Jordan's Track Talk

Category: Formula One

  • Tyres for Silverstone

    Pirelli have announced what tyres will be available this weekend at Silverstone which is holding the first ever F1 sprint.

    The hardest of the compounds will be used C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium) and C3 (Soft). They will also be supply 12 sets of slicks rather than 13 with two sets of C1, four sets of C2’s and six sets of C3s. The compounds are the same as last year apart from the new rear tyres from when Hamilton suffered a puncture on the final lap.

    With qualifying now taking place on Friday evening and a change to normal practice, all drivers must use the soft tyre for the session, which normally its a free choice. Now onto the Sprint on Saturday, the teams will have a free choice of starting tyres, with also a free choice for the race on Sunday too.

    The test tyres they used in Austria, will now be used from British GP till the end of the season, they have reconstructed the rear tyre making them more robust.

    We also have Formula Two back this weekend for Round Four, they have been allocated the hard and medium tyres, which is being used for the first time in 2021 for them.

  • How Silverstone will work

    This coming weekend we have the British GP, and this year is a little different than others… It’s the first weekend of this season to be trialling the sprint qualifying.

    Below is in detail of how it is set out across the weekend and the times for it. The only day which stays the same is Sunday.

    Friday- In the afternoon (as usual) we have a 1 hour free practice session. In the evening we then have the normal qualifying which is usually on a Saturday afternoon. The qualifying will give us the starting grid for Sprint Qualifying.

    Saturday- In the afternoon we have a 1 hour free practice session. Then in the later part of the afternoon/ early evening we have the new Sprint Qualifying, this will usually run for 100km so roughly 30 minutes. The top three finishers will be awarded points, 1st = 3points, 2nd = 2 points and 3rd = 1 point. The results from this will then be the starting grid for Sundays race. During the sprint qualifying, pit-stops and tyre changes are not mandatory however the pit lane is open, if drivers want to change tyres.

    The times for this weekend are: Friday: FP1- 14:30pm till 15:30pm (BST), Qualifying- 18:00pm till 19:00pm (BST). Saturday: FP2- 12:00pm till 13:00pm (BST), Sprint Qualifying- 16:30pm till 17:00pm (BST). Sunday: Race- 15:00pm till 17:00pm (BST)

    I’m very lucky to be there this weekend, and to see the new layout. It will be interesting to see how it could possibly change up the order, and with there a few points up for grab this could mean quite a bit to both the Drivers and Constructors.

  • Russell VS Bottas

    The big talk in contracts recently is who will be joining Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next year? Mercedes wanted to sort out Lewis’ contract first as both the team and himself wanted it to be done as quickly as possible, unlike last year. The main two drivers for contention are current Williams driver and Mercedes junior, George Russell and the other is current Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas.

    Russell seems to be going from strength to strength every race and season, last year he got called up last minute to replace Lewis at the Sakhir Grand Prix and I think we all saw how well he did in a car he doesn’t drive, didn’t actually fit into and had no time to prepare! We’re now currently seeing him put the Williams in and around the top 10 in Quali, seeing him fight for points and finish near the top 10. George has been at Williams for three years now after being loaned out to them from Mercedes, and his helped the British team develop so much and you can see how they have improved! Russell has also got approval of two time world champion Fernando Alonso, with George getting called “A future world champ”.

    Where as Bottas has been at Mercedes now since 2017, and his put in some good performances since his been with the team and his played a good part in the Constructors, but now this season it’s like his not there much within the team. He hasn’t had the best start to the season, his had no wins, two DNF and at one of the races he didn’t even finish in the points. Is it just simple bad luck? Or does he feel the pressure? Who knows!

    Toto Wolff, Mercedes Team Principal say “We value them both for their strengths and for what they can contribute to the team” on both George Russell and Valtteri Bottas.

    My Opinion-

    I do actually reckon a deal has been done but there holding off on announcing, I did think they would do a double announcement on the weekend of Silverstone for both Hamilton and Russell.

    However I want George in that Mercedes seat! I think he deserves it, his worked very hard in the past 3 years and I think that’s clear for everyone to see. Mercedes need to think about the future here and where they want to be after Lewis leaves…

    The thing what confuses me about Valtteri is the fact he says his fighting for championships and his said it this year as well, when in reality he isn’t… Yeah he has landed on the podium a few times this year but so has other drivers…

    The decision over the second seat will be made over the summer break and it seems that Toto Wolff has got a hard decision to make!

  • Australia Cancelled Again

    It has officially been announced that the Australian Grand Prix which was due to be held on the 19th to 21st of November.

    Normally the Australian Grand Prix is the season opener in March, however this year instead of cancelling it they postponed it till November, obviously it has not worked in their favour but it won’t be long till we are back!

    The circuit had some upgrades whilst not being in use such as Turns 9 & 10, the chicane has been removed to allow higher speeds. Turn 13, it now allows more overtaking opportunities. There is also some widening of corners at 1 & 2, 3 & 4, 6 & 7 and 15.

    It has not been revealed yet which circuit will take its place. Some of the possibilities that I can think of are: Hockenheim, Nurburgring, Mugello, Sakhir (outer track). Let me know in the poll below what you think!

  • Round 9- Austria Race

    WHAT A RACE!!! Wow just wow, so many overtakes and battles on track with lots of penalties too…

    P1 goes to Verstappen again! Then we had Valtteri Bottas joining him on the second step with Mr Lando Norris adding another podium to his collection in P3!! The rest of the top 10 are: P4- Hamilton, P5- Sainz, P6- Perez, P7- Ricciardo, P8- Leclerc, P9- Gasly and P10- Alonso. With also the fastest lap point going to Verstappen aswell

    Honestly wow! Norris is on fire this year! After having an unfair penalty at the beginning of the race his managed to get on the podium! He also grabbed driver of the day!

    Absolutely gutting for the other two Brits on the grid, Hamilton picked up damage and couldn’t excel as well as we know he could! And for Russell he missed out on the points today towards the end, but he drove an absolute wonderful drive after loosing places at the beginning then running in the points and battling Alonso toward the end, his time will come!

    Ricciardo drove beautiful today his definitely got the pace there so now he just needs to work on the qualifying and hopefully soon he will be fighting for podiums!

    We had 19 finishers today, with Esteban Ocon out due to having contact with Giovanzzi on lap 1!

    There was some lovely battles on track and good over taking too, however there were a couple of penalties given out which some I think some were unfair like Norris’ but Perez got two five second penalties for pushing Charles Leclerc twice…

    Tsunoda also got two five second penalties for going over the Pit Lane entrance line on two separate occasions…

    Now, we have a two week break until Silverstone and I’m happy to say I will be there at Silverstone this year, so I’m looking forward to giving you all pictures and updates as i’m there on my blog and blogs social media too!

  • Round 9- Austria Quali

    And what a qualifying that was! No Mercedes on the the front row and no Red Bull 1-2 either!

    Max Verstappen adds another pole to his collection with Lando Norris joining him on the front row for the first time ever. The rest of the top 10 are: P3- Perez, P4- Hamilton, P5- Bottas, P6- Gasly, P7- Tsunoda, P8- Vettel, P9- Russell and P10 to Stroll

    I am very impressed with George! Finally made an appearance in Q3 and what a man! Big well done to Williams and George for getting the car into a very good position.

    I can imagine that Norris is very happy with P2! I did not expect that this weekend and it’s very nice to see him getting the praise he should, every weekend he delivers for the team and it’s being recognised, unfortunately his team mate starts P13

    Both Alpha Tauri drivers in the top 10 and starting P6 and P7 which is very good for the team! I did think they would of got higher but tomorrow is where it counts

    Both Ferrari drivers missed out on the top 10 with Sainz starting P11 and Leclerc P12, they are both very good in the race here in Austria so it will be interesting to see what strategies they have

    Very shocked for Alonso, he didn’t manage top 10 due to an issue with Sebastian Vettel on his flying lap but his starting P14, Alonso will be another to watch tomorrow!

    My Predictions-

    My top 5 predictions are: P1- Hamilton, P2- Norris, P3- Bottas, P4- Perez and P5- Gasly. I think fastest lap might go to Bottas!

    I would love to see George in the points tomorrow, we saw how well he done last week until he had to retire, so I’m hoping he does well tomorrow!

    Ricciardo as-well I would like to see in the points, it’s so important for the constructors but the Ferrari are very strong in the race…

    Times for tomorrow are: 14.00 (BST) and 15.00pm (CEST)

  • Hamilton Stays till 2023

    It’s has been announced today that Lewis Hamilton will be staying in Formula One until 2023!

    We all knew that Lewis and Mercedes were talking about contracts early this year compared to last year as they wanted to get it out the way and focus on the year ahead!

    And they have just done that… The Brit who is currently on a one year deal has just signed for two years meaning he will stay till at least 2023, depending on whether he signs another contract or not.

    Hamilton and Mercedes are currently trying to beat Max Verstappen and Red Bull to the drivers and constructors championship this year as Red Bull close the gap down unlike previous years!

    “It is hard to believe it’s been nearly nine years working with this incredible team and I’m excited we’re going to continue our partnership for two more years,” said Hamilton.

    It is still unclear who will partner with Hamilton at Mercedes but the main two who are up for contention are current Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas and Mercedes junior and current Williams driver George Russell.

    My Opinion-

    I’m very happy about this! Lewis is partly the reason I got into this sport and I’ve watched him since his very first season in 2007! It’s honestly so nice to see how much he has grown within the sport and all what he is doing with BLM and the diversity within F1.

    I think it’s the right move from Mercedes too as the regulations change next year and having someone with so much experience will help with the new car!

  • Austrian GP

    So we are back at the Red Bull Ring and unfortunately it’s our last race out of our first triple header! For some reason I feel like there has been a massive break in between the second and third race but the weekend is finally here!

    Will Red Bull be victorious again and at their home grand prix? Or will Mercedes pull something out of the bag and surprise us? Can McLaren score a podium? This weekend could be very different to last weekends so it may play into some drivers and teams favours.

    Who needs a good weekend?

    Daniel Ricciardo needs a good weekend, I feel having two races back to back at the same track will benefit him a lot, I’m hoping him and the team have sorted out what went wrong last week and hoping for a good weekend but most importantly a good race!

    Esteban Ocon, last weekend he finished 14th where as his teammate finished in P9. I’m not to sure whats gone on with him recently, maybe his had a confidence knock since his home Grand Prix? I’m just guessing here but it’s a shame his not finishing in the points, but hopefully the team and him have fixed it.

    Track Limits-

    The track limits haven’t changed since last week they are the following:

    The track limits here always catch a lot of drivers out, meaning times will get deleted. Turn 9 will be monitored, any driver that sets a lap time by running out past the red and white kerb will have their lap time deleted. The same rule will apply to turn 10 with the same punishment.

    There has been a small change to the circuit at Turn 6 exit, the kerb has been reduced in width by half, meaning that the gravel is closer to the circuit.

    Predictions for Qualifying-

    Pole I think will go to Hamilton, P2: Bottas, P3: Verstappen, P4: Perez and P5: Vettel

    I’m hoping again that Russell will get into Q3, as he was so close last week and we all know his got the pace there to manage it! I’d like to see either of the Alfa Romeo driver’s near the top 10 so either P11 or P12 or even get into a Q3 session!

    I think Tsunoda will be near the middle of the top 10 so around P6, we saw last week he had pace and he did qualify in top 10 but unfortunately he had his three gird place penalty, so lets hope he can improve on that!

    Times for Saturday sessions are: FP3: 11.00am (BST), 12.00pm (CEST), Qualifying: 14.00pm (BST), 15.00pm (CEST)

  • Tyres for Austria

    This week we have got a different set of tyres for the Red Bull Ring, Pirelli done similar to this at last years double header at Silverstone.

    Pirelli have designated the softest compound and they are C3 (Hard), C4 ( Medium) and C5 (Soft).

    The circuit isn’t very demanding on tyre wear, which then makes it possible for the softest tyres in the range to be used. The softest compound being used this weekend could push the teams for a two-stop strategy on Sunday, unlike last week where it was just a one-stop.

    Pirelli are also testing a new rear construction of tyre in free practice, Pirelli say the decision has been taken “in addition to the recently issued Technical Directive and the latest starting parameters” they prescribed, following the tyre blowouts for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll in Baku.

    It is to be believed that this latest move by Pirelli is to build an extra margin on tyres used by the whole of the F1 grid.

    Each driver will have two sets of the new tyres available for use in either of the practice sessions on Friday, if the test is successful then the new rear specification will be introduced from the next race, Silverstone onwards.

  • Russian Grand Prix to move

    It got announced over the weekend that the Russian Grand Prix will be moving homes.

    The Grand Prix is currently held in Sochi, however from 2023 it will be held just outside St Petersburg. Sochi has hosted every Russian grand prix since it joint the calendar in 2014.

    The new venue- Autodrom Igora Drive was given its Grade 1 status by the FIA at the end of last year, making it the second ever Russian host of a Formula One Grand Prix. It has 10 different track layouts and over approximately 100 hectares.

    It’s only 54km from St Petersburg and only 150km from the border of Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen’s home country of Finland.

    F1 says that more details on the race will be released in the next coming months, this years Russian Grand Prix is set to take place at Sochi on September 26th.

    My Opinion-

    I think this is a good call! It’s always nice to go to new tracks as its exciting and the drivers wouldn’t have driven their before so anything could happen! Obviously unfortunate for Sochi but I don’t think it will be missed, not many people like the circuit!

  • Singapore out Turkey in

    It has been announced that Singapore’s Grand Prix on the 1st of October to 3rd is cancelled. Singapore missed out last year too due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but heres hoping we will be back next year!

    However to replace it, F1 has decided that Turkey will step into Singapore’s place!

    Turkey originally came on to the calendar this year to replace the Canadian Grand Prix, however it got cancelled due to international travel restrictions, however they requested to re-join the calendar later in the season if possible and they got their wish!

    Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula1, said: “We are delighted to be coming back to Turkey to Intercity Istanbul Park circuit. We hope to see another fantastic race again in one of the best tracks in the world. We want to thank the Intercity Istanbul Park management and Mr. Vural Ak for his personal efforts to make this event to happen. We have shown that we can continue to adapt and there is huge interest in our sport and the hope from many locations to have a Grand Prix.”

    My opinion-

    I’m actually very excited to go back to Turkey, obviously it’s a shame for Singapore but will be back next year! Turkey last year, brought us an exciting race, we saw Lewis Hamilton equal Michael Schumacher’s 7 world title, we saw Sebastian Vettel on the podium again. It was definitely one to remember and i’m hoping for the same again this year!

  • Round 8- Styrian Race

    That is now the 8th race done out of 23! It wasn’t the most excitng race I’ve seen this year but it had some good overtakes!

    Max Verstappen charges to victory again with Hamilton and Bottas joining him on the podium which is a great amount of points for Mercedes for the Constructors! The rest of the top 10 are: P4- Perez, P5- Norris, P6- Sainz, P7- Leclerc, P8- Stroll, P9- Alonso and P10- Tsunoda. Hamilton also brought home an extra point for fastest lap!

    There was a couple of tangles in the opening lap, it saw Gasly having to pit and retire the car after he had contact with Leclerc, the Ferrari driver managed to continue in the race after having to pit with some front wing damage.

    I feel absolutely gutted for Russell, I really thought he was going to score some points, before he made his first pitstop he was running in P8 and defending from Tsunoda, however it all went downhill after his pitstop, he ended up having a power unit problem and had to retire from the race.

    Ferrari clearly sorted their strategy out this weekend for Carlos Sainz, he ended up finishing P6 after starting P12, as well for his team mate, he done really well to get back up to P7 where he qualified!

    I’m not to sure what happened to Ricciardo, I know he lots a few positions during the race as he had no power but to finish P13 on a track that McLaren are good at is unfortunate for them! Hopefully they can work on a few things during the week and then next week will be a different story!

    Now the gap between Verstappen and Hamilton is only 18 points! The gap between Perez and Norris is only 10 points and Norris and Bottas is only 12 points! Whereas the team its now only 40 points between Red Bull and Mercedes. With Ferrari closing in on McLaren making the gap only 12 points! It will be interesting to see who comes out on top next weekend!

    We are back next week at the Red Bull Ring but for the Austrian Grand Prix! Come back for the latest news throughout the week.

  • Round 8- Styrian Quali

    That is another qualifying session down! And a very exciting one at that…

    Another pole position goes to Verstappen! Which is Red Bulls first ever pole at their home grand prix. P2 was Bottas but because of his three grid place penalty from FP2 its now Hamiltons, and P3 goes to Lando Norris… The updated top 10 are: P4- Perez, P5- Bottas, P6- Gasly, P7- Leclerc, P8- Alonso, P9-Stroll and P10- Russell.

    George Russell was only 8 thousandths away from being in Q3!! However, there may be a chance for Russell to start top 10 as there was an incident on track with Tsunoda and Bottas, which could mean Tsunoda gets a 3 grid place penalty, Russell will be able to have a free choice of tyres to start on too! *Update as of 17:05pm (BST) Tsunoda gets a 3 grid place penalty, meaning Alonso, Stroll and Russell will move up a place* For more information click the link below https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.tsunoda-hit-by-three-place-grid-drop-for-impeding-bottas-in-qualifying.4zBSUhPPvTvmoZ4wms2msU.html

    Norris should be very happy with P3, he really put it together in qualifying and thats where it counts (apart from the race), it is a shame that Ricciardo couldn’t join him in the top 10 but the points are scored tomorrow and with this track its easy to overtake and gain some places.

    A very good qualifying for Gasly and Tsunoda, both cars up in the top 10, it will be interesting to see how they finish tomorrow and what type of strategy Alpha Tauri will have.

    A not so good qualifying for Alpine driver Esteban Ocon, he only managed to qualify P17. It doesn’t seem like his having very good luck at the minute where as his team mate is, it seems that they have switched and taking it in turns, one to do good and one not to do good!

    Predictions-

    My top 5 predictions for tomorrow are P1- Hamilton, P2- Perez, P3- Norris, P4- Gasly and P5- Bottas. I think fastest lap will go to Hamilton as well. I am hoping we have some rain tomorrow and I think some of the drivers are too!

    I’d like to see Russel finish in the top 10, he was so close today and he does deserve it! I’d also like to see Ricciardo finish in the top 10 too.

    Times for tomorrow are 14.00pm (BST) and 15.00pm (CEST). Come back for all the action tomorrow!

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CQlhtTFivii/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

  • Styrian GP

    We are now onto our second race out of our triple header and we are at the Red Bull Ring, the home Grand Prix of Red Bull.

    We have 71 laps on the Red Bull ring on Sunday, with ten corners and not one, not two but three DRS zones….

    Will Max Verstappen win at his teams race weekend? Or will Hamilton win on his rivals home race? Will Norris be able to get another podium like last year or will it be his team mate? It’s all to play for this weekend and I am very much so looking forward to it!

    Who needs a good weekend?

    I feel like I mention this driver every time we have a race weekend but Valtteri Bottas needs a good weekend. The weekend hasn’t barley started and his already got a 3 grid place penalty for spinning in the pit lane during free practice two… As well he needs to be there to support Mercedes and I personally just don’t think his there which is a shame but his the only one to blame!

    I think both Ferrari drivers need a good weekend, after what happened in France they both need a comeback! Also as they’ve lost a place in the Constructors to McLaren they will be itching to score some good points on Sunday.

    Track Limits-

    The track limits here always catch a lot of drivers out, meaning times will get deleted. Turn 9 will be monitored, any driver that sets a lap time by running out past the red and white kerb will have their lap time deleted. The same rule will apply to turn 10 with the same punishment.

    There has been a small change to the circuit at Turn 6 exit, the kerb has been reduced in width by half, meaning that the gravel is closer to the circuit.

    Predictions for Qualifying-

    Pole I think will be Verstappen, P2: Hamilton, P3: Ricciardo, P4: Perez and P5: Norris.

    I’m hoping we get to see Russell in Q3 this weekend! I just have a feeling about it, Russell’s highest qualifying position this year has been P11 so fingers crossed for the Brit!

    I’d like to see Tsunoda qualify top 10, I feel like now he should start being more in the top 10 as he hasn’t exactly got a bad car! But I do keep in mind when I say this that he is new to F1 so he will make some mistakes! I’d like to see Vettel qualify top 10 too, I feel like he is being more consistent now and should be a regular sight in the top 10.

    Times for Saturday sessions are: FP3: 11:00am (BST), 12:00pm (CEST). Qualifying: 14:00pm (BST) and 15:00pm (CEST)

  • Silverstone

    It’s been announced by Silverstone and F1 that this years British Grand Prix will have a full attendance of fans! It has became one of the the UK’s Government Event Research Programme.

    Silverstone will welcome a capacity crowd of 140,000 spectators on the weekend of the 16th-19th July, this crowd will be the largest for a sporting event since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

    Silverstone has confirmed that all ticket holders will be asked for either proof of a negative lateral flow test within 48 hours of arrival at the grand prix or proof if full vaccination, the second dose having been received at least 14 days prior to the first day of attending the grand prix.

    My opinion-

    I am very happy about this! I think it’s such a good way to get back to reality as for most of the population going it will be their first time going to an event with such a big scale (myself included). Also for F1 it’s very good! We have seen this season that there slowly getting more fans and now Silverstone get full capacity.

    If you want to find out more about the Grand Prix at Silverstone then click the link below…

    https://www.silverstone.co.uk/news/silverstone-welcome-full-crowd-2021-formula-1-british-grand-prix

  • Tyres for Styrian GP

    We are back racing this weekend and its our second race out of our triple header, and we are returning to the Red Bull Ring.

    Pirelli have announced their tyres for this weekend, they will be using the same as what they used a week earlier in France and they are: C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium) and C4 (Soft) compounds, which are the tyres in the middle of Pirelli’s range.

    It will be interesting to see what strategy the teams use for tyres, the winning strategy last year was softs to hards.

    After having two tyre blowouts in Azerbaijan, Pirelli have upped the minimum pressure on which teams could run their tyres in France by 2psi, in order to eliminate similar problems arising.

    However, Pirelli have now lowered their minimum running pressure in Austria compared to the races in 2020 by 3psi. This will increase the contact surface of the tyre on the track, which should lead to a higher grip levels.

  • Yas Marina Track Changes

    This years Abu Dhabi grand prix will take place on an improved layout, this comes as the Yas Marina Circuit announced the track will be modified in the time for this years season finale.

    The circuit first opened in 2009 and it held the first ever Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. It will under-go serious alterations over the next few months. The key changes are: – Eliminating the chicane and widening the hairpin at Turn 7 – Removing four sharp corners at Turns 11, 12, 13 and 14, it will be replaced by one long banked turn – Opening up the radius of four corners Turns 17, 18, 19 and 20 which will created a faster slowing section on the track.

    The re-design is intended to allow overtaking opportunities at the circuit where Mercedes won six times in a row between 2014 and 2019 until Max Verstappen took victory for Red Bull last year…

    My Opinion-

    To be honest I think its the right call from the circuit, the track was so limited to overtaking and for it to be the season finale we want excitement which it didn’t have! If the championship goes to the final race of the season then we want it to be exciting and there to be a chance of overtaking!

  • Stats VS Drivers

    We are now going into the 8th round out of 23 so I thought it would be a good idea to see the statistics for the eight drivers who have either changed teams or joined the grid.

    Sergio Perez:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 1-6, Best qualifying result: 2nd Best race result: 1st, Race vs team-mate: 1-6 and he currently has 84 points (3rd). I feel like Perez has done an amazing job, he seems to have really settled in to the Red Bull seat, which we all know hasn’t been easy for some drivers!

    Daniel Ricciardo:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 3-4, Best qualifying result: 6th Best race result: 5th, Race vs team-mate: 1-6, he currently has 34 points (9th). I personally think Ricciardo has now settled in McLaren and he will only get stronger from here! I’m looking forward to seeing how he gets on for the rest of the season, and lets hope there could be a few podiums for him somewhere!

    Sebastian Vettel:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 4-3, Best qualifying result: 10th Best race result: 2nd, Race vs team-mate: 4-3, currently he has 30 points (10th) It’s nice to see Vettel back fighting for the points after a bad year at Ferrari, and you can see how well he is doing at his new team by the stats above, hopefully he can build on the points he currently has got.

    Fernando Alonso:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 3-4, Best qualifying result: 9th Best race result: 6th, Race vs team-mate: 2-5, currently Alonso has 17 points (11th). Not going to lie I wasn’t too sure about Alonso coming back to F1 but to see him doing well is good, however there could be some improvement for him which would boost him and his team further up in the points.

    Carlos Sainz:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 2:5, Best qualifying result: 4th Best race result: 2nd, Race vs team-mate: 2-5, currently Sainz has 42 points (7th) I think that Sainz has probably settled in the quickest out of everyone and it shows, he has the second highest point score out of everyone who has changed teams and also there hasn’t been a massive gap between him and Leclerc.

    Yuki Tsunoda:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 0-7, Best qualifying result: 8th Best race result: 7th, Race vs team-mate: 1-6, currently Tsunoda has 8 points (14th). Now personally I don’t think Tsunoda has done that bad as a rookie… his scored points which go towards the constructors, and as his gaining experience in the Alpha Tauri, his likely to get stronger and more consistent.

    Mick Schumacher:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 6-1, Best qualifying result: 15th Best race result: 13th, Race vs team-mate: 6-1, currently Schumacher has 0 points (18th) I think the statistics above show how talented Mick is as a driver, he keeps delivering in the car and to get possibly one of the worst cars on the grid to finish 13th is admirable, hopefully we get to see him get a few points this year…

    Nikita Mazepin:

    Qualifying vs team-mate: 1-6, Best qualifying result: 18th Best race result: 14th, Race vs team-mate: 1-6, currently Mazepin has 0 points (19th). It’s good to see that Mazepin has got the ability to do the over takes on other drivers and him finishing 14th is good for the team, one step closer to getting nearer to the points.

  • Round 7- France Race

    Well what a race! For once Paul Ricard wasn’t boring and we didn’t even have rain 😳

    Another win for Verstappen after a last minute over take on Hamilton, meaning Hamilton takes P2 and P3 to the other Red Bull driver Perez! Big congratulations to the drivers on and off the podium!

    The rest of the top 10 are P4- Bottas, P5- Norris, P6- Ricciardo, P7- Gasly, P8- Alonso, P9- Vettel and P10- Stroll. The fastest lap point goes to Verstappen!

    Can I just say McLaren have aced their race pace and with both drivers, Norris started P8 and Ricciardo started P10 and they have both managed to climb up places to score points and overtake Ferrari in the constructors!

    It was nice to see Bottas back up to the top 4 but Mercedes strategy today just didn’t work, it made Bottas loose a podium, Hamilton a win and potentially taking back the Constructors lead as well as the Drivers championship. I think they need to re-group and think about their strategy for the next two weeks at Austria… And also it’s not going very well for Bottas is it? I don’t think it will be long till we get an announcement saying his out of a seat (Sorry to Bottas’ fans😬)

    Another team who needs to re-think there strategy is Ferrari, Sainz started P5 and Leclerc P7 however Sainz finished 11th and Leclerc all the way down in 16th! Lets hope they figure out a better strategy soon as they will have a big gap between McLaren in the Constructors if this happens in the next few races..

    Big well done to both Aston Martin drivers as well! Both in the points! So they clearly had the right strategy, and mega drive from Stroll, having to start at back of the grid because he didn’t get a qualifying time to then finishing 10th!

    Russell done a good drive too! Finishing P12, the Brit is going to go places, putting the Williams in a place it really shouldn’t be but is! Not long till he will be scoring his first points for the British team🤞🏻

    Now we don’t have a long wait to go till the next race as its only a week away! We are back at the Red Bull Ring, Austria!! Can Mercedes beat Red Bull at their home track? Or will it be Red Bull taking another win? It’s all to play for and I for one am very excited!🤩

  • Round 7- France Quali

    Well well well what a qualifying that was it went right down to the last flying laps 😳

    Pole goes to Verstappen and behind him by two hundred tenths was Hamilton and joining the top 3 was Bottas 👏🏻, it’s very nice to see both Mercedes up there together again. The rest of the top 10 are: P4- Perez, P5- Sainz, P6- Gasly, P7- Leclerc, P8- Norris, P9- Alonso and P10- Ricciardo.

    Gasly will be very happy with P6, at his home circuit and in front of fans too, he will be wanting to score some points tomorrow. Sadly for the other frenchman it didn’t go his way today, Ocon starts in P11, again he will want to score points in front of his home crowd too.

    I feel gutted for Tsunoda, he crashed a few minutes in to Q1 meaning he will start last in tomorrows race… As well for Schumacher he got through to Q2 but wasn’t able to participate as he crashed at the end of Q1, they need to check the gearbox as it took a heavy hit when he crashed so he possibly might not be starting P15… As well I feel sorry for Stroll, his first lap time got deleted in Q1 for track limits and because of the crash at the end of Q1 he wasn’t able to put a time up on the board, so he will be starting at the back of the grid.

    My Predictions-

    My top 5 predictions for tomorrow is P1 for Hamilton, P2- Bottas, P3- Verstappen, P4- Gasly and P5- Sainz. Fastest lap I see going to possibly Bottas if Mercedes play their strategy right. There could possibly be a safety car tomorrow depends if it rains tomorrow or not😉

    I want to see Russell get closer to a top 10 finish tomorrow, I feel like it could happen! It would be nice to see Vettel finish in the points again.

    Times for tomorrow are 14.00pm (BST) and 15.00pm (CEST).

  • French GP

    We are back racing this weekend and we are starting our first triple header of the season! We’re in France after missing out last year :( It is also the home race of Pierre Gasly, Esteban Ocon and Alpine!

    The fight between Verstappen and Hamilton is still as tense round one, Verstappen still leads by 4 points after his DNF and Hamiltons no points in Baku… Where as the Constructors is a different story, Red Bull are leading by 26 points and the gap between 3rd- Ferrari and 4th- McLaren is only 2 points so its all to play for this weekend!

    Who needs a good weekend?

    The person who stuck out the most for me is Bottas, as the rumour mill is spinning quite a bit about him possibly loosing his seat to Russell at the end of the season, so if Bottas wants any chance of keeping his seat with Mercedes or finding another seat somewhere else he is going to need to start improving… Also he hasn’t had a very good start to the season at all his had 2 DNF and didn’t score any points in Baku…

    I’d say as-well Daniel Ricciardo his currently P10 in the championship and I know it doesn’t mean much as were only on round 7 out of 23 but when his team mate is in 4th it does… I’m hoping to see some improvement from him this weekend and then hopefully he can score some decent points.

    Track Limits-

    The FIA have outlined strict track limits this weekend at the Paul Ricard Circuit starting with Turn 1 and 2, any driver who fails to take Turn 2 correctly, passing on the right of the yellow bollard, will have to stick to the right and then re-join the track by driving through the two blocks in the run of area.

    Turns 3 to 5- If a driver fails to take Turn 4 correctly on track, going to the left of the bollard on the apex, they must then stay left and re-join the track by driving to the left of the block in the run-off area.

    Turns 8 & 9- Any driver going straight on at Turn 8 must re-join the track by driving through the four blocks in the escape road. As usual with track limits, drivers are permitted three off-track moments at the above points on track before being shown the black and white flag and being referred to the stewards.

    Predictions for Qualifying-

    My top 5 for qualifying are P1: Hamilton, P2: Bottas, P3: Verstappen, P4: Perez, P5: Gasly.

    I would to see Ocon and Alonso qualify in top 10 i’m hoping their car suits them around the Paul Ricard Circuit, as well as Pierre Gasly i’m hoping his still on a good streak from his podium at Baku so hopefully, we see something special from him this weekend.

    Times for Saturday sessions are: FP3- 11.00am (BST), 12.00pm (CEST) Qualifying- 14.00pm (BST), 15.00 (CEST).

  • Tyres for French Grand Prix

    This weekend we are back at the French Grand Prix after having a year off due to Covid-19 and Pirelli have announced their tyres for this weekend…

    We have the middle compounds in the Pirelli range which are C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium) and C4 (Soft), this is the same range what they had back in 2019, the winning strategy was a one-stop from mediums to hards. It will be interesting to see who will be on the same strategy and wether that is on the winning strategy from 2019 or if they change it up.

    The tyres what have been chosen are meant to be well suited to the different characteristics of the track, the new asphalt laid on nearly all 15 corners just before the 2019 race ensures a smooth surface for the tyres to work on.

    The tyre degradation at the Paul Ricard circuit is low, however Turn 13 is particularly demanding in terms of continuous energy demands on the tyre.

    Not only do we have F1 this weekend, we also have Formula Three for their second round of the year – only one tyre compound is nominated for each Formula 3 round and the Hard Tyre has been chosen for this weekend.

  • Ocon to stay with Alpine

    It’s been confirmed on the eve of the French Grand Prix, that Esteban Ocon will be staying with french team Alpine till the end of 2024.

    Ocon joined the team when they were known as Renault at the start of the 2020 campaign, he scored his maiden F1 podium in Bahrain. This season though he has outperformed his double world champion team mate Fernando Alonso by scoring points four times in six Grand Prix.

    The team’s CEO Laurent Rossi said: “We are very proud to retain Esteban as part of the Alpine family. Since returning to the team in 2020, Esteban has grown in confidence and stature to deliver consistently good results and help develop the car with the team. We have every confidence in Esteban to help drive the team and the brand to the next level and meet its long-term objectives. Esteban is an asset for us beyond F1 as he is deeply involved in the Alpine global project.”

    My Opinion-

    I had a feeling Ocon was going to re-sign with Alpine, as it now seems that his getting comfortable with the team and the car. I do think it’s a good move from both Ocon and Alpine, it seems they work well together and that they look towards the future and hopefully fighting for championships. Also I think it’s nice it got announced on the week of his and his teams home race too, especially as theres fans there it makes it all a bit more special.

  • Should we ban wind tunnels?

    The topic of wind tunnels is a very mixed one in the sporting world not just in F1, however they may not be in F1 at all soon…

    A modern wind tunnel is a necessity rather than a luxury in Formula One, the first ever team to own their own wind tunnel was Brabham F1 team run by Bernie Ecclestone and Gordon Murray.

    Formula 1 teams spend hours on end testing the aerodynamics of their car in the wind tunnel, however that time is now becoming more precious with the introduction of a sliding scale that means a team higher in the Constructors’ Championship is afforded less hours in the wind tunnel than those finishing below them.

    What is a wind tunnel?

    A wind tunnel is a tool which is used in the aerodynamic research to study the effects of air moving past solid objects, it consists of a closed tubular passage with the car to be tested mounted in the middle.

    Eight out of 10 teams favour scrapping wind tunnels…

    There is only two teams on the gird who still believe that wind tunnels still have a place in Formula One, the remaining eight are backing the idea of eliminating them from the sport within 10 years, so by 2030.

    Does every team have a wind tunnel?

    The answer is no, wind tunnels cost a lot to build, maintain and run so some teams share them and rent them out to other teams for however long they are allowed to have them in where they finished in the Constructors from the following year.

    My Opinion-

    I personally think wind tunnels do need to be scraped, but not right away so I agree with by 2030 and it looks more than likely they will with eight teams voting against them last year, I don’t think they would change their mind. However there will be some work needed to see what will replace it as in 2010 Virgin Racing produced the CR-01 which was the first F1 car designed entirely with computational fluid dynamics (CFD), which models air flows in a virtual way rather than using the tunnel, it unfortunately was not a success.

    So if F1 and the teams wants to scrap them they both need to get a lot of research in on what could replace the wind tunnel and what would work too, as we now have the budget cap involved in the sport, so it will be a very big change but I think it is one that needs to happen.

    Now I want to know your opinion, so vote down below!

  • Roberts to leave Williams

    The restructure of Williams is continuing… Simon Roberts was the Team Principle of the Grove team however he is leaving the team and Jost Capito takes on the team principle duties.

    Roberts joint the British team last June as Managing Director before taking over as Acting Team Principle when the Williams family sold the team last summer, the role was then made permanent before Christmas.

    After only 100 days of being in charge, Capito has decided to complete an internal reorganisation to the reporting structure, which now means Robert’s role no longer exists in the team.

    The trackside leadership duties which were held by Roberts is now being transferred to Technical Director, Francois-Xavier Demaison which puts him in charge of technical aspects across both factory and race track.

    “Simon has played an integral role in managing the transition over the last 12 months and I would like to thank him for his great contribution during that time,” said Capito.

    Roberts added: “It has been a pleasure to take on the role of Team Principal following the departure of the Williams family from the sport. However, with the transition well underway I am looking forward to a new challenge and wish everyone in the team well for the future.”

  • Pirelli tyres

    So following on from the weekend in Azerbaijian, during the race we have two high speed crashes from Lance Stroll and Max Verstappen because of tyre blowouts.

    Both drivers were on the hard tyre compound, Lap 30 of the race is when Stroll crashed and spun violently into the wall which could of been a lot worse! Verstappen was leading the race with only 5 laps to go and then he suffered the exact same.

    However, Pirelli’s Head of F1 and Car Racing didn’t believe that tyre wear had been the issue in either of the incidents Mario Isola told the media: “I don’t want to give any preliminary conclusions. But it seems that it is a cut due to debris, because as I said, it’s not the most stressed tyre… We had other cars with the same number of laps [on the] same tyres without any issue. So the preliminary investigation is that it is probably due to an external factor, or debris, or kerb or whatever.” Isola then went on to add “Another element was there was no sign, or any warning according to the teams, we have to receive the telemetry from them but what they told us was that there was no warning, no vibration nothing to seem that there would be something in the tyres.”

    Isola suggested that Verstappens crash could have been caused by running over debris from Stroll’s crash. Meanwhile Pirelli announced that they have also spotted a cut in the hard tyre of Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes, this was discovered when everyone pitted under the red flag.

    My Opinion:

    I personally have very mixed views on this, I think that Pirelli need to review there Hard compound tyre, I don’t think Stroll’s was due to debris as no one had crashed before him and to make that big of impact to the tyre and car you’d expect it to be a big piece of debris off a crash. Where as Verstappen’s could possibly be a bit of debris, when you watch the replay you can see no debris on the track big enough to cut the tyre but then again this isn’t the first time the hard tyre has had a blowout etc as last year at Silverstone’s first race, Bottas, Sainz and Hamilton all suffered tyre blowouts on the hard tyre.

    I’d love to know your view on this so I have added a poll and video below!

    Sky Sports Video on Youtube

  • Round 6- Baku Race

    Baku’s race today is the most craziest race I’ve seen in a while and it did not disappoint!

    Sergio Perez is now a two time race winner and Sebastian Vettel is back on the podium in P2 and P3 for Gasly! Big congratulations to all three on the podium, very well deserved!

    The rest of the top 10 are, P4- Charles Leclerc, P5- Lando Norris, P6- Fernando Alonso, P7- Yuki Tsunoda, P8- Carlos Sainz, P9- Daniel Ricciardo and P10 to Kimi Raikkonen!

    It’s very nice to see Tsunoda and Ricciardo in the points! Yuki has had a very strong weekend here and Ricciardo made up for the qualifying!

    Esteban Ocon had to retire from the race due to a sudden loss of power!

    Lance Stroll had a big crash halfway through the race, as he had a problem with his rear left tyre and the same happened for Max Verstappen, he was leading the race and then a problem occurred with his rear left and that was him out and that brought a red flag out and stopped the race! George Russell had to retire just before the restart which is sad to see!

    I have got to mention Mercedes, Hamilton looked like he was going to take P1 or P2 at the re-start but he made a mistake at turn 1 and ended up towards the back of the grid and out the of the points, meaning no Mercedes scored points and it’s a real shame :( Now onto Valterri Bottas I’m not to sure what he was doing today? He finished P12 which is just shocking you’d expect him to be up there in the points supporting his team mate and helping his team with strategy. He definitely is pushing himself away from getting another Mercedes contract and it’s all his own doing really…

    Going into round 7 we have Max Verstappen still leading the championship by only 4 points… In two weeks we have the start of our first triple header of the season and it’s the French Grand Prix on the 18th to 20th June!

  • Round 6- Baku Quali

    Wow what a qualifying that was!! Baku did not disappoint and it’s not even the race yet!

    It’s back to back pole positions for Charles Leclerc! I don’t think many people expected him to put it there but he did, joining him on the front row is Lewis Hamilton, his managed to find some pace and put the car back to the front🔥

    We then have Max Verstappen in P3 who is then followed by Pierre Gasly in P4 which is his best ever qualifying performance. The rest of the top 10 are P5- Carlos Sainz, P6- Sergio Perez, P7- Yuki Tsunoda, P8- Fernando Alonso, P9- Lando Norris and P10 for Valtteri Bottas. Lando Norris got a 3 place grid penalty for not following red flag procedure. Yuki Tsunoda has had his best qualifying result as well and he put himself in the top 10 for the very first time!

    We had four red flags during the qualifying session! The first one was from Lance Stroll in Q1 then again another in Q1 which was from Antonio Giovinazzi, they both went into Turn 15 at two separate times. The third was from Daniel Ricciardo at Turn 3 in Q2 and then the fourth was from Yuki Tsunoda and Carlos Sainz for separate reasons but at the same corner in Q3.

    A couple of people I’m gutted for are Russell, Vettel and Ricciardo I felt like Russell could of put his car further up to the top 10 but the red flag ruined his chances and that goes for Vettel and Ricciardo too, they both had the pace to get into Q3 but Daniels red flag ruined there chances as well but it’s tomorrow what counts as that’s where the points are!

    My Predictions-

    P1 for Hamilton, P2- Carlos Sainz, P3- Pierre Gasly, P4- Max Verstappen and P5 for Lando Norris. There will be at least one safety car, could possibly be a red flag too depending on the crash and how many are involved.

    I’d love to see Tsunoda, Vettel and Ricciardo finish in the points tomorrow👏🏻 I feel like it will be a very crazy race so anything could happen so make sure you tune in!

    Times for tomorrow are: 13.00pm (BST) and 14.00 (CEST)

  • Azerbaijan

    We are back and in Baku after missing out last year! And the title fight is only just beginning as we go into our sixth round out of 23.

    Max Verstappen leads the championship for the first time ever in his career and only 4 points ahead of 7 time world champion Lewis Hamilton. Will Max be able to extend his lead or will trouble arise in Baku for the Red Bull driver? It’s all to play for…

    Daniel Ricciardo will be hoping for Baku to bring him some luck his way, and show all the doubters he has still got it!! His team mate Lando Norris will be wanting to carry on with his amazing results so far and he will want to extend his lead from Bottas.

    Talking about Bottas, he will be wanting to make up for Monaco after missing out on a podium due to a bad pitstop which caused him to DNF. I feel like it’s a tough one for Bottas, I personally don’t think his had the best start to the season this year, whether that be because his seat may be under threat by Russell? Or simply his just having a bad time but that doesn’t end well in a competitive sport like this…

    The Baku City Circuit is made up of 51 laps, 20 turns and two DRS zones and let me tell you I have missed Baku! I always look forward to this race as I feel like anything can happen here!

    Predictions for Qualifying:

    My top 5 for qualifying are P1: Hamilton, P2: Verstappen, P3: Norris, P4: Bottas and P5: Perez.

    I would like to see Ricciardo qualify top 10 as well as Vettel, I am hoping he carries on his streak from Monaco and hoping that it has gave him some confidence! I feel like Tsunoda may do well at this track? I’m not to sure why but I feel like he could redeem himself here from other race weekends where he hasn’t done too well. I’m sure the Ferrari boys will make it to the top ten but I don’t think it will be their strongest track this year!

    Times for Friday and Saturday sessions are: Friday- FP1- 9.30am (BST), 10.30am (CEST). FP2- 13.00pm (BST), 14.00pm (CEST). Saturday- FP3- 10.00am (BST), 11.00am (CEST). Qualifying- 13.00pm (BST), 14.00pm (CEST).

  • Tyres for Azerbaijan

    This weekend we will be back in Azerbaijan not just with Formula One but Formula Two also and Pirelli have announced which tyre compounds they are bringing to the race weekend.

    Unlike 2019, this years Azerbaijan Grand Prix will see the teams use the softest tyres in Pirelli’s F1 range C3 (hard) tyre, C2 (medium) tyre and C5 (soft) tyres. This is one step softer than the last Azerbaijan race weekend.

    For the third round of the season for Formula Two, they will be using 18-inch tyres, yellow striped medium and purple striped super soft tyres, making this the first time the mediums have been used in this season.

    With the Formula One race being 51 laps and Formula Two’s sprint race being 21 laps and the feature race 29 laps, it will definitely be an interesting and crazy race as always in Baku! All eyes onto the weekend🤩

    This weekend we are expected sunshine so no rain at the moment, however things can always change👀 look below to see more information on Pirelli and Azerbaijan.