:14.585 edging Hamilton by just under six hundredths of a second.
Progress to the final segment of the session was again tricky for the Bulls, though this time it was Verstappen who hit trouble. On his first flying lap he reported a loss of power and was forced to retreat to the pit lane with no time on the board. A faulty spark plug was swiftly diagnosed and though the cure was simple it left the Dutchman with just one opportunity to seal a place in Q3.
He made no mistakes, however, and a solid lap of 1:14.974, set on medium tyres, sent him through in P6.
Albon, meanwhile, sat in P11 after his opener on mediums and he was sent out again on softs to seal his Q3 place. Again, there were no errors and Albon sealed his place with a lap of 1:14.745 that was good enough for P4 behind AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly.
In P11, however, Racing Point’s Sergio Pérez missed out on Q3 by just one hundredth of a second as Mclaren’s Lando Norris edged past. Behind Pérez, Renault’s Esteban Ocon went out in P12 ahead of Williams’ George Russell, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and Racing Point’s Lance Stroll.
In the opening runs of Q3 Verstappen slotted into a comfortable third place as Hamilton took provisional pole ahead of Bottas.
It was the Finnish Mercedes driver who made the most of the final run, however, a purple sector setting him for a lap that saw him claim pole 0.097s ahead of Hamilton.
Verstappen too improved on his final flyer, finding almost three tenths of a second, and he took third place on the grid with a lap of 1:14.176.
At the start of the final session, Albon once again fell foul of track limits, this time at the Variante Alta chicane. His time was deleted and ahead of the final runs he sat in P10, with no time on the board.
However, the Thai driver aced his final flyer to claim P6 behind AlphaTauri’s fourth-placed Pierre Gasly and Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo. Behind Albon, Leclerc took seventh place for Ferrari ahead of the second AlphaTauri of Daniil Kvyat and the McLarens of Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz.
2020 FIA Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – Qualifying
1 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:13.609 6 240.084
2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:13.706 0.097 6 239.768
3 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1:14.176 0.567 6 238.249
4 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1:14.502 0.893 6 237.207
5 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1:14.520 0.911 6 237.149
6 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 1:14.572 0.963 6 236.984
7 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:14.616 1.007 6 236.844
8 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri/Honda 1:14.696 1.087 6 236.590
9 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 1:14.814 1.205 6 236.217
10 Carlos Sainz McLaren/Renault 1:14.911 1.302 6 235.911
11 Sergio Pérez Racing Point/Mercedes 1:15.061 0.476 6 235.440
12 Esteban Ocon Renault 1:15.201 0.616 6 235.002
13 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1:15.323 0.738 8 234.621
14 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:15.385 0.800 10 234.428
15 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 1:15.494 0.909 6 234.090
16 Romain Grosjean Haas/Ferrari 1:15.918 1.697 10 232.782
17 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 1:15.939 1.718 11 232.718
18 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:15.953 1.732 10 232.675
19 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:15.987 1.766 12 232.571
20 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:16.208 1.987 8 231.896 -
Mercedes’ Toto Wolff talks about Imola, says he is excited to watch Lewis’ journey
Looking ahead to Round 13 of the 2020 season, as Formula One makes a return to Imola
Imola, 30 October 2020: Round 13 of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship takes teams and drivers to Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola’s Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari.F1 has not visited the famous Italian circuit since it hosted the San Marino Grand Prix in 2006. A highly-technical track with a wide range of corners, the narrow bumpy Imola circuit could not present a more different challenge to the wide smooth surface at Portimao, last weekend. A generation of drivers, however, will have to get up to speed quickly, with just one 90-minute Practice session on Saturday, two hours ahead of the qualifying session. Friday is off, to give more time for the teams and staff to arrive at the circuit and both the Practice sessions were called off, merged into one 90-min session on Saturday. Race day schedule will be the same.
A record-breaking 92-win last week extended Lewis Hamilton’s grip at the leaderboard to 77 points over teammate Valtteri Bottas. He cannot win the title at Imola, but Mercedes AMG Petronas can bundle out the Constructors’ Trophy. Following a fourth 1-2 finish, their lead over Red Bull is 209 points. Red Bull must outscore them by at least 34 points, to keep the championship alive going into Turkey. The battle for third place is on with just 6 points separating Racing Point, McLaren and Renault.
Toto on Imola – “I am excited to see the journey of Lewis”
It was remarkable to see Lewis achieve his 92nd F1 win. It’s like Michael often said: Records are there to be broken. We’re witnessing the amazing journey of one of the greatest athletes of our time and I’m excited to see where else it will take Lewis.
We showed good pace in Portimão once we got the tyres into their window and left Portugal with the maximum number of points, building the gap in both championships on the way to our ultimate goal this year. Now our focus moves onto Imola, which is another F1 venue that we haven’t visited for a long time. It’s a track with lots of history but one that the Mercedes works team has never raced on before, so there are quite a few unknowns heading into the race weekend, and it’s great to be back in Italy once again for our third different race there this season.
We’ll also be experiencing an unfamiliar schedule, with no running on Friday and just one practice session on Saturday morning. We had an unexpected preview of what this would be like at the Nürburgring after Friday’s running was cancelled because of the rain. We can expect a busy practice session where teams will try to maximise their running on track to prepare in the best way possible for Qualifying and the race; achieving the fastest possible rate of learning will be important to maximise our competitiveness for qualifying and the race.
We’ve seen exciting races on the new tracks this year and the shorter weekend format will spice things up even more, so fans have an interesting weekend to look forward to. Meanwhile, 9 people were tested positive after the last F1 race.
Stat Attack: Imola and Beyond
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix TimetableSession Local Time (CET) Brackley (GMT) Stuttgart (CET) Practice (Saturday) 10:00-11:30 09:00-10:30 10:00-11:30 Qualifying (Saturday) 14:00-15:00 13:00-14:00 14:00-15:00 Race (Sunday) 13:10-15:10 12:10-14:10 13:10-15:10 -
Hamilton rewrites history with convincing 92nd win: Race Analysis
London, 26 October 2020: Lewis Hamilton achieved a record breaking 92nd career race win as he surpassed Michael Schumacher to be the most successful driver in terms of wins in Formula 1. Mercedes achieved their fourth 1-2 of the season as Valtteri Bottas finished 2nd and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen completed the podium.
Hamilton re-wrote history by winning the most number of races in Formula 1, 92. This was also his 8th win of the season and won by the biggest margin of 2020, by 25.592s despite suffering cramps towards the end, from teammate Bottas who had no answer for his loss of pace. Verstappen finished in P3 in the process lapping his teammate Albon, who finished in P12. Leclerc crossed the line in an impressive P4. Gasly yet again had a mega drive in P5, Sainz following him in P6 as Perez recovered from last at the start to P7. The Renault duo finished P8 and P9, Ocon finished ahead of Ricciardo only the second time this season. Vettel completed the top 10.
Raikkonen just missed out on points finishing 11th while his teammate Giovinazzi had to race without radio during the whole race, ultimately finishing 15th. Norris recovered to 13th after contact and damage with Stroll, one place ahead of Williams’ Russell in a well-deserved P14. Teammate Latifi finished last, ahead of Haas duo Magnussen and Grosjean. Only one car retired from the race, that of Stroll due to floor and car damage.
The race start was arguably the most hectic of the season as dark clouds loomed over the circuit with droplets appearing on the track. Hamilton started well but had an oversteer moment and lost places to Bottas and Sainz. Meanwhile, behind Verstappen and Perez touched, sending the Racing Point car spinning to the back of the grid. Behind, Raikkonen displayed superb skills to make up 10 places in the first lap to run P6. All medium-tyre runners were struggling with cold temperatures as they were taking time to warm-up.
Lewis Hamilton, right, with his Sr. race engineer Peter Bonnington on the podium. An AMG Petronas Mercedes image By Lap 2, Sainz has overtaken Bottas for the lead as Norris too was running in P4. By Lap 6, Bottas overtook Sainz for the lead, Hamilton followed suit the next lap, settling in P2. By Lap 10, Bottas was leading, with Hamilton 2nd and Verstappen 3rd. Verstappen was beginning to struggle on the soft tyres due to graining as both the Mercedes cars pulled away. In the midfield, Ricciardo pit for medium tyres to undercut the likes of Gasly and Raikkonen. Stroll and Norris collided in Turn 1, as Stroll misjudged his closing speed from behind on Norris and turned in his path. Stroll was handed a 5-second penalty for causing a collision.
By Lap 15, Hamilton had started closing in on Bottas, the gap around 1.5s and coming down. On Lap 19, Hamilton made use of DRS to shoot past Bottas and take the lead as Bottas struggled for pace on his tyres. Verstappen pitted on Lap 23 for medium tyres but the damage had already been done as the leader was already 10sec ahead. Sainz and Gasly pitted on Lap 26 and 28 respectively for medium tyres, dropping behind a recovering Perez. The Mercedes duo and Leclerc were yet to pit as they ran in top-3 positions, while Ocon too was running in P5, yet to do a pit stop.
Leclerc pitted on Lap 34 bolting on a set of hard tyres, emerging in P4 as Verstappen slotted back in P3. Russell in his Williams ran in P7 for a brief amount of laps as after his pit stop he emerged outside of the top 10 on lap 37. Hamilton pitted on Lap 40 for hard tyres, Bottas doing the same on the next lap. Ocon pulled off a mammoth 53 lap stint on the mediums as he pitted and emerged with soft tyres. Similar to Perez who had bolted softs 8 laps prior. Unfortunately, for both the soft tyres did not work as Perez was overtaken by Gasly and Sainz in the dying laps and Ocon was unable to close the gap to Sainz in front of him.
A Pirelli graphic of the pit stops on Sunday. Mercedes confirmed before the race weekend that they had stopped the development of the W11 and are focusing on next year’s car. They still maintain one-lap and race-pace advantage over Red Bull. Red Bull have closed that advantage with the help of new parts such as rear suspensions and a new front wing endplate. Ferrari has improved in the last couple of races, especially in the hands of Leclerc. Their race pace has improved as Leclerc managed to hold on to P4. They brought a new barge board package and a new diffuser for greater and efficient downforce generation. The upgrades have seemed to work, but remains to be seen if they can challenge McLaren, Renault and Racing Point consistently.
McLaren showed good one-lap and race pace this weekend. They were unable to capitalise fully as Norris’ race was compromised by the collision. Renault seemed to struggle here as they lost their one-lap pace, they couldn’t finish higher than P8. It was damage limitation for them. Racing Point were arguably the fastest midfield cars as evident by Perez’s recovery. If not for the Perez and Stroll entanglements, they could have got a solid result. AlphaTauri once again capitalised on their superior race pace as Gasly finished in P5, best of the rest. AlphaTauri still lack the one-lap pace that prevents them from starting in higher positions.
Alfa Romeo and Williams both showed good race pace and points potential, though in the end just falling short. Williams tried a new set of barge boards during free practice, remains to be seen if they will use it for the rest of the season. Haas once more had a mediocre race as they never really challenged for higher positions or points.
Earlier, Lewis Hamilton started from pole position and Bottas from P2 on the grid as Mercedes locked out the front row for the ninth time this season. Verstappen qualified in his customary P3 position, while a superb qualifying from Charles Leclerc saw him start P4. Sergio Perez qualified in P5, meanwhile, his returning Racing Point teammate Lance Stroll could only manage P12. P6 starter was Alex Albon and both the McLarens of Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris occupied the fourth row of the grid. Pierre Gasly started in P9 as AlphaTauri teammate Daniil Kvyat only managed to start in P13. Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo lined up in P10, one place ahead of teammate Esteban Ocon. George Russell put in an impressive qualifying performance as he lined up P14 in his Williams, ahead of Sebastian Vettel in a Ferrari. Alfa Romeo’s of Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi started in P16 and P17 respectively. Haas duo of Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen started in P18 and P19, the former ahead of latter. Rookie Nicholas Latifi lined up last.
The predicted fastest strategy was medium tyres to hard tyres as the soft tyres were prone to graining. Only Hamilton, Bottas and Leclerc started on mediums in the top 10.
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We will do everything to catch up Ferrari, says McLaren’s Zak Brown
TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Franz TOST (AlphaTauri), Zak BROWN (McLaren), Otmar SZAFNAUER (Racing Point)
Q: Welcome gentleman, good to see you all. Can we start this session please with your first impressions of the Algarve International Circuit. What are the engineers saying, what are the drivers saying. Franz, perhaps we could start with you.
Franz TOST: It’s a very impressive race track. The drivers like it. It’s a demanding track, it’s not so easy and we are still analysing everything to find hopefully a good set-up. It’s, I think, an enrichment for Formula 1 to be here because it’s really a very nice venue and I like it.
Zak BROWN: I think it’s exciting to come to new venues. I think that’s been an exciting part of the season this year, with some new circuits. I think the drivers enjoy the challenge of the circuit, the elevation changes. I think it will be difficult to pass around here. The early comments as you would expect was not a lot of rubber down so quite slippery but it will be exciting. I’ve been here before, about a decade ago, so I think it was intended to have Formula 1 races here before all the testing restrictions were put in place. So, I think we’ll put on a good show for the fans.
Otmar SZAFNAUER: Yeah, no different to what Zak and Franz said. There’s good elevation change here and some blind corners too and some off-camber stuff. The drivers are now getting used to the track and trying to hone-in the car and get a better set-up than what we started with.
Q: Staying with you Otmar, great to have Lance back with the team this weekend. Tell us, how is he today and how has his recuperation affected the team’s preparations for this race?
OS: Yeah, he’s feeling fine, he’s one hundred per cent, physically and in himself. He tested positive on Sunday, so that was Sunday of the German Grand Prix which meant that his ten-day isolation ended in time to come here and do the track walk and have normal preparation, so it hasn’t had an impact apart from quarantining for ten days.
Q: Zak, the driver’s silly season has ramped up this weekend with the news that both Haas drivers are on the market. Would you consider someone like Kevin Magnussen, who’s a former McLaren driver in the team’s IndyCar squad?
ZB: I thought you were going to ask about Formula 1 and I was going to say we have our drivers. Yeah, I think Kevin is a very fast driver, very aggressive, which I think fits IndyCar driving styles, so we do have our driver line-up sorted. One of those drivers announced, Pato, one yet to be announced, so I don’t think there is a window of opportunity for Kevin in our IndyCar team. Had there been, he would definitely have been considered.
Q: Franz, quick question about the Constructors’ Championship. Your team is only 13 points behind Ferrari now and you’ve out-scored them at the last three races. How do you rate your chances of beating them to sixth place?
FT: It will not become an easy target but we will do everything to score as many points as possible – hopefully more than Ferrari to catch up and hopefully to be in front of them at the end of the season. But, as I said before, it will become a very big challenge because they brought new upgrades also now to Portimão. They look quite fast in FP1, especially Leclerc and the rest, we will see. We’ll be pushing.
VIDEO CONFERENCE
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Question for Zak and for Franz please. There have been recent outbreaks of COVID among teams. I think Mercedes and Renault, we’ve obviously had the high profile ones at Racing Point. Are you two team principals, who, as far as I know, haven’t really been affected recently, apart from you, Zak, in Australia, are you quite comfortable with the protocols and the processes and procedures that are in place?
ZB: Yes. Is the short answer. If I look back I think we were the first team to get COVID within the team in Australia. This disease is extremely contagious and extremely dangerous. I think the FIA and Formula 1 have done a very good job in putting on these grands prix. If you look at some other sports I think they’ve had bigger issues. I think it requires a lot of trust, transparency, communication and responsibility from all the teams to make sure we have not only safety within our own teams but within the whole racing community. For McLaren, we put our people first and foremost. We won’t take any risks; we won’t gamble; we recognise how dangerous this is and we want to make sure everyone stays healthy and we can continue to put on grands prix. So, I think the sport’s done a good job. There has been more cases, obviously Racing Point, as you mentioned, being the most visible recently, and we do a tremendous amount of testing. We take full precaution and will do an immense amount of testing and I think we all just need to look after each other’s back. If I look at the Racing Point incident – incidents – I would probably test anyone that isn’t feeling well, daily. When in Australia, we had someone that didn’t feel well. Andreas and I aren’t doctors but we took the very quick decision to isolate and then once the test came back positive, isolate the team and ultimately we knew that would shut us down for the race. So, I know the doctor didn’t think a test was positive. Maybe in hindsight that should be different. I don’t know who the doctor was. Don’t know if it was Dr Mallya, Dr Seuss… maybe it was Dr Dre. Maybe next time around we should be testing any sorts of symptoms because we know how dangerous this is.
FT: FIA and FOM are really doing a very good job because this COVID-19 story is really a difficult one. I think that Formula 1 showed that with a really good organisation and control you can do all the races and the sporting events. Because Formula 1 started more or less with everything in June and we, from the AlphaTauri side do everything to prevent that people get this COVID-19 virus. We once more worked all of our guidelines and we retested people, also in their private life, to protect themselves, to wear the mask, to not come together with too many people and everyday in the morning, when our employees come to the factory, they are being tested with the temperature and as soon as anything is not clear, we send them immediately to our doctor – but so far I think we have everything under control and I hope this will stay so until the end of the season.
Q: (Jonathan McEvoy – Daily Mail, via email) It’s to you Otmar. Yes or no, did a Racing Point engineer test positive for COVID at or following the Russian Grand Prix?
OS: No. We didn’t have an engineer test positive after Russia. I think we’ve now done nearly 20,000 tests, 15,000 at the factory and however many that we do here because we test more than once. We’ve had our two drivers test positive and a few members at the factory, and that’s it. We test more than any other business, more than any other Formula 1 team on the planet. We test all of our employees every Tuesday and every Friday and we test everybody that’s at the track upon landing in Britain. So, every Monday when our aeroplane lands we have Eurofins there testing, so everyone has piece of mind when they go home to their families that they’re not bringing the virus with them, which is why I know that we didn’t have a positive test after Russia.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) A question to Otmar following up on that. Otmar, when you spoke to a lot of the media yesterday and explained in quite detailed terms why you’re satisfied with the Racing Point testing protocols, after that media session it emerged that the FIA intended to give a warning to the team, which I think was for not disclosing Lance’s positive test earlier, rather than what happened over the Eifel Grand Prix weekend. Could you just clarify what’s gone on there, what communication has there been with the FIA and are they satisfied with how you handled that situation?
OS: It wasn’t a warning, it was a reminder, and it was a reminder that we have an obligation to inform the FIA in a short period of time after, and we’ve learned from that. And if it happens again, of course we will do it immediately. So yeah, like I said, it was a reminder, not a warning. When Lance tested on Sunday he was isolating in Switzerland after he got the result. Our concern was first and foremost for his health but also making sure that we contacted all of his close contacts to let them know – but by the time we had word, all of his close contacts had already tested negative for the virus.
Q: (Christian Menath – motorsport-magazin.com) Question for Zak. If I understood you correctly, there was some criticism between the lines about how Racing Point handled the situation. You were talking about trust and responsibility the teams have. Do you think they dealt with the situation not with this trust and responsibility?
ZB: Look, I don’t know what everyone’s testing protocols are. I know how much we test; I don’t know how much Franz tests. I’ve just heard Racing Point test more than any company on the planet. Not sure how you substantiate that. All I know is that when we had our issue in Australia, we communicated it very quickly to everyone because I think we have a moral obligation to people’s health, that they need to have a high level of awareness. I think that’s what Mercedes did when they had their incidents. So, again, I don’t know all the details, I just know what I read and see. Looks like there wasn’t immediate transparency and you know, for an entity that tests as much as they do, all I know is we would be testing at McLaren anyone who doesn’t feel well, daily. To make sure that person is healthy and that they’re not transmitting, and then would isolate anyone that was around them immediately.
Q: (Christian Nimmervoll – motorsport.com) Question to Zak and of course Otmar if he wants to add anything. Zak, it looks like Racing Point, in spite of the penalty earlier this season and the 15-point deduction, has a very good chance of finishing third in the championship. If that remains the case until the end of the season, would you regret not having pursued the matter further earlier this year and is there a bit of a bitter feeling that this was a lenient penalty?
ZB: Look, Racing Point has an extremely fast race car. It’s the third fastest race car on the grid and it has been all year. Racing Point, formerly Force India, has always been a strong team. I think we got what we wanted, which was clarity and a change of direction for the future. I think you can’t look backwards in the sport. Franz’s team, I think there was a question earlier about him running for sixth in the championship, I wouldn’t rule them out for fifth or fourth in the championship; they are extremely competitive. That’s the nature of the beast. Don’t regret anything from the past, just glad that we have got clarity moving forwards so that you can’t replicate a race car to the extent they have done in the future.
Q: (Ronald Vording – motorsport.com, via email) Helmut Marko said Red Bull’s preferred option for 2022 is to take over the Honda project and to run the engines themselves but they want a complete freeze on engine development from 2022 in order to do that. Would that be acceptable to you if it kept both Red Bull teams on board?
ZB: You’re looking at me. Obviously we want to have both Red Bull teams participating in Formula 1, they both great teams. I think it’s too early – we have some upcoming meetings – to understand what that would look like. Of course we don’t make engines so we would defer to Mercedes, our future engine partner, on what they think engine regulations should look like moving forward so I think at this point, until it’s discussed, it’s a bit premature to have a strong view.
OS: I tend to agree with Zak. The Red Bull teams are both an important part of Formula 1, both Red Bull and AlphaTauri, and we for sure need them to stay. As for freezing the engines, that’s a question for Mercedes. However, I think it’s healthy for us to have a sport where you compete a little bit on the engine, you compete a little bit on chassis, you compete a little bit on set-up and you compete a little bit on drivers and I think excluding any one of those and it’s not Formula 1.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) A question for Franz, please. We’ve heard the interest and excitement around Yuki Tsunoda. It seems to have been indicated from Helmut Marko that Yuki is in a good position for an AlphaTauri seat next year. Is it as simple as: if Yuki gets the Super Licence points he will be in Formula 1 next year?
FT: The driver line up is not decided yet for next year. The programme is with Yuki is, in a few words, the following: we had him in the factory last week to make his seat, because after the race in Imola we will do a 300km test; maybe, but this us not decided yet, he will do an FP1 once, and then he has another two races in Bahrain and we will see where he is finishing the F2 championship, in regards to the Super Licence. Then he will do the Abu Dhabi young driver test and then Red Bull will decide who will be the driver line-up for Scuderia AlphaTauri in 2021.
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Thank you. A change of tack here from the normal COVID questions. A question for Otmar. Otmar, I wonder if you could clarify please, whether you or any of your team members or team executives are being or will be called upon to testify in the Uralkali court case against the administrators in regard to the sale of your team?
OS: I don’t know what the future holds there Dieter, but I can tell you I haven’t been asked.
Q: (Luke Smith – Autosport) Zak, you spoke about the IndyCar project earlier. You previously said Sergio Pérez could be an option were you to run a third car in IndyCar next year. I wondered if you’d had any further talks there and what are you looking at for your IndyCar project for 2021?
ZB: Yeah, I think Sergio, too, is an extremely good talent and someone that would be great to have in an IndyCar but I suspect he’ll stay in Formula 1, but I don’t know that for sure, but I think a third car for us, other than at the Indy 500, is unlikely.
Q: (Julianne Cerasoli – UOL Esporte) Does the sequence of added races at new circuits tend to increase the gap to the biggest teams or is your simulation capacity similar to theirs?
OS: Yeah, that’s a good question. It’s hard to know the details of the simulation work that the bigger teams use as they try to keep that to themselves. We too have a driver-in-the-loop simulator that we use to prepare for new circuits and for those that come in quick succession and we do the best we can to be ready when we get here and to utilise FP1 for a bit of set-up work and long runs. We’re doing the best we can with the resources we have but it’s hard to compare. I hear rumours of what the bigger teams are doing but I’m not 100% sure.
ZB: Yeah, I don’t know what the other teams are doing but you have to assume that the teams with larger budgets are outspending you and have greater resources in probably everything across the board, give or take. We do the best we can with what have; we do a lot of simulation. But I suspect that those that have bigger budgets are doing more.
FT: Of course the big teams have an advantage coming to new race tracks, because they have the resources. They have the hardware and the software to get more out of it on the part of information and therefore the gap increases because they use these tools in a very good way for them and for the teams that don’t have all these simulation tools have a disadvantage.
TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Simon ROBERTS (Williams), Guenther STEINER (Haas), Frédéric VASSEUR (Alfa Romeo)
PART 2
Q: If we could start with you first impressions of this wonderful Algarve circuit. Simon could we start with you please?
Simon ROBERTS: Yeah, it’s a great track. First time I’ve ever been, so really nice to see. Also we’ve got a brand new surface, which has made it interesting with the tyres this morning but yeah, it’s a proper three-dimensional track and the drivers are really enjoying it.
Guenther STEINER: Yeah I agree with Simon. Everybody seems to be enjoying it and I think also this year going to a few new places or going back to really old places is exciting for Formula 1. I think we spiced it up there and something new is always nice. In general it’s a very nice track and I think all the drivers enjoy it.
Frédéric VASSEUR: Yeah, it was a nice feeling this morning to be back in Portimão – I went there 10 or 12 years ago. But OK with Guenther, on this season we are visiting or re-visiting some nice tracks, like Nürburg two weeks ago or Mugello before and it’s always nice for the championship to have new layouts and new tracks. It will be an exciting weekend.
Q: Thanks Fred. Staying with you, how do you fancy your teams chances in Portugal this weekend on the back of what was a strong weekend at the Nürburgring last time out?
FV: Yeah, we made a step forward over the last couple of weekend and we were into the pace in Mugello and Nürburg. I don’t know if it’s linked to the new tracks or the fact that we are coming to different circuits but the pace this morning was OK, but let’s see. It’s still a long way to go before the race and we will see during the weekend.
Q: And how impressed have you been by Antonio Giovinazzi’s performances in the last couple of races?
FV: Yeah, but he was more consistent than at the beginning of the season and he did a good job. He was a bit unlucky during some events but the last one in Nürburg he did a very strong job but it’s important for us to score points because we want to stay in front of Guenther and Haas and it’s important to score points with the two cars.
Q: Guenther, Romain Grosjean expressed surprise yesterday that you’re changing both drivers for 2021. Was continuity a consideration for you?
GS: I’m surprised that he’s still surprised with my decision. I’m always surprised, but he should be used to that. No, I think we just wanted to make a change and we thought it was the right time now because next year it will more difficult because with the new car coming in ’22, we don’t want new drivers in ’22, when a complete new regulation comes in place, with a new car and different tyres and things like this. You want to start with somebody you know. If you had committed to either of them longer than this it would be at least for the next two or three years and at some stage we need change as well and we need to put our focus where we want to be in the mid-term. We are not looking only at the short term. In the short term obviously it would maybe have been best to keep them but now that we signed the Concorde Agreement going forward we need to look a little bit further ahead and see what maybe in three, four years is coming towards us.
Q: How much was the decision to change both drivers driven by financial reasons?
GS: I mean, it is driven by the financial. If you can find a driver that brings sponsors it’s fantastic or a driver that costs less. For me, in the moment, we need to invest our finances into the car, as I said, because next year’s car will be very similar to this year’s because some of the parts are homologated and frozen and we need to focus on ’22 and we need to make an investment in the car and we need to use the money as best as we can for the money.
Q: Simon, earlier this year Williams confirmed both of its drivers for 2021. Has the picture changed in recent weeks?
SR: No, nothing has changed. There’s lots of speculation and there are lots of good drivers around that are now looking for seats. Dorilton bought the team and nothing changed. I can’t say any more than that.
Q: When you say nothing has changed, are you confirming that George Russell and Nicholas Latifi will be with the team in 2021?
SR: I’m not going to say anything about either of our drivers. They are both doing a great job. There’s so much speculation around I don’t want to inadvertently fuel it. Someone will take some nuance from whatever we say. We’re happy. Let’s watch the rest of the market.
VIDEO CONFERENCE
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Simon, could you confirm please, that you will honour the contract with both drivers and that they will be with the team next year?
SR: I’m just not going to talk about it. Dorilton bought the team, nothing changed with regards to the drivers and there’s some speculation and rumour. It’s crazy, it’s silly season after all, so yeah, we’re not saying any more than that.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) Simon, I appreciate what you said in the answer there, that you don’t want to fuel the speculation but would it not make sense or be possible to extinguish that speculation by ruling out the chance of signing Sergio Perez to replace either driver?
SM: Yeah, possibly, but we just don’t want to say anything, one way or the other. We’re here to focus on a race weekend. We haven’t got any news. Guenther’s here, he has got some news. We’ve got plenty on this morning. We were running lots of part in FP1 and we’ve got to get through all that and get both our drivers in the best possible place for Saturday and Sunday.
Q: (Lewis Larkham – Crash.net) Guenther, with Haas keen to field an American driver in Formula 1 and you’re open to running an all-rookie line-up, would you be interested in Colton Herta and could it be an option for 2021, given his impressive performances in IndyCar? He has also surpassed the revised 30-point minimum requirement for a Super Licence.
GS: I think Colton Herta is doing very well. He’s one of the drivers when I watch IndyCar and I’m back in the States, actually. I think he’s doing a great job there. I haven’t spoken to him so we stop this speculation. We have had to stop speculation lately. But I respect a lot what he does. He’s very young, I think he’s got a great future but I think he’s pretty happy where he is at the moment, and therefore we didn’t talk to him. It is also always difficult… I know that he based in Europe before and all that stuff but he’s in his second season in IndyCar and he’s with a good team there and the investors, I think they want to see him there but I haven’t spoken with him, but I have the utmost respect for him, what he’s doing there but he will not be in our car next year.
Q: Guenther, Lewis Larkham said in his question there that you’re open to running all-rookie team line-up next year. Can you just confirm that is the case?
GS: Yes, yeah, we’re open to anything. We’re open to anything. I always said that. I’m sorry I didn’t respond to that, Tom, but for me it’s like we’re open to anything and I don’t want to go down and say it could be this, it could be that because it was so direct, he asked if Colton Herta is on it, I say no because otherwise speculation starts there but what we are going to do, we will try to announce as soon as possible who our drivers are so we stop this guessing but we are not at that point because we haven’t got signed contracts yet so it would be no point to say something, this could be, this should be because then people just… if it doesn’t happen, then you have to again explain it, so people just need to be a little bit patient. Hopefully it isn’t long, maybe a month or so away, and then everybody gets to know but it’s just one of the things, if you do contracts, you are obliged not speak about it.
Q: (Christian Nimmervoll – motorsport.com) Fred and Guenther, I know you’re both not going to tell us if Mick Schumacher is going to be in one of your cars, I’m not stupid enough to believe that, but can you tell us a little bit about the strengths and weaknesses you see in Mick because I’m sure you’re following his career development. Do you think he has what it takes to be successful in Formula 1?
FV: Yeah, if you have a look at what he did in the junior series, he did pretty well, he won the F3, he’s leading the F2 now. Each time he took one year to be at the top of the field but he’s doing the job at the end. This is the most important thing, he’s about to improve and deliver and now it’s a shame that we didn’t have the opportunity to FP1 two weeks ago but let’s see what happens.
GS: I don’t think I can add anything there to Fred because I think he’s the expert in these things, he’s form…
FV: You can say something.
GS: But the best teams in the feeder series over the last 20 years, I would say, yeah, he’s this old so I think Mick, now leading the F2 championship, says it all. I don’t think we don’t need to say any more than that. He’s in his second season in F2, he’s leading the championship – I wouldn’t say by a good margin – by a nice margin so I think he’s doing a good job and I think for sure he’s ready for Formula 1.
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) For all three, we’ve had a recent increase in terms of COVID cases – we think of Mercedes, we think of Renault, we think of high profile cases at Racing Point this last week. Are the three of you totally comfortable that the FIA’s policies, procedures, the whole COVID infrastructure is working the way it should be?
SR: Yeah, I think we are. We only focus on what goes on in our team. We are taking extra special measures really, for the last two events we’ve started that, and we also do the same at the factory. The most important thing is keep all our team safe and we work really hard at that but we’re all out… in our normal lives as well, as safely as possible. Yeah, compliance with the FIA rules is pretty straightforward, pretty easy. We have no issue with it whatsoever.
GS: I agree. I think the FIA guidelines and rules are very good implemented, how they are also done at the race. I’m sometimes surprised that we don’t have more cases because, as Dieter said, the cases are going up everywhere and they risk a sporadic case popping up there and about in here but I think that you cannot… it has to happen, so I think we are pretty safe. We do the same for our people, we try to adhere to all the regulations, rules and so on and sometimes this saying we have no freedom any more but our freedom is that we can go racing and everybody gets a job, that’s the most important thing is how I explain it. We need to watch. If each person is responsible we will be OK but your initial question, yeah, I think what the FIA is implementing is pretty good.
FV: Yeah, the FIA and FOM put in place a protocol, the protocol is strict and I think all the teams are following the protocol strictly and so far that everybody is safe and we had some very small number of positive cases but I think compared to the rest of the world it’s a very small number and everybody is doing a very professional job in the paddock but now, for sure, the number of cases is rising up like crazy and we have to be more and more focused on this.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) To all three: looking ahead to next year and also preparation for 2022. As we have the new aero restriction rules coming into place which will give the teams at the bottom of the Constructors championship more development time and as you get closer to 2021 and you start to have a bit more of an idea of where your development’s going to be set, do you see much of an advantage coming, even next year and then in preparation for 2022 with a bit more aero development, or do you think that actually in real terms it won’t make much difference?
FV: Yeah, the situation is a bit strange, with the car almost frozen for next year, even if we had some small modifications on the aero regulation but for sure we started the development for ’21 and quite early into the season we will have to switch to the ’22 because it’s a completely new rule and it will be the same for everybody, then we will have to adjust when we want to switch completely and it will also depend on the first event and where we are on the grid at this stage but it will be the same for all the teams and we will all have the same approach at the end.
GS: I would say for ’22 regulations the advantage of having more time and so on will not be a big advantage. It will help us but the big teams still have got the momentum going for what they are doing now when we get into the ’22 development in ’21 so I think it will level the playing field but we cannot expect in ’22 that everybody is the same. I think also there are finances involved and even if a budget cut comes in, how much can you spend of what you are allocated on wind tunnel time. So I think it gets closer together and if you do a good job, somebody could surprise for ’22 but for sure we will be full on the ’22 new regulations once we get to ’21 as soon as we can because ’21 will go by very quickly with the old car and we don’t want to invest time and money in that or as little as possible – we have to do something but we want invest as little as possible in that programme but get ready for the future which is ’22.
SR: Yeah, I agree with what Fred and Guenther say. It will make a difference and we’re kind of pleased that that optionality is in the regulations going forward, but the big teams, they’ve got so much inertia in their IP and their technology that it’s not going to suddenly come back but it will help so yeah, I think we will all be in a slightly better place in theory but it’s still a lot of work to do and when you’re a long way back, you’ve got to catch up. It helps.
Q: (Christian Nimmervoll – motorsport.com) Fred, again, I don’t expect you to drop any names but we know that one of your drivers next year will be decided by Ferrari. When you talk to Ferrari about your driver lineup do you voice a preference who you think is best suited to that car or is it completely Ferrari’s decision?
FV: If you are not expecting an answer from my side you are right, you won’t get it. But it’s not without discussion but it’s not that black or white that we need to have a look on what’s happened on the current races and also the evolution of the F2 drivers and so but don’t forget that we have still six events to go and we are not in a rush to take a decision. This is the most important.
Q: (Ronald Vording – motorsport.com) To all three: Helmut Marko said Red Bull’s preferred option for 2022 is take over the Honda project and run the engines themselves but they want a complete engine freeze from 2022 onwards. Would this be acceptable to you?
SR: I think it’s more of a question for the power unit manufacturers really. We buy our engines, we’re very happy with that situation.
Q: The concept of an engine freeze; does that appeal?
SR: I don’t know. But there’s not that much change possible under the regulations currently, so maybe there’s something that Red Bull know about or are fearful of, I don’t know. They will have to be a bit more explicit.
GS: I think the engine manufacturers, between them, they need to decide is it worthwhile to invest a lot more money in developing the engine we have got now or should we invest in technology for the future, but we cannot decide. I think, to go back to the question, these engines now, if the engines are parity, and then freeze them, I’m OK with that but it’s not my decision. I don’t have a vote in that one, to be honest, but I think it’s more the few manufacturers saying we develop this engine for – I don’t know – five, six years, how much money do we need to put in to get a little bit advantage out of it, is it worth or should we focus on the long term future of what is the best technology. Again, I’ve got an opinion, I’ve got no vote so I’m not very… here nor there because I cannot decide it any way, but in general I’m open for everything. If you want to make changes, fine, if you stay like this… what can I do?
FV: Yeah, as Guenther said before, the discussion is for the few suppliers, not for us. At the end, we are expecting to have a cheaper engine for sure but at the end of the day we have to take care of this kind of request to freeze the engine, it’s always coming from someone who has a personal interest. I remember that during the discussion that we had last winter that Honda was pushing to avoid to freeze the engine but I think that we have to discuss it between them but to take a decision, not based on what happened last year or what happened in the last six months but on what could happen in the next ten years.
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) I won’t ask a question that I don’t expect an answer to so Fred, if you don’t mind, I wonder if you could clarify your contractual situation? I’m told or I hear from people that it may expire at the end of this year. Are you going to renew it, will you be with the team next year or is it just another crazy season rumour?
FV: We have no contract for next year, nobody has an option and you will know about the drivers quite soon.
Q: (Lawrence Edmonson – ESPN) Simon, again on the drivers, just within the new structure, who would get the final say on the drivers for next year and can you give us some indication on what the key motivators would be for drivers: would it be money, would it be talent, something else?
SR: The decision will be made by the management committee and the board of Williams Formula 1. It’s a normal situation but we have nothing to say on that matter right now, so that’s all I can say.
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Sorry Fred, I was actually asking about your own situation, not the drivers’ situation. Will you be with the team next year, is there a contract that’s expiring, what’s the situation there please?
FV: I have a contract with Sauber, the challenge is huge and I have the contract until the end of the season, it was already the case last year and I’m really focused on developing the team for next year. I’m not thinking about my personal situation.
Ends
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Valtteri Bottas quickest again in Red-flag punctuated FP2
Portimao, 23 October 2020: Valtttei Bottas continued to set the pace in practice for this weekend’s FIA Formula 1 Portuguese Grand Prix with the Mercedes driver beating Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to the top of the FP2 timesheet in a session defined by two red flag spells.
The session began with a 30-minute spell during which teams tested unmarked 13-inch prototype slick tyres for next year, according to a run plan to be defined by Pirelli. The aim of the test was to validate the development of tyres for 2021.
During the test period it was Bottas who went quickest with the Finn setting a best time of 1:21.662, with Leclerc slotting into P2 thanks to a lap of 1m22.043s. Bottas’s time was almost three seconds of the timesheet-topping pace he’d shown on this weekend’s medium tyres in FP1, though fuel loads for the test were unspecified.
With a third of the session run, teams then returned to the work of this weekend and with medium tyres on board Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel soon jumped to the top of the order with a lap of 1:19.936. The German lowered the benchmark to 1:19. 175 but then had a small spin at Turn 14 on his next lap.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took up the challenge and improved to 1:19.033 and then improved to 1:18.535 before Bottas became the first man to move to a qualifying simulation on soft tyres. The red rubber provided immediate reward and the Mercedes man reclaimed top spot with a good lap of 1:17.940.
His was only qualifying simulation for some time, however, as soon after the Finn had set a new target time the red flags were shown when Pierre Gasly pulled over at the side of track with the rear of his AlphaTauri in flames. Running was halted for some 15 minutes as the fire was extinguished and Gasly’s car recovered.
When the action resumed with half an hour left on the clock most drivers returned to the track on soft tyres. Once again though the green light spell was shortlived as just five minutes later Verstappen and Racing Point’s Lance Stroll collided on track and the red flags were once again displayed.
Stroll, just back after testing positive for COVID-19 after the Eifel Grand Prix two weeks ago, was ahead of Verstappen into Turn 1. But amid confusion about the Canadian’s intentions on the lap, the Red Bull driver hit the right-rear of the Canadian’s Racing Point, with the result that Stroll was pitched into the gravel and Verstappen was forced back to the pits. The incident was placed under investigation by the stewards.
The session finally got going again with a little over seven minutes and again a stream of cars headed for the pit exit on soft tyres.
While the top two positions remained unchanged, with Verstappen lapping on mediums again, McLaren’s Lando Norris made the most of the short amount of running to climb to third on the timesheet with a late lap of 1:18.743.
Fourth place went to Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc with the Monegasque driver just under a tenths of a second behind Norris. Carlos Sainz took fifth place in the second McLaren, 1.1s behind Bottas and Vettel looked more comfortable with his Ferrari than at recent races as he took sixth spot 1.235s behind the pacesetting Mercedes.
The unfortunate Gasly was just three thousandths of a second slower than Vettel in seventh place, while championship leader Lewis Hamilton finished eighth ahead of Renault’s Esteban Ocon and the second Red Bull of Alex Albon.
2020 FIA Formula 1 Portuguese Grand Prix – Free Practice 1
1 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:17.940 32 214.919
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1:18.535 0.595 34 213.290
3 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 1:18.743 0.803 35 212.727
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:18.838 0.898 34 212.471
5 Carlos Sainz McLaren/Renault 1:19.113 1.173 32 211.732
6 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:19.175 1.235 34 211.566
7 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1:19.178 1.238 26 211.558
8 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:19.308 1.368 27 211.211
9 Esteban Ocon Renault 1:19.496 1.556 32 210.712
10 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 1:19.643 1.703 37 210.323
11 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1:19.821 1.881 33 209.854
12 Sergio Pérez Racing Point/Mercedes 1:19.901 1.961 34 209.644
13 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1:19.987 2.047 28 209.419
14 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:20.465 2.525 33 208.174
15 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:20.490 2.550 34 208.110
16 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 1:20.680 2.740 29 207.620
17 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri/Honda 1:20.729 2.789 33 207.494
18 Romain Grosjean Haas/Ferrari 1:20.867 2.927 32 207.140
19 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 1:20.983 3.043 26 206.843
20 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:21.396 3.456 34 205.793
