Tag Archives: Pierre Gasly

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Italy — Qualifying results

Raikkonen edges out Vettel for pole to lead Ferrari 1-2 in front of ecstatic tifosi; Hamilton salvages P3 for Mercedes

On the ultrafast Monza circuit in these ultrafast 2018 F1 cars it was Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen who managed to take maximum advantage of his Prancing Horse’s aerodynamics and power in Saturday qualifying, setting the fastest lap in Formula 1 history en route to pole for tomorrow’s Italian Grand Prix. In front of the ecstatic tifosi at Ferrari’s home Grand Prix just a few miles from their storied Maranello base of operations, the veteran Finn managed to flip the script from his usual wingman role to get the better of team leader Sebastian Vettel. Raikkonen hooked up a flawless fast lap late in Q3 that was perhaps aided by his positioning in the slipstream of his usually superior teammate. And at 1:19.119 the veteran Finn had the rarified honor of setting the all-time fastest lap in F1 history. Combined with Vettel’s P2 time, Ferrari secured a front row lockout in front of their ultra-demanding home fans, who will be desperate to see one of the team’s blood red cars take victory in tomorrow’s race.

For Mercedes it was another ominous sign that Ferrari’s engine has increased its upside potential when the wick is turned up since returning from the summer break, as the Scuderia proved with Vettel’s race-winning performance last week at Spa. Leading the eventual top 3 across the line as the checkered flag flew in the last quali session Lewis Hamilton could only muster the third fastest time in his Silver Arrow, while his teammate Valtteri Bottas qualified P4. With the two Ferraris on the front row and the two Mercedes lined up directly behind them on the second row, the getaway from the line should produce some potentially nerve racking moments and could well determine the outcome of the entire race.

Red Bull’s Max Vertsappen set the fifth fastest qualifying lap while his teammate Daniel Ricciardo has to start from the rear due to engine-change penalties. That opened the door for Haas’s Romain Grosjean to make a run good enough to seize a solid P6 on the grid, bettering the effort of the factory Renault of Carlos Sainz, who come home slightly behind the Frenchman in P7. Esteban Ocon set the eighth fastest time for Force India, while Pierre Gasly did well to qualify P9 for Toro Rosso. Rounding out the Top 10 starters, Williams finally got a car into Q3 this year, as Lance Stroll managed to set a time good enough for P10, capitalizing on the Williams’ brute power on a circuit that does not quite punish its woeful lack of downforce as much as most of the others on the calendar.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Italian GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:20.722 1:19.846 1:19.119 21
2 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:20.542 1:19.629 1:19.280 20
3 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:20.810 1:19.798 1:19.294 20
4 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:21.381 1:20.427 1:19.656 18
5 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:21.381 1:20.333 1:20.615 15
6 8 Romain Grosjean HAAS FERRARI 1:21.887 1:21.239 1:20.936 21
7 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 1:21.732 1:21.552 1:21.041 17
8 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:21.570 1:21.315 1:21.099 17
9 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 1:21.834 1:21.667 1:21.350 24
10 18 Lance Stroll WILLIAMS MERCEDES 1:21.838 1:21.494 1:21.627 14

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live on ESPN2 beginning at 9AM Eastern here in the States. Will Raikonnen get his first win in ages or prove unable to withstand Vettel’s certain charge? Will Hamilton spoil the Ferrari party to gleefully break Italian hearts? Hope to see you then to see how it all shakes out!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Belgium — Results & aftermath

Vettel survives chaotic start to dominate at Spa, Hamilton a distant runner-up as championship tightens yet again; Vertsappen salvages P3 at home race

The action at the Belgian Grand Prix was all front-loaded with a large and frightening multi-car opening lap shunt starting the proceedings off in chaos and then the race settling down to a serenely dominating performance by Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. The crash began when Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg misjudged his breaking going into Turn 1 La Source and plowed into the back of McLaren’s Fernando Alonso, sending the Spaniard airborne. Alonso came down on top of the Sauber of Charles Leclerc, showing for the first time since its introduction this year the efficacy of the Halo head protection device. Leclerc could well have had cockpit intrusion by Alonso’s car as it fell on top of him but the Halo successfully deflected any potential contact to the Frenchman’s otherwise exposed head. Hulkenberg was assessed the blame for the accident and rightfully so. The veteran German, who is not usually a reckless driver, will face a 10-spot grid penalty in Italy next weekend as well as 3 points on his super license. In addition to Hulkenberg, Alonso and Leclerc, Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen and Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo were also caught up in the mess, somewhat victims of their poor starting positions due to the scrambled wet weather conditions in Saturday qualifying They came together harshly in the resultant accordion effect and Raikkonen suffered a puncture and rear wing and floor damage and Ricciardo’s rear wing was completely ruined after someone had knocked him into Raikkonen from behind. That necessitated time consuming repairs during the Safety Car period, particularly a complete rear wing change for Ricciardo that put the Aussie a lap down. But while both soldiered on gamely their races were inevitably ruined. Raikkonen and Riccardo would both be forced to retire before the end of the race.

Meanwhile the fi the race might as well have been in a different postal code as neither Mercedes pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton or the man starting beside him from P2, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, were effected in the least by the mayhem behind them. Waging their own private championship battle and oblivious to the unfolding carnage, the two fierce championship rivals rocketed through Radillon and Eau Rouge and up the Kimmel Straight at full chat bracketed by two game but overmatched Force Indias. There Vettel made his move, scooting by Hamilton to grab the lead of the race before the Safety Car was deployed. That meant Vettel could dictate the restart when the Safety Car came in at the end of Lap 4. And while he did his best to roar away when he got the green flag the German could not quite escape Hamilton’s pursuing Mercedes. Continue reading →

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Hungary — Results & aftermath

Mercedes’ Hamilton wins again in Hungary, Vettel P2 & Raikkonen P3 for Ferrari; Ricciardo rockets to P4 but Bottas bumped to P5 after late collisions

Mercedes’ ace Lewis Hamilton continued his winning ways in Hungary on Sunday by making it two on the trot at one of his favorite tracks. Following up on his improbable drive from 14th on the grid to victory in Hockenheim last weekend, Hamilton was dominant at the Hungaroring, taking victory here for the sixth time in his career. The win never seemed in doubt and Hamilton came home over 17 seconds ahead of his closest pursuer and arch-rival, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. Hamilton now leads Vettel by 24 points in the Drivers’ Championship as we head into the summer break.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Vettel and the Scuderia tried to make something happen with strategy by running all the way to Lap 39 on his opening set of Soft tires. But they were thwarted in their attempt to gain track position by an uncharacteristically slow 4.2-second stop by the Ferrari pit crew. That enabled Hamilton’s wingman Valtteri Bottas to regain the P2 position he had relinquished when Mercedes called him way back on Lap 16 for a switch off Ultras and onto Softs. But while Vettel was balked temporarily the gamble would not work out for Mercedes in the long run. By Lap 59 of this 70-lap contest Vettel was right on Bottas gearbox, the Finn’s Silver Arrow sliding around on old rubber by that point, and with Vettel’s teammate Raikkonen stacked up behind them both. Vettel finally orchestrated an overtaking move on Lap 65 and Bottas locked up trying to defend leading to contact between the two cars. Bottas came off the worse for wear with a damaged front wing to go along with his worn out Pirellis but Vettel was unscathed enough to secure that valuable P2 position that he would ride to the end of the race. Even worse for Bottas and team Mercedes first Raikkonen worked his way past the wounded Merc and by Lap 67 he had fallen back into the clutches of Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo.

The affable Aussie was keen to maximize his remarkable recovery from a poor P12 start after getting caught out by the heavy rain in Saturday qualifying. By Lap 68, Riccardo saw his opportunity to pass and dove to the outside of Bottas going into Turn 1. But once again Bottas could not get his car to respond on worn rubber and his Mercedes understeered into the ambitious Ricciardo’s Red Bull. Luckily both cars were fit enough to make it the final two laps to the checkered flag but Bottas was forced to accept a mediocre P5 after a couple of rough rides. The loss of those valuable positions combined with Ferrari’s 2-3 finish to enable the fabled team from Maranello to creep to within 10 points of the factory Mercedes team in the all-important Constructors’ Championship after 12 rounds and with 9 to go. Meanwhile, Ricciardo’s remarkable P4 drive saved the day for Red Bull, which had lost Max Verstappen early in the race on Lap 6 with yet another Renault engine failure. For Red Bull, next year’s divorce from their long-time engine supplier cannot come soon enough.

Further back in the pack, Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly parlayed a strong qualifying effort in the wet into a fantastic race result with a strong P6 finish, showing the steady improvement of both the car and this talented young driver. Gasly beat out the Haas of Kevin Magnussen, who finished P7, and the McLaren of Fernando Alonso in P8. Carlos Sainz finished P9 for Renault, not a great result after starting from P5 on the grid. The second Haas of Romain Grosjean took the last point in P10.

Top 10 finishers of the Hungarian GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 70 1:37:16.427 25
2 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 70 +17.123s 18
3 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 70 +20.101s 15
4 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 70 +46.419s 12
5 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 70 +60.000s 10
6 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 70 +73.273s 8
7 20 Kevin Magnussen HAAS FERRARI 69 +1 lap 6
8 14 Fernando Alonso MCLAREN RENAULT 69 +1 lap 4
9 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 69 +1 lap 2
10 8 Romain Grosjean HAAS FERRARI 69 +1 lap 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

As is traditional, The Hungarian Grand Prix is the last race before the long summer break. Formula1 returns on the weekend of August 24-26 with the classic Belgian Grand Prix at legendary Spa-Francorchamps. Hope to see you then — tan, ready and rested for more F1 action!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Hungary — Qualifying results

Hamilton grabs opportunistic pole at rainy Hungaroring, Bottas P2 for Mercedes front row lockout; Ferrari’s Raikkonen P3 ahead teammate Vettel in P4

Rain scrambled Saturday qualifying for the Hugarian Grand Prix and by the end of three increasingly wet sessions at the Hungaroring it was Mercedes who reigned supreme, with Lewis Hamilton taking pole and Valtteri Bottas setting the second fastest time on full Wet Pirelli’s for a Silver Arrows front row lockout. Coming after their superb strategy calls led directly to Hamilton’s improbable charge from P14 to victory in Germany a week ago, the Mercedes braintrust were at it again, committing to the blue banded full wets early enough to let their drivers get a feel for them on the greasy track and then seeing their two pilots execute throttle control perfectly for the two fastest possible laps in Q3 under difficult conditions. While Ferrari was right behind them it was Kimi Raikkonen who took P3 on the grid while Sebastian Vettel, desperate to make up for his race-losing error at Hockenheim, could only set the fourth fastest time.

While those front four positions were reasonably predictable the rest of the grid was completely scrambled by the heavy downpour that began late in Q1. Carols Sainz drove superbly in the wet to take a stunning P5 spot for Renault and Toro Rosso had its best qualifying of the year by far with Pierre Gasly setting the P6 time and Brendon Hartley, whose luck may beginning to turn after a points finish last week, solid in P8. The Toro Rosso’s sandwiched Red Bull’s Max Vertsappen who, despite his previous prowess in then rain, could only muster a lap good enough for P7 with his chassis slipping and sliding beneath him. That was still better than his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who had trouble getting to grips with tires of all varieties and was balked in his efforts to get a clean lap in Q2 by yellow flags. Ricciardo ended up stuck back in P12 and will have to muster a good recovery drive for a much needed positive result after DNF’ing in two of the last three races. The two Haas’s rounded out the Top 10, with Kevin Magnussen starting P9 and Romain Grosjean P10.

The mixed-up grid should make tomorrow’s race chaotic at the start as ostensibly faster cars try to carve their way back up to the front. And if there’s any more heavy weather like we saw on Saturday all bets are off.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Hungarian GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:17.419 1:31.242 1:35.658 26
2 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:17.123 1:32.081 1:35.918 25
3 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:17.526 1:32.762 1:36.186 26
4 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:16.666 1:28.636 1:36.210 24
5 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 1:17.829 1:30.771 1:36.743 25
6 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 1:18.577 1:31.286 1:37.591 25
7 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:16.940 1:31.178 1:38.032 24
8 28 Brendon Hartley SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 1:18.429 1:32.590 1:38.128 25
9 20 Kevin Magnussen HAAS FERRARI 1:18.314 1:32.968 1:39.858 24
10 8 Romain Grosjean HAAS FERRARI 1:17.901 1:33.650 1:40.593 24

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live at 9AM Eastern on ESPN2 here in the States. Hope to se you then to see if Hamilton can keep his mojo working as we head into the summer break or if Vettel can regain the momentum he squandered in Germany!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Monaco — Results & aftermath

Ricciardo rules the streets of Monte Carlo; Vettel P2, Hamilton a desultory P3

Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo dominated the race weekend for the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix, topping the pylon in every practice session, starting from the pole and leading every lap in Sunday’s race. But it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the veteran Aussie ace. About a third of the way through the contest on Lap 28 his RB14 developed a Kers issue that robbed him of precious horsepower due to incomplete energy harvesting under braking. With his hybrid power failing him Ricciardo was forced to nurse his rear breaks due to overheating and push the bias towards the front in an effort to cope with near-critical temperatures in the rear. It began to look that once again Ricciardo would suffer another devastating heartbreak in Monte Carlo after losing a sure win 2 years ago when his team was caught flatfooted and without tires during a critical late race pit stop. The second place Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel was eating up chunks of time to the previously impervious Red Bull and seemed sure to seize this unfair advantage to hunt him down even if Ricciardo’s mount didn’t expire first.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

But Riccardo and Red Bull gritted it out and the narrow nature of the Monte Carlo street circuit worked to their advantage, as Vettel could never quite execute a pass while his tires were at their best. Even a late Virtual Safety Car period caused by Charles Le Clerc’s Sauber rear ending Brendon Hartley’s Toro Rosso when the former’s breaks failed didn’t impede Ricciardo’s momentum, as there were simply too few laps remaining for any of the other contenders to risk a last minute dive to the pits for fresh rubber. In the end Ricciardo did a superb job managing his car’s ill health, got back into a very quick rhythm and stayed out in front to capture victory and redemption at this most storied of F1 races. It was a very special moment in the talented Australian’s already excellent career and it was also Riccardo’s second victory of the year, vaulting him to an impressive third place in the Drivers’s standings.

While Vettel, who started and stayed second, could never get by the superior Red Bull it was nevertheless a decent day for the Ferrari team. Vettel maintained his P2 starting position and the pursuing Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton had no real chance of overtaking him on this notoriously narrow street circuit. Better yet, Kimi Raikkonen also ran well and kept Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas behind him, despite a gutsy early stop for the harder Super Soft compound tire by the second Silver Arrow. But tire strategy and jettisoning the new Hypersoft tires early was not enough for Bottas to make up positions after a mediocre qualifying and so Mercedes saw themselves bested by their biggest rivals at one of the rare circuits that simply does not suit their normally nonpareil chassis. The Ferraris of Vettel and Raikkonen finished P2 and P4 respectively while Hamilton & Bottas had to settle for P3 and P5. That reduced Vettel’s deficit to Hamilton down to 14 points while the Ferrari team whittled Mercedes’ advantage in the Constructors’ Championship to just 22 points. So overall a good weekend for Ferrari and a disappointing one for the Mercedes factory team who will be looking forward to stretching their legs again in Montreal in two weeks time.

Further back in the field, Esteban Ocon excelled for Force India, converting a clean and tidy run into a valuable P6 finish. Rookie Pierre Gasly once again showed his talent after a few bad luck races and brought his Toro Rosso home safely in P7. Nico Hulkenberg got a much needed result with a P8 finish, while his Renault teammate Carlos Sainz got the last point in P10, though the Spaniard was less than thrilled with the team’s decision to pit him early for the Ultra Soft Pirellis rather than what turned out to be the better option Super Softs.

Special mention should be made for Max Verstappen’s P9 finish. While that doesn’t sound very impressive for such an elite driver it was a very good salvage job by the young Dutchman after  he had put his Red Bull into the wall in free Practice 3 and damaged his gearbox severely enough to miss out on qualifying entirely. However, the Red Bull brain trust must still have been left wondering what might have been with two healthy cars in the race and perhaps starting from the 1-2 positions. While no one questions Verstappen’s supreme talent behind the wheel his costly risk taking in practice was yet another indication that in the big picture he’s got to mature into a smarter, more consistent racer if he’s ever going to take his place among the elite of F1.

Top 10 finishers of the Monaco GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 78 1:42:54.807 25
2 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 78 +7.336s 18
3 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 78 +17.013s 15
4 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 78 +18.127s 12
5 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 78 +18.822s 10
6 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 78 +23.667s 8
7 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 78 +24.331s 6
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 78 +24.839s 4
9 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 78 +25.317s 2
10 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 78 +69.013s 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

The next race is in two weeks from the always challenging and high speed Circuit Gille-Villeneuve in Montreal, Canada. Will the Silver Arrows to return to their front running form or can Ferrari build on their superior Monaco results? Or will Red Bull find the key for consistent performance and reliability from both cars & drivers to crash the Canadian party? Hope to see you then to find out!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Monaco — Qualifying results

Ricciardo seizes pole for Red Bull at Monte Carlo; Vettel P2, Hamilton P3

Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo blistered the field in Saturday qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix, laying down a track record fast lap of 1:10.810, easily good enough for pole over the other favorites. After his teammate Max Verstappen had a costly crash in free Practice 3 that ruined his gear box and kept the Dutchman out of qualifying entirely, Ricciardo saved Red Bull’s honor by running the fastest laps in every qualifying session including when it counted most. This was Riccairdo’s second career pole at the famed Monte Carlo street circuit and showed once again how dangerous Red Bull’s slippery chassis can be on this ultra-tight course. Now if only his team can remember to put tires out for him during the race the Aussie just might win the big prize on Sunday. It should also be worth the price of admission to see young Max attempt to fight his way back into contention from the very rear of the pack.

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel was the best of rest, outperforming Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton for P2 to the Englishman’s P3 time. Likewise Vettel’s Scuderia stablemate Kimi Raikkonen bested Hamilton’s Silver Arrows wingman Valtteri Bottas P4 to P5 indicating the Prancing Horse may be better suited to this great old street course than the usually superior Mercedes. Force India did well to put both their drivers into the Top 10 on the grid with Esteban Ocon qualifying P6 and Sergio Perez P9, while Fernando Alonso willed his McLaren up to P7. Rounding out the front of the grid, Carlos Sainz will start P8 for Renault and Pierre Gasly will start P10 for Toro Rosso.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Monaco GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:12.013 1:11.278 1:10.810 17
2 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:12.415 1:11.518 1:11.039 21
3 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:12.460 1:11.584 1:11.232 22
4 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:12.639 1:11.391 1:11.266 22
5 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:12.434 1:12.002 1:11.441 25
6 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:13.028 1:12.188 1:12.061 27
7 14 Fernando Alonso MCLAREN RENAULT 1:12.657 1:12.269 1:12.110 26
8 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 1:12.950 1:12.286 1:12.130 28
9 11 Sergio Perez FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:12.848 1:12.194 1:12.154 23
10 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 1:12.941 1:12.313 1:12.221 29

Complete qualifying results available via Forumla.com.

The 2018 edition of the classic Monaco GP airs live tomorrow starting at 9AM Eastern on ESPN here in the States. It kicks off the greatest day of the year for motorsports in typically classy Monagasque fashion before the Indy 500 roars into action later in the afternoon. Hope to see you yacht side and with bellinis in hand to see how it all goes down in Monte Carlo!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain — Results & aftermath

Vettel victorious for Ferrari in Bahrain but Raikkonen DNFs after pit lane mishap; Bottas P2, Hamilton P3 for Mercedes

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel parlayed his pole-setting pace into a thrilling victory in the desert in Sunday’s action packed Bahrain Grand Prix. Vettel was able to hold off the hard charging Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas on worn rubber in the dying minutes of the race despite the Finn’s best efforts. Both drivers were on a one-stop strategy, Bottas by choice and Vettel by necessity, and the German 4-time world Champion was able to nurse his Soft compound Pirellis just long enough to keep him out front at the finish. Bottas, who was switched to Medium tires on his only pit stop exactly like his teammate Lewis Hamilton, had the better rubber at the end. But perhaps Mercedes waited to long in asking hime to turn up the wick. In the end, while Bottas took chunks of time out of the leading Ferrari he couldn’t make the pass for the win when needed on the very last lap. That made it one of the most satisfying victories in Vettel’s illustrious career and gave him a 17 point lead over, Hamilton, his nearest rival.

Hamilton had a reasonably good race despite starting from P9 due to a mediocre qualifying time with a gearbox penalty layered on top. He survived opening lap contact with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, passed the midfield runners forcefully and managed to make the best of a bad starting situation, taking the last step on the podium by finishing P3. Still, the reigning champion now trails Vettel by 17 points and things have definitely not gone Mercedes way in the first two races. So far Ferrari’s pace appears to be for real and Mercedes also seem to be lacking in strategic thinking and decisiveness, a mix that could lead to Maranello’s first Constructors’ Championship in a decade if mighty Mercedes cannot up their game.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

All was not sunshine and roses for Ferrari, however, as the team’s second car was the victim of a serious pit mishap that cost them not only valuable points but also severely injured one of their mechanics. When Kimi Raikkonen came in for his scheduled pit stop on Lap 37 all went awry. The Iceman, who had been within striking distance of a podium as well as acting as Vettel’s wingman against the Silver Arrows onslaught, got a false green light signal to go even though his rear left tire had not yet been changed. Raikkonen took off while a mechanic, Francesco Cigarini, was standing in front of the enormous rear tire and ran the poor fellow over, resulting in a badly broken leg for Cigarini. Raikkonen was then ordered to stop, as he now had illegal mismatched tires, and while the mechanic was being tended to in the pit box the team were unable or unwilling to pull his car back and complete the service, which would have been legal if done by hand. The result was a DNF for the second Ferrari and a 50,000 Euro fine to the team for an unsafe release. Despite the huge haul of points left on the table by the Scuderia the really good news is that the mechanic had surgery and is expected to recover despite the unsettling incident.

On the other end of the spectrum, there was absolute joy in the Toro Rosso garage when young Pierre Gasly drive his Honda-powered chassis to a remarkable P4 finish, a much needed boost for both the team and the besieged engine manufacturer. While his teammate Brendon Hartley finished outside the points in 17th after accruing a penalty for contact early in the race, Gasly drove a superb race. The 21-year-old Frenchman actually improved upon his already excellent P6 starting position, stayed out of trouble and showed real pace as he came home nearly 13 seconds ahead of Kevin Magnussen’s fifth-place Haas. A season after their acrimonious split from McLaren this was just the result that Honda was so feverishly working towards. Obviously in a very competitive F1 midfield Toro Rosso will take it, too. And a superb drive like that should also put Gasly in prime position for promotion to Red Bull when the time is right, as has happened to other talented young Toro Rosso trainees such as certain fellows by the name of Vettel and Verstappen.

Gasly was helped enormously by the surprising double DNFs of Toro Rosso’s parent team. After his first-lap tangle with Hamilton while trying to make up positions quickly after crashing out in qualifying the hyper-aggressive Verstappen’s Red Bull came off second best with a puncture to his left rear. While he was able to limp his machine back to the pits and run a few more laps his transmission was mortally wounded and the young Dutchman had to retire the car. His teammate Daniel Ricciardo also had a catastrophic race when his car suffered complete power failure on Lap 2 and switched off. All in all a disastrous day for Red Bull, which saw their race points scoring streak snapped at 38.

As mentioned above, Haas got good points from Kevin Magnussen who drive aggressively but survived to come home P5. Their other driver, Romain Grosjean, probably should have been black flagged as pieces of his car’s body work kept depositing themselves on the circuit but in any event the Frenchman finished a disappointing P13. Nico Hulkenberg was P6 for the Renault factory team and Renault-powered McLaren had an excellent double points day with Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne finishing P7 and P8 respectively despite both starting well outside the Top 10. Marcus Ericsson gave a much needed boost to perennial back markers Sauber with a somewhat stealthy P9, the Swede’s first points in 50 races. And Esteban Ocon was the lone Force India to score, coming home in the last points paying position at P10.

Top 10 finishers of the Bahrain GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 57 1:32:01.940 25
2 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 57 +0.699s 18
3 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 57 +6.512s 15
4 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 57 +62.234s 12
5 20 Kevin Magnussen HAAS FERRARI 57 +75.046s 10
6 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 57 +99.024s 8
7 14 Fernando Alonso MCLAREN RENAULT 56 +1 lap 6
8 2 Stoffel Vandoorne MCLAREN RENAULT 56 +1 lap 4
9 9 Marcus Ericsson SAUBER FERRARI 56 +1 lap 2
10 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 56 +1 lap 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

The next race is but a week away at the Shanghai International Circuit in China. Can Ferrari & Vettel maintain their winning ways or will Mercedes turn up with the key to their first victory in 2018? Hope to see you then to find out!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain — Qualifying results

Vettel seizes pole in Bahrain desert, Raikkonen P2 to secure Ferrari front row lockout; Bottas salvages P3 on grid for Mercedes but Hamilton relegated to P9 after gearbox penalty

Ferrari again showed that they have the pace to challenge and perhaps dethrone Mercedes in 2018, at least based on qualifying results at the dusty desert Bahrain International Circuit on Saturday. The Scuderia’s ace, Sebastian Vettel, laid down a track record 1:27.958 lap to secure the pole for Sunday’s Grand Prix, a solid .143 in front of his stablemate, Kimi Raikkonen. That secured a Ferrari front row lockout, as Mercedes’ second driver, Valtteri Bottas, could set a lap no better than third fastest. To make matters worse for the Silver Arrows, while Lewis Hamilton was not only off the pace and qualified behind Bottas and his main rivals in P4 the English current World Champion also faces a 5-spot gearbox penalty and will have to start from back in P9 on the grid. At least in the very early going this year the racing gods seem to be favoring Ferrari’s challenge to the previously unmatched might of Mercedes.

Daniel Ricciardo was fifth fastest but his headstrong teammate Max Verstappen crashed out in Q1, allegedly after a “horsepower spike” sent his car careering off track and into a barrier. Vertapeppen will have to fight his way through the back of the pack, which should at least make for some exciting racing for the young Dutchman as he scrambles to secure precious points for team Red Bull. Perhaps most impressive of all qualifying efforts, Pierre Gasly piloted his previously woeful Honda-powered Toro Rosso all the way up to the sixth fastest time, out performing Haas, Renault and Force India in the process. With his teammate Brendan Hartley qualifying just outside of Q3 in P11 it could be that Honda power is finally coming good a year after the McLaren divorce. Making matters more awkward for McLaren neither of their Renault-powered chassis were able to get through to Q3, with Fernando Alonso & Stoffel Vandoorne mired back in P13 and P14 respectively.

Rounding out the Top 10 in quali, Kevin Magnussen made it to P7 for improving Haas a week after their twin pit disasters led to heartbreak in Australia; Nico Hulkenberg was P8 and Carlos Sainz was P10 for the Renault factory team; and Esteban Ococn was the sole Force India to make it into Q3 at P9. Once formidable Williams look to be in deep trouble as they were essentially as slow as the pitiful Saubers, with Lance Stroll having the dubious distinction of setting the worst time of the day.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Bahrain GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:29.060 1:28.341 1:27.958 13
2 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:28.951 1:28.515 1:28.101 13
3 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:29.275 1:28.794 1:28.124 16
4 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:29.396 1:28.458 1:28.220 16
5 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:29.552 1:28.962 1:28.398 12
6 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 1:30.121 1:29.836 1:29.329 18
7 20 Kevin Magnussen HAAS FERRARI 1:29.594 1:29.623 1:29.358 16
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 1:30.260 1:29.187 1:29.570 15
9 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:30.338 1:30.009 1:29.874 16
10 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 1:29.893 1:29.802 1:29.986 18

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

The Bahrain Grand Prix airs live on Sunday, April 8 starting at 11AM on ESPN2 here in the States. Hope to see you then to see if Ferrari can put the fear of god into Mercedes to make it two wins in a row to start this year’s campaign!