Another week, another race! We are on our final double header before summer break and our first stop is France. The home Grand Prix of Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon as well as Alpine.
Will Ferrari’s reliability hold up? Or will it take a hit once again? What can Red Bull do and will Perez be looking for that win after last time out? And Mercedes… big upgrades are coming this weekend, will we see them fight for pole and the win?
Who needs a good weekend?
Carlos Sainz, after having mechanical issues last time out, he needs a good weekend in France as it looked like he was getting P2, which would’ve been an easy 1-2 for the Italian team.
Sergio Perez, not a good weekend for him last time out. It’s going to be crucial for the Mexican and Red Bull to score good points this weekend, especially if he wants to be in this title fight.
Pierre Gasly will be wanting a good weekend in front of his home crowd. This season isn’t going like last for the Frenchman, and his admitted the car is slow and possibly one of the slowest…
Predictions for qualifying-
My top five are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Sainz, P4: Hamilton and P5: Perez.
I think the Mercedes are going to close the gap to Ferrari and Red Bull. I think it will be top 6 fighting it out for pole and be quite close. Leclerc’s pace on one lap is definitely a stand out this year and hopefully it can be carried out.
Mercedes have announced that their reserve driver, Nyck de Vries will be behind the wheel of the W13 during the first practice session of this weekend’s French Grand Prix in place of Lewis Hamilton.
The FP1 run for the 27 year old, is a part of the 2022 sporting regulations, that teams are obliged to run rookie drivers in two FP1 sessions across the season. Red Bull and Williams have already completed one session so far.
This will be the Dutchmans second FP1 outing of the season, he took the wheel of the Williams FW44 in place of Alex Albon at the Spanish Grand Prix earlier this season.
This isn’t the first time De Vries will be in a Mercedes car, he jumped in the Merc at last year’s post-season Abu Dhabi Grand Prix test as well as 2020. He is currently the reigning Formula E Champion, taking the title for Mercedes last year alongside fellow Mercedes reserve, Stoffel Vandoorne. Again, De Vries is driving in Formula E sitting eighth in the standings with four races left.
Nyck is replacing Lewis in first practice this weekend, as part of the allocated sessions for young drivers this year. So, we’re looking forward to seeing how he gets on. Our understanding of the W13 is growing with every lap and it’s encouraging to see that reflected in our development and results. While we were quicker in Austria, we still weren’t quick enough to challenge at the front. We need to keep chasing those final few tenths and bringing new developments to the cars, including this weekend in France. Paul Ricard is a very different track and challenge. It has smooth tarmac and a wide range of corner types, along with long straights. The aim will be to make further inroads on the gap to the front and hopefully be back on the podium.
Toto Wolff, Mercedes Team Principle.
This weekend @nyckdevries will be taking the wheel of W13 for FP1. 👊
Lewis has chosen this weekend to fulfil the first of two young driver sessions required by all teams this season. George has selected one later in the year. pic.twitter.com/aNimIvCClU
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) July 20, 2022
After a two week break we are back and the French GP has arrived. We have been given the tyre allocation for the weekend.
The following are the tyres nominated for the weekend: C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium), and C4 (Soft).
The Paul Ricard Circuit is quite well balanced where there is a bit of everything: fast corners and flat-out straights as well as slower and more technical sections. All of that is placing medium-severity energy loads on the tyres, which is why it makes a good test track.
The Mistral straight – named after the famous French wind, which can also disrupt the aerodynamic balance of the cars – it also has the potential to cool the front tyres down. This can than affect the turn-in at Signes immediately afterwards, which is the most demanding corner of the entire circuit.
Going off track is definitely a no no , the distinct red, white and blue tricolour markings contain a high-friction material which is designed to slow cars down quickly but with high risk to flat spot the tyres.
Last year’s winning strategy was a two-stopper from Verstappen. It was a gamble as he was the only front runner to stop twice, with those behind stopping once, but it paid off in the end.
This year’s French Grand Prix takes place nearly a month later than it did last year, when it rained on Sunday morning, so it’s fair to expect warmer temperatures. This year’s generation of tyres and compounds is different and more resistant to overheating than the 13-inch versions used last year, so we’ll have to see how that affects the strategy. A bit of history: Paul Ricard was actually where our 18-inch tyres for the current era made their debut, at a test with Renault and Sergey Sirotkin back in 2019.
Mario Isla, Motorsport Director
Formula 2-
F2 will be back racing in France this weekend, the first time since 2019. The hard and soft tyres have been nominated for this weekend. This combination has already been seen in four of the previous eight rounds, most recently at Silverstone.
Located in Le Castellet, the Paul Ricard Circuit is a well balanced track with flat out and technical sections that pose a challenge for the tyres!
As we are halfway through the 2022 season already, lets take a look at penalty points and see who is the closest to getting a race ban…
Formula 1’s penalty points system is designed to keep the drivers’ behaviour on track in check. The points are issued for driver transgressions, with the amount varying on the severity of the incident. 12 points over the course of a 12 month period will see the driver have one race ban.
Seven points-
Max Verstappen
Two points: Expires 12 September 2022. Collision with Lewis Hamilton during the 2021 Italian GP.
Two points: Expires 21st November 2022. Ignoring double yellow flag during qualifying at the 2021 Qatar GP.
One points: Expires 5th December 2022. Leaving the track and gaining an advantage during the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP.
Two points: Expires 5th December 2022. Causing a collision with Hamilton during the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP.
Pierre Gasly
Two points: Expires 12th September 2022. Causing a collision with Fernando Alonso during the 2021 Turkish GP.
Two points: Expires 22nd May 2023. Causing a collision with Stroll during the 2022 Spanish GP.
Two points: Expires 10th July 2023. Causing a collision with Vettel at the 2022 Austrian GP.
One point: Expires 10th July 2023. Track limits during the Austrian GP.
Lance Stroll
Two points: Expires 1st August 2022. Causing a collision at the 2021 Hungarian GP.
Two points: Expires 26th September 2022. Causing a collision with Pierre Gasly at the 2021 Russian GP.
Two points: Expires 10th April 2023. Causing a collision with Latifi at the Australian GP.
One point: Expires 10th April 2023. Weaving whilst defending during the 2022 Australian GP.
Six Points-
Fernando Alonso
Two points: Expires 10th October 2022. Causing a collision with Schumacher during the 2021 Turkish GP.
Two points: Expires 8th May 2023. Causing a collision with Gasly during the 2022 Miami GP.
One point: Expires 8th May 2023. Cutting the track and gaining an advantage at Miami GP.
One point: Expires 19th June 2023. Weaving whilst defending at the Canadian GP.
Alex Albon
Two points: Expires 6th March 2023. Causing a collision with Stroll during the 2022 Saudi Arabian GP.
One point: Expires 22nd May 2023. Exceeding track limits during Spanish GP.
One point: Expires 29th May 2023. Gaining a lasting advantage by leaving the track during the 2022 Monaco GP.
Two points: Expires 9th July 2023. For forcing Lando Norris off track at the 2022 Austrian GP.
Yuki Tsunoda
Two points: Expires 14th November 2022. Causing a collision with Stroll during the 2021 Brazilian GP.
Two points: Expires 5th December 2022. Causing a collision with Vettel during the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP.
Two points: Expires 3rd July 2023. Causing a collision with Pierre Gasly during the 2022 British GP.
Four points-
Esteban Ocon
One point: Expires 12th September 2022. Causing a collision with Vettel during the Italian GP 2021.
Two points: Expires 20th March 2023. Causing a collision with Schumacher during the 2022 Bahrain GP.
One point: Expires 29th May 2023. Causing a collision with Hamilton during the 2022 Monaco GP.
Three points-
Valtteri Bottas
Two points: Expires 1st August 2022. Causing a collision at the 2021 Hungarian GP.
One point: Expires 21st November 2022. Failing to slow for a yellow flag at the 2021 Qatar GP.
Two points-
George Russell
Two points: Expires 10th July 2023. Causing a collision with Sergio Perez during the 2022 Austrian GP.
Daniel Ricciardo
One point: Expires 25th March 2023. Impeding Esteban Ocon at the Saudi Arabian GP.
One point: Expires 8th May 2023. Gaining a lasting advantage by leaving the track during the Miami GP.
Kevin Magnussen
Two points: Expires 8th May 2023. Causing a collision with Stroll during the 2022 Miami GP.
Zhou Guanyu
One point: Expires 26th March 2023. Gaining a lasting advantage by leaving the track during the 2022 Saudi Arabian GP.
One point: Expires 10th July 2023. Exceeding track limits.
One point-
Sergio Perez
One point: Expires 12th September 2022. Overtaking by going off track at the 2021 Italian GP.
Lando Norris
One point: Expires 10th July 2023. Exceeding track limits during the 2022 Austrain GP.
Sebastian Vettel
One point: Expires 10th July 2023. Exceeding track limits at the 2022 Austrian GP.
Nicholas Latifi
One point: Expires 12th June 2023. Ignoring blue flags during the 2022 Azerbaijan GP.
Daniel Ricciardo has addressed speculation surrounding his future in Formula 1, confirming that he will be remaining on the grid until the end of 2023 and fulfilling the full duration of his McLaren contract.
Rumous have been flying around about whether or not his (Ricciardo) stay at McLaren would carry on beyond the end of the season with CEO Zak Brown, previously confirming there were mechanisms within his contract that could allow for an early exit from his deal.
The McLaren team, has most recently signed current IndyCar Champion, Alex Palou to its racing roster, with fellow young Indy talents Colton Herta and Pato O’Ward having also tested McLaren machinery since the end of last year.
Daniel, however has kept his mindset focused at the job at hand at McLaren, where he has struggled alongside Lando Norris so far this year – having scored 17 points compared to 64 for his team-mate and often being out performed by the young Briton, despite winning the Italian Grand Prix last year.
There have been a lot of rumours around my future in Formula 1, but I want you to hear it from me. I am committed to McLaren until the end of next year and am not walking away from the sport. Appreciate it hasn’t always been easy, but who wants easy! I’m working my ass off with the team to make improvements and get the car right and back to the front where it belongs. I still want this more than ever. See you in Le Castellet.
Madrid, has officially expressed an interest in hosting a Formula One race, the city’s regional government announced last month.
Although there are no Formula One-grade tracks in Madrid, and Spain already hosts a race in Barcelona which is contracted until 2026, the Spanish capital believes they can open talks with F1 organisers, Liberty Media about hosting a race.
I would like to confirm our commitment to you and to this project, as well as our willingness to sign the appropriate agreements to promote the race and offer a great sporting and entertainment spectacle.
Local government cabinet minister, Enrique Lopez.
Madrid hosted F1 Grand Prix’s between 1968 and 1981 at the Jarama Circuit, which is our dated and would need a major upgrade to be able to host a race again.
Last year, the local government of Morata de Tajuna, 36km south of Madrid, confirmed that it was seeking to build an FIA Grade 1 circuit with the ambition of hosting Formula 1 as well as Moto GP.
My Opinion-
Part of me would love a new track for Spain, but there is also a part of me that’s thinking we have a good track, and there’s probably other tracks which could do with updating before we go and get new ones when the one we have now is okay?
What a race. I honestly have no idea where to start… But one thing to say is the Orange Army did not disappoint and was great to see the sea of orange in the grandstands!
But it was Charles Leclerc who won the Austrian Grand Prix, his first win since Australia! Max Verstappen joined him on the podium in P2 and Lewis Hamilton rounds out the podium in P3!
The full top 10 are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Hamilton, P4: Russell, P5: Ocon, P6: Schumacher, P7: Norris, P8: Magnussen, P9: Ricciardo and P10: Alonso.
What a race for Charles! His been saying he needs a win and he finally got one and it was very well deserved, he done lovely overtakes on Max and caught him out a few times. But the same couldn’t be said for his teammate… Carlos ended up retiring due to an power unit failure which saw quite a big fire when he pulled over to the side of the track.
A decent day for Max, he just didn’t have the pace compared to Leclerc and you could tell by the second overtake Leclerc done on him, as normally Max doesn’t let it happen and fights back straight away. Again, the same couldn’t be said for Perez as he retired aswell, which saw Leclerc now jump him in the constructors.
One team out of the top 3, had a brilliant day! Mercedes, wow… Lewis started P8 and finished on the podium, Russell started 4th, had a first lap tangle with Perez, which saw the Brit get a 5 second time penalty and then he pitted to serve his penalty and change his front wing. Naturally he dropped down the order, he then thought back to finish 4th, which I must say is very impressive!
I said Ocon could score big points, and he did, the Frenchman finished 5th and it really helps his championship out as he moves further up. Another team, who I said could score big, were Haas and they did! Mick finished 6th – his best ever finish and Magnussen finished 8th, double points finish two weekends in a row for the American team!
Finally McLaren!! Double points finish, Lando 7th and Daniel 9th. It’s no secret that Danny’s had some problems, but if your patient then the points do come eventually, hopefully this is the start of the continuous points finish…
We are back in two weeks! And for another double header before the summer break… First up we have the French GP on the 22nd to 24th July, who will come out on top the next race weekend, as we now have completed 11 rounds out of 22?
Our second sprint of the season is complete and what a race, drama from left right and centre, and even before we got racing…
The yellow flags, come out on the formation lap when Fernando Alonso’s Alpine failed to get off the grid, forcing him out of the Sprint, this was before Zhou Guanyu’s brief stoppage at the final corner approaching the grid, which the field then had to do another formation lap, as we saw the Alfa Romeo driver start from the pitlane.
But, Max Verstappen won the sprint as he dominated from lights out to the checkered flag. The two Ferrari’s follow him closely, with Leclerc in 2nd and Sainz in 3rd.
The full top 10 are: P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Sainz, P4: Russell, P5: Perez, P6: Ocon, P7: Magnussen, P8: Hamilton, P9: Schumacher and P10: Bottas.
What a drive from Perez! Started P13 and to finish 5th is really good! Could we see him try and battle for a podium or maybe a win today?
Zhou Guanyu, done really well considering he started from the pitlane, he finished 14th, I’d say keep an eye on him today, he could score some points and do some very nice overtakes!
The McLaren boys made up a few places each Norris starting 11th today and Ricciardo 12th. I think there will be lots of battles throughout the race later!
One person I’d say you would have to really watch is Esteban Ocon, his been looking strong all weekend, so I won’t be surprised if we see him up there later today.
Predictions-
My top five are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Hamilton, P4: Perez and P5: Russell.
I think we are going to have a bit of a crazy race today, there are plenty of overtaking spots but there is also track limits so drivers need to keep that in mind…
F1 really knows how to keep us on the edge of our seat, on a weekend where we have more drama than normal because of the Sprint, but to add to that we had an eventful qualifying session at the Red Bull Ring.
Qualifying set the grid for the Sprint later on today, which will then set the grid for tomorrow’s Grand Prix. The top eight from the sprint will score points, so it’s a good way to get up the field a bit more.
But it was Max Verstappen who took pole position infront of the Orange Army, but he was followed closely by the two Ferrari’s, Charles Leclerc in 2nd and our newest race winner, Carlos Sainz in third.
The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Sainz, P4: Russell, P5: Ocon, P6: Magnussen, P7: Schumacher, P8: Alonso, P9: Hamilton and P10: Gasly.
Sergio Perez, actually qualified P4, but after qualifying, it came out that he breached track limits in his Q2 lap, the stewards deleted that time, alongside his Q3 laps so he will now be starting 13th! Not a good start to his weekend, but this is where the Sprint comes into play, it gives the drivers an opportunity to get a little further up the grid.
Oh Mercedes… it was looking like pole for Lewis Hamilton, as he was strong in Q1 and Q2. But once again, things just don’t go that way in F1. Hamilton went into the barriers at Turn 7 to bring out a red flag in the middle of the session, leaving him 10th. George then thought he would add to the mix, with a spin and then crash at the final corner, however he had already put down a banker lap. Not a good start for the Mercs, but they can still have a good fight.
Both Haas’ in the top 10!! Wow, the car so far seems to like the track, definitely big points on offer for them this weekend, and it will be interesting to see if they can get their strategy right and optimise on other peoples misfortune.
Mr Alex Albon, starting P11 today, he only has to make up 3 places and he’ll score points… This is why part of me likes the Sprint, its for the teams who are close to scoring points on a normal weekend, but add the sprint into their they have more of a chance to score on Sunday.
Predictions-
My top five are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Russell, P4: Hamilton and P5: Ocon.
I feel like we are going to get a crazy sprint, later today and its going to cause carnage… But if it does happen, then we are in for a crazy race on Sunday.
We are on our second week of the double header, and we are heading to the Red Bull Ring, Austria for Round 11. Will Red Bull make it count on home turf, or will Ferrari fight back? The Sprint also returns for the second time this season!
What can Carlos Sainz do this weekend of the back of his first win? Will he be going for number two already? Will Charles’ strategy go right this weekend? Or will it be another winless or podiumless weekend for him? What can the Bulls do? What can Mercedes do?? So many questions about how the Silver Arrows will do, and I can’t wait to find out!
Who needs a good weekend?
Daniel needs a good weekend, it’s just getting repetitive putting him in here. But in all honestly and hopefullness, I hope he does click with the car well this weekend, and its the return of the sprint so a chance to get further up the grid…
Alpha Tauri needs a good weekend, another non-points finish. If the car struggles in high paced corners, then they will more than likely struggle this weekend, unless they find the right set up.
Alfa Romeo will be wanting to sort out their reliability sooner rather than later, VB had to retire last race again, and its going to start hurting their championship if this carries on…
Predictions for qualifying-
My top five are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Sainz, P4: Perez and P5: Hamilton.
I feel like Leclerc will just be looking for revenge, so he will do an absolutely stonking lap to put it on pole, but I think Max will be close to him. But if it rains, its going to be another story and we can see the Mercs fight for pole aswell. With a few surprises added in there aswell…
It’s another race week, and we have been given the tyre allocation from Pirelli for this weeks race in Austria.
The Red Bull Ring in Austria is a short and sharp rollercoaster with only 10 corners and constant elevation changes. Pirelli brings the three softest tyres in the range C3 (Hard), C4 (Medium), C5 (Soft).
Last year there were two races at the Red Bull Ring held back-to-back, this weekend is the same tyre nominations as the second race there. It’s designed to help put on a show by increasing degradation and creating more overtaking opportunities. On that occasion, the winning strategy was two-stopper, one opening stint on the medium and then two stints on the hard.
Austria is home to the second sprint of the season. Instead of the normal 13 set of tyres, this weekend they will 12, two sets of hard, four sets of medium and six sets of soft.
The asphalt at the Red Bull Ring offers reasonably low grip on a low-severity circuit, which makes it possible to bring the softest tyres in the range. This helps us in putting the focus on entertainment, at a venue that has often delivered exciting races in the past, thanks to a busy and compact lap that’s essentially a series of short corners. Traction and especially braking are key here: with a particular risk of lock-ups in some of the tricky downhill braking areas. Maintaining the performance of the rear tyres throughout the lap is also vital to ensure adequate traction. Our tyre nomination makes a variety of different potential strategies possible.
Mario Isla, Motorsport Director
Formula 2-
The medium and supersoft tyres have been nominated for Formula 2 in Austria. This is the third time that this combination with an extra step between compounds have been used this season.
Formula 3-
For the first time this season, the softest tyre in the Formula 3 range – the soft compound – will be the sole nominated tyre. This is one step softer than 2021, when the medium compound was available at the Red Bull Ring.
The second Sprint weekend of the season takes places this weekend at the #AustrianGP! 🇦🇹
It is safe to say, the British GP did not disappoint, once again! So much chaos happened I have no clue where to start, but one main thing is that the halo is once again doing the job it’s meant to do, very glad to see Zhou Guanyu okay after the first lap crash!
A first lap incident which saw Gasly touch Russell on the start saw him spin and hit Zhou when then saw Zhou flip round and then get flipped round again and hit the barrier, getting his car stuck between the two. Another incident on the same lap, was Alex Albon getting hit from behind by Vettel and going head on into the pit wall. Alex has since sent to the hospital for precautionary checks but is okay.
However, Carlos Sainz is an F1 WINNER!!!! Finally!! Sergio Perez comes home to make it P2, and Lewis Hamilton takes P3 on home turf!
The full top 10 are- P1: Sainz, P2: Perez, P3: Hamilton, P4: Leclerc, P5: Alonso, P6: Norris, P7: Verstappen, P8: Schumacher, P9: Vettel and P10: Magnussen.
Carlos Sainz, what a man, what a driver, he lost a position to Max at the start but got it back for the re-start and then his teammate was faster so they switched round. But Carlos got an opportunity with the safety car and got new softs, and it all just went right for him there, he overtook his teammate and just went into the lead and didn’t look back.
Sergio Perez aswell, getting hit on the first lap and had front wing damage which then saw him have to pit for a new front wing – which saw him drop down the order and then he fought his way back up, and then managed to grab a podium after it looked like it was going to Ferrari and Lewis.
What a day for the Haas pair, I didn’t think they would get points today because of where they qualified yesterday but, good things come to those who wait and boy was Mick Schumacher patient… His first points in F1 and it comes witha double points finish for Haas.
I kind of expected Daniel Ricciardo to do a bit more, he ended up finishing 13th… we only had 14 drivers finish the race… I really don’t know what to say about it, there was drivers who had damage and quite a bit of it who managed to score points so where was Daniel in all of this?
A really strong day for Lewis, the Mercedes definitely has some race pace so they just need to work on a few bits and straight line speed a bit more than they should consistently be fighting with Ferrari and Red Bull for the wins.
The Championship-
Max still leads, and he still has a decent gap between him and Perez who is in 2nd. Charles remains in third and only 9 points of Perez. Sainz now goes ahead of Russell after the Brit didn’t score, Sainz is only 11 points away from his teammate now. Hamilton has now also closed down the gap a little to his teammate, he sits on 93 and Russell 111.
Red Bull still have a comfortable lead with 328 points, Ferrari with a strong day today have closed it down a little but more points are need for the Italian team. Mercedes are now starting to get into the fight aswell, they remain in third on 204 points. McLaren remain fourth on 73 points and Alpine are starting to close on them with 67 points and in fifth.
Not long to wait until the next race week, as we return to Austria for Round 11 out of 22, we are almost at our halfway mark!
The UK is always unpredictable with weather, but you think July would be different? Well how wrong we are! We had a wet qualifying in Silverstone and it definitely brought out a few surprises, especially with a driver getting their first pole position!
Going into qualifying and even during qualifying it looked like it was a six way battle for pole position with the Mercs joining in on the fun here at Silverstone, it didn’t end up that way in Q3…
It was Carlos Sainz who finally took pole position, with it being his first one of his Formula 1 career! With Max Verstappen joining him on the front row, and Charles Leclerc making it a 1-3 for Ferrari.
The full top 10 are- P1: Sainz, P2: Verstappen, P3: Leclerc, P4: Perez, P5: Hamilton, P6: Norris, P7: Alonso, P8: Russell, P9: Zhou and P10: Latifi.
Can we just take a second, to appreciate, that Nicholas Latifi has got into the top 10 for the first time this year! The Williams driver was just putting in the lap times when it mattered and he finally got into Q3 let alone Q2!
Carlos Sainz FINALLY gets pole position, his been close before and its been taken away in the last moment, but today was unexpected for the Spaniard but he deserved it!
A good day for one of the McLaren’s this week its Lando in the top 10, throughout the weekend he has had lots of pace which has been good to see, especially in front of the home crowd.
Another Q3 appearance for Zhou Guanyu, he seems to like this track and it looks like he keeps on putting it all together when it matters, I can’t wait to see what he does tomorrow.
The Aston Martin struggles continue, both drivers out in Q1, Stroll P20 and Vettel P18. They’ve brought upgrades and at points during the past few weekends they look quite strong but when it matters they just don’t have it there as a package.
Esteban Ocon, what went wrong there? P15… A lot of work to do in the race tomorrow, and its looking like it should be an entertaining one!
Predictions-
My top five are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Hamilton, P4: Russell and P5: Norris. I definitely feel like the Mercs have got something, especially with race pace as they looked strong yesterday.
There’s a few cars out of position for the start tomorrow, so will be interesting to see how they get through the field, and at the time of writing this there’s a 40% chance of rain at the start of tomorrow’s race aswell, so that could make for an interesting start…
Once again it’s race week, and we have another double header upon us, with our first stop being at Silverstone for Round 10! The question is how will the British boys do this weekend?
Can Max make it his seventh win of the season? Or will Ferrari have something up there sleeve? What can Mercedes do with their new upgrades, its going to be an interesting one for sure!
Who needs a good weekend?
The McLaren boys need a good weekend, Lando currently sits in 7th in the championship and Daniel in 13th. But I’d probably say Daniel more, as his only scored in 3 races this season… The Papaya team knows they can score good points this weekend if they qualify well, and hopefully put on a good show for all their fans attending and watching from home!
Alfa Romeo will be looking to get another double points finish this weekend as they try and close down the gap to Alpine, who are just 6 points ahead of them.
Ferrari’s Leclerc will be looking to take the win this weekend, and hopefully jump Perez in the standings, with the pair separated by three points. Leclerc, done well in Canada considering he started at the back of the grid and managed to finish 5th, what can he do this weekend…
Predictions for qualifying-
My top five for qualifying are- Pole: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Sainz, P4: Perez and P5: Hamilton.
Charles still keeps it consistent in qualifying, but I do feel like it might be closer this weekend. You can also never count out Lewis, especially at Silverstone, but another person not to count out is Russell, his on top form at the moment and he will be wanting to make up for his mistake in Canada’s qualifying.
Hopefully we see a mixed top 10, with Alpine, McLaren, Alfa Romeo and maybe a Haas thrown in there to shake it all up and which will make for an interesting race on Sunday.
It’s race week once again, and we have another double header! But this week we are going to Silverstone, the race which caused so much controversy last year…
But, we have the tyre allocation for this weekend, with Pirelli choosing the hardest in the range C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium) and C3 (Soft).
Ultra-rapid and high-energy corners such as Maggotts and Becketts complex aren’t the only challenge, as the weather can be extremely variable from bright sunshine to heavy rain.
Last year’s race was won with two tyre changes: one of them being taken under an early red flag period following the Max and Lewis collision. Nearly all the drivers competed two stints on the medium plus a final one on the hard.
This year, the compounds and structures are different, and there’s no sprint qualifying either – which was a factor in last year’s strategy.
The British Grand Prix was where the new show car for the 2022 season was displayed last year, to highlight the future direction of the sport that we have embarked on from this season. The latest aerodynamic regulations are designed to allow drivers to follow each other more closely for longer to give more chance of overtaking, as we saw in Canada, while the tyres are designed to provide less overheating, more stability, and increased driveability within a wider working window. All these aspects will be tested this weekend, on one of the most challenging tracks for tyres of the year.
Mario Isla, Motorsport Director
Formula 2-
The hard and Soft tyres are nominated for this weekend at Silverstone, a change from last year when the hard and medium were used. The extra step between the compounds will provide additional one-lap performance and more strategic variability in the races.
Formula 3-
The hard tyre is nominated as the single compound: the third appearance in four rounds. The nomination is the same as Formula 3’s previous visits to Silverstone in 2019 and 2020.
It’s race week, as @F1 heads to Silverstone for the #BritishGP! 🇬🇧
Nelson Piquet, who is the father of Max Verstappen’s partner, Kelly Piquet and a three time F1 world champion was on a podcast last November discussing the collision between Hamilton and Verstappen during the 2021 British GP, when he used a racially offensive expression in Portuguese.
The comments have only now came to light, and Piquet has been condemned by Formula 1, Hamilton’s Mercedes team and the FIA.
Let’s focus on changing the mindset. It’s more than language. These archaic mindsets need to change and have no place in our sport. I’ve been surrounded by these attitudes and targeted my whole life. There has been plenty of time to learn. Time has come for action.
Lewis took to social media.
This isn’t the first time Piquet has made unsavoury and unpleasant statements. During his driving career, he publicly questioned Ayrton Senna’s sexuality and called his rival “the Sao Paulo taxi driver”. As well as this, he made offensive comments about Nigel Mansell and the Briton’s wife when they were team mates at Williams.
Whether your an ex F1 driver, a junior of a F1 team or just a normal person, using racist language is never the way to go forward. I hope we see something done about this as Lewis shouldn’t be having to deal with this…
The future of the French GP is still uncertain, but Stefano Domenicali has revealed a shock bid from the city of Nice has come in to host a street race in coming years, should the sports relationship with Circuit Paul Ricard end…
Formula 1’s contract with Le Castellet expires at the end of this season, putting the French GP in doubt – with no deal currently agreed for Formula 1 to continue heading to France.
F1 CEO, Domenicali has previously spoken at length about his desire to expand to new markets for the sport, whilst also keeping a portion of its heritage in its traditional European heartland and he acknowledged France’s role in that.
Whilst nothing is decided for the country yet, he (Stefano) revealed that Nice has thrown its hat in the ring to hold a race around the streets of the French Riviera City and a decision on the future of the race will be taken by the end of July.
Historically, France has been an important nation in motorsport. You might not know this, but there is an amazing project with Nice, who wants a grand prix. It’s great, as it proves that other destinations in the country are interested in F1. We are going to look at the applications and study them carefully. Other things could come very soon. All I can tell you is, by late July, you will know more about the future of your grand prix.”
Nexr season’s calendar is still yet to be unveiled, but the likelihood is the number of races will increase given the arrival of Qatar and Las Vegas on a permanent basis. Austria, Belgium and Monaco are all also trying to keep their place on the schedule, with their own contracts expiring at the end of 2022.
In recent years, there has been red flags being raised in qualifying after someone crashing but now it seems they are appearing more frequently and not just one per qualifying…
But recently, Formula 1 drivers are backing a potential FIA initiative to penalise those who trigger red of yellow flags in qualifying, ruining the laps of rivals.
For a second time this season it had become quite a big talking point, especially after Imola and most recently Azerbaijan. In the latter, Fernando Alonso went down an escape road towards the end of Q1 bringing out a yellow flag and spoiling the laps of anyone behind who might have had the chance of beating the Spaniard.
Alex Albon who was immediately behind the Alpine driver, made it clear that he thought Alonso had gone off track in a deliberate effort to frustrate his rivals.
The issue of drivers playing such games, especially at street tracks, made the headline back in 2006 at the Monaco GP. On that occasion, Michael Schumacher was excluded from qualifying after the stewards determined he deliberately stooped in track at Rascasse, effectively ending qualifying early and securing pole position.
A similar incident occurred at the same venue in 2014, when Nico Rosberg went down the Mirabeau escape road, ruining the final effort of his teammate, Lewis Hamilton fast lap. The German driver, survived an investigation without sanction.
The F1 sporting regulations already contain an article that can be applied to anyone taking an escape road or going off into a run-off are and which reads: ‘Drivers must make every reasonable effort to use the track at all times and may not leave the track without a justifiable reason.’
The stewards have the discretion to delete any or all lap times if a driver is deemed to have committed an offence that falls within that description.
Awarding penalties for an actual accident that ends a session early, like those involving Charles Leclerc in Monaco 2021, and Sergio Perez this year would probably require a further discussion.
Max Verstappen, Fernando Alonso, Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo and Esteban Ocon are just a few of the drivers who support the ideas of penalties. A few of them suggesting deleted lap times could be the way forward.
My Opinion-
I think if they were to delete lap times for the driver who crashed or penalise them somehow then that is justified. But if a driver done it deliberately I think the FIA will have a harder time trying to penalise them, as the drivers will say they didn’t etc and there won’t be any physical proof…
AlphaTauri have confirmed that Pierre Gasly will be remaining with the team for the 2023 season, ending speculation that the Frenchman might depart for new pastures at the end of the season.
Following confirmation that Sergio Perez is staying on at Red Bull until 2024, and thus blocking Gasly’s route to the team he drove 12 races for in 2019. Gasly has always been open about wanting to have conversations with Red Bull’s motorsports advisor, Dr Helmut Marko regarding where his future is.
Gasly made his F1 debut with the team, then known as Toro Rosso, at the 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix, and has subsequently taken three podiums with the squad including his win at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix.
We are really pleased to confirm that Pierre stays with us in 2023. He is definitely in the group of the best and most competitive drivers in F1 and has proven his abilities during all the time he has spent with us. Undoubtedly, Pierre can play a major role in the team having a successful season next year and it will be down to us to provide him with a competitive car, so that he can continue to deliver excellent results.
Franz Tost, Team Boss of AlphaTauri.
“I have been with this team for five years now and I am proud of the journey we’ve been through together and the progress we have made. I’m happy to remain with my Scuderia AlphaTauri team. This year’s new regulations have created new challenges for us and being able to plan our development with the team for the next 18 months is a good working basis for the future.
Pierre Gasly on signing another year.
My Opinion-
We all knew this was going to happen, especially because Pierre is still contracted to Red Bull until the end of 2023, and in all honesty they (Red Bull) wouldn’t let him go to another team until that time is up.
Red Bull Racing, has suspended reserve and junior driver Juri Vips from all team duties with immediate effect.
Footage emerged of Juri Vips, on social media using a racist slur whilst streaming on Twitch.
Red Bull Racing has suspended junior driver Juri Vips from all team duties with immediate effect, pending a full investigation into the incident. As an organisation we condemn abuse of any kind and have a zero-tolerance policy to racist language or behaviour within our organisation.
Red Bull issued the above statement on social media.
Vips has been apart of the Red Bull junior team since 2018, and drove for the Formula 1 team during FP1 at the Spanish Grand Prix. As well as this, he has represented the team at two end of season tests in Abu Dhabi.
I wish to unreservedly apologise for the offensive language used during a live gaming stream earlier today. This language is entirely unacceptable and does not portray the values and principles that I hold. I deeply regret my actions and this is not the example I wish to set. I will cooperate with the investigation fully.
Juri Vips statement on social media.
Vips is set to race next at the British Grand Prix in just over a weeks time, for HiTech Grand Prix in Formula 2, who have yet to issue their own statement on the matter.
After the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the FIA have announced plans to control the phenomenon of porpoising that has become a theme in the 2022 season, issuing a Technical Directive to the teams to give guidance about the measures they intend to take to tackle the issue.
A return to ground effect cars for 2022 has seen a revival in F1 of the porpoising phenomenon, where cars lose and then regain downforce in quick succession, setting up a cycle of the car moving up and down. Meanwhile with ground effect working best when cars are run as low to the ground as possible, some teams have also struggled with additional issues like bottoming out and bouncing.
A Technical Directive has been issued to give guidance to the teams about the measures the FIA intends to take to tackle the problem. These include:
Closer scrutiny of the planks and skids, both in terms of their design and the observed wear.
The definition of a metric, based on the car’s vertical acceleration, that will give a quantitative limit for acceptable level of vertical oscillations. The exact mathematical formula for this metric is still being analysed by the FIA, and the Formula 1 teams have been invited to contribute to this.
In addition to these short-term measures, the FIA will convene a technical meeting with the Teams in order to define measures that will reduce the propensity of cars to exhibit such phenomena in the medium term.
The FIA decided to intervene following consultation with its doctors in the interests of safety of the drivers. In a sport where the competitors are routinely driving at speeds in excess of 300km/h, it is considered that all driver’s concentration needs to be focused on that task and that excessive fatigue or pain experienced by a driver could have significant consequences should it result in a loss of concentration.
In addition, the FIA has concerns in relation to the immediate physical impact on the health of the drivers, a number of whom have reported back pain.
What a race! The Canadian Grand Prix has come back with a bang, and I can honestly say it’s good to have it back!
Max Verstappen stormed his way to victory making it Red Bull’s sixth in a row, can they get past Vettel’s 9 with the team? Carlos Sainz comes home to finish 2nd after he had a last minute battle for the win but it wasn’t meant to be this time. Lewis Hamilton joins them on the podium in P3, his second of the season!
The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Sainz, P3: Hamilton, P4: Russell, P5: Leclerc, P6: Ocon, P7: Alonso, P8: Bottas, P9: Zhou and P10: Stroll.
Red Bull, now I was excited to see what Perez could do and see some nice overtakes from him but this weekend really wasn’t his, he ended up DNF’ing quite early into the race and I think there are some question marks coming up about RB’s reliability after they had seemed to sort it quite early on.
A good weekend for Ferrari overall, especially Charles, him starting P19 after his penalties for him to finish 5th is good, and it’s even better for them that only one Red Bull finished…
Now onto Merc, very different pace compared to Friday, maybe a sign of things to come? A great drive from both drivers, obviously George had a bit of work to do after qualifying 8th but he kept it consistent and finished in the top 5 once again. Lewis, seemed a lot happier this race, less bouncing and he just loves this track which makes this podium even better!
Now Alpine, I kind of expected a bit more from Alonso, we’ve seen before in the past he defends like a lion but today I didn’t see that much and heard that there fight wasn’t with the Bulls or Ferrari but both Alpines ended up behind the Mercs?
Alfa Romeo! Double points finish, they had good pace throughout and done some nice overtakes, happy for Zhou though as he has had it rough with mechanical DNF’s so this weekend as a whole should boost his confidence going into the next round!
Now Haas, I think we expected at least one car to finish in the top 10… but they didn’t. Mick suffered a PU issue, after doing well to stay in the top 10 at the beginning of the race. Where as for Magnussen, had a bit of contact on lap 1 and then got shown the black and orange flag to pit for a new front wing, which saw him tumble to the bottom…
McLaren, wasn’t really anywhere today which is a shame as they looked promising with their pace yesterday, Ricciardo finished 11th and Norris 15th…
The Championship-
Theres no change at the top, as Max Verstappen still leads and extending his lead now on 175 points. His teammate is still in 2nd but that gap between them grew due to the DNF. Charles Leclerc is sat in third on 126 points, closing in on Perez as there is just 3 points between the pair. Russell stays in 4th on 111 points and Carlos is on 102 points now and in fifth, so it’s getting closer as the races keep on coming.
Red Bull lead the Constructors still, with 304 points, Ferrari closed down the gap a little but they are sat on 228 points, 76 points between the two teams… Mercedes sit comfortably in third and with their big points haul over the past two weekends are starting to close in on Ferrari as they sit on 188 points.
McLaren are still sat in 4th on 65 points, but points are needed soon as Alpine are coming to hunt them down. They are currently sat in 5th and are on 61 points…
We are back in two weeks for the British Grand Prix! Round 10 of 22 and we all remember what happened last year at Silverstone? Will Max get the victory this year? Or can Charles get the win? Where will Mercedes be, and will their new upgrades see them fighting with the front two teams? It’s all to play for!
Well well well, I think Canada thought they would make their comeback a rather good one, and so far it has been! We saw a wet qualifying today and it did not disappoint!
Charles Leclerc and Yuki Tsunoda are starting at the back of the grid due to taking penalties for new power unit elements.
But, Max Verstappen clawed his way to pole position as he made his way round the track without any costly mistakes. He is joined on the front row by Alpine’s, Fernando Alonso for the first time since the 2012 German Grand Prix. And Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz rounds out the top 3, making it count for the Italian team as his teammate has a penalty.
The full top 10 are: P1: Verstappen, P2: Alonso, P3: Sainz, P4: Hamilton, P5: Magnussen, P6: Schumacher, P7: Ocon, P8: Russell, P9: Ricciardo and P10: Zhou.
Lets just take a moment to appreciate, Fernando Alonso, what a man and what a driver. I could see him battling for the win today and I honestly can’t wait, is this El Plan really coming to life now?…
Haas deserve a round of applause what a qualifying session for them! Both drivers in the top 10 and also Mick’s best qualifying session ever! Big points on offer for the pair of them today, and a certain German driver needs to make it count…
Ohhhhh Daniel Ricciardo! Top 10, that is what we like to see, and so far he has had a good weekend, and looks to be enjoying himself, could this be the comeback for him now? His teammate starts down in 14th due to an issue with the car, so Norris will be trying to get through the field.
Zhou Guanyu, in Q3 and I am sure he is happy with that one! Things haven’t exactly gone his way in the past few races so his been quite unlucky, but with a good qualifying and starting ahead of his teammate he will have an extra boost of confidence for today.
Predictions-
My top five are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Alonso, P3: Hamilton, P4: Sainz, P5: Russell. I could see todays race be taken over by the more experienced drivers, Alonso, Hamilton, Ricciardo and Vettel, it looked like they were doing that yesterday during FP3 and Qualifying.
I think seeing Charles Leclerc come through the field will be good, we get a feel for how that Ferrari actually is and lets hope we get to see some killer moves.
After much speculation, it has been confirmed that Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc will drop 10 places on the Canadian Grand Prix grid for taking new control electronics.
With the Ferrari power unit that let go in Baku last week whilst Leclerc was leading got deemed ‘beyond repair’ the team and driver arrived this weekend and was surrounded by talk of potential grid penalities.
Initially it appeared that this would not be the case, Leclerc having received a new Internal Combustion Engine, MGU-K, MGU-H and Control Electronics, though none of those components took him over the imits for the season.
Obviously, we are not in the best situation possible. For the power unit change I think there are still ongoing discussions, we’ll try to push (back) as much as possible the decision. For now, no decisions are taken. But it’s not the best situation for me. It’s up to us to choose the best track where you want to get a penalty – if you get a penalty. And this is one of the tracks where it’s actually quite easy to overtake. But there are also some of the tracks in the next three or four races where it’s easier to overtake too. We’ll discuss and try and take the best decision from there.
Charles Leclerc on the possible penalty
But, the FIA confirmed another new Control Electronics for Leclerc, taking him to three for the season and thus pushing him over the permitted number of components. As such, he drops 10 places on the grid for the first Canadian GP to be held since 2019.
A new Control Electronic has been fitted to Charles’ car prior to FP2. It is the third of these elements used so far this season – only two are permitted – therefore Charles takes a grid penalty.
Ferrair’s statement.
This now gives Red Bull’s Max Verstappen a major boost in the race for the 2022 Drivers title, the reigning world champ comes into this weekend with a 34 point buffer over Leclerc.
We are back in Canada, after not being here since 2019! It’s a new track to some of the drivers, as well as being the home Grand Prix of both Nicholas Latifi and Lance Stroll.
Will Ferrari bounce back after their double DNF last weekend? Or will Red Bull continue on their run of race wins? Can Mercedes have another strong weekend? It’s all to play for this weekend…
Who needs a good weekend?
Ferrari for sure, they need to be worried about the power unit and what effect it could have on the championship. A big points haul is needed for the Italian team and in the past at Canadian GP, Ferrari does like it here so hopefully they can turn things around here?
Alfa Romeo, need a good weekend for both of their drivers, Bottas was no where in Azerbaijan and Guanyu Zhou had to retire in the pits which is unlucky for him as it could of been a ‘what if he continued’ situation.
Magnussen needs a good weekend, 3 DNFs in the last four races isn’t good for Haas. Hopefully this weekend will be a different story for the American team!
Predictions for qualifying-
My top five are- Pole: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Perez, P4: Sainz and P5: Russell.
At this moment in time, Charles is the best qualifier, only qualifying 1st and 2nd so far this season, he seems to put it all together when it counts. Where as for his teammate, he does a few little mistakes on his lap, which could and has knocked him down a few places.
I could see a McLaren getting in the top 10, and possibly Bottas? If Alfa Romeo sort out their car in qualifying whilst on the soft tyre there will be no problem, but at the moment we don’t know what were going to get from them!
The Australian Grand Prix will remain in Melbourne until 2035, following a deal to extend the race’s agreement beyond 2025 by a further 10 years.
More than 419,000 fans visited Albert Park for the 2022 Australian Grand Prix in April, making it the largest ever crowd for a weekend sporting event in Australia.
Albert Park has hosted the Australian GP since 1996, with significant investment made over the past two years in order to improve the circuit, fan experience and facilities – whilst there are further improvements, including the paddock and pit lane, are planned in order to continue the circuit’s modernisation.
The date of next year’s Australian Grand Prix will be provided in due course and once the 2023 calendar is finalised, it will be subject to the World Motor Sport Council approval.
I am delighted to confirm that Melbourne and the Albert Park circuit will continue to be on the Formula 1 calendar until 2035. The race has always been a favourite for the fans, drivers and the teams and Melbourne is an incredible and vibrant international city that is a perfect match for our sport. This year we saw huge crowds and passionate fans at the Grand Prix, and we are very excited by the future in Australia as our sport continues to grow. I want to thank the Victorian Government, Daniel Andrews, Premier of Victoria and Martin Pakula, Minister for Tourism, Sport & Major Events for their tireless support for the event in Melbourne, as well as Andrew Westacott and Paul Little from the AGPC for making this already long-term partnership secure for the future. We are all looking forward to being back in Melbourne next season with all our fans.
Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of F1.
This is a sensational announcement that is simply great for Melbourne and Victoria. It builds on our rich motor sport history as well as Melbourne’s love of big sporting events and provides aspiration to the next generation of Aussie racing stars. We’re proud of our strong relationship with Formula 1 and together we will grow the sport in Australia and the broader Asia-Pacific region. Everyone at the Australian Grand Prix Corporation looks forward to taking the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix to new levels over the course of the next 13 years.
Andrew Westacott, CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation.
After a two year absence, Canada is back on the calendar and we have the tyre allocation ready for us.
Pirelli have chosen the softest tyres in the race, which was the same last time here in 2019, it is also the same as the past two races (Monaco and Azerbaijan.) C3 (Hard), C4 (Medium) and C5 (Soft). In 2019, the winning strategy was a one stopper, starting on mediums and finishing on the hard.
Montreal has some similar elements of Baku, thanks to its heavy traction and braking demands, on a rapidly-evolving surface but with lower speeds and cooler weather.
Talking about the weather, it often has been a major feature of the Canadian Grand Prix: the 2011 race is still the longest in F1 history. Which saw six safety car periods and a lengthy interruption that neutralised the action for several hours. It’s never easy to predict the conditions and there’s also a reasonable chance of rain.
Canada will pose a number of question marks for the teams: the weather is often variable, all previous data is three years old, and we have a completely different range of tyres with new compounds and structures, on a track that is hardly ever used – which will lead to a very high degree of evolution. Compared to their last visit to Montreal, the drivers should find compounds that are more stable with a wider working range, enabling them to push harder throughout each stint with a much lower risk of overheating. One interesting aspect to Montreal is that it has one of the lowest pit lane time loss penalties on the calendar, meaning that a car can be in and out of the pit lane in less than 20 seconds. This could open up a few options in terms of strategy.
Mario Isla, Motorsport Director.
After a two-year hiatus, the #CanadianGP is back! 🇨🇦
Oscar Piastri is closing on a deal to drive for Williams in Formula 1 next season, with his debut potentially confirmed by the end of the month
The Alpine test and reserve driver has been the talk of the paddock as he is one of F1’s most promising young drivers, and wont a hat-trick of titles across the Formula Renault Eurocup, Formula 3 and Formula 2 from 2019 to 2021.
But, he missed out on an instant F1 graduation for 2022, as Alpine had no room and they could not find or agree a deal for Piastri to go on loan elsewhere. Piastri has spent 2022 so far testing last year’s Alpine alongside his role as the team’s reserve driver.
The Aussie, is still under contract with Alpine for next year but is thought to have a release clause of some kind if he does not have a deal agreed for him to race in F1 by the end of June. Alpine is still not able to put Piastri in its own team as Esteban Ocon is contracted to the end of 2024, and two time world champion Fernando Alonso is all but confirmed for 2023.
Alpine has made it clear that in the circumstances it is happy to let Piastri join another team but on a short term basis as they are not keen to lose such a highly rated driver permanently. Multiple sources have indicated the solution looks increasingly likely to be loaning Piastri to Williams.
It’s to be rumoured, that Piastri’s move will be announced at the British Grand Prix, as that even begins at the end of June – the aforementioned contractual deadline for Alpine to secure Piastri’s future and the race at which Alpine’s team principal, Otmar Szafnauer hoped to be able to confirm its driver plans.
Williams is clearly amenable to such an arrangement as for the 2022 season, the British team struck a similar deal with Red Bull to sign Alex Albon, whom Piastri is likely to partner when he makes his F1 debut. Albon has been extremely impressive in 2022, whilst his team-mate Nicholas Latifi has struggled, lacking pace and also suffering some expensive crashes.
Latifi’s position at Williams has so far been guaranteed by the funding he brings and his father was also integral in helping the team manage some debts early in pandemic, that helped Latifi extend his stay till 2022, but its is not expected to last beyond a third season.
But rumours continued to fly around at the Azerbaijan GP, that Piastri could replace Latifi from this year’s British GP onwards. Latifi has denied these claims and denied he would leave the team mid season and expects to stay until the end of the year…
Another Azerbaijan GP complete and we definitely had a few shock surprises along the way!
Max Verstappen takes his 5th win of the season, with his team mate joining him making it Red Bull’s third 1-2 of the season also. George Russell’s keeping it consistent as he finished in P3!
The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Perez, P3: Russell, P4: Hamilton, P5: Gasly, P6: Vettel, P7: Alonso, P8: Ricciardo, P9: Norris and P10: Ocon.
What a weekend for the Bull’s! Both drivers are making it count at the moment and you can see that when there driving. Perez seems like his got so much more confidence in the car, since his win and signing a 2 year deal!
This isn’t what Ferrari wanted or needed, Charles had a power unit issue and Carlos with a hydraulic issue – no points for either driver and it’s having some effects to the drivers and constructors standings…
What a weekend for Mercedes! Being there when it matters is key and that’s what they keep on doing. Both drivers in top 5 and another podium to add George’s tally! A quick side note- I hope LH is okay considering he couldn’t barley move after the race and getting out of the car was a struggle!
Gasly back in the top 5 is nice to see, and at a track he done well at last year makes it even better, let’s hope Baku is a turning point for Alpha Tauri now!
Someone else who needs a mention is Seb! P6 finish after going straight on in one of the run off areas and then having to spin round (which was beautiful) and then climb his way back up to get those all important points.
Now onto the Papaya team, I said they had an opportunity to score points, and they did – a double points finish for Lando and Daniel! Again maybe this is the start of turning things around, especially for Daniel.
The Championship-
Max Verstappen still leads the championship with 150 points, his teammate is close behind him in 2nd with 129 points and then its Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in third on 116 points. But, Leclerc needs to watch himself as Mr Consistency is making moves, Russell finds himself in fourth on 99 points – just 17 points between the pair. We then have Carlos Sainz in fifth on 83 points.
Red Bull remain in the top spot and extend their lead as they sit comfortably on 279 points, then it’s Ferrari in 2nd of 199 points, with the Silver Arrows coming at them rather quickly, they are on 161 points. We then have a big gap to 4th, which is McLaren who are on 65 points and then Alpine are now in fifth on 47 points after a double points finish today.
The grid is all set for tomorrow’s Azerbaijan GP! With a mixed qualifying which saw a red flag, a stunning lap for a Ferrari driver and an Aston Martin driver in the top 10…
But it was Charles Leclerc who took pole position once again, his 6th this year. He is joined by Sergio Perez who out qualifies his teammate for the second weekend in a row. Max rounds out the top 3.
The full top 10 are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Perez, P3: Verstappen, P4: Sainz, P5: Russell, P6: Gasly, P7: Hamilton, P8: Tsunoda, P9: Vettel and P10: Alonso.
I am actually quite surprised at the McLaren’s it looked like both drivers had pace to be in the top 10 but things don’t always work out that way – they are in the middle of the pack which isn’t always the best but they could benefit by any first lap incidents and starting from 11th and 12th you can still get into the points, especially because it’s Baku and anything can happen!
The Alpha Tauri’s WOW! They needed a good result and they got it, Gasly starting P6 which we love to see and takes us back to his great qualifying form from last year. And Yuki Tsunoda starting 8th is like a dream for the team. Hopefully both drivers can keep out of trouble and score a good amount of points and make up for this season!
A driver who I expected to be in the top 10 was Bottas, his starting P15, behind his teammate so it will be interesting to see how both Alfa Romeo’s can get through the field…
It feels good, this one. Obviously all pole positions feels good, but this one I probably did not expect it, because I thought Red Bull were stronger, especially in Q1 and Q2, I really struggled to see that we were faster, but then in the last lap, everything came together and I managed to do a good lap, so extremely happy… I’m really excited for tomorrow.
Charles Leclerc on pole position in Baku!
Predictions-
My top fie for the race tomorrow is – P1: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Perez, P4: Sainz and P5: Russell.
I feel like we will have a crazy race tomorrow, no doubt that there will be a safety car which the teams will have a strategy for as they know how this circuit can be, but who will get that strategy right and will we see a surprise podium? Or something we didn’t expect…
Jordan's Track Talk 