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Tag: F1
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Valtteri Bottas first win of the season limits damage to Hamilton
Valtteri Bottas took his first win of the season at the Turkish Grand Prix as Max Verstappen finished P2 for a second consecutive race and his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez took his first podium since the French Grand Prix. Verstappen assumed championship lead as title rival Lewis Hamilton finished in P5. Bottas defended stoutly and his win reduced Verstappen’s probable lead over teammate Hamilton.
London, 12 October 2021: Valtteri Bottas won a race for the first time since last season’s Russian Grand Prix over a year ago as Max Verstappen finished P2 and teammate Sergio Perez made it a double podium for the Austrian squad. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finished in P4 after running the majority of race in podium positions, ahead of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton who started P11 due to a change in his internal combustion engine. Pierre Gasly crossed the line in P6 in the AlphaTauri, ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz- the Spaniard starting last as he ran a brand-new power unit. Esteban Ocon did a no-stop race to finish P10, behind Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
Alfa Romeo duo of Antonio Giovinazzi and Kimi Raikkonen finished P11 and P12 respectively, behind them were McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo in P13, AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda in P14 and Williams’ George Russell in P15. Alpine’s Fernando Alonso suffered a first lap spin and could only recover to P16 ahead of the second Williams car of Nicholas Latifi. Sebastian Vettel was the only driver on the grid to try out slick tyres in the race as he finished in P18 ahead of the Haas duo of Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin in P19 and P20 respectively.
It was a wet race day, much like last year. Bottas started on pole and had a clean getaway, in fact most of the field did so apart from Alonso and Gasly, the Frenchman tipping the Spaniard into a spin as the Alpine car dropped dead last. Later in the lap Alonso tagged Schumacher, spinning the rookie. Both Gasly and Alonso earned themselves a 5-second time penalty for their shenanigans.
Hamilton started out of place in P11 after receiving a power unit penalty. He made up two places early on with Tsunoda proving a bit tougher to overtake. By lap 8 he had moved past the Japanese driver too. Ahead, Bottas lead by around 2.5s from Verstappen who was ahead of Leclerc.
The track was drying as the rain had stopped, but it was not drying fast enough to justify putting on slick tyres as in these wet and greasy conditions the intermediate tyres would still be faster.
By now Hamilton had caught up to Perez and tried to overtake him on lap 35. But, a stern defense from the Mexican meant that Hamilton had to stay put behind the Red Bull car and also look after his own wearing intermediate tyres.
Verstappen was the first to pit of the leaders for another intermediate set of tyres. Race leader Bottas followed suit to cover the Dutchman. Meanwhile, the second Red Bull of Perez pitted on the same lap. This left Leclerc in the lead. Leclerc tried to go to the end on one set of inters but after locking up multiple times and being passed by Bottas, Ferrari decided to pit him emerging in P5 behind Hamilton who was yet to pit and Perez.
Hamilton had not pitted yet in a gamble that the track may dry out soon enough for slick tyres, but it was not to be. As him and Mercedes deliberated whether to make it to the end on a single set of intermediates, ultimately, he was called in on lap 51 as a precaution. Hamilton was evidently frustrated over team radio for losing a podium position and points to Verstappen.
In the end, the day belonged to Bottas who dominated the Turkish Grand Prix and took his first win of the season. Meanwhile, Red Bull got a double podium, boosting Perez’s confidence and Verstappen retaking the championship lead. It was a day of what could have been for Hamilton as strategy error left him down in P5.
Mercedes clearly had the dominant car this weekend in both qualifying and race pace. They locked out the front row and if not for strategic error by both Hamilton and Mercedes he could have finished the race on the podium. Red Bull struggled for pace this weekend, particularly the car suffering from a lot of understeer. A double podium is a good result given that they lacked pace to challenge Mercedes but still lost ground to them in the constructor’s championship owing to Bottas’ win.
Ferrari had the third fastest car especially in qualifying. They introduced a brand-newpower unit in the last race giving them a horsepower boost, clearly helping them in their qualifying pace. The Ferrari was even faster than Red Bull in the speed traps. They had best of the rest race pace too, with Leclerc running his own race, unchallenged by Perez for majority of the race while Sainz finished P8 from starting last. AlphaTauri showed good pace too, albeit unable to challenge Ferrari. Both cars reached Q3 with Gasly scoring points in the race and Tsunoda running in points position until he spun and dropped back in the field.
McLaren struggled to find pace in the MCL35M as Ricciardo was unable to make it out of Q1 and Norris did not have the pace to challenge the top 5 or Gasly in P6. Ricciardo was unable to follow Sainz through the field showing the struggles of McLaren at this particular track. Aston Martin showed decent pace to challenge for points and Stroll duly delivered on that. They tried a gamble of putting slick tyres on Vettel’s car but it did not work out as the track was too wet. Alpine had similar pace to Aston Martin as both teams had one car in Q3 and in points at the end of the race. Ocon made an audacious no-stop strategy work to get in the top 10 while Alonso was tagged by Gasly and spun to the back of the grid, killing his hopes for any points.
Alfa Romeo finished just outside the top 10 with Giovinazzi almost catching up to Ocon for the last points paying position. They had mediocre qualifying pace- which was in dry conditions- as neither cars were able to make it out of Q1. Williams’ points scoring streak of 4 in 5 races ended as neither Russell nor Latifi were able to challenge for the top 10 spots, lacking pace in general to do so. Haas’ Schumacher made it to Q2 for the second time, first time on legitimate pace giving the American squad confidence. They were unable to challenge for points in the race.
Saturday’s Qualifying results were:
P1: Lewis Hamilton- 44 (Mercedes) P2: Valtteri Bottas- 77 (Mercedes) P3: Max Verstappen- 33 (Red Bull) P4: Charles Leclerc- 16 (Ferrari) P5: Pierre Gasly- 10 (AlphaTauri) P6: Fernando Alonso- 14 (Alpine) P7: Sergio Perez- 11 (Red Bull) P8: Lando Norris- 4 (McLaren) P9: Lance Stroll- 18 (Aston Martin) P10: Yuki Tsunoda- 22 (AlphaTauri) P11: Sebastian Vettel- 5 (Aston Martin) P12: Esteban Ocon- 31 (Alpine) P13: George Russell- 63 (Williams) P14: Mick Schumacher- 47 (Haas) P15: Carlos Sainz- 55 (Ferrari) P16: Daniel Ricciardo- 3 (McLaren) P17: Nicholas Latifi- 6 (Williams) P18: Antonio Giovinazzi- 99 (Alfa Romeo) P19: Kimi Raikkonen- 7 (Alfa Romeo) P20: Nikita Mazepin- 9 (Haas) Note – Hamilton drops 10 grid places for taking on a new ICE after exceeding his allocation. Sainz and Ricciardo start from the back of the grid after taking on new PU components.
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Hamilton’s century feat at Drama-filled Sochi autodrome
Lewis Hamilton achieved his 100th Formula 1 career victory at a drama filled Sochi autodrome- a feat that no driver has achieved before, as Max Verstappen finished P2 from starting last and Carlos Sainz completed the podium. Lando Norris who had lead majority of the race finished in P7 after a strategic error.
London, 26 Sept. 2021: Lewis Hamilton won a formula 1 race for the record 100th time as he continued Mercedes’ dominance of never being beaten at the Russian Grand Prix since 1913. Max Verstappen finished P2 as he limited his points damage to Hamilton after starting last due to an engine penalty, and former Toro Rosso teammate Carlos Sainz finished in P3, his third podium this season with Ferrari. McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo was classified in P4 ahead of Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas in P5 and Alpine’s Fernando Alonso in P6- the Spaniard finishing in the same position he started the race. Lando Norris who looked favorite for McLaren’s consecutive race win eventually finished P7 after the weather interfered and a wrong strategy call to sit out on slick tyres. Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen finished in P8, his best finish of the season as he returned from Covid-19 illness. The second Red Bull of Sergio Perez looked on for a podium but had to settle for P9 after rain came into play. George Russell has scored points in last four out of five races for Williams as he crossed the line in P10.
Lance Stroll finished P11 as he had a coming together with Aston Martin teammate Sebastian Vettel and AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly, earning himself a 10-second time penalty for his troubles. Vettel finished in P12 and Gasly in P13. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon finished in P14 ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in P15, Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi in P16 and AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda in P17. Haas’ Nikita Mazepin was last of the finishers in P18. Williams driver Nicholas Latifi and Haas rookie Mick Schumacher were two retirees from the race.
News broke before the race that Bottas would be starting P16 after taking another engine penalty with Leclerc and Verstappen already starting P19 and P20 respectively due to taking new engines outside of their allocation. There was a 70% chance of rain during the start of the race, but it did not materialise.
Norris starting from pole got good start, but Sainz caught the McLaren’s slipstream and was ahead at braking zone of turn 2. Behind Hamilton lost positions as he fell to P7 from P4. Russell maintained his position in P3. Stroll had an amazing start leapfrogging to P4 from P7. At the back of the grid Verstappen made up a couple of positions, as did Bottas while Leclerc jumped from P19 to P12.
Hamilton dispatched Alonso but got stuck behind the Mercedes powered DRS train of Russell, Stroll and Ricciardo. Behind, Verstappen passed Bottas for P14 with the Finn barely putting up a defense. Sainz was leading with Norris chasing the Ferrari and both were pulling away from Russell. Hamilton who had been the favorite before the start was losing time to the leaders and his chances of victory slimming lap by lap.
The tyres were graining and subsequently losing grip in cold conditions. Aston Martin decided to trigger the undercut with Stroll on lap 12 as he pitted from P4 for a set of hard tyres. Norris caught up to Sainz and passed him for the lead on the inside of turn 12. Russell and Sainz followed suit at the end of lap 13 and 14 respectively. Meanwhile, Hamilton was still held up behind Ricciardo unable to overtake him as the McLaren runs the Mercedes power unit too.
Ricciardo pitted on lap 22 for hard tyres, releasing Hamilton into free air who was around 12 seconds behind Norris. After consecutive fastest laps by the Mercedes driver, the team decided to pull in Hamilton for a set of medium tyres and capitalise on Ricciardo’s slow pit stop. Hamilton emerged behind Stroll and Gasly, dispatching them quickly by lap 31. Meanwhile Norris responded to Hamilton and pitted on lap 28, emerging in P4 behind yet to pit Leclerc, Alonso and Perez. Verstappen had pitted on the same lap as his championship rival, albeit for medium tyres but was stuck behind Ricciardo.
Leclerc pitted on lap 35 with Alonso and Perez following him in on lap 37. This meant that Norris lead the race with Hamilton some 8 seconds behind and rapidly catching. The tension built up as Hamilton was around a second behind Norris for consecutive laps. With five laps remaining the heavens opened up, andumbrellas and raincoats came out with the majority of rain focused around turn 5 and 7. Both Norris and Hamilton stayed out resisting the call to pit for intermediate tyres. As the rain worsened Mercedes were adamant to pit Hamilton and the Briton listened, pitting on lap 49. He was now around 25 seconds behind Norris but the gap shrinking rapidly has the track was properly wet. It was heartbreak for Norris as he decided to stay out on slick tyres on a wet track and slid off of it on the penultimate lap with Hamilton taking the lead. Norris limped back to pits for inters as he could only manage P7 in the end.
It was gutting for the young Briton, Norris as he almost controlled the race from start to finishonly to lose the lead on the penultimate lap. But the headlines belonged to Hamilton who became the first driver to reach a century of victories and with that retaking the championship lead as Mercedes extended their constructors championship lead too.
Mercedes once again had the fastest car of the grid in Russian but failed to capitalise in qualifying due to weather and partly driver error. Eventually they managed to win thanks to a good strategy call in the dynamic conditions. Even Bottas who was running in P14 before rain arrived, managed to gain nine positions and finish in P5. The German squad are currently leading both championships. Red Bull chose to bite the bullet for Verstappen and take an engine penalty. He achieved the best possible result of P2 with Hamilton winning to limit the damage. It is difficult to judge Red Bull’s pace this weekend due to Verstappen not taking part in qualifying and both cars running in traffic in the race.
McLaren were the best of the rest as Norris managed to pass Sainz’s Ferrari with ease. They even had the pace to hold up both Mercedes and Red Bull behind owing to their straight-line speed and evident by Hamilton being unable to pass Ricciardo and Norris, and Verstappen being caught behind Ricciardo. Strategy error meant they lost the chance to win a second consecutive race. Ferrari showed decent pace as they held a podium position with Sainz before the late rain drama begin. Even with the conditions changing the Italian team kept a cool head and Sainz achieved his fourth podium of the season. Both Alpine and Aston Martin showed good race pace to hold high top 10 positions but ultimately failed to capitalise due to the interference of weather. Only Alonso being able to finish in P6 as both Aston Martin cars and Ocon failed to score points.
AlphaTauri had a mediocre race as both cars finished outside of points. Gasly had a chance to finish in points as the conditions changed but entanglement with Stroll meant that his chances were all but over of scoring points. Alfa Romeo capitalised on the weather as they got the season’s best finish of P8 with Raikkonen. Williams and Russell scoredpoints in four races out of five. Arguable the Grove squad should have scored higher points as Russell started from P3 but a wrong strategy call meant he was stuck in traffic after the first round of pitstops. Both Haas cars had their highest starting positions of the season owing to a lot of grid penalties but were unable to challenge for points.
Saturday’s Qualifying results were:
P1: Lando Norris- 4 (McLaren) P2: Carlos Sainz- 55 (Ferrari) P3: George Russell- 63 (Williams) P4: Lewis Hamilton- 44 (Mercedes) P5: Daniel Ricciardo- 3 (McLaren) P6: Fernando Alonso- 14 (Alpine) P7: Valtteri Bottas- 77 (Mercedes) P8: Lance Stroll- 18 (Aston Martin) P9: Sergio Perez- 11 (Red Bull) P10: Esteban Ocon- 31 (Alpine) P11: Sebastian Vettel- 5 (Aston Martin) P12: Pierre Gasly- 10 (AlphaTauri) P13: Yuki Tsunoda- 22 (AlphaTauri) P14: Nicholas Latifi- 6 (Williams) P15: Charles Leclerc- 16 (Ferrari) P16: Kimi Raikkonen- 7 (Alfa Romeo) P17: Mick Schumacher- 47 (Haas) P18: Antonio Giovinazzi- 99 (Alfa Romeo) P19: Nikita Mazepin- 9 (Haas) P20: Max Verstappen- 33 (Red Bull) Note – Verstappen penalised 3 grid places for causing a collision at the previous round. Leclerc, Verstappen and Latifi required to start from the back of the grid for use of additional power unit elements. Bottas penalised 15 grid places for use of additional power unit elements. Giovinazzi penalised 5 grid places for an unscheduled gearbox change.
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Sensational pole for McLaren’s Lando Norris; Lewis Hamilton P4: Russian GP
Sochi (Russia), 25 Sept. 2021: McLaren’s Lando Norris took a sensational first position in Formula 1 at the end of a thrilling final top-10 shootout in a wet and dry qualifying session for the Russian Grand Prix that saw Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz grab his first front-row start and George Russell finish third. Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton qualified fourth, while championship leader Max Verstappen put in a brief Q1 appearance in the knowledge that he will start tomorrow’s race from the back of the grid due to a power unit penalty.
Heavy rain throughout Saturday morning and into the early meant that final practice was cancelled but in the hour before the scheduled start of qualifying the sun began to appear and conditions improved enough to allow the session to go ahead.
Q1 began on a damp but rapidly improving track and after AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly got things underway with a lap of 1:51.519 the times rapidly began to fall as the track ramped up and drivers gained confidence.
Hamilton soon worked his way down to lap of 1:46.937 with team-mate Valtteri Bottas slotting into second place. By that point, however, Verstappen was already back in the garage and removing his helmet after two cautious laps. The choice to take a fourth engine for the season on Friday means the Dutchman will start the race from the back of the grid and Red Bull therefore opted to minimise risk and engine wear in qualifying.
It meant that Red Bull’s front-of-grid hopes rested with Sergio Perez. The Mexican’s opening flying lap of Q1 was compromised by a small lock-up in the wet conditions and as better times came in the error left him in 11th place. His next lap promoted him to fifth place, though this time he was held up by the slower Haas of Nikita Mazepin. On the next tour, however, he managed a clean run and with quickest times in every sector he vaulted to P1 with a lap of 1:46.455.
Hamilton managed to eclipse that late on and thanks to a lap of 1:45.992 the Mercedes driver went through in top spot ahead of Bottas and Perez.
Eliminated at the end of the session were Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen in P16, followed by Haas’ Mick Schumacher, the second Alfa of Antonio Giovinazzi, the second Haas of Nikita Mazepin and Max who saved both his PU and tyres.
Hamilton was again to the fore in the second segment and he took top spot with a lap of 1:45.129. Bottas again slotted into second place, but this time Perez couldn’t match his third place from Q1, with the Mexican’s best lap of 1:45.834 only being good enough for P5. Fernando Alonso took third place with a good final lap of 1:45.514, while perhaps in a portent of things to come claimed fourth place 0.007s ahead of Perez.
Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel didn’t find the time he needed, however, and he missed out on a Q3 berth by just five hundredths of a second. Eliminated behind the German were Gasly and AlphaTauri team-mate Yuki Tsunoda, Williams’ Nicholas Latifi and Ferrrari’s Charles Leclerc, both of whom will also take a PU penalty tomorrow.
As the drivers went out at the beginning of Q3 on inters it quickly became clear that the crossover point to slicks was close. The field opted to put in banker laps on intermediate tyres and after the first runs Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton led the way from Bottas.
However, rivals were already pulling into the pit lane to take on slick tyres to take advantage of the steadily improving surface. One of those was Hamilton, but in the pit entry the Briton momentarily lost control and clipped the wall, damaging his front wing. The delay to fit the new wing meant he would be one of the last to take to the track and that he would only get one opportunity.
And in the end it was McLaren’s Lando Norris who made the most of the conditions to claim his first pole position. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Williams’ George Russell also made their moves at the right time to take P2 and P3 respectively ahead of Hamilton who claimed fourth place with his opening lap.
Behind the Mercedes driver, McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo took fifth place ahead of the second Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas. Lance Stroll was eighth for Aston Martin, Pérez finished ninth for Red Bull and the final top-10 place was taken by Alpine’s Esteban Ocon.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix – Qualifying
1 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:41.993 7 206.414
2 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:42.510 0.517 0.507 7 205.373
3 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1:42.983 0.990 0.971 7 204.429
4 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:44.050 2.057 2.017 6 202.333
5 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 1:44.156 2.163 2.121 7 202.127
6 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 1:44.204 2.211 2.168 7 202.034
7 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:44.710 2.717 2.664 7 201.058
8 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:44.956 2.963 2.905 7 200.586
9 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda 1:45.337 3.344 3.279 7 199.861
10 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 1:45.865 3.872 3.796 7 198.864
11 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:46.573 1.444 1.374 8 197.543
12 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1:46.641 1.512 1.438 9 197.417
13 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda 1:46.751 1.622 1.543 9 197.214
– Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 2
– Charles Leclerc Ferrari/Ferrari
16 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:49.586 3.594 3.391 10 192.112
17 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 1:49.830 3.838 3.621 10 191.685
18 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:51.023 5.031 4.747 9 189.625
19 Nikita Mazepin Haas/Ferrari 1:53.764 7.772 7.333 10 185.056
– Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 2 -
Ricciardo promises Bottas, a shoey: Post-race press meet
DRIVERS who attended the post-race press conference on Sunday at Monza: 1 – Daniel RICCIARDO (McLaren); 2 – Lando NORRIS (McLaren); 3 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes).
TRACK INTERVIEWS: (Conducted by David Coulthard)
Q: Valtteri not a bad weekend for you, first in the sprint yesterday and third today from the back of the grid. Talk us through the race?
Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, starting from the back it’s never easy. I told the team that I was going to be on the podium today and that’s what we did. I’m glad that we got more points than Red Bull and yeah, otherwise we maximised from where I started. Obviously a shame with the crash between Lewis and Max, we lost some points there, but from my side it was good fun.
Q: You mention that crash. Did you see it at all on the big screens?
VB: I didn’t see really what happened.
Q: We’ve got a replay for you if you want to see it for the first time. Any initial comments?
VB: I don’t know. It’s unfortunate.
Q: I understand it takes time to digest. Ahead of the next race weekend I guess you now just focus on finishing out your career with Mercedes with the best possible results?
VB: Yeah, thanks. A strong weekend from my side, the pace has been good, so it will be nice to have one week of rest and then we’ll go again.
Q: Lando, big smile! A very important day for McLaren, and amazingly McLaren is the only team to get a one-two this season. I know you would have preferred that you were winning it but it’s a big moment for the team and your journey with them.
Lando NORRIS: Yeah, first of all big thanks to everyone, all the fans, all the team. We’ve had a pretty awesome weekend. I don’t know, what four years I joined the team and we’ve been working towards this and we got a one-two finally. A good step for us. I’m happy for Daniel getting the win and me in P2. Just happy for the team.
Q: That’s great, but you are a racer and we heard you on the radio giving Daniel the hurry-up. Was there a moment where you were hoping that maybe it could be like earlier in the year, in Imola, where Daniel moved to one side and could come through for the victory?
LN: Of course. You’ve been in that position before, where you want to go for it but I’m also here for the long-term, I’m here for the team. I don’t know, it could have ended up like the other two ended up. I’m just happy. I’m happy finishing second. I’m happy for Daniel in first place. I’ll have my chance in the future, It’s all good.
Q: Daniel Ricciardo, you’re a winner again?
Daniel RICCIARDO: Can I swear?
Q: No, you can’t.
DR: About [blank] time!
Q: This is crucial. This is where it really happened for you at the start. Talk us through it.
DR: Yeah, i mean obviously it worked well for me yesterday and I knew… To be honest, even if we got the start there was never a guarantee we would lead the whole race, but I was able to hold firm out front during the first stint. I wouldn’t say we had mega speed but it was enough to keep Max behind and then, I don’t know, there were safety cars and this and that. To lead literally from start to finish, I don’t think any of us expected that. But I don’t know, there was something in me on Friday. I knew something good was to come. Let’s just say that.
Q: Whatever that was that was in you on Friday, you want to keep some of that for the next events. This is a big day of celebration for you as a driver and for McLaren as a team on the way back. We’ve been waiting for you to show this kind of pace and performance. Put us in the car. The last couple of races have been strong for you.
DR: Yeah, I’ve just been sandbagging the whole year! You know, thirds, fourths, fifths, you might as well just win. That’s what I did! You know, honestly, the August break is good, just to reset. I’ve felt better the last three weekends. To not only win, but to get a one-two, it’s insane! For McLaren to be on the podium is huge, let alone a one-two. This is for team papaya. For once, I’m lost for words.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Huge congratulations Daniel, just give us an idea of what this means to you?
DR: Umm… It’s… Phew… Probably that! I don’t know. I’ve done a few interviews since the race and I probably said something different for each interview. Like, today was something but the whole year has been something. Something like a little foreign for me, something that’s been more challenging I think than I’ve had before. Obviously everyone sees. We’re an international sport so everyone has been aware of some of the struggles I’ve had this year. I think to come back from that, not only to win but as a team to get a one-two… I don’t know. It’s crazy. I think after Friday… even before Friday, but I knew after Friday that we had something this weekend. I think that’s why I was so kind of like just fired up because I knew it could have been a little bit better and I just didn’t want to waste that opportunity and obviously I haven’t had that many this year, or put myself in that position, so yeah, I think from that moment on it was pretty much on.
Q: How important is this win for you?
DR: It means everything. I definitely try not to, like, make or dictate my life happiness around the sport, because it’s been three and a half years since I won, so I’d be pretty miserable most of the time if I just based my happiness on winning races. I think, like, through it all and a lot has happened since Monaco 2018, so to be back here in this moment that’s why we love the sport. It makes all those crappier days worth it and it’s as simple as that. There’s a high that you get from this moment right now that… I’ll probably watch this interview in a few days and I’ll be like: ‘Oh, I actually said that?’ I’m still floating right now to be honest. That’s what it does. And that’s what draws you back. It’s wild.
VB: It’s the wine.
DR: Ha! Valtteri thinks it’s the bubbly. There is probably a bit of that. It’s just wild but I certainly… There have been lows this year but deep down I never lost faith or the belief. I think I also just needed to step back and I think that’s where having some time off in August helped. I truly think that helped this weekend get to this position.
Q: Tell us about the pace of the car in the race? How comfortable were you early on, in the lead, when all of the frontrunners were still in the race?
DR: I think once I knew Max was… There were some laps where he pushed up closer but I never really had to properly defend. He was there but I knew if I didn’t make a mistake it was going to be hard for him to… Unless he kind of sent a little bit of a Hail Mary, it was going to be tough for him to pass. I think where I felt I was a little vulnerable was at the end of that stint, where the tyres were going off, but I believe the others were suffering as well. So in my head I was thinking we were going to be vulnerable in that moment. I pitted and I think everyone else pitted as well, so I think we were all struggling at the same moment. And it was then, when we came back out in the lead, then I was like ‘alright, we’ve got this today’, like unless something unfortunate happens we can really win this race. From that moment on it was like… I think that’s when any last bit of belief you need you top it up and you’re like ‘alright, someone is going to have to take it from me today, because otherwise we’re winning this thing’.
Q: Very well done, Daniel, thank you. Lando, many congratulations. Your fifth podium ion Formula and your best result in F1 so far. Give us a flavour of what this means to you?
LN: I don’t know where to start. I think it is incredible. To be honest I don’t know what it means to me. The main thing it means to me is our resolve as a team. Whether I’m second, third or first, I think the best thing is having that one-two for the team and securing maximum points and it’s just such a cool feeling to be part of this. A bit lost for words in a way but I’m happy for myself, to be here again, to have executed the race the way we did, with the overtakes and the strategy and the defending. But yeah, happy for Daniel and the whole team because it’s a pretty awesome achievement for all of us.
Q: Well Lando, tell us about some of that defensive driving you had to do. Particularly against Lewis Hamilton early in the race.
LN: Yeah, I think I had a good warm-up for that yesterday with 18 laps trying to defend from him. I could figure him out quite quickly, where he was going to strong and weak and so on, and he was on the hard tyre, so for the majority of it, I could hold him off reasonably easily but the last two or three laps of the stint, the hard tyre started to come back to him quite a bit – or the mediums started to drop away so he actually got past me, he then boxed and we overcut him straight away. So, it was… just the whole race was stressful, not going to lie. There was not one moment where I thought I could relax and just chill-out a little bit. But that definitely makes it a bit more special, more worthwhile to kind of have to really work for it, and end up in this position to get past Charles as well on the restart, and so on. Yeah, definitely makes it more worthwhile, so a tough race, maybe made a little bit easier in the middle after the pitstops with what happened – but it still wasn’t easy with what happened but still wasn’t easy from that point on, we still had to work quite hard for it. Yeah.
Q: Lando, you say you’re hugely proud of the team result, and rightly so, but when you got the radio message to hold station, what was your reaction? Was there even a little bit of you thinking of disobeying that order?
LN: No. I got a bit closer on one lap and I just kinda… I don’t know why… I had a few flashes seeing the incident between Max and Lewis – because I saw it quite well in my mirrors, so when I thought maybe I’ll try, that was flashing up in my head and I thought naaah, maybe this isn’t the wisest decision! So, I would have loved to but, like I said, I’m just as happy in a way, like as much as I would have loved to go for the win, just finishing first and second, I’m just as happy with. The feeling I get for the win is the priority over my own feeling in a way. I’m here for many years, I hope, especially with McLaren and with the whole team, so I feel like I still have an opportunity in the future to try and go for it but in this moment and instance, I was happy just staying where I was.
Q: And Lando, you had your first experience of a shooey up there on the podium…
LN: …and, last. I hope.
…can you understand why it’s become a bit of a thing?
LN: No!
DR: It was delicious. Tell the fans what they want to hear. It was delicious! Make them envious…
LN: It was… yeah… tasted alright. Not a big fan of that kind of drink anyway, so I wouldn’t… when you have the addition of it coming out of a shoe. From Daniel. Where his sweaty foot’s been for the last two hours. That’s really not something I advise for other people to try ever, and I hope I never have to do it again. But I did say. I think we said, at the beginning of the year or sometime that if we were on the podium together I would do it, so I stood by it and was happy to do it. Zak did it as well. I think he really did love it. It was cool, a cool experience. It’s a good memory for everyone. As much as I hated it, I did enjoy it.
Q: Valtteri, no shooey for you up there on the podium?
DR: He’s done one before.
VB: No! Never done it! Always managed to dodge it.
LN: Sneaky guy.
DR: Didn’t you do it in Baku?
VB: No, I managed to…
DR: No way! I thought you’d done it! That’s why I didn’t give it to you.
VB: It’s not my thing!
DR: Ah c’mon, you’re dating an Australian now! You have to have some sort of…
VB: We don’t have shooey’s at home, y’know!
DR: Aw, I’m sorry.
VB: Don’t be sorry! I’m happy!
DR: Next time!
Q: Well Valtteri, that was a huge race for you. When was the last time you went from 19th to third?
VB: Never, I think. I think it was probably the most positions gained, maybe in my career. I don’t know, I’m not the best with statistics but yeah. And honestly, although some people might think it’s easy to overtake here in Monza but actually it isn’t. When there’s a few cars in a row it’s not that easy, so I’m happy at the progress we could make today and, of course, we did have a good car, good pace and good strategy, starting with the hard tyre in my case was definitely the right choice and could go along and take the opportunities and then, once we went to the medium it was time to attack and push. Just at the very end the medium started to push a bit but by then things started to stabilise but overall I did everything I could today and this weekend overall. So, for that, I’m happy.
Q: Was there ever a moment on the medium tyre where you thought the win was on?
VB: When I was progressing quite quickly, in the beginning of the medium and then I could see both of the McLarens were actually pretty close and I was catching. Then once I was behind Pérez and really in the train, of course I was trying everything I could – but of course the last few laps, the tyre started to drop and that was it. But I think it would have been tricky to get past the McLarens. Honestly, they’ve been strong all weekend and they have their strengths, especially on the straight line and, like yesterday, Lewis, he was trying everything he could but couldn’t get by so I honestly think it was the maximum today we could reach.
VIDEO CONFERENCE
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Daniel, first of all congratulations on the victory. First of all, at the start of the race, getting alongside Max, how good was that start, what was key to getting alongside the Red Bull. And also, the moment just after the Safety Car restart where the team asked you to increase your pace. What had you been doing before that? Was it just a case of trying to keep the tyres alive at that stage to ensure you made the finish?
DR: So the start, I mean obviously it worked well. I don’t want to say I did anything different. Obviously every start you do, you try to have the best start possible. I think I made a really good start yesterday and yeah, I guess I just took confidence from that. I tried not to think about Lewis’ bad start from P2 – because sometimes you do get a grid offset, like left side is better than right, or something – I just used everything I had yesterday and that knowledge of executing a good one. And it worked today. It didn’t feel that great off the line but I guess having the medium tyre today was maybe not as good as a soft yesterday so that was that, and I saw once I got momentum on Max it was crucial. From that point I wasn’t sure if I could keep him behind, or what. But just tried to settle into a rhythm. Then, like the race pace, yeah, we knew it was a one-stop. I think there were definitely laps where I was going too slow, so then I would pick it up and just try to find that balance. Because you… yeah… I’m not going to say any more. It was in control.
Q: (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) Daniel, I wanted to ask you about that number three car, that Dale Earnhardt car that Zak promised to let you drive if you got on the podium this season. How excited are you to be given that chance? Where are you going to do it? And do you get any bonus for actually winning rather than just being on the podium?
DR: I’m like, maybe he gives me the car? I think it was always a podium, I get to drive it. We never talked about a win, so I gave him my shoe that he drank out of, so maybe he gives me the car. It’s a good trade. Yeah, there’s like a couple of things today, like two heroes: Dale Earnhardt, big hero of mine, and to have a chance to get behind the wheel of one of his cars is crazy. That will certainly be a ‘pinch me’ moment. The other one… I’m sorry if I sound a bit self-absorbed now but when I think of McLaren I think of Senna. That’s the early memories and I’ve seen you know, like the trophies in the cabinet at the MTC and to have a winning trophy now with my name in pretty much the same cabinet is crazy. These are like two little things today that I certainly appreciate and they are two little surreal moments that I guess have hit me.
Q: (Edd Straw – The Race) Question for Daniel. Obviously you’ve talked about how hard this season has been, but have you cracked it with this car now? Is it coming properly naturally or is there still a little bit more to come and it still will vary a little bit by circuit? How far along are you in that process now?
DR: Closer. Definitely closer. I think there is still more to come. I don’t know if you will ever find anything but that’s obviously the way the sport is. The sport evolves and changes and you are trying to keep up with it. Just inside myself I’ve felt better since the second half of the season and that doesn’t always need to translate into lap times. It’s just me throwing the car round, feeling a bit more comfortable with it, that’s stuff I know. I don’t think all of it has translated yet into the stopwatch but there is certainly a bit more comfort and confidence that’s coming through from myself. I just look to keep building on that. I think we will get tracks that suit, some that don’t, but I would like to think the second half of the season there will be some more consistency and hopefully more of these type of results.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) Daniel, you talked a bit there about how beneficial this is and where it’s come from. Competitively as a driver, I just wondered what this performance and the win means for you personally because it’s obviously been a difficult first half of the season. I can imagine it must have been quite mentally and emotionally taxing at times. So how does it feel from that regard?
DR: Yeah. It feels… I don’t know what the word is. It feels not good… or it feels good, but it’s like… It’s reassuring, I think, for me and things like… I like believe in myself obviously. I think everyone does to get to this point, but I’ve certainly been challenged this year. The sport is like a tricky one, it’s not so black and white, I guess and sometimes you do struggle to find some answers but I think you have to like stay on course and stay true to the course and it’s like… you can easily get lost as well, but I think, you know, deep down I would have moments of frustration or moments of yeah, dropping my head, but I kind of made a point never to let that last. I also made a point to try and gain something from it and learn from it. Yeah, there’s been days this year where I’ve definitely haven’t loved it but I’ve had those days pretty much every year you know, like they happen. I think there’s probably just been more this year but that’s… I don’t resent those feelings either. I think like those things make you definitely appreciate the good days but also they make you understand some internal questions within yourself and how much you want it and how much it means to you. Yeah, for like moment you fall out of love with the sport but actually the clarity you get afterwards it kind of makes you realise how much you do love it and how much you want it. I think that’s been the biggest thing this weekend and you would have it…. To fight for a podium and yeah, like the want really kind of shone through and I that’s… when it gets to that point and that level it’s, yeah, I would back myself to the hilt.
Q: Various journalists have asked about Emma Raducanu’s victory in the US Open. She’s a Formula 1 fan and can we just get your thoughts on her achievement in New York, and perhaps Daniel we could start with you because she has gone on record as saying you’re her favourite Formula 1 driver?
DR: Thank you Emma. I feel very confident answering this question because I watched the whole game last night. I can say it now, I’m not going shy away from it. I went to bed at probably quarter to one because I couldn’t turn it off, it was awesome. I was like ‘ah, I’ll watch the start’ and then I watched it all, so it was amazing, it was phenomenal and it’s awesome that she’s a fan of the sport, I think more than anything. I appreciate the love for me Emma, but I think also like seeing her last night (she) was not like overwhelmed by the stage and just kind of taking it all in and like playing with aggression and I think just backing yourself, as I touched on before. That’s so powerful and it was cool. That’s why I’m a fan of sport, I love all types of sports because you can gain knowledge from it, you can learn from other sports and the mindset, whether it’s the way to play or… I don’t know. It’s pretty awesome, so congrats to you Emma. You killed it.
LN: I can also confirm I fell victim to a late night of staying up to watch the tennis. I would never have watched ever, a full game of tennis until last night. It was actually just a lot more enjoyable than I thought. It was pretty cool. I watched it from start to finish, maybe that’s why we had a good day, maybe we need to watch a tennis game, she has to play every Saturday night! I think she’s obviously done the country proud as well. I guess it’s relatable to me in a way from just my age, coming into Formula 1, for her age, going into the big stage of tennis. The confidence and ability she showed on that stage to perform and do such a job that she did against so many of the world’s greatest, I think, is a pretty incredible achievement from her, so congrats to her and I’m sure she’ll continue to create many more records.
VB: I haven’t seen the game. I didn’t actually know it was on, but it sounds good. Congrats.
DR: (Laughter) I love your honesty.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Daniel, just what you said earlier about the feeling you have with the car after qualifying on Friday night. I know you said you were internally frustrated to miss third place but what did feel so good? Why did you think the package was strong and why did you think something really good was possible?
DR: I guess a combination of factors. I think this circuit seems to suit the McLaren well. It did last year. I wasn’t driving it last year but I obviously witnessed the result the team had. So I knew that we could come into the weekend with some confidence with that alone and then probably two things with me, like just loving the circuit. I’ve always loved this track, it’s always been a fun one, it’s one that I typically gelled well with and then that combined with feeling better, you know, with the car, more recently and feeling a bit more comfortable and confident with it, so kind of all these things created that and then yeah, I think with Friday being so close… I don’t know, sometimes I just get angry, like it’s top three was so close and I think my lap was OK but there’s always parts where you’re like I could have done better. I don’t know. Sometimes I just flip. I certainly have a bit of rage and as I said at the time, I think it will be a blessing in disguise and I think I used it to my advantage for the rest of the weekend.
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Delightful win for Ricciardo after 3 years; McLaren’s first win since 2010
Monza, 12 Sept 2021: Daniel Ricciardo took his first Formula 1 in more than three years and McLaren’s first since 2012 at the end of a dramatic Italian Grand in which a collision involving Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton saw both title contenders exit the race. With Lando Norris following Ricciardo home to hand McLaren it’s first one-two finish since 2010, Valtteroi Bottas claimed third after a battling driver from the back of the grid.
The pre-race script had front-row starter Ricciardo as a character actor in the drama to be played out between pole sitter and championship leader Max Verstappen and title rival Lewis Hamilton who was starting from fifth.
But as soon as the lights went out at the start Ricciardo rose to a starring role. Verstappen got a poor getaway and Ricciardo surged forward to claim the lead as the field went into the first chicane. Verstappen slotted into second and Hamilton, who had made a good start, took third place.
As the leaders streamed towards the second chicane the Mercedes driver and the Red Bull were side by side. But in the tight confines of the corner both were forced wide. And while Verstappen managed to keep second, Hamilton cut the corner and conceded third place to Norris.
Behind them a collision between Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz brought out the Virtual Safety Car. Sainz managed to hold sixth place but as Giovinazzi limped back to the pit lane Sergio Perez climbed to seventh.
The Mexican soon began to pressure his Spanish rival and on lap 9 he got close enough to plot a move. As the pair approached the Variante della Roggia he pulled across and drew alongside the Ferrari. He managed to get a nose in front on the entry to the corner and emerged with sixth place in the bag.
At the front, despite applying intense pressure neither Verstappen nor Hamilton could get past the McLarens, both of which were running in clear air, and on lap 18 Verstappen was still a second back from Ricciardo and five seconds clear of Norris who had a second in hand over Hamilton.
With his tyres fading, Ricciardo dived for the pits at the end of lap 22. Verstappen was released into the lead and clean air but with his tyres also wearing out the Dutchman headed for the pit lane at the end of the following lap.
And there the championship leader’s race began to quickly unravel. A problem with the front-right wheel saw the Red Bull driver sit in his pit box for almost 11 seconds and he emerged in ninth position, behind Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
Behind him, Hamilton managed to get past Norris and took the race lead. The Mercedes driver then made his first p[it stop, but bizarrely the Briton also suffered a slow stop and when he emerged from the pit lane it was into the path of Verstappen.
The title contenders went into the first chicane almost side by side and just as with their lap one clash neither backed out. This time though the battle resulted in a collision as V erstappen hit the kerbs and then the driven left wheel of Hamilton’s car. The Red Bull was launched into the air and landed on top of the Mercedes, with the result that both ended up in the gravel and out of the race.
The Safety Car was released and that resulted in a flood of cars heading for the pit lane for a free stop. Perez was among those taking on new tyres and he emerged in fourth place behind race leader Ricciardo, Norris and Leclerc.
When racing resumed and the McLaren’s held the top two spots Perez went on the attack and on lap 34 he muscled past the Ferrari as they went through the first chicane. He got the job done by rattling across the kerbs, however, and was soon handed a five-second time penalty for gaining a lasting advantage. Behind the Mexican, Bottas also passed Leclerc and began to apply pressure on the Red Bull. Perez defended well, however, and managed to hold on to the place.
At the front, Ricciardo marched on and after 53 laps he took a surprise but well-earned win ahead of McLaren team-mate Lando Norris. Checo crossed the line third but with his time penalty applied he dropped to fifth behind third-placed Bottas and Leclerc. Sixth place went to Sainz, with Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll seventh ahead of Alpine’s Fernando Alonso, Williams’ George Russell and the second Alpine of Esteban Ocon.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix – Race
1 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren
2 Lando Norris McLaren 1.747
3 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 4.921
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 7.309
5 Sergio Perez Red Bull Racing 8.723
6 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 10.535
7 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 15.804
8 Fernando Alonso Alpine 17.201
9 George Russell Williams 19.742
10 Esteban Ocon Alpine 20.868
11 Nicholas Latifi Williams 23.743
12 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin 24.621
13 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo 27.216
14 Robert Kubica Alfa Romeo 29.769
15 Mick Schumacher Haas 51.088
Nikita Mazepin Haas
Lewis Hamilton Mercedes
Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing
Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri
Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri -
Verstappen claims popular home victory; beats Hami
Zandvoort (The Netherlands) 5 Sept 2021: Max Verstappen delivered a faultless drive in front of a packaged Zandvoort to take a hugely popular home victory in the Dutch Grand Prix, the 13th of the 22-round FIA Formula 1 World Championship here on Sunday. He beat title Lewis Hamilton by more than 20 seconds after the Mercedes driver made a late pit stop to salvage the point for fastest lap. Third place went to Valtteri Bottas in the second Mercedes.
At the start of the race, pole sitter Verstappen made a superb getaway to take the lead. Hamilton also made a good start but as he and Bottas jostled for position through the first two corners Verstappen was allowed to power ahead and by the end of the opening lap the Dutch drivers has established a 1.7s gap to Hamilton.
Behind the top three, AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly got away well to hold fourth place ahead of the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. At the back of the field Sergio Pérez in the second Red Bull was forced to start from the pit lane after an overnight engine change but as he passed the Haas of Nikita Mazepin in the early laps he flat-spotted a tyres and had to pit for an early switch to medium tyres. It was the start of an impressively long first stint for the Mexican driver as he launched a recovery drive.
At the front the order was stable, with Verstappen holding a 3.5s lead over Hamilton. Bottas began to drift off the front pair, however, and by lap 18 he was more than seven seconds adrift of his team-mate.
Then, at the end of lap 20, Hamilton dived for the pits and made the switch to medium tyres. Red Bull responded by pitting Versatppen on the next lap and he saw off the undercut to rejoin two seconds ahead of Hamilton.
Pérez, meanwhile, was making stealthy progress through the pack and by lap 25 he was up to 14th place. His progress picked up two laps later when Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, Williams’ George Russell and Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi pitted ahead of him. He rose to P11 and began to hunt down McLaren’s Lando Norris. He swiftly closed up to the McLaren, but having started on medium tyres, Norris was going long and he was able to match the Red Bull driver’s times.
As the race passed half distance Verstappen was once again told to push as it became clear that Mercedes were plotting a second attempt at undercutting the Dutchman. Hamilton pitted at the end of lap 39 for a set of medium tyres but thanks to a set of potent laps Verstappen was able to make his own pit stop, for hartd tyres, of lap 40 and once againm he emerged with a clear gap to his championship rival.
Further back, Norris finally made his sole stop for tyres on lap 43 and Pérez could race into clear air.
The Mexican made his sole visit to the pit lane at the end of lap 48 and took on a set of soft tyres. He rejoined in P12 and quickly passed Russell to relaunch his assault on the points positions. He soon began to exert pressure on McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo and on lap 56 passed the Australian to claim P9.
His next target was the Australian’s team-mate, Norris, and over the next 10 laps he turned a sizeable deficit into a gap of just half a second before again passing on the around the outside of Turn 1. His final mission was to get past Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and in the final laps the Red Bull driver passed the Frenchman to claim eighth place.
In those closing stages Hamilton closed to within 1.5 seconds of the lead RBR16B but with his tyres fading and Max expertly managing the gap, the Mercedes driver eventually abandoned his pursuit of victory and pitted for soft tyres.
Hamilton took the fastest lap point on the final tour of Zandvoort, but Verstappen’s seventh win of the season puts him back on top of the Drivers’ Championship standings with 224.5 points to Hamilton’s 221.5. In the Constructors’ Championship Mercedes still top the standings with 244.5 points, 12 ahead of Red Bull Racing.
With Bottas third at the flag, fourth place went to AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly. The French driver also put in an impressive drive to finish ahead of the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc and the Alpine of Fernando Alonso. Seventh place went to Carlos Sainz in the second Ferrari and with Checo in P8 the final two points places went to Ocon and Norris.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix – Race
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 72 1:30’05.395
2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 72 1:30’26.327 20.932
3 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 72 1:31’01.855 56.460
4 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 71 1:30’17.183 1 lap /11.788
5 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 71 1:30’22.175 1 lap /16.780
6 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 71 1:30’50.864 1 lap /45.469
7 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 71 1:30’52.896 1 lap /47.501
8 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda 71 1:30’53.479 1 lap /48.084
9 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 71 1:30’54.465 1 lap /49.070
10 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 71 1:30’57.725 1 lap /52.330
11 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 71 1:31’10.322 1 lap /1’04.927
12 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 70 1:30’22.717 2 laps /17.322
13 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 70 1:30’24.941 2 laps /19.546
14 Anotnio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 70 1:30’33.172 2 laps /27.777
15 Robert Kubica Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 70 1:31’05.853 2 laps /1’00.458
16 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 70 1:31’07.745 2 laps /1’02.350
17 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 69 1:29’55.249 3 laps
18 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 69 1:31’08.196 3 laps /1’02.801
Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda 48 1:02’36.678 Transmission
Nikita Mazepin Haas/Ferrari 41 54’07.352 Hydraulics -
Washed out Belgian GP shows the importance of qualies
Max Verstappen was classified first in a washed out Belgian Grand Prix, which was the shortest race in the history of Formula 1. George Russell achieved his maiden podium finish in P2 while Lewis Hamilton retrieved 7.5 points coming third. Three laps took place behind the safety car as torrential rain made the track undrivable and only half points were awarded as the race distance was less than 75%.
London, 30 August 2021: Rain was forecasted for the Grand Prix, but no one expected it to be a washout. Drama ensued before the race as Sergio Perez went into the barrier on his way to the grid ruling him out of the race. Instead of the lights going out, two formation laps took place behind the safety car. Drivers complained on the radio about aquaplaning and zero visibility, hence, the race was red flagged by the FIA.
After a wait of more than three hours FIA notified that the race would resume at 18:17 local time (race start was at 15:00 local time). With the grid bunched up behind the safety car, the drivers ventured out for another couple of laps before returning to the pits. FIA declared that the race won’t resume, and half points will be awarded to the top 10 finishers.
This race showed the importance of qualifying. Due to a red flag the finishing order was exactly similar as to qualifying, barring Perez who crashed out and had to start from the pitlane, if the race had started. Verstappen closed the gap on championship rival to Hamilton while a stunning Saturday qualifying lap by Russell meant he kept his 2nd place.
The 2021 season got back underway in a less than ideal way as if the summer break was extended for another week. Weather is one of the few elements that is out of control of the organizers and the FIA, and safety being paramount it was deemed unsafe to race in such dire conditions. Onto Zandvoort, hoping for some racing action there!
Saturday Qualifying results were:
P1: Max Verstappen- 33 (Red Bull) P2: George Russell- 63 (Williams) P3: Lewis Hamilton- 44 (Mercedes) P4: Daniel Ricciardo- 3 (McLaren) P5: Sebastian Vettel- 5 (Aston Martin) P6: Pierre Gasly- 10 (AlphaTauri) P7: Sergio Perez- 11 (Red Bull) P8: Valtteri Bottas- 77 (Mercedes) P9: Esteban Ocon- 31 (Alpine) P10: Lando Norris- 4 (McLaren) P11: Charles Leclerc- 16 (Ferrari) P12: Nicholas Latifi- 6 (Williams) P13: Carlos Sainz- 55 (Ferrari) P14: Fernando Alonso- 14 (Alpine) P15: Lance Stroll- 18 (Aston Martin) P16: Antonio Giovinazzi- 99 (Alfa Romeo) P17: Yuki Tsunoda- 22 (AlphaTauri) P18: Mick Schumacher- 47 (Haas) P19: Kimi Raikkonen- 7 (Alfa Romeo) P20: Nikita Mazepin- 9 (Haas) Note: Bottas and Stroll penalised five grid places for causing a collision at the previous round. Norris penalised five grid places for an unscheduled gearbox change. Raikkonen required to start from the pit lane, as car modified whilst under Parc Ferme conditions.
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Verstappen takes 12.5 points to Hami’s 7.5 in Spa washout: F1
Spa-Francorchamps, 29 August 2021: Max Verstappen scored his first Belgian Grand Prix victory after the race at the Spa-Francorchamps was red flagged after just three laps behind the safety car due to heavy rain that had delayed the race start for more than three hours. Williams’ George Russell took the first podium finish of his career with second place, while3 Lewis Hamilton finished third for Mercedes.
With downpours regularly falling across the Ardennes circuit throughout the morning, conditions in the build-up to the were extremely difficult. The treacherous nature of the track were fully revealed when Sergio Pérez lost control of his RB16B at Les Combes on his reconnaissance lap to the grid. The Mexican’s car slid into the barriers on the right side of the track breaking the suspension on the front right of the car. His Red Bull was recovered to the pits and it appeared as if he would take no further part in proceedings.
With rain continuing to fall ahead of the scheduled start at 3pm local time, the formation lap was delayed for 25 minutes. When it eventually got underway the red flags were swiftly shown as drivers throughout the order declared the conditions to be undriveable.
There followed an almost three-hour delay as FIA race officials monitored conditions for any sign of improvement. During the race suspension Red Bull Racing consulted officials who confirmed that if the team could repair the Mexican’s car he would be allowed to start the race from the pit lane. After furious work in the Red Bull garage Pérez’s car was in the end readied well ahead of the race start at 6.18pm.
Cars flowed out of the pit lane to follow the safety car around but with the rain beginning to fall more heavily it quickly became apparent that red flags were once again necessary and the cars steered back to the pit lane where 19 minutes later Race Control issued the message that the race would not be resumed.
The abandonment of the race means it goes down as the shortest in Formula 1 history. The record was previously held by the 1991 Australian Grand Prix at 14 laps.
The last time F1 had a half points race was in 2009 at the end of a Malaysian Grand Prix also halted by rain. Verstappen was declared the winner, scoring 12.5 points, with George Russell being awarded nine points and his first F1 podium finish. Lewis Hamilton was classified third, scoring 7.5 points. Max therefore closes the gap to Hamilton to just three, with the Red Bull driver now on 199.5 points. The Team now sits on 303.5 points, seven behind Mercedes.
Meanwhile, the FIA released the following statement:
Following the significant weather disruption to the 2021 FIA Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix, the FIA and Formula 1 are disappointed for all the fans at the track and at home that today’s race could not go to full distance, but the safety of the drivers, marshals and spectators must always be the priority. The Decision of the Stewards to extend the window in which the race could take place gave every possible opportunity to maximise the day’s running, but the weather conditions unfortunately did not improve sufficiently to complete more laps.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix – Race
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1 3’27.071
2 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1 3’29.066 1.995
3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1 3’29.672 2.601
4 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 1 3’31.567 4.496
5 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 1 3’34.550 7.479
6 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1 3’37.248 10.177
7 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 1 3’38.650 11.579
8 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1 3’39.679 12.60
9 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1 3’42.555 15.484
10 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1 3’43.237 16.166
11 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 1 3’47.661 20.590
12 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1 3’49.485 22.414
13 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1 3’51.234 24.163
14 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1 3’54.180 27.109
15 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda 1 3’55.400 28.329
16 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 1 3’56.578 29.507
17 Nikita Mazepin Haas/Ferrari 1 3’59.064 31.993
18 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1 4’01.179 34.108
19 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1 4’03.125 36.054
20 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda 1 4’05.276 38.205 -
Max Verstappen on pole; Hami p3 at Spa
Spa Francorchamps, 28 August 2021: Max Verstappen claimed his ninth career pole position in a rain-affected Belgain Grand qualifying session ahead of surprise front-row starter George Russell of Williams and third-placed Lewis Hamilton. Sergio Pérez will meanwhile start from seventh on the grid.
After a short delay due to heavy rain in the run-up to Qualifying, Q1 got underway on a wet track and most teams sent their drivers out on full wet Pirelli tyres. The exception was Williams which sent George Russell and Nicholas Latifi out on intermediate tyres.
Initially the times set on the two compounds were comparable but when Verstappen took P1 with a time of 2:07.574 and was quickly beaten by Russell to the tune of five full seconds it became clear that intermediates were the right choice. Drivers immediately returned to the pits to switch to the green-banded tyres and with the conditions improving but rain forecast, the session then became one of endurance as drivers stayed out to try to catch the best of the conditions.
In the end it was Lando Norris who made the most of the intermediate tyres in Q1. The McLaren driver crossed the line after the chequered flag to take top spot with a lap of 1:58.301. Verstappen eased through to Q2 in second place with a lap of 1:58.717.
Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi was the first driver eliminated, in P16, and the Italian was followed out of the session by AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda, Haas’ Mick Schumacher, the second Alfa of Kimi Räikkönen and the second Haas of Nikita Mazepin.
Though rain was forecast for Q2, the track stayed dry and the remaining drivers took to the track on inters. That meant progress was relatively straightforward for the Bulls, with Max posting a lap of 1:56.559 to secure fifth place at the flag. Checo, meanwhile, went through in seventh place.
Mercedes made heavy work of claiming Q3 berths, however. The team sent Hamilton and Bottas out on old intermediates but neither driver could make them work and they abandoned their runs to pit for new green-banded tyres. Again both struggled and a final set was called for.
In the drop zone in the closing moments Hamilton and Bottas needed big laps to jump to safety and both delivered. Hamilton jumped to P2 with a lap of 1:56.229 and Bottas erased any worries in the Mercedes camp by claiming P3 with a tour of 1:56.295.
The final moments weren’t as kind to Ferrari, however. Charles Leclerc was eliminated in P11, with team-mate Carlos Sainz exiting in P13. The man in the Ferrari sandwich was Williams’ Nicholas Latifi, while Alpine’s Fernando Alonso was ruled out in P14 ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
The expected rain began to fall in the minutes leading up to the start of Q3 and by the time the lights went green conditions had substantially deteriorated. The risk became clear when Norris lost control of his McLaren at the start of his first push lap of the segment and crashed heavily at Raidillon. The red flags were immediately displayed.
A long delay followed and when the final eight minutes of the session got underway rain was still falling. Red Bull opted for intermediate tyres and after his first lap Verstappen was in P2 but a second off provisional pole sitter Hamilton.
The conditions were improving rapidly, however, as evidenced by Russell suddenly putting in purple sector times. The Williams driver’s timing was good and his final lap was enough to put him ahead of Lewis Hamilton by 0.013s.
Verstappen’s timing was marginally better, however, and when the Dutch driver crossed the line he was the only man to dip below the two-minute mark with a lap of 1:59.765 that secured him his ninth career pole and Red Bull’s first at this circuit since 2011.
Behind the top three McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo will start fourth ahead of Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel. Pierre Gasly quaklified sixth and Checo secured seventh place on the grid. Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas placed eighth but will take a five-place grid penalty tomorrow. Esteban Ocon qualified ninth for Alpine with Norris tenth after failing to set a time.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix – Qualifying
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1:59.765 6 210.532
2 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 2:00.086 0.321 0.268 7 209.969
3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 2:00.099 0.334 0.279 6 209.946
4 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 2:00.864 1.099 0.918 6 208.617
5 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 2:00.935 1.170 0.977 7 208.495
6 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 2:01.164 1.399 1.168 6 208.101
7 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda 2:02.112 2.347 1.960 6 206.485
8 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 2:02.502 2.737 2.285 6 205.828
9 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 2:03.513 3.748 3.129 7 204.143
– 4 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 2
11 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:57.721 1.696 1.462 8 214.187
12 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:58.056 2.031 1.750 8 213.579
13 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:58.137 2.112 1.820 7 213.433
14 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 1:58.205 2.180 1.879 8 213.310
15 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:58.231 2.206 1.901 7 213.263
16 Antionio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 2:02.306 4.005 3.385 9 206.158
17 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda 2:02.413 4.112 3.476 9 205.978
18 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 2:03.973 5.672 4.795 9 203.386
19 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 2:04.452 6.151 5.199 9 202.603
20 Nikita Mazepin Haas/Ferrari 2:04.939 6.638 5.611 8 201.813 -
Valtteri Bottas fastest in FP1
Spa-Francorchamps, 27 August 2021: After its traditional summer break Formula 1 returned to action at Spa-Francorchamps this morning, with Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas quickest in the opening practice session for the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix. The Finn set beat title hopeful Max Verstappen by just under two tenths of a second as championship leader Lewis Hamilton finished in 18th place.
The one-hour session got off to a slow start as rain the hours preceding the start of running meant that the track was still damp and teams opted to wait out the opening minutes as the track began to dry.
A number of drivers took the track on intermediates, but after 10 minutes it became clear that dry weather tyres were necessary. McLaren’s Lando Norris led the way on me3dium tyres but the Briton was soon eclipsed by Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel and then by Daniel Riccardo in the second McLaren, Pierre Gasly of AlphaTauri and then by Hungary race winner Esteban Ocon who put his Alpine in P1.
Verstappen then emerged in hard tyres and promptly bounced the French driver out of top sport with a lap of 1:46.879s. Over the course of a long run he then whittled the benchmark down to 1:45.905 before teams began to make a switch to soft tyres.
As the session entered its final quarter Bottas jumped P1 with a softy-tyre lap of 1:45.199s. Hamilton though was struggling with a larger wing than his team-mate and the Briton complained that he had poor straightline speed.
However, despite his difficulties, Hamilton looked set to edge past his team-mate on soft tyres but unfortunately he was slowed when he came across Williams’ Nicholas Latifi at the Bus Stop chicane and his run was compromised.
Verstappen then also moved to soft tyres in the final phase of the session but he failed to dislodge Bottas and had to settle for second place, 0.164 behind the Mercedes man.
Drizzle was now beginning to fall and that meant little hope of late improvement. Hamilton therefore was left languishing in P18 on the timesheet.
AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly took third place at the flag ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. The Monegasque driver’s team-mate Carlos Sainz finished fifth, while Red Bull’s Sergio Perez was sixth ahead of Vettel and Norris, with Ocon and his Alpine team-mate Fernando Alonso rounding out the top 10.
2021 FIA Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix – Free Practice 1
1 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:45.199 18 239.682
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1:45.363 0.164 14 239.309
3 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1:45.699 0.500 20 238.549
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:45.818 0.619 19 238.280
5 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:45.935 0.736 20 238.017
6 Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda 1:46.127 0.928 17 237.587
7 Sebastian Vettel Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:46.177 0.978 19 237.475
8 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:46.336 1.137 17 237.120
9 Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 1:46.497 1.298 16 236.761
10 Fernando Alonso Alpine/Renault 1:46.612 1.413 16 236.506
11 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 1:46.649 1.450 19 236.424
12 Daniel Ricciardo McLaren/Mercedes 1:46.683 1.484 20 236.348
13 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:46.755 1.556 17 236.189
14 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1:46.772 1.573 19 236.151
15 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda 1:46.928 1.729 19 235.807
16 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:47.101 1.902 20 235.426
17 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:48.125 2.926 15 233.196
18 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:48.224 3.025 17 232.983
19 Nikita Mazepin Haas/Ferrari 1:48.705 3.506 16 231.952
20 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 1:49.059 3.860 15 231.199
