INDIA in F1

Tag: Max Verstappen

  • Max Verstappen overcomes time penalty to win at Las Vegas

    Max Verstappen overcomes time penalty to win at Las Vegas

    Las Vegas, 19 Nov. 2023: Max Verstappen overcame a time penalty and car damage to take his 18th win of 2023 in an exciting inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix in which Charles Leclerc overtook Sergio Pérez on the last lap to take second place. Pérez’s P3 at the flag sealed the Drivers’ Championship runner-up sport for the Mexican. 

    When the lights went out at the start, polesitter Leclerc got away well to take a narrow lead. However, even though he started on the dirty side of the track, Verstappen also made a good start and he took the inside line on the way to Turn 1. The champion braked late but slide wide, forcing Leclerc off track. When they rejoined, Verstappen was ahead and in the lead. However, the incident was soon put under investigation by the stewards. 

    Further back, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso also spun in Turn 1 and that caused a number of cars around him to take evasive action including Ferrari’s Caros Sainz One of them was Pérez and as the Mexican tried to react he tapped the back of Valtteri Bottas’ Alfa Romeo, sustaining front wing damage. 

    At the end of the first lap Pérez pitted for a new nose and a set of Hard tyres. He rejoined in 18th place, just as a Virtual Safety Car was deployed to allow marshals to clear debris in Turn 1. However, almost as soon as the VSC ended, the physical Safety Car was deployed when Lando Norris crashed at Turn 12. 

    The Safety Car left the track at the end of lap six and Verstappen controlled the re-start well to hold the lead but on lap eight, the stewards handed down their decision on the start and Verstappen was handed a five-second penalty for forcing Leclerc off track. The champion, who was now two seconds clear of Leclerc, held position, expecting to serve the penalty in his first stop.  

    Pérez, meanwhile, was on the move and after rising to 16th under the SC as rivals pitted he then breezed past Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and the AlphaTauris of Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo to take P13. 

    At the front, Verstappen was trying to shake Leclerc but the Ferrari driver was grimly hanging on to the back of the Red Bull and was just a second behind the race leader. And on lap 12, Leclerc attacked. The Ferrari driver closed up on the long run to Turn 14 and he passed the champion on the inside under braking to take the lead. Red Bull pitted Verstappen and after serving his time penalty and taking on a set of Hard tyres he rejoined in ninth place.

    But as others pitted, Pérez vaulted up the order and on lap 18 he was in P2 just 14 seconds behind Leclerc. The Ferrari driver made his first stop on lap 22 and after a 3.9s stop, he rejoined in P3 behind Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and new race leader, Pérez. The Ferrari driver was now four seconds ahead of Verstappen who was back in P7 but being hampered by Alonso and Russell who were battling over P5.  

    Verstappen was soon past Alonso and after Russell had passed Sainz, the champion followed suit, powering past the Spaniard and tucking in behind the Mercedes. Verstappen went on the attack at the end of lap 25 but Russell was unsighted, turned in and there was contact. Verstappen took third place but was left with a damaged front wing and with debris on the track, the Safety Car was deployed. 

    The Dutch driver pitted for checks and new tyres while behind him a stream of cars filed into the pit lane for new tyres, including Pérez, who took on another set of Hard tyres and rejoined behind Leclerc who stayed out. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was now third ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, with both on one stop, and Verstappen was in P5. 

    The Safety Car left the track at the end of lap 28 and Leclerc kept the lead ahead of Pérez. He tried to quickly shake off the Red Bull driver but the Mexican clung on and when DRS was enabled he closed up and on lap 32 powered past the Ferrari driver into Turn 14 to take the lead once more. Behind them Verstappen muscled his way past Gasly to take P4 and then on lap 33 he passed Piastri for P3, just 1.6s behind Leclerc and 2.4s off Pérez. 

    On lap 35, Leclerc fought back and the Monegasque surprised Pérez with a late dart down the inside of turn 14 to steal back the lead. Verstappen was now inside DRS range of Pérez and on lap 36 he roared past the Mexican to begin the hunt for the lead. On lap 37 the Dutchman pounced, powering past the Ferrari drive on the run to Turn 14. Leclerc fought back with a late braking lunge but Verstappen was already ahead and into the lead. 

    Now it was Pérez’s turn to reel in the Ferrari and on lap 43 the under pressure Ferrari driver locked up into Turn 12 and the Red Bull driver swept past. 

    Leclerc wasn’t done, though, and though the Mexican tried to break DRS, the Ferrari driver stuck closer and on the final lap he went for broke, diving down the inside into Turn 14 to ambush Pérez and steal P2 just a few hundred metres from the flag. 

    Verstappen, meanwhile, was already there, powering across the line to become the first winner of the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Behind Pérez, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon took fourth place ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. Sainz was sixth in the second Ferrari, while Hamilton and Russell were seventh and eighth respectively for Mercedes. Fernando Alonso finished ninth in the second Aston and the final point went to McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. 

    2023 FIA Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix – Race 
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 50 1:29’08.289 
    2 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 50 1:29’10.359 2.070
    3 Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 50 1:29’10.530 2.241
    4 Esteban Ocon Alpine 50 1:29’26.954 18.665
    5 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 50 1:29’28.356 20.067
    6 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 50 1:29’29.123 20.834
    7 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 50 1:29’30.044 21.755
    8 George Russell Mercedes 50 1:29’31.380 23.091
    9 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 50 1:29’34.253 25.964
    10 Oscar Piastri McLaren 50 1:29’37.785 29.496
    11 Pierre Gasly Alpine 50 1:29’42.559 34.270
    12 Alexander Albon Williams 50 1:29’51.687 43.398
    13 Kevin Magnussen Haas 50 1:29’53.114 44.825
    14 Daniel Ricciardo AlphaTauri 50 1:29’56.814 48.525
    15 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 50 1:29’58.451 50.162
    16 Logan Sargeant Williams 50 1:29’59.171 50.882
    17 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 50 1:30’33.639 1’25.350
    18 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 46 1:23’38.931 Gearbox
    19 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 45 1:21’43.790 Not running

  • Max Verstappen win Sao Paulo GP ahead of Lando Norris

    Max Verstappen win Sao Paulo GP ahead of Lando Norris

    Sao Paulo, 5 Nov 2023: Max Verstappen took a controlled São Paulo Grand Prix victory, fending off an early challenge from fast starting Lando Norris to power to his 17th win of the season. With Norris a comfortable second, late-race drama was provided by Fernando Alonso who beat Sergio Pérez to the final podium spot by less than a tenth of second at the end of a thrilling drag race to the flag. 

    There was drama ahead of the race start at Interlagos, with front-row starter Charles Leclerc exiting with a hydraulics issue on the formation lap. The Ferrari driver managed to pull into an escape road, allowing the remaining cars to form up on the grid.

    There were more incidents when the lights went out. Verstappen got a good start from pole position to take the lead. Further back, Norris reacted to the lights superbly and passed the of slow-starting Fernando Alonso to jump from sixth on the grid to second as the leaders went into Turn 1. 

    At the rear of the grid through there was contact. Williams’ Alex Albon went to the outside on the run to Turn 1 and he was clipped by the Haas’ of Nico Hülkenberg. The Williams driver was pitched into the side of the second Haas of Kevin Magnussen and both spun into the barriers. In the chaos, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was also hit and sustained rear wing damage, while Daniel Ricciardo’s AlphaTauri was hit by a loose wheel from Magnussen’s car and also sustained rear wing damage. 

    The Safety Car was immediately released but with debris all across the track in Turn 1 and with the barriers damaged, the red flags were soon flown. 

    When the lights went out for the second time, Max again got away well to take the lead ahead of Norris. Hamilton, who had taken third ahead of the red flag, tried to go around the outside of the McLaren but locked up and that allowed Alonso to tuck in behind the Mercedes and then use the slipstream to steal P3 from the Mercedes driver on the run to Turn 4. Behind them, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll was passed by Mercedes’ George Russell and the second Red Bull of Sergio Pérez. 
    Norris then began to close on Verstappen and on lap 8 the McLaren driver went on the attack, attempting a pass on the outside of the first corner. He followed that up with a look at Turn 4, but Verstappen defended well and the McLaren driver then had to back off having used the best of his tyres.

    Pérez was soon on the attack and on lap 14, he powered past Russell into Turn 1. The Mercedes driver then used DRS on the Reta Oposta to try to retake the position, but Pérez position his car well and held position as they exited Turn 4. Freed from the DRS train, Pérez next targeted Hamilton and on lap 18 he powered past the slower Mercedes into Turn 1.  

    That was the cue for Mercedes to pit Hamilton and he was followed on the following tour by Russell, with both switching to Medium tyres. That sparked the first round of stops and Peerez pitted from P4 at the end of lap 20. Hamilton’s undercut was powerful, however, and the Mexican emerged behind the Mercedes once more. Pérez was flying, however, and he soon passed the seven-time champion once more. 

    Verstappen made his first stop at the end of lap 27, with Norris pitting right behind him and the pair held their positions as they too moved to Medium tyres. 

    Behind the top two, Pérez began to edge closer to Alonso and at a little after half distance he was just 1.3s behind the Spaniard. The Mexican’s pace on the Medium tyres wasn’t as good, however, and over the remainder of the second stint he slowly dropped back from the Aston Martin. 

    However, after his final stop for Soft tyres, on lap 47, the Pérez’s found his pace again and he once again began to chase Alonso down. 

    At the front, Verstappen was firmly in control and after briefly surrendering the lead to Norris following his final switch to Softs, on lap 56, he returned to the front three laps later and began to manage his march to the flag. 

    Pérez, though, was deep into a tense cat and mouse battle with Alonso for the final podium place, with the Mexican using DRS to draw close and Alonso deploying battery to defend hard through the final 20 laps. 

    And as the laps ebbed away, it look like Alonso would comfortably hold on. However, on lap 70, Pérez at last got an opportunity. The Red Bull driver closed in at the end of the lap and with aid of DRS dived to the inside of the Aston on the run to Turn 1 to get the move done. Alonso, though, fought back and with DRS on his side on the long straight battled his way through to retake the position. Pérez wasn’t giving up, though, and he tucked in behind the Spaniard for a final-lap lunge. 

    It came right at the end of lap 71. As Verstappen crossed the line to take his 17th win of the season, Pérez got DRS at the exit of Junçao to kick off a stunning drag race to the flag. And though the Mexican drew alongside the Aston Martin, Alonso had just enough pace to nose across the line in third as they took the flag. 

    Behind the top four, Stroll was fifth in the second Aston Martin, with Sainz sixth ahead of Alpine’s Pierre Gasly. Hamilton slid to eighth at the flag with Yuki Tsunoda taking two points for AlphaTauri in P9. The final point went to Esteban Ocon in the second Alpine. 

    2023 FIA Formula 1 São Paulo Grand Prix – Race 
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 71 1:56’48.894 
    2 Lando Norris McLaren 71 1:56’57.171 8.277
    3 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 71 1:57’23.049 34.155
    4 Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 71 1:57’23.102 34.208
    5 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 71 1:57’29.739 40.845
    6 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 71 1:57’39.082 50.188
    7 Pierre Gasly Alpine 71 1:57’44.987 56.093
    8 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 71 1:57’51.753 1’02.859
    9 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 71 1:57’58.774 1’09.880
    10 Esteban Ocon Alpine 70 1:56’58.735 1 lap /9.841
    11 Logan Sargeant Williams 70 1:57’15.102 1 lap /26.208
    12 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 70 1:57’18.854 1 lap /29.960
    13 Daniel Ricciardo AlphaTauri 70 1:57’58.855 1 lap /1’09.961
    14 Oscar Piastri McLaren 69 1:56’52.530 2 laps /3.636
         George Russell Mercedes 57 1:40’53.898 Retirement
         Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 39 1:17’30.833 Retirement
         Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 22 55’50.383 Retirement
         Kevin Magnussen Haas 0 – Accident
         Alexander Albon Williams 0 – Accident
         Charles Leclerc Ferrari 0 – Not started

  • Charles Leclerc takes US pole; Verstappen crosses track limits, loses pole

    Charles Leclerc takes US pole; Verstappen crosses track limits, loses pole

    Austin, 20 October 2023: Charles Leclerc claimed pole position for the 2023 FIA Formula 1 United States Grand Prix after Max Verstappen lost a possible 11th pole position of the season to a track limits violation in the final corner of his final flyer of a close-fought qualifying session at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. 

    Leclerc claimed provisional pole with a lap of 1:34.723 but Verstappen beat the Ferrari driver’s pace over the first sector of his final lap. The three champion looked to have done enough as he crossed the line 0.005s ahead of the Ferrari driver, but within seconds Verstappen’s time was deleted for exceeding track limits in Turn 19. He dropped to sixth place at the end of the session. Lecler will be joined on the front row for the race by McLaren’s Lando Norris, with Lewis Hamilton third for Mercedes. 

    At the start of Q1 Verstappen made an instant impression, jumping up to P1 with a lap of 1:36.470, 0.152 clear of Leclerc. With eight minutes remaining Nico Hülkenberg moved to the top of the order in his upgraded Haas, posting a time of 1:36.235 before being quickly outpaced by Alpine’s Pierre Gasly who went seven hundredths of a second quicker than the German. 

    However, with five minutes remaining and just ahead of the final runs, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz set a new target time of 1:35.824, with three tenths of a second ahead of Leclerc who also improved. 

    Verstappen was back on track, however, and the champion returned to the top of the order with a lap of 1:35.346, 0.478 clear of Sainz. In the final moments, however, Verstappen was edged out of P1, with Hamilton moving to the top ahead of Norris. That left the Red Bull driver with P3 at the end of the session, ahead of Sainz and AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda. 

    Ruled out at the end of the session were 16th-placed Hülkenberg followed by Aston Martin’s Ferrnando Alonso, Williams’ Alex Albon, the second Aston of Lance Stroll and last-placed Logan Sargeant in the other Williams. 

    Leclerc set the pace at the start of Q2 with a lap of 1:35.888, but the Ferrari driver was swiftly eclipsed by both Mercedes drivers and by McLaren’s Oscar Piatsri who took P1 with a lap of 1:35.576.  Verstappen was just behind the Australian on track, however, and when he crossed the line he was 0.085s ahead and in top spot. Sergio Pérez then moved to P5 in the other Red Bull and just 0.188 covered the closely matched top five. 

    In the final runs, Leclerc managed to hold on to top spot – just. The Ferrari driver was first on track and he set the benchmark at 1:35.004, almost three tenths of a second ahead of team-mate Sainz. Verstappen booked his Q3 spot in P2, just 0.004s off Leclerc and more than two tenths ahead of Hamilton. 

    The drop zone’s first faller was Tsunoda and the 11th-placed Japanese driver was followed to the exit by Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas, with Haas’ Kevin Magnussen and AlhaTauri’s returning Daniel Ricciardo dropping out in 14th and 15th respectively.

    Verstappen was first on track at the start of the final 12-minute session and the Dutchman stopped the clock at 1:35.081. However, he caught Pérez in the final corner and he ended the first run in P3 with a time of 1:35.081, behind Leclerc and second-placed Hamilton. 

    In the final runs Leclerc set a stern target, posting a lap of 1:34.723. Verstappen looked to have done enough but in the final corner, he slid wide and slid back to sixth. 

    Norris took P2 0.130 off Leclerc with Hamilton just 0.009s further back in third. Carlos Sainz took P4 for Ferrari ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell with Verstappen sixth. Behind the champion Gasly will start in P7 ahead of team-mate Esteban Ocon with Pérez in P9 ahead of Piastri.

    2023 FIA United States Grand Prix – Qualifying 
    1 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:34.723 – –
    2 Lando Norris McLaren 1:34.853 0.130 
    3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:34.862 0.139 
    4 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:34.945 0.222 
    5 George Russell Mercedes 1:35.079 0.356 
    6 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:35.081 0.358 
    7 Pierre Gasly Alpine 1:35.089 0.366 
    8 Esteban Ocon Alpine 1:35.154 0.431 
    9 Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 1:35.173 0.450 
    10 Oscar Piastri McLaren 1:35.467 0.744 
    11 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 1:35.697 0.974 
    12 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 1:35.698 0.975 
    13 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 1:35.858 1.135 
    14 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:35.880 1.157 
    15 Daniel Ricciardo AlphaTauri 1:35.974 1.251 
    16 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 1:36.235 1.512 
    17 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 1:36.268 1.545 
    18 Alexander Albon Williams 1:36.315 1.592 
    19 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1:36.589 1.866 
    20 Logan Sargeant Williams 1:36.827 2.104 

  • Indian journalist Niharika Ghorpade checks with Hamilton if Red Bull-gap can be closed before 2024

    Indian journalist Niharika Ghorpade checks with Hamilton if Red Bull-gap can be closed before 2024

    The DRIVERS who attended the post-qualifying FIA press conference were: 1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), 2 – George RUSSELL (Mercedes) and 3 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes) 

    Question by Indian journalist is given at the top. Press Conference follows:

    Q: (Niharika Ghorpade – Sportskeeda) To both Mercedes drivers, Max has had a margin of half a second in the last weekend and this weekend in qualifying. It seems to be a recurring theme. Do you think that kind of gap can be recovered over the winter given the head start Red Bull have with their ‘24 challenger?
    GR: Yeah, I believe so. I think when we look at our car we see a number of flaws in it. It’s not like we’re looking at it scratching our head thinking where can we improve it? We think there’s loads of places that we can improve it. We’ve made some really good findings recently with regards to the aero of the car and some of the bits and pieces on the car, which is looking very promising. But we can never promise what we’re going to deliver over the winter in terms of a result, because it’s a relative game. We can only focus on ourselves. But I’m extremely confident in my team. Very confident in the decision-makers and the direction we’re heading, that we’ve made some really great learnings. And we won’t trip up and make a mistake as we have done these past few seasons.

    Q: Lewis, are you confident that you can close the gap to Red Bull over the winter?
    LH: I have 100% faith in the guys, the team back in the factory working away on it. And who knows? I mean, we don’t know where they are or where they’re progressing to. I think we just have to focus on our job and not necessarily so focused on necessarily closing that gap. It’s going to be what it is. By the time we get to the first race, hopefully it is closed. 

    Q: Max, everyone talks about closing the gap to Red Bull over the winter. Are you seeing big gains yourself in Milton Keynes?
    MV: Maybe. We’ll find out next year. There’s no point to talk about it now. I’m just enjoying the moment and we keep pushing. We keep working hard.

    TRACK INTERVIEWS were Conducted by Naomi Schiff

    Q: Max, congratulations. It’s another pole position for you on this all important weekend. Is this a step to show what’s possible this weekend?
    Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, I mean a great start to the weekend. It’s quite tricky out there, you know, with the new tarmac, it still needs to rubber in. Very peaky grip. So as soon as you over-push it a little bit, the rear wants to step out and stuff, but of course very happy to be on pole. It’s been a good day for us

    Q: Obviously, tomorrow is a big day for you. You could already be crowned three-time World Champion tomorrow. So if that does happen, what does this race mean on Sunday to you?
    MV: Well, I want to win it, of course. I mean, we put it on pole, so naturally you want to, of course, win the race. But first of all let’s make sure that tomorrow we have a good day as well. I think the car is quick. Of course tomorrow, let’s say, well, morning, afternoon, however you like it, I think it’s going to be, again, a bit more difficult for to get the tyres ready to work well, with the sand coming onto the track as well. But yeah, it’s a great start to the weekend. The car is working well. That’s all I could hope for really.

    Q: Good luck tomorrow and enjoy it out there. Thank you. George, congratulations, tough weekend, with only one practice session on a track that a lot of the teams don’t have a lot of data on. How tricky was it for you out there today?
    George RUSSELL: Yeah, it was a really tricky day for everybody. It was new tarmac, it was really slippery, super windy here, so all the sand is blowing onto the track. And we went out in qualifying and the lap times were just immense compared to what we were doing this morning. So that was good, fun, really happy to be P3 (sic). This is a bit better than we expected.

    Q: Tomorrow we’ll have a better idea of what the race pace is going to look like. But, you know, looking forward to Sunday, what do you think is going to be possible from where you’re starting? 
    GR: Yeah, I mean, Lando and the McLarens are really quick at the moment. We obviously know Red Bull and Max are in a league of their own. But our fight at the moment is with Ferrari to secure P2 in the Constructors’ Championship, we need to be consistent and go from there. 

    PRESS CONFERENCE
    Q: Max, very well done to you. It looked like a tricky session to navigate. But you’ve taken another emphatic pole. How good was the car?
    MV: Yeah, I mean, I think it was difficult for everyone out there, you know, with the new tarmac, there was not a lot of grip. And as soon as you, I wouldn’t even say overstep it, but you tried to just carry a little bit more speed into the corner, the rear really wants to step out and that made it very tricky to find the limit in qualifying run after run, to see how much the track was improving, but then not overdo it. We tried to just follow the track as best as we could. And yeah, my first run in Q3 was good. I was happy with the balance of the car, considering the track conditions. Overall, a good day and more than I could have hoped for really, because it’s always a bit hectic, you know, the Sprint format, to after one session optimise the car. And then especially with this new tarmac as well, it’s probably even more difficult, but it was good.

    Q: Given your pole advantage at Suzuka last time out. How confident were you going into the session?
    MV: I felt good. Well, FP1 was OK. But it was all about just fine-tuning a few things and just seeing what the track was going to do, because I had no clue how much it was going to improve.

    Q: You talk about the surface a lot. What about the wind out there today? Did that make it tricky?
    MV: Also. I mean, some places, of course, you had a headwind and then a tailwind, and the car was a bit all over the place because of it. But you have to try and drive around it. 

    Q: And Max, had you completed that second lap of Q3, how much more was there to come?
    MV: I have no idea, because I only got to Turn 4. But the lap before was alright. But for sure, there’s always a little bit more to it, because the track I think was improving every time. But it was OK.

    Q: Now, Max, if you score just three points in the Sprint race tomorrow, you’ll be a three-time World Champion by the time you line up on pole position for the race on Sunday. That’s a thought. How are you approaching the remainder of the weekend as a result?
    MV: Same as always. I mean, it doesn’t really change anything. I just want to have a good weekend. And of course, I know in the back of my mind that’s happening, but it doesn’t add any extra pressure or whatever. I just want to enjoy the weekend and try to do the best I can.

    Q: George, coming to you. Many congratulations, a second front-row start in the last three races for you. The pace of the car was good. Has that come as a bit of a surprise this weekend?
    GR: Yeah, I think it’s been interesting, the second half of the season. The quali pace has been really quite exceptional compared to the start of this year. And I’m feeling really confident in the car. But this weekend, we definitely weren’t expecting to be lining up P2 and P3 on the grid for Sunday. So that is a real pleasant surprise. Of course, Lando was ahead of us and his marginal off wasn’t the different for his pace advantage. So, we know that we’re half a step behind McLaren. But equally, our fight is with Ferrari at the moment. That’s our aim for the remainder of the season. And we just need to secure as many points as possible to seal that off.

    Q: But what about the fight with McLaren here? Oscar Piastri is going to be starting sixth. Lando, back in 10th. Do you think you’ve got the pace to beat them?
    GR: Yeah, definitely. I think we see that the pace converges a little bit come Sunday. Lando was exceptionally fast in Suzuka, so he’s really going to be the biggest threat. But there’s no reason why we can’t both fight for a podium. But there’s a lot of unknowns. We don’t know how the tyre degradation is going to be, the tyre wear, if it’s a one-stop or two-stop. And the track is just constantly changing. And you know, the very first lap in qualifying was, I think, two seconds quicker than the quickest lap in FP1, which was probably the biggest jump I think I’ve ever experienced in Formula 1, so we don’t know what tomorrow and Sunday are going to bring.

    Q: You were fifth fastest in Q1 this evening. You were fifth fastest in Q2. Did you find something? Did you make a jump in Q3 relative to where you’d been earlier in the session?
    GR: I think in Q1 I actually made a mistake on my lap. I lost three tenths, so I think I could have been right up there in the top three. Q2 I ran the used tyre. [Coughs] God, I don’t know what’s going on at the moment . [Coughs] Yeah, stay hydrated! And yeah, in Q2 it was the used tyres, so I think P5 was a strong result. So, it was no big surprise to be sort of fighting for the top three in Q3.

    Q: On Sunday, can you do anything about the man in the middle?
    GR: Probably waving him goodbye, I think, after Turn 1. Max has done an exceptional job. He deserves to be champion this year. Of course, you know, Formula 1, we love the competition, but we can’t take anything away from what he and Red Bull have done. And we need to look at ourselves in the mirror and raise our game into next year and give them a challenge.

    Q: Lewis, many congratulations. Good to see you in P3. As the others have said it was a tricky session. How difficult was it to navigate, from your point of view?
    Lewis HAMILTON: No more difficult than any other qualifying session. They’re always difficult. Yeah, it was obviously a bit windy today. But otherwise, pretty straightforward.

    Q: You were fastest in Q2. So the inherent pace of the car was there. Same question that I asked George, really. Were you surprised by the pace you had here in Qatar?
    LH: Absolutely. I mean, it’s always confusing, because obviously in P1 [sic], you now I was nearly out of Q1, sorry. Which is incredibly frustrating in that moment. But then we get into Q2 and all of a sudden, we’re right up there. So it’s very, very strange. But it’s great for all the team for us to be up there. And George did a great job today. So for us to be so close, it’s pretty awesome. I mean, for me, it was a relatively average qualifying session, Q1 and Q3 particularly. Yeah, if I was able to find that, put together the lap that I did in… That came too early, in Q2. I wish I had that for Q3.

    Q: Can you just talk us through Q1? That must have been a nervous moment for you. What was going on?
    LH: Yeah, just timing. We left the garage a little bit too late. We didn’t get to finish our lap on the medium. And we came in and I think just a bit out of sync, and then just couldn’t put it put it back together. It was quite tricky out there. And there’s a lot of traffic. So when you come to the end of the lap, you had to back up a lot. But generally, I was really grateful to get through.

    Q: And looking ahead to the race on Sunday. Where’s your battle?
    LH: With everyone around me.

    Q: Not the man in the middle. But I mean, I suppose, specifically… 
    LH: No, I’m battling the guy to the right of me for sure. I think, yeah, I’ll give it everything to try and fight him. Maybe like George said, maybe he will just disappear like he does in most of the other races, but maybe we’ll be able to fight.

    Q: What about this battle with Sergio Pérez for P2 in the championship. He’s starting the race back in 13th. Is that on your mind as you go into the race? 
    LH: No, I’m trying to win the race. It  doesn’t matter who I’m fighting against.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Max, can you just talk us through what happened at Turn 4 on your last lap in Q3. Quite a lot of drivers were having oversteer moments on that second go. Was it just trying something different? 
    MV: I tried to carry a little bit more speed into the corner and it just gave up on me. I knew, of course, I had that lap already. So I was like, I’ll just try to push a little bit more and really, you know, try to give it everything I have. But it’s the track surface. At the moment it doesn’t let you push a tiny bit more. As soon as you stress a little bit too much it really snaps at you and you can’t correct it. So that’s a bit of a bit of a shame. But yeah, it was nothing major.



    Q: (Matt Kew – Autosport) To both Mercedes drivers. The trend in 2023, it seems, is for a slower start into the weekend. And then getting faster and faster throughout. Is there any sort of different approach to this weekend that you guys have come out of the block flying?
    GR: I think it’s just learning and experience. I think we found ourselves off the pace at the start of this year, a long way behind where we wanted to be. We were trying many different things with the car. And I think now, probably these last five races, the set-up of the car has been relatively, much the same set-up every race we go to. So, we know what the car needs to maximise its performance. And I think that helps the consistency we build upon it. And that’s also given us good direction into next year. So I think that’s a big factor of it.
    LH: Nothing more to add to that to be honest. 

    Q: (Luke Smith – The Athletic) Max a question for you. You’ve spoken about the challenge of Sprint races, to optimise the set-up with only one practice session. How far away are you from where you would normally be after three, four practices going into qualifying. And has this been the hardest Sprint race to get ready for, given the temperature change, track evolution, everything like that?
    MV: It’s always difficult to say, you know, where we would have ended up if we would have had a normal weekend, but with the track conditions, for sure it’s a little bit more difficult to anticipate stuff, but I think we did the best we could really. I think it’s never going to be perfect. But clearly it was good enough and I was quite happy with the car in qualifying. But, you know, it can also be that you try sometimes – and we’ve had it in the past – that you know you make a few decisions where you think it’s going to be okay and then it doesn’t work out and then your whole weekend is ruined because you can’t touch the car and I think that is a bit of a shame. And that’s maybe something we have to look into for the future if we want to continue doing these kinds of events, because it sometimes… I mean, I understand, of course, for the show it’s good to mix it up a bit, but at least you should be able to correct your mistake or potential mistake.

    Q: (Claire Cottingham – Racefans.net) George, from here and Austria you’ve had no track limits at all. If you could just talk us through what maybe you’re doing differently to make sure you don’t get these infringements. And to the other two, I guess, are the track limit starting to get a bit silly now? We didn’t know who was in third place for the race and Lewis it’s great to see you, but it was a surprise. Could you just talk us through your thoughts on that? 
    GR: Yeah, not too sure. I can’t really speak for the others, just it’s very challenging out there. You’ve got to be very, very precise. We’re talking sort of millimetres sometimes. I’ve had no track limits but two races ago I crashed into the wall and lost a podium, so you know. Yeah, exactly. That was a small track limits there. So yeah, I’m not too sure, maybe. I don’t know. I don’t know but definitely it’s a bit frustrating when we go to great circuits like this, this is a really great circuit, but then it’s so difficult to know where that limit is, where the edge is, and we need to find a better solution for the future.
    MV: Yeah, it’s tough. It’s always tough, honestly. I mean, it’s easy to go just over it. I do think these kerbs are a little bit better. I don’t think people who actually went wide, actually gained time? It’s just a bit annoying, because if you go a little bit wider, like you bottom out and you damage your floor, potentially and you definitely lose time. So I think that has been already a big positive compared to last time that we were here. I think why don’t we really see track limits in, for example, Suzuka, is because it’s old school. If you go off, there’s immediate gravel. Of course, already in some places, Suzuka, you have these like double kerbs. And there might be track limits. But in the older places, which they haven’t touched, you never talk about track limits. So yeah, I would always prefer to see that style of racing. But of course, some places we share with bikes and they like a bit more run-off. And we always have to try and find a compromise. But sometimes it hurts them. Sometimes it hurts us a little bit more, in terms of these kinds of things. 
    LH: Yeah, I think the new kerbs are great. When I went around the track yesterday on the scooter, I thought the kerbs looked quite big. But I think they’re actually really good. And as Max said, I think when you go beyond the highest point of the kerb, you lose time. I don’t feel like at this track we need to have track limits. It’s something that was brought in… The new stewards brough in a couple of years ago. Lando should be up here. I think we need to maybe take these kerbs as a good learning, we can take these kerbs to a bunch of other tracks because obviously MotoGP are fine with these kerbs and we can have these in, like, Austria, for example. And as I said, when you go beyond them… You should be able to utilise them as much as possible, but when you go beyond them, you lose time. So it shouldn’t be the white line necessarily. But anyways, it’s not for me to decide.

    Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Another question to George, please. Ahead of that last run in Q3, we saw you sat in the pit lane for quite a long time as you were talking to the team. I’m just wondering, could you explain what is the thinking there? Are you trying to leave a gap to the car ahead? Is it about tyre prep? What’s the process? 
    GR: Yeah, I think when you’re in the pit lane, and you’re lined up behind all of these cars, you can’t actually see how many cars there are in front of you. And we’re all looking for a five to seven-second gap. And if you’re lined up behind, obviously 10 cars, that’s 50 seconds at least that you have to wait. And you know, some circuits, you want to get those tyres in the right window and it adds inconsistency. So, I don’t really know what the future holds. Obviously, everybody wants to get out on track and get their lap in. But equally you need to get that gap. I think what the FIA have done recently with the set time limit between the safety guidelines is definitely positive, while allowing us to take that gap in the pit lane. But it is sometimes a bit of a stressful moment. When you are sat there for literally a minute. You don’t know if you can make the flag, what’s going to happen, what’s happening to the tyres. So that’s just the challenge.

    Q: (Matt Kew – Autosport) A question for Lewis. I just wondered if you could just please clarify your stance on the difference between Andretti and an 11th team, which one you’re for and against? I think I saw you go on Twitter. Just to sort of fill in some gaps there.
    LH: Yeah, well, I mean, firstly, it wasn’t that I support Andretti. I think from a driver’s perspective, it’s exciting to potentially see more cars. And then the idea of an 11th team… You know, we have over 2,000 people in our team. So that’s, that’s a huge amount of jobs. But we have to make sure that the criteria, which is quite strict is really respected. And I feel like we need to amend the criteria actually, and make sure that there’s an opportunity for real impact, really making sure that if there is a new team, they have to be diverse. They have to perhaps create an opportunity for a female driver to come through. And it has to be diverse from the top up. At the moment, it’s all white owners. And there’s a real lack of diversity from the top down. It’s all male, and that needs to change. So yeah, that was just that’s my thought. But I really do have 100% faith in Stefano, who I’ve known for a long, long time. I think what he’s doing at the top, there’s no one that could do a better job than him. And I know that he will make the right decision. Moving forward, he’s a racer, and he’s passionate about the growth of the sport, so happy to leave it in his capable hands.

  • Max Verstappen wins Sprint, clinches third Drivers’ title

    Max Verstappen wins Sprint, clinches third Drivers’ title

    Qatar, 7 October 2023: Max Verstappen won the 2023 Formula 1 World Drivers’ Championship title with second place in the Qatar Grand Prix Sprint, finishing behind race winner Oscar Piastri of McLaren in a closely contested 19-lap race that featured three Safety Car periods. 

    At the start, Piastri got away well from top sport on the grid to take the lead, but beside him on the front row team-mate Lando Norris bogged down. The McLaren driver was swiftly surrounded by soft-tyre runners George Russell of Mercredes and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and as they squeezed past the Briton in the inside the trio forced Verstappen wide on the run to Turn 1 and he slipped to fifth place, behind Charles Leclerc, who also started on softs. 

    Further back, though, there was trouble for Liam Lawson. The AlphaTauri driver was clipped by a rival at the start and he spun off into the gravel at Turn 1. The Safety Car was deployed and when it left the track Piastri was ambushed by Russell who used the better grip of his Sofrt tyres to steal the lead in Turn 8. 

    However, almost as soon as the race restarted, it was neutralised again when Williams’ Logan Sargeant spun off into the gravel. The Safety Car was released again. 

    This time the SC left the track at the end of lap six and at the restart Russell kept his lead ahead of Piastri who was forced to defend hard from Sainz. Leclerc held fourth, just three tenths of a second ahead of Verstappen. 

    The Soft tyres were beginning to suffer, however, and when DRS was enabled Verstappen reeled in Leclerc, powering past the Ferrari drive on the run to Turn 1 at the start of lap nine. The Dutchman’s next target was Sainz and on the next lap he breezed past the Spaniard under DRS to take P3. 

    The longer life of the Mediums was also benefitting Piastri and though Russell had opened up a two second gap after the second restart, the Australian rapidly clawed that back and reclaimed the lead from the Mercedes on lap 10. 

    Further back, Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez, also on Mediums, was beginning to make his forward after a poor opening to the race that saw him drop to P11. He made his way past Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, but that was as far as his progress went. On lap 11, Nico Hülkenberg attempted to pass the slower Esteban Ocon on the outside. Seeing a gap, Pérez also dived to the inside. Baulked by Ocon on the outside, Hülkenberg then switched to the inside and as they tussled Ocon hit the Haas. The Frenchman’s Alpine bounced off the German’s car and then slammed round into the left side of Pérez’s RB19 sending the Mexican sliding off into the gravel and out of the race. The Safety Car was released for the third time. 

    This time the restart occurred at the end of lap 14 and though the top three order stayed the same on the resumption, on lap 16 Verstappen closed in on Russell and eased past the struggling Mercedes on the pit straight. 

    Norris, meanwhile, was also on the move, dismissing both Ferraris soon after the restart to rise to fourth place behind Russell and at the start of the final lap the McLaren driver powered past the Mercedes to take third place. 

    Ahead, Verstappen attempted to reel in Piastri but though he was able to get within two seconds of the Australian, the McLaren driver hung on for the win. 

    Second was good enough for Verstappen, however, and the Red Bull driver now joins legends such as Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Nelson Piquet and Ayrton Senna on three titles. 

    “It’s a fantastic feeling. It’s been an incredible year,” said Verstappen afterwards. “A lot of great races and of course super-proud but also super-proud of the job of the team. It’s just been so enjoyable to be part of that group of people. To be a three-time World Champion is just incredible.”

    FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, said: “Congratulations to Max Verstappen on securing his third FIA Formula One World Drivers’ Championship. Max has been the dominant performer this season and thoroughly deserves the title. His dedication and commitment is an example for all emerging drivers in our sport. I would also like to pay tribute to rising star Oscar Piastri for his maiden Sprint victory.”

    2023 FIA Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix – Sprint 
    1 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 19 35’01.297 
    2 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda RBPT 19 35’03.168 1.871
    3 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 19 35’09.794 8.497
    4 George Russell Mercedes 19 35’12.333 11.036
    5 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 19 35’18.611 17.314
    6 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 19 35’20.103 18.806
    7 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 19 35’21.157 19.860
    8 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 19 35’21.161 19.864
    9 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin/Mercedes 19 35’22.477 21.180
    10 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Renault 19 35’23.039 21.742
    11 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 19 35’23.505 22.208
    12 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT 19 35’24.160 22.863
    13 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 19 35’25.820 24.523
    14 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 19 35’26.267 24.970
    15 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 19 35’28.165 26.868
         Nico Hülkenberg Haas/Ferrari 11 21’30.850 Accident damage
         Esteban Ocon Alpine/Renault 10 18’55.475 Accident
         Sergio Pérez Red Bull/Honda RBPT 10 18’56.245 Accident
         Logan Sargeant Williams/Mercedes 2 4’18.105 Accident
         Liam Lawson AlphaTauri/Honda RBPT 0 – Accident

  • Max Verstappen takes pole at Qatar Grand Prix

    Max Verstappen takes pole at Qatar Grand Prix

    Qatar, 6 October 2023: Max Verstappen took his 10th pole position of 2023 with his opening lap of Q3 in a tough qualifying session for the 2023 FIA Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix in which McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri both had their final lap times deleted for track infringements. Norris’ fall from P2 to P10 meant that George Russell claimed a front-row start, while the Mercedes’ driver’s team-mate, Lewis Hamilton, inherited third when Piastri then dropped from third to sixth. 

     At the start of the opening session, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc set the pace with a lap of 1:26.444. Versatappen then slotted into P2, just 0.044s off the Monegasque driver, but both were soon beaten by Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso who stole top spot with a lap of 1:25.685. 

    With four minutes to go, Leclerc vaulted from sixth back to P1 with a lap of 1:25.452, a little over two tenths of a second clear of Alonso. The final flyers were starting to come in, however, and a flurry of improvement saw Verstappen jump back to P1 with a final lap of 1:25.007 ahead of Norris, Alonso and the second McLaren of Piastri. 

    At the bottom of the order, there was no room in the second session for 16th-placed Logan Sargeant, who was denied a Q2 spot by Williams team-mate Alex Albon, who was less than a tenth of a second quicker than the American. Also ruled out at the end of the session were Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, AlphaTauri’s Liam Lawson, Haas’ Kevin Magnussen and Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu. 

    At the start of Q2, Verstappen was quickly into gear and he claimed top sport with a lap of 1:24.758 on used Soft tyres that out him four tenths of a second ahead of Alpine’s Pierre Gasly. 

    In the final runs, Norris was first across the line and he set the P1 pace at 1:24.685. Piastri then slotted into second place, 0.039s off his team-mate. However, Verstappen was just starting his final flyer and the Red Bull bypassed both to once again take top spot, this time with a lap of 1:24.483. 

    Further back, though, two expected front runners were in trouble. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz couldn’t find pace on new softs late in the session and he was eliminated in P12 behind AlhaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda. Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez looked safe in P10 thanks to a lap of 1:25.275, but soon after crossing the line his time was deleted for a track limits transgression at Turn 5. He slid to P13 behind Sainz and was eliminated ahead of Williams’ Alex Albon and Haas’ Nico Hülkenberg. 

    When the top-10 shootout got underway, it was Piastri who took the initiative, setting a lap of 1:24.540, as Leclerc and Norris had their first flyers deleted for track limits, Leclerc due to a lurid snap at Turn 5. 

    Verstappen was flying on his first run, however, and the Dutchman set a tough target time of 1:23.778 as Hamilton took second place, over half a second adrift of the champion. Russell took third after the opening runs, ahead of Piastri and Leclerc.

    And there was no getting close to that time in the final runs – even for Verstappen. The champion had a moment of oversteer early in his final flyer and was forced to abandon his lap. But it was a similar story elsewhere, as Norris and Leclerc had their final laps deleted for track limits, while Hamilton also had a slide midway through his lap. It meant that the Dutch driver’s opener was enough to hand him his 10th pole of 2023, over four tenths of a second clear of Russell.

    Elsewhere, Hamilton finished third ahead of Alonso, with Leclerc in fifth place. Sixth place went to Piastri, who also had a lap time deleted, with Gasly in seventh ahead of team-mate Esteban Ocon and Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas. 

    2023 FIA Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix – Qualifying
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:23.778 – –
    2 George Russell Mercedes 1:24.219 0.441 0.526
    3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:24.305 0.527 0.629
    4 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 1:24.369 0.591 0.705
    5 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:24.424 0.646 0.771
    6 Oscar Piastri McLaren 1:24.540 0.762 0.910
    7 Pierre Gasly Alpine 1:24.553 0.775 0.925
    8 Esteban Ocon Alpine 1:24.763 0.985 1.176
    9 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 1:25.058 1.280 1.528
    10 Lando Norris McLaren – – –
    11 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 1:25.301 1.523 1.818
    12 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:25.328 1.550 1.850
    13 Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 1:25.462 1.684 2.010
    14 Alexander Albon Williams 1:25.707 1.929 2.303
    15 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 1:25.783 2.005 2.393
    16 Logan Sargeant Williams 1:26.210 2.432 2.903
    17 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1:26.345 2.567 3.064
    18 Liam Lawson AlphaTauri 1:26.635 2.857 3.410
    19 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:27.046 3.268 3.901
    20 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 1:27.432 3.654 4.362

  • Max Verstappen powers Red Bull to Constructors’ title

    Max Verstappen powers Red Bull to Constructors’ title

    Suzuka, 24 Sept. 2023: Max Verstappen powered to a dominant Japanese Grand Prix win at Suzuka to seal a sixth Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship title win for Red Bull Racing and to move one step closer to his third Drivers’ title in a row. McLaren’s Lando Norris finished second ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri, while Sergio Pérez in the other Red Bull was forced to retire from the race after two early collisions. 

    “Unbelievable guys, you deserve that,” Verstappen told his team over the radio after crossing the line. “You can all be very proud, here at the track and back at the factory. You have built a rocket ship of car, well done!” 

    Verstappen’s win puts him on 400 points and just a handful of points away from a third title. The Dutchman is now 177 ahead of the non-scoring Pérez with a maximum 180 points still on the table from the remaining six rounds. The Dutchman is now almost certain to take the crown at the next race in Qatar. 

    Starting from pole in Suzuka, Verstappen seized the lead of the line. And though his progress was briefly slowed by an early Safety Car, once he had calmly navigated the re-start, the championship leader simply drove away from the rest of the field to eventually beat Norris to the flag by 19.3 seconds.

    When the lights went out for the start, Verstappen got away well and despite pressure from Piastri to his right, the Dutchman placed his car well to block the McLaren. That left Piastri vulnerable, and spotting the opportunity, Norris powered through to steal P2 from his team-mate. 

    Behind the top three, Pérez got a poor start from fifth place on the grid and on the approach to Turn 1 he was squeezed by the Ferrari pair of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. Forced left, Pérez made contact with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and dropped back to seventh as Sainz slipped through to P5 and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso roared up the inside from 10th to sixth. 

    Further back again, there was another incident, with Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu moving into the path of Williams’ Alex Albon. The Williams driver ran over the rear left of the Alfa Romeo and while both managed to keep going, substantial amounts of debris were left on track and the Safety Car was deployed.

    Behind the Safety Car Pérez  pitted at the end of lap 2 for a new nose cone. But the Mexican driver’s race unravelled further there as he rejoined incorrectly behind the Safety Car and was handed a five-second time penalty. It would only get worse for the Red Bull driver.  

    When the Safety Car left the track Verstappen controlled the re-start well to hold his lead ahead of Norris and Piastri, with Leclerc in fourth ahead of Sainz and Alonso. 

    Pérez was soon on the march and over the following half dozen laps he carved his way from 18th place to 12th, behind the Haas of Kevin Magnussen. However, on lap 13, the Red Bull driver was sent plummeting down the order again when an attempt to pass the Dane at the hairpin went wrong. “I’ve got front wing damage again,” he lamented after locking up and sliding into the side of the Haas. 

    Pérez returned to the pit lane again, serving his penalty and taking on a new nose cone. But almost as soon as he was back on track he reported that his car “did not feel right” and he returned to the pit lane and the garage. He was also handed a second penalty for causing the collision with Magnussen. 

    At the front, the leaders began to pit. Piastri sparked the stops, boxing under the VSC deployed for the Pérez and attempting to undercut the drivers ahead. Verstappen then made his first stop, taking on another set of Medium tyres and Leclerc, Norris and Sainz all followed soon after. Verstappen soon returned to the lead, ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell, who had yet to stop, and Piastri, who had managed to undercut Norris thanks to his stop under the VSC. 

    At the front Verstappen was striding away from the chasing pack and at half distance the Red Bull driver was 12 seconds ahead of Piastri. McLaren were on the radio to the Australian, however, telling him that Norris was running faster and on lap 27 Piastri backed off the let his team-mate through to P2. 

    Leclerc made his second stop, from fifth, at the end of lap 35, quickly followed by sixth-placed Hamilton, and both driver took on Hard tyres. Third-placed Piastri followed suit at the end of the next lap with Norris coming in a lap later and then at the end of lap 37 Max made is final stop of the racing, fitting a set of Hard tyres for the last 16 laps of the race. 

    Pérez, seeking to shake off his penalty in case it carried over to Qatar went back out on lap 40 before steering back to the garage a lap later.

    Ahead, Verstappen led Norris by more than 15 seconds, with Piastri in third and Leclerc fourth. And over the final 15 dozen laps the gap only grew and when he eventually crossed the line to take his 13th win of the season and to secure the 2023 Constructors’ World Championship title for the Team he was over 19 seconds clear of Norris, with Piastri a further 17 seconds back in third. 

    Fourth place went to Leclerc with Hamilton in fifth ahead of Sainz. Russell, who made a single pit stop during the race, came home in seventh place, with Alonso in eighth ahead of the Alpine of Esteban Ocon, and the final point on offer went to Pierre Gasly in the second Alpine. 

    2013 FIA Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix – Race 
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 53 1:30’58.421 
    2 Lando Norris McLaren 53 1:31’17.808 19.387
    3 Oscar Piastri McLaren 53 1:31’34.915 36.494
    4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 53 1:31’42.419 43.998
    5 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 53 1:31’47.797 49.376
    6 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 53 1:31’48.642 50.221
    7 George Russell Mercedes 53 1:31’56.080 57.659
    8 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 53 1:32’13.146 1’14.725
    9 Esteban Ocon Alpine 53 1:32’18.099 1’19.678
    10 Pierre Gasly Alpine 53 1:32’21.576 1’23.155
    11 Liam Lawson AlphaTauri 52 1:31’01.510 1 lap /3.089
    12 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 52 1:31’02.395 1 lap /3.974
    13 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 52 1:31’04.761 1 lap /6.340
    14 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 52 1:31’08.019 1 lap /9.598
    15 Kevin Magnussen Haas 52 1:31’27.991 1 lap /29.570
         Alexander Albon Williams 26 48’31.077 Retirement
         Logan Sargeant Williams 22 42’29.573 Accident damage
         Lance Stroll Aston Martin 20 37’53.303 Wing
         Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 15 1:13’07.893 Retirement
         Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 7 17’03.533 Accident damage

  • Record 10th win for Max Verstappen at Monza

    Record 10th win for Max Verstappen at Monza

    Monza, 3 Sept. 2023: Max Verstappen beat Red Bull team-mate Sergio Pérex to win the Italian Grand Prix and make history by scoring a record 10th consecutive win. With Red Bull sealing a sixth 1-2 finish, the final podium place was left to polesitter Carlos Sainz, who managed to keep Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc at bay in the closing stages. 

    Earlier, on the formation lap ahead of the race, Yuki Tsunoda’s AlphaTauri suffered an engine failure and the Japanese driver coasted to a halt at the side of the track. A second formation lap took place but the start was then aborted to allow for the AlphaTauri to be recovered. 

    When the lights at last went out for the start, polesitter Sainz held his advantage to keep Verstappen at bay into Turn 1, while behind the grid order remained unchanged with Leclerc in third ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell and Pérez who started from P5 on the grid. 

    Verstappen then closed up behind Sainz and at the start of lap six he made a move into Turn 1. Sainz defended hard, forcing Verstappen wide and the Dutchman lost ground as he slowed and was forced to rebuild his plan of attack.

    Verstappen bided his time and then on lap 15 he at last forced an error from Sainz when the under-pressure Spaniard locked up in Turn 1. Sainz kept hold of the lead but Verstappen was able to draw level around Curva Grande and on the following straight and he took the lead under braking into Turn 4. Further back, on lap 16, Pérez at last muscled his way past the Mercedes on the inside to take fourth place. 

    Sainz, suffering with tyre wear and under pressure from Leclerc, made his pit stop at the end of lap 19 and dropped to eighth place, while Verstappen pitted from the lead at the end of the following tour, along with Leclerc. That briefly promoted Pérez to the lead of the race but the Mexican then made his stop for Hard tyres and rejoined behind Leclerc. 

    On lap 24, the race was led by long-running Hard-tyre starter Lewis Hamilton, with Verstappen in P2, four seconds ahead of Sainz and with Leclerc in fourth ahead of Pérez. Verstappen was closing on the lead Mercedes, however, and at the start of lap 25 he powered past Hamilton under DRS to retake the lead. 

    Pérez, meanwhile, was edging ever closer to Leclerc and after the pair had cleared the slower Hamilton, the Mexican closed in. A first attempt to pass the Ferrari at the Curva Grande ended with Leclerc slamming the door shut into Turn 4. However, on the following lap Leclerc, now without DRS to Leclerc, was vulnerable on the pit straight and Checo opened his wing and powered past the Ferrari on the inside. 

    At the front, Verstappen was firmly in control and with 10 laps remaining the Dutchman had pulled 10 seconds clear of Sainz. The Ferrari driver was now being hounded by Pérez and on lap 43 the Mexican went on the attack. Under DRS he went he launched a move around the outside into Turn 1 but Sainz defended well and the Red Bull driver was forced to cut the chicane. 

    On lap 46, though, there was no denying the Mexican. He once again closed right up through Parabolica and this time got the move done on the pit straight, passing Sainz well ahead of the braking zone to make it a Red Bull 1-2 with six laps remaining. 

    And after 51 laps Verstappen took the flag to seal his 12th win of 2023 and his 10th in a row, ahead of his team-mate and Sainz held Leclerc at bay to take the final podium place. Behind Leclerc, Russell took fifth ahead of Hamilton, with Williams’ Alex Albon in seventh place ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas.  


    2023 FIA Formula 1 Italian – Race 
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 51 1:13’41.143 
    2 Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing  51 1:13’47.207 6.064
    3 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 51 1:13’52.336 11.193
    4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 51 1:13’52.520 11.377
    5 George Russell Mercedes 51 1:14’04.171 23.028
    6 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 51 1:14’23.822 42.679
    7 Alexander Albon Williams 51 1:14’26.249 45.106
    8 Lando Norris McLaren 51 1:14’26.592 45.449
    9 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 51 1:14’27.437 46.294
    10 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 51 1:14’45.199 1’04.056
    11 Liam Lawson AlphaTauri 51 1:14’51.781 1’10.638
    12 Oscar Piastri McLaren 51 1:14’54.217 1’13.074
    13 Logan Sargeant Williams 51 1:14’59.700 1’18.557
    14 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 51 1:15’01.307 1’20.164
    15 Pierre Gasly Alpine 51 1:15’03.653 1’22.510
    16 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 51 1:15’08.409 1’27.266
    17 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 50 1:13’43.236 1 lap /2.093
    18 Kevin Magnussen Haas 50 1:13’53.767 1 lap /12.624
         Esteban Ocon Alpine 39 57’54.977 Retirement
         Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 0 – Not started

  • Carlos Sainz pole delights Tiffosi; Leclerc P3

    Carlos Sainz pole delights Tiffosi; Leclerc P3

    Monza (Italy), 2 Sept. 2023: Carlos Sainz sent Ferrari’s home fans wild with delight at Monza as he narrowly claimed pole position for tomorrow’s 2023 FIA Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix, beating championship leader Max Verstappen by just over one hundredth of a second, with Charles Leclerc third in the other Ferrari. 

    Carlos Sainz says: What a Saturday! It’s so special to get pole position here, in front of all the tifosi. I had a very good feeling from the car already on Friday and today we confirmed our pace. Q3 was always on the limit and we all took big risks in the fight for this pole. When I finally crossed the line and I heard the tifosi screaming like crazy and jumping on the grandstands I knew we had it!
    The weekend is not over yet, we want more, and for that we need to stay focused and prepare well for tomorrow. It’s going to be a challenging race but we’ll give it everything to fight for the win and give the tiffosi around the world something to keep cheering us on!

    Sainz took provisional pole in the first runs of Q3 but when Verstappen went quicker than Leclerc to rise to P1 on his final run it looked like the Red Bull driver was on course for his ninth pole of the season. Sainz was the last of the frontrunners on track, however, and after setting the fastest Sector 2 time of all, the Spaniard claimed the fourth pole position of his career, 0.013s ahead of Verstappen. 

    At the start of Q1, run on Hard tyres as the Alternative Tyre Allocation returned, It was Alex Albon who set the early pace, with the Williams driver posting a lap of 1:22.123 to top the timesheet ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell. 

    After having his first lap deleted for exceeding track limits, Verstappen then jumped to the top of the order with a lap of 1:21.573, a little over three tenths of a second ahead of team-mate Sergio Pérez, with the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc in third and fourth places respectively. 

    Both Red Bull drivers sat out the final runs but Verstappen’s earlier lap was good enough to keep him in top spot. 

    It was Albon who came closest to toppling the Dutchman, with the Williams driver taking P2 less than a tenth off the pace. Leclerc claimed P3 a further tenth of a second behind, while AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda took fourth place ahead of Pérez.

    At the other end of the timesheet, there was no place in Q2 for Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu who was eliminated in P16 ahead of Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon, Haas’ Kevin Magnussen and last-placed Aston Martin man Lance Stroll. 

    Having switched to the mandated Medium tyres for Q2, Verstappen was first on track and the Dutch set the a target time of 1:21.035. Pérez crossed the line just under four tenths off that to claim P2 before Sainz moved ahead of both with a lap of 1:20.991. Leclerc then took third ahead of Albon, with Pérez dropping to P5 at the end of the first runs. 

    Verstappen then seized control in the final runs, posting a lap of 1:20.937 to take P1. Leclerc slotted into P2, four hundredths of a second behind, while Sainz abandoned his final run and finished in third, ahead of Pérez who improved to 1:21.240 on his final flyer. 

    Ruled out at the end of Q2 were Tsunoda in P11 and his AlphaTauri team-mate Liam Lawson who impressed in P12 ahead of Haas’ Nico Hülkenberg, Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas and Williams’ Logan Sargeant. 

    The Red Bulls were once again first on track at the start of Q3, this time on the quickest Soft compound tyres, but it was Ferrari who seized the initiative in the opening runs, with Sainz taking provisional pole thanks to a lap of 1:20.532. That put the Spaniard three hundredths of a second ahead of Leclerc, with Verstappen in P3, 0.099s off top spot. 

    Verstappen jumped to P1 with his final flyer but Sainz claimed pole by the narrow margin of 0.013s, with Leclerc in third place ahead of Russell while Pérez took P5 thanks to a lap of 1:20.688. He was followed by Albon who took sixth ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, with Hamilton in eighth ahead of Norris and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. 

    2023 FIA Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix – Qualiyfing
    1 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:20.294 – –
    2 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:20.307 0.013 0.016
    3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:20.361 0.067 0.083
    4 George Russell Mercedes 1:20.671 0.377 0.470
    5 Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 1:20.688 0.394 0.491
    6 Alexander Albon Williams 1:20.760 0.466 0.580
    7 Oscar Piastri McLaren 1:20.785 0.491 0.612
    8 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:20.820 0.526 0.655
    9 Lando Norris McLaren 1:20.979 0.685 0.853
    10 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 1:21.417 1.123 1.399
    11 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 1:21.594 1.300 1.619
    12 Liam Lawson AlphaTauri 1:21.758 1.464 1.823
    13 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 1:21.776 1.482 1.846
    14 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 1:21.940 1.646 2.050
    15 Logan Sargeant Williams 1:21.944 1.650 2.055
    16 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 1:22.390 2.096 2.610
    17 Pierre Gasly Alpine 1:22.545 2.251 2.803
    18 Esteban Ocon Alpine 1:22.548 2.254 2.807
    19 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:22.592 2.298 2.862
    20 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1:22.860 2.566 3.196

  • Max Verstappen takes ninth consecutive win, equals Vettel’s record

    Max Verstappen takes ninth consecutive win, equals Vettel’s record

    Zandvort, 27 August 2023: Max Verstappen shrugged off downpours, Safety Cars and a red flag to take his third straight win on home soil at the Dutch Grand Prix and to equal Sebastian Vettel’s decade-old record of nine consecutive wins. 

    The Red Bull driver briefly lost the lead as heavy rain midway through the opening lap led to team-mate Sergio Pérez to pit for Intermediate tyres and rise up the order as many drivers, including Verstappen , held off until the end of the second tour. But once equipped with Inters Verstappen rose through the order to retake the lead on lap and then led the race through Safety Cars, more heavy rain and red flags in the closing stages to take his 46th career win ahead of Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and Alpine’s jubilant Pierre Gasly.

    When the lights went out at the start, Verstappen got away well from pole position and took the lead ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris. Behind them, Alonso was the major mover, rising from fifth on the grid to third place in the opening three corners. 

    However, halfway around the first lap the heavens opened and Pérez was the first to react. While Verstappen, Norris and Alonso stuck with slick Soft tyres, the Mexican, followed by a stream of cars, pitted for Intermediates.

    Pérez dropped down the order but as the rain intensified it became clear that slick tyres were not suitable and Verstappen pitted at the end of lap two. Pérez, meanwhile, was rocketed through the field  and after passing Mercedes’ George Russell at the start of third lap, he took the lead, 14 seconds clear of Verstappen who was now in fifth place, behind Gasly. 

    Verstappen was soon on the move, however, and when Russell pitted and dropped back Verstappen muscled past Gasly on lap 6 and then passed Alfa Romeo’s Guanyu Zhou on the following lap to take second place, 9.5s behind Pérez. 

    The shower was weakening, however, and with the track drying quickly Verstappen was soon back in the pits taking on Soft tyres. Pérez made the same switch a lap later but the undercut worked for Verstappen and the Dutchman as his team-mate made his way to the pit exit, Verstappen swept past to retake the lead, with Alonso in third ahead of Gasly and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.

    The chaos of the opening phase then briefly gave way to more settled running, but on lap 16 the shape of the race changed again when Williams’ Logan Sargeant crashed at Turn 8. The Safety Car was released and the field bunched up behind the Bulls until lap 21 when the caution ended. 

    Verstappen held the lead well at the restart, with Pérez hanging on to his team-mate’s RB19 to keep Alonso at bay. Behind the front three, Gasly held fourth place despite heavy pressure from Sainz. 

    After the resumption it was Albon making the most headway, with the Williams driver swiftly passing Haas’ Kevin Magnussen and Zhou to take sixth place. Further back, however, Charles Leclerc was struggling on lap 27 he dropped two places as he was passed by both Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. The Ferrari driver, who had suffered floor damage in a tangle with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri at the start, would later retire from the race. 

    At the front, Verstappen was steadily building a gap to his team-mate and by lap 44 he was 11 seconds ahead. Pérez then made his second stop, for more softs, and he dropped to fourth place behind Gasly. 

    The Frenchman made his pit stop on lap 47, during which he served a five-second penalty for an earlier speeding offence in the pit lane and Peerez moved back to third place, which became second when Alonso pitted at the end of lap 48. The Spaniard’s stop was slow due to the problem with his front left tyre and he lost third place to Sainz. 

    Verstappen made his third pit stop at the end of the following tour and after taking on another set of Soft tyres the Dutchman resumed in the lead, six seconds clear of his team-mate and Alonso and Sainz. 

    Behind them Gasly was driving well in fifth place and beginning to put pressure on Sainz, while at the start of lap 57 Albon moved back to sixth place, using DRS to pass Russell who had risen up the order after his stop for hard tyres early in the race. 

    Gasly then made his way past Sainz at the start of lap 60 but within a lap the rain that had been moving towards Zandvoort for some time began to fall. Pérez was again the first to react and he pitted for Inters. The Mexican was followed by a stream of cars and then on the following lap, Verstappen made his stop and resumed in the lead. 

    Pérez then went off at Turn 1 and clipped the barriers. He was able to continue but lost P2 to Alonso. The rain was now intensifying and when Zhou lost control and went into the barriers at Turn 1, the VSC was deployed. With a sizeable gap in hand, Verstappen headed into the pit lane for full wet tyres and with torrential rain falling, Pérez followed. 

    However, during the Mexican’s stop the race was red flagged and he was forced to stop at the end of the pit lane as the rest of the field tip-toed through the treacherous conditions to join him. The stoppage was also a chance for the team to assess the damage caused to the Mexican’s car in his Turn 1 spin and contact with the barrier and when he clipped the wall at the pit entry on the way into the pit lane, a moment that would later compromise his race. 

    After almost 45 minutes Race Control indicated that the race would get underway again, with a rolling start and with intermediate tyres specified and with Max at the front of the pack ahead of Alonso and Pérez. 

    And when the Safety Car left the track at the end of lap 66, Verstappen controlled the restart well to keep a hard-charging Alonso at bay. Pérez, however, was handed a five-second penalty for his tyre switch in the heavy rain, during which he exceeded the pit lane speed limit. 

    Further back, Russell put a good move on Norris to take P7, but the McLaren driver fought back and in Turn 11 there was contact. Russell sustained a puncture and was forced back to the pit lane. 

    Verstappen, though, was pulling away at the front and after 72 incident-packed laps the Dutchman crossed the line to take his ninth win of 2023.

    Despite pressure from behind, Alonso took P2 with Gasly rising to third as Pérez’s penalty was applied. The Mexican was left with fourth ahead of Sainz, Hamilton and Norris. Albon finished eighth ahead of Piastri and the final point went to Alpine’s Esteban Ocon. 

    2023 FIA Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix – Race
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 72 2:24’04.411 
    2 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 72 2:24’08.155 3.744
    3 Pierre Gasly Alpine 72 2:24’11.469 7.058
    4 Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 72 2:24’14.479 10.068
    5 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 72 2:24’16.952 12.541
    6 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 72 2:24’17.620 13.209
    7 Lando Norris McLaren 72 2:24’17.643 13.232
    8 Alexander Albon Williams 72 2:24’19.566 15.155
    9 Oscar Piastri McLaren 72 2:24’20.991 16.580
    10 Esteban Ocon Alpine 72 2:24’22.757 18.346
    11 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 72 2:24’24.498 20.087
    12 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 72 2:24’25.251 20.840
    13 Liam Lawson AlphaTauri 72 2:24’30.558 26.147
    14 Kevin Magnussen Haas 72 2:24’30.821 26.410
    15 Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 72 2:24’31.799 27.388
    16 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 72 2:24’34.304 29.893
    17 George Russell Mercedes 72 2:25’00.165 55.754
         Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 62 1:27’01.340 Accident
         Charles Leclerc Ferrari 41 59’41.345 Retirement
         Logan Sargeant Williams 14 21’42.428 Accident
         Daniel Ricciardo AlphaTauri RBPT 0 – Withdrawn