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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!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Australia — Results & aftermath

Vettel and Ferrari score opportunistic win in Round 1, Hamilton a disappointed P2 for Mercedes; Raikkonen P3

For the second year in a row Ferrari and their ace driver Sebastian Vettel used clever strategy — plus  a little luck this time — to score an upset over favored Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes. Despite qualifying third fastest behind pole-sitter Hamilton and Scuderia stablemate Kimi Raikkonen, Vettel ran a longer stint on his opening set of Super Soft Pirelli tires than his nearest competitors. Thus while Raikkonen pitted on Lap 19 and Hamilton on Lap 20, Vettel gambled and stayed out until Lap 26, where he was able to take advantage of a well-timed Safety Car for Romain Grosjean & Kevin Magnussen’s disabled Haas cars, which inexplicably left the pits with unsecured wheels. Whether by calculation, blind luck or a combination of the two that meant that Vettel could dive to the pits while the field had to slow and close up behind the Safety Car, erasing the impact of the lost to the dreaded pit lane delta and, in fact, emerge just ahead of Hamilton upon reentry to the circuit. Also, due to a quirk in the rules, Vettel was able to gun his Ferrari out of the short pit lane blend line while Hamilton had to run the slower set pace, thereby giving the German 4-time world champion a crucial advantage. It was one Vettel and Ferrari would not relinquish as, despite his best efforts, Hamilton could never get his car to work well enough or keep his engine cool enough in Vettel’s aero wake to make an overtaking move.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

After Vettel’s somewhat fluky strategic victory F1 may need to look at their pit stop/Safety Car rules anew because there seems to be a net gain for a car that dives for the pits under full course yellow as opposed to most other forms of motorsport, where the pits generally stay closed after a safety car is deployed for at least a set number of laps. That negates the advantage of a car entering the pits directly after yellow, though of course it’s fair play if the team is lucky enough to call their driver in just before the full course yellow is thrown.

Nevertheless, Ferrari takes the season opening victory just as they did last year when their strikingly similar long-run tire strategy with Vettel also paid off with a win. Hamilton was left to console himself with a somewhat hard luck P2 and the knowledge that his Mercedes did have superior pace to the Ferraris in both qualifying and when running out front. Once again things look to be shaping up as a contest between Vettel and Hamilton to see who can secure the Championship, what would be the fifth for either very accomplished ace. Mighty Mercedes must surely be hoping that once again they prevail in the long run, as they have the previous four seasons. However they will need more from their second driver, Valtteri Bottas, who binned his car in qualifying, started from 15th and could only manage to claw his way back to P8 at the checkered flag.

Raikkonen also got burned by the Safety Car but was able to hold off the hard charging Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo for the last spot on the podium at P3, making it a very good day for Ferrari as a team. The Aussie native Ricciardo raced very well after starting from a penalty-hampered eighth spot on the grid to come home a competitive P4 in front of his adoring home fans, a very hopeful sign of improvement for the team’s upgraded engine. However, Ricciardo’s Red Bull teammate, Max Verstappen, had a scrappy race, overcooking his tires in pursuit of the Haas of Kevin Magnusson, who had passed him with a fine move at the start, and even losing a passel of positions by spinning out at one point. Young Max was able to recover and take advantage of a host of retirements to finish in P6 but the 20-year-old Dutch wunderkind had better begin showing more maturity and poise in this his fifth year in Formula 1 if he is ever going to start realizing his undoubted potential as a threat for consistent podiums.

McLaren made a solid statement that this year will be different than their desultory last three campaigns. Flashing their new Renault power plant in anger for the first time, Fernando Alonso drove like the two-time champion he is for a P5 finish, while Stoffel Vandoorne added to the valuable points haul with a solid P9. The Renault factory team also had an excellent day, with veteran Nico Hulkenberg taking a solid P6 and Spaniard Carlos Sainz fighting off an upset stomach to grab that last point in P10.

Missing out on any glory were Force India, which looks to have taken a step backwards against their closest mid-field rivals, and Williams, which simply looks lost and could potentially be in for an awful season. Sauber was again nowhere despite their Ferrari engines and Toro Rosso looked awful after their switch to Honda (under)-power, both slow and unreliable. Most depressing of all here in Round 1 was the double DNF for Haas. Despite showing pace that should have found Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean in the points, the team was undone done by twin catastrophic pit stops that saw both cars released with one improperly attached wheel each. Ironically it was Ferrari-powered Haas’s fatal blunder that enabled Vettel and the factory team to win the opening round of the 2018 season.

Top 10 finishers of the Australian Grand Prix.

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 58 1:29:33.283 25
2 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 58 +5.036s 18
3 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 58 +6.309s 15
4 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 58 +7.069s 12
5 14 Fernando Alonso MCLAREN RENAULT 58 +27.886s 10
6 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 58 +28.945s 8
7 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 58 +32.671s 6
8 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 58 +34.339s 4
9 2 Stoffel Vandoorne MCLAREN RENAULT 58 +34.921s 2
10 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 58 +45.722s 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

The next race is in two weeks time and half way around the world in Bahrain. Hope to see you the to find out if Vettel and Ferrari’s good luck continues or Hamilton and Mercedes can get back on the top step!

2018 F1 Grand Prix of Australia — Qualifying results

The long winter break is finally over and Formula 1 is back for its new season and starting once again from the Albert Park street circuit in Melbourne, Australia. There is good news and bad news for the new cars this year. The good news is that the 2018 spec s the fastest yet of the new V6 turbo era. The bad news is that the addition of the driver-protecting halo device has made the cars not only ugly but also ruining the on-car camera perspective. Still I suppose if the Halo prevents another driver head injury like the one that lead to the death of Jules Bianchi at Suzuka in 2016 then it will be worth the rather awful aesthetics. On the other hand I’m not quite sure I see how the Halo will stop small debris from striking a driver’s helmet through the open spaces, as happened to Felipe Massa when a spring hit him at 200mph at the Hungaroring in 2009. But caveats aside let’s find out what happened on the first day of real racing in anger as the 2018 F1 field competed for the pole in Saturday Qualifying in Melbourne!

Hamilton & Mercedes still the ones beat after blistering season debut  pole; Raikkonen outguns favored Ferrari teammate Vettel, P2 to P3; Bottas crashes out of Q3

In Formula 1 the more things change the more they stay the same apparently. On the first qualifying of the 2018 season Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, the reigning World Champion, thrashed his Silver Arrow around Albert Park in Melbourne setting a time that no others could match. The result was Hamilton fifth consecutive and seventh career pole in Australia. After all the hype in testing about Ferrari’s potential for dominance when it came down to a mano-a-mano between manufactures Mercedes retained the edge that has propelled them to the last 4 consecutive Constructors’ Titles. Ferrari does appear to have the pace over the rest of the field and Kimi Raikkonen utilized his SF71H chassis the best on Saturday, setting a quick time about 7 tenths in arrears of Hamilton but good enough for P2 and .01 faster than his more heralded teammate, Sebastian Vettel, who slots in at P3 on the grid.

All was not completely rosy for mighty Mercedes, however, as their second driver, Valtteri Bottas, continued to have bad luck Down Under. Hamilton’s Finnish wingman had a lurid, spinning crash when he dropped his tires off track and onto the slippery grass shortly after starting his first hot lap in Q3. His Silver Arrow appeared badly damaged and no doubt Bottas will be starting from the pit come Sunday.

Red Bull once again did not have the sheer pace of the top two teams, which has to be a disappointment for anyone hoping they had made an engine breakthrough over the winter and were ready to seriously threaten Mercedes or Ferrari. Wunderkind Max Verstappen qualified P4 and Aussie Daniel Ricciardo earned P5 but will be penalized 3 positions on the grid at his home Grand Prix for a dubious speeding-under-red-flag penalty in Friday practice. On the flip side American team Haas showed definite improvement to their Ferrari powered chassis and threw down an early claim to be “best of the rest” with Kevin Magnusson qualifying in P6 and Romain Grosjean in P7. That meant, somewhat surprisingly, that both Renault factory drivers will start behind the upstart Haas cars, with Nico Hulkenberg in P8 and Carlos Sainz in P9. The steadily improving Haas and Renault performance could bode ill for last year’s 4th place team, perennial overachiever Force India. On this first qualifying day, at least, they were nowhere on pace, with both their talented drivers out in Q2. Sergio Perez could do no better than P13 while young Esteban Ocon was way back in P15. Newly Renault-powered McLaren did better than Force India as well, if not quite good enough to dent the Top 10 starting grid — international superstar Fernando Alonso was P11 and his Belgian teammate Stoffel Vandoorne was right behind in P12.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Australian Gran Prix:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:22.824 1:22.051 1:21.164 20
2 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:23.096 1:22.507 1:21.828 17
3 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:23.348 1:21.944 1:21.838 20
4 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:23.483 1:22.416 1:21.879 18
5 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:23.494 1:22.897 1:22.152 17
6 20 Kevin Magnussen HAAS FERRARI 1:23.909 1:23.300 1:23.187 17
7 8 Romain Grosjean HAAS FERRARI 1:23.671 1:23.468 1:23.339 17
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 1:23.782 1:23.544 1:23.532 16
9 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 1:23.529 1:23.061 1:23.577 17
10 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:23.686 1:22.089 DNF 16

Complete qualifying realist available via Formual1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live early this Sunday at 1AM on ESPN2. ABC and the ESPN family of network are F1’s new broadcast partner in the States in partnership with Sky Sports and ESPN will simply utilize the Sky feed complete with their lead British announcing team of David Croft and former racer Martin Brundle. After so many years of David Hobbs and Steve Matchett bringing us F1 this will undoubtedly take some getting used to, though what I heard on Saturday was quite good in its own way.

2017 F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi — Results & aftermath

Bottas wins last race of season going away, Hamitlon P2; Vettel a distant P3

Mercedes #2 Valtteri Bottas finished out the season in style by winning the Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi from the pole. His recently crowned 4-time World Champion teammate Lewis Hamilton came home a comfortable second and never seemed to push his Finnish wingman too hard for the victory, having secured the ultimate individual prize in Mexico some weeks back. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel finished a distant P3, a fitting end to a fleetingly promising season for the fabled Scuderia from Maranello. Their once robust challenge to Mercedes supremacy all began to fall apart in the second half when a first lap shunt between teammates in Singapore started a death spiral of unreliability that ended any realistic chance of a genuine title run. Vettel’s stablemate Kimi Raikkonen finished P4 after a lackluster campaign, once again begging the question of just why Ferrari have re-signed the aging Iceman for next season when there is so much hot young talent out there.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen came home a decent P5, flying the flag for the team after Daniel Ricciardo suffered hydraulic failure on Lap 21. It was an unfortunate bookend to the affable Aussie’s season — he also DNF’d in the first race of the year way back in March at his home Grand Prix in Melbourne — and it seeded fourth in the Drivers’ points to Raikkonen. With better reliability Red Bull really would have challenged Ferrari for second overall and they’ll be hoping for just that next season, Further back in the pack Nico Hulkenberg overcame a 5-second time penalty for cutting a corner while passing his old Force India sparring partner Sergio Perez early in the race to take P6 for Renault. The result was doubly excellent for the veteran German in his first year with the squad, as it netted enough points to lift the factory Renault team into 6th in the Constructors’ standings ahead of struggling Toro Rosso. It was a very lucrative last race promotion that also bodes well for the French automotive giant’s chances next year.

Perez, whose incessant complaining about Hulkenberg’s unfair pass guaranteed the penalty from the stewards, could nevertheless not capitalize and finished P7. His Force India teammate Esteban Ocon was right behind in P8, wrapping up another excellent points haul for the little team from Silverstone and proving with that season-long consistency that their fourth place in the Constructors’ was no fluke. Two veterans rounded out the Top 10. Fernando Alonso took P9 for McLaren and will be looking forward to next year not only for a new Renault power unit but also for his double duty in sports cars at The Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona and in the WEC Championship for Toyota. And Felipe Massa finished up his 269th and final F1 race in the points in P10, capping a sterling 15-year career with crowd pleasing burnouts alongside the top two Mercedes as a massive fireworks display exploded around the dazzling Yas Marina circuit. It was a memorable and fittingly celebratory end to the little Brazilian’s outstanding Formula 1 career.

Top 10 finishers of the Abu Dhabi GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 55 1:34:14.062 25
2 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 55 +3.899s 18
3 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 55 +19.330s 15
4 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 55 +45.386s 12
5 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 55 +46.269s 10
6 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 55 +85.713s 8
7 11 Sergio Perez FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 55 +92.062s 6
8 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 55 +98.911s 4
9 14 Fernando Alonso MCLAREN HONDA 54 +1 lap 2
10 19 Felipe Massa WILLIAMS MERCEDES 54 +1 lap 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

Final 2017 Drivers Standings are here.

Final 2017 Constructors Standings are here.

2017 F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi — Qualifying results

Bottas grabs pole at Yas Marina, Hamilton takes P2 for Mercedes front row lockout; Vettel third fastest for Ferrari

Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas made it two poles in a row to close out the season in good form, laying down a record fastest time at the beautiful day-into-night Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. Bottas bested his recently-crowned World Champion teammate Lewis Hamilton by .17 seconds to take the top starting spot for tomorrow’s Grand Prix, the finale of the exciting 2017 F1 campaign. Hamilton tried hard, his Silver Arrow squirming into the final turn at the very edge of adhesion as the checkered flag flew in Q3. But he couldn’t quite overcome his Finnish wingman’s earlier fastest lap and will line up in the #2 spot. Sebastian Vettel put in a typically sterling effort to elevate his Ferrari to P3 on the grid even if his Prancing Horse could never really match the pace of the Mercs at this flat, billiard table smooth and very speedy purpose-built track.

Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo split the Ferraris and also bested his teammate with a superlative final lap good enough for the 4th fastest time. That relegated Vettel’s teammate, Kimi Raikkonen, to the third row and P5 on the grid and Ricciardo’s stablemate, Max Verstappen, back to P6. Rounding out the Top 10, Nico Hulkenberg qualified P7 for Renault, Force India’s Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon were back-to-back in P8 and P9 respectively and Felipe Massa will start from 10th in what will be his 269th and last Formula 1 race after a distinguished 15-year career.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Abu Dhabi GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:37.356 1:36.822 1:36.231 18
2 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:37.391 1:36.742 1:36.403 19
3 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:37.817 1:37.023 1:36.777 18
4 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:38.016 1:37.583 1:36.959 16
5 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:37.453 1:37.302 1:36.985 17
6 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:38.021 1:37.777 1:37.328 19
7 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 1:38.781 1:38.138 1:38.282 14
8 11 Sergio Perez FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:38.601 1:38.359 1:38.374 17
9 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:38.896 1:38.392 1:38.397 17
10 19 Felipe Massa WILLIAMS MERCEDES 1:38.629 1:38.565 1:38.550 18

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live starting at 8:00 AM Eastern here in the States on NBC Sports. It is not only the last contest of the year but also NBC’s final broadcast with next year’s F1 rights going over to ABC/ESPN. So join Steve Matchett, David Hobbs & Leigh Diffy one final time to farewell not only Fomula 1 for the year but also a really excellent broadcast team who helped make F1 racing more approachable and enjoyable for the North American fans. Hope to see you then to see how the season ends!

2017 F1 Grand Prix of Brazil — Results & aftermath

Vettel victorious in Brazil, Bottas P2; Raikkonen finishes third while Hamilton roars back from the rear for P4

Sebastian Vettel and Scuderia Ferrari got a measure of redemption in Brazil on Sunday after coming up short in their quest for the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships. In the penultimate race of the season Vettel made a blinding start from P2, slipping past Mercedes pole-sitter Valtteri Bottas on the inside of Turn 1 and quickly pulling out a gap. Even after a multi-car melee behind the leaders led to a first-lap Safety Car Vettel was able to re-establish his advantage after the restart and control the race from the front, showing that for this weekend at least his Prancing Horse had the legs on the Silver Arrows. It all lead to a seemingly easy victory for the German 4-time World Champion, although Vettel claimed he had to be picture perfect in the middle sector all race long to hold Bottas off. It was also a much needed morale boost for the legendary team from Maranello after their second half swoon, which was fueled equally by unforced errors by drivers and engineering and ultimately resulted in their disappointing runner-up status. The victory at Interlagos also helped solidify Vettel’s number two position in the Drivers’ competition with his lead over Bottas ballooning to a very nearly insurmountable 22 points.

Despite a terrific qualifying effort that snatched pole from Ferrari on Saturday, Bottas’ Mercedes could not match Vettel’s race pace. The Finn made one or two vague challenges but essentially lost it at the start and had to settle for a relatively disappointing if comfortable P2. Likewise Vettel’s stablemate Kimi Raikkonen could never quite catch up to Bottas but drove a solid race to finish P3. Meanwhile Bottas’ teammate, newly-crowned 2017 champion Lewis Hamilton, had an amazing race to finish just off the podium in P4. Starting from pit lane after he shockingly binned his Merc early in the first round of qualifying, the team was able to break parc firmé and make several changes to the Englishman’s F1 W08. As well as aero tweaks Mercedes also installed a new power unit, which probably would have required grid penalties in the next race, the season finale in Abu Dhabi. Instead, despite his profound positional disadvantage, Hamilton tore through the field like a man possessed, slicing through back markers like a hot knife through butter. On an uncharacteristically sunny day in Sao Paolo with no aide from rain-induced strategy calls, Hamilton simply mustered the will to make it happen all on his own. In the end it showed once again why Lewis Hamilton is one of the all-time great F1 talents and truly deserving of his four world titles. Though Hamilton’s Super Soft Pirelli tires gave up at the end after a monster stint and he could not quite overtake Raikkonen for a podium his astounding fourth place must have felt nearly like a victory.

Behind the top four, Red Bull’s Max Vertsappen faded somewhat after a strong start where it looked like the young Dutch phenom might make the post-race champagne celebration. But the limits of his Renault power plant seemed to show themselves over the long run as the greater horsepower of the Ferraris and Mercedes pushed them out of his grasp. Verstappen had to settle for a distant P5, while his teammate Daniel Ricciardo did well to fight back after a first-lap spin to claim P6. Williams’ Felipe Massa earned an emotional P7 in his final home Grand Prix to the delight of the masses of his countrymen in the stands. The veteran Brazilian exited Sao Paolo with a clean and classy drive after tearfully crashing out during his rain-soaked false alarm last year.

Fernando Alonso continued McLaren’s upward ascent with a strong P8. Although next year will be extremely intriguing and demanding for the Spaniard with his plans to run not only the 24-Hours of Daytona in January but also at least a partial campaign for Toyota in the Prototype class of the World Endurance Championship, the two-time F1 champion has got to be looking forward to the switch to Renault engines to power what is seemingly a very competitive chassis. Unfortunately for McLaren, however, their second driver Stoffel Vanfoorne crashed out on the opening lap after getting tagged by Haas’ Kevin Magnussen, who also had to retire. Sergio Perez brought his Force India home to a P9 finish after his teammate Esteban Ocon had his race-finishing streak snapped via a collision with Romain Grojean of Haas, also on the opening lap. Grosjean got a 10-second penalty for the accident but was able to complete the race, albeit out of the points in P15. Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg landed the last points-paying position in P10 just getting the better of his teammate Carlos Sainz, who finished P11.

Top 10 finishers of the Brazilian GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 71 1:31:26.262 25
2 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 71 +2.762s 18
3 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 71 +4.600s 15
4 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 71 +5.468s 12
5 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 71 +32.940s 10
6 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 71 +48.691s 8
7 19 Felipe Massa WILLIAMS MERCEDES 71 +68.882s 6
8 14 Fernando Alonso MCLAREN HONDA 71 +69.363s 4
9 11 Sergio Perez FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 71 +69.500s 2
10 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 70 +1 lap 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

The next & final race is in two weeks time, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the gorgeous day-into-night Yas Marina Circuit. Hope to see you then to find out how the season ends!

2017 F1 Grand Prix of Brazil — Qualifying results

Bottas snatches pole from Vettel while Hamilton crashes out in Q1 during unpredictable quali at Interlagos; Raikkonen P3

In a stunning qualifying session for the penultimate race of the 2017 campaign in Brazil on Saturday newly crowned World Champion Lewis Hamilton crashed out on his opening lap in Q1. The Mercedes ace lost it speeding into Turn 7 at Interlagos, bashing his Silver Arrow heavily into the barriers sideways. While the Englishman was unhurt his pride probably wasn’t by the unforced error just two weeks after he claimed his fourth F1 title in Mexico City. It only proved that it can happen to the best of drivers but it opened up the chase for pole to his only true rivals this season, his teammate Valtteri Bottas and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. And while Vettel looked like the favorite after laying down a track record lap relatively early in Q3, Bottas showed his mettle by besting that seemingly supreme time even though a light drizzle was falling and the checkered flag was waving. The Finn lifted Mercedes’ pride across the line with him at the death with a remarkable 1:08.322, good enough to take the pole and break Ferrari’s hearts. Vettel will start beside Bottas in P2 and his teammate Kimi Raikkonen will be right behind the Mercedes in P3. Hamilton, on the other hand, will have to start towards the back of the grid and will have to battle his way to the front, although other drivers facing grid spot penalties may move him up a spot or two by the time Sunday rolls around. Right now, however, the current F1 champ is starting from a lonely and lowly P20 after his very uncharacteristic cock up. (In fact it has just been announced that Hamilton will start from pit lane tomorrow, as Mercedes have decided to make changes to the car after the crash.)

The two Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo qualified P4 and P5 respectively but that success was somewhat illusory for the team. Ricciardo is one of the drivers facing engine-change penalties, 10 spots in his case, and so the affable Aussie was pushed back to P15 on the grid. And though Verstappen was spared any such FIA demerits the young Dutchman, winner of the last Grand Prix in Mexico two weeks ago, was forced to retrofit old components onto his ailing Renault engine. Verstappen could be heard complaining about shifting issues during qualifying and can only hope that his bad luck, so frequent in the earlier part of the season, doesn’t return in the form of yet more mechanical failures costing him a race finish. Sergio Perez was the lone Force India to make it into Q3 and had the 6th fastest time, while McLaren’s Fernando Alonso continued the team’s late season upward trajectory by qualifying an impressive P7 at this very fast circuit. The yellow factory Renaults of Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz were back-to-back with the 8th and 9th fastest times respectively. And Felipe Massa set the 10th quickest lap in what should really be his final Brazilian GP after last year’s tearful false alarm. It looks like the fine Brazilian veteran, who has the 6th most starts in Formula 1 history, will actually hang it up for good after being drafted back into Williams when Bottas made the unexpected leap to Mercedes following Nico Rosberg’s surprise retirement at the end of 2016. We can only wish Massa, a classy and plucky competitor with 15 F1 campaigns to his credit, the very best at his final home race as he heads for the exits at season’s end after a superb career.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Brazilian Grand Prix:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:09.452 1:08.638 1:08.322 22
2 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:09.643 1:08.494 1:08.360 21
3 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:09.405 1:09.116 1:08.538 18
4 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:09.820 1:09.050 1:08.925 18
5 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:09.828 1:09.533 1:09.330 19
6 11 Sergio Perez FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:10.145 1:09.760 1:09.598 21
7 14 Fernando Alonso MCLAREN HONDA 1:10.172 1:09.593 1:09.617 17
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 1:10.078 1:09.726 1:09.703 21
9 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 1:10.227 1:09.768 1:09.805 17
10 19 Felipe Massa WILLIAMS MERCEDES 1:09.789 1:09.612 1:09.841 16

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live on NBC Sports starting at 11:00 AM Eastern here in the States. With wet weather always the wild card at Interlagos it could once again be the factor that shakes up the field and produces an unexpected result. Hope to see you then to find out how it all shakes out!

2017 F1 Grand Prix of Mexico — Qualifying results

Ferrari’s Vettel bests Red Bull’s Verstappen for pole in Mexico City; Mercedes off the pace with Hamilton P3, Bottas P4

Showing the fight of a true champion, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel laid down a track record lap of 1:16.488 for pole in the rarified air at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City on Saturday. Still mathemeaically alive in the Drivers’ Championship, albeit barely so, Vettel earned his 50th career pole by besting Red Bull’s ultra-quick wunderkind, Max Verstappen, by a scant .09 seconds. Verstappen had looked like the quicker man coming into Q3 but the young Ducthman, driving with a chip on his shoulder after being denied the podium by the stewards a week ago in Austin, couldn’t quite hook his laps up in the final qualifying round. Still, the Red Bull man was faster than both Mercedes, who struggled for outright pace against their usually inferior rivals a week after securing their fourth consecutive Constructors’ title. Points leader Lewis Hamilton, who can secure his fourth championship even if Vettel wins by finishing fifth or better on Sunday, could muster a time good enough for only P3 on the dusty, low-grip circuit. His wingman Valtteri Bottas vaulted himself to P4 on his only timed run in Q3 after a promising early attempt was spoiled by nearly colliding with a slowing Verstappen in the final sector (this tike Vertsappen escaped the stewards’ wrath). So for once in that proverbial blue moon the mighty Mercedes look like the third fastest cars on track, an unusual position to say the least and one that may be caused by the shortness of the circuit and the longness of their wheelbase. However the race could be a different proposition, particularly as the Silver Arrows are at least grouped to fight together while Vettel & Verstappen’s teammates are both separated from them further down the grid.

In fact, Ferrari #2 Kimi Raikkonen will start behind the two Mercs in P5, while the second Red Bull of Daniel Riciciardo looked a bit lost and could do no better than a P7 time. The affable Aussie saw himself bested by Force India’s Esteban Ocon, who qualified ahead in P6. The young Frenchman also outdid his teammate and archrival, Mexican national Sergio Perez, by a considerable margin. Perez could manage no better than P10 despite the passionate encouragement of his countrymen in the stands for his home Grand Prix. Rounding out the top 10, Nico Hulkenberg pipped his new Renault teammate Carlos Sainz, P8 to P9.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Mexican GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:17.665 1:16.870 1:16.488 20
2 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:17.630 1:16.524 1:16.574 19
3 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:17.518 1:17.035 1:16.934 21
4 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:17.578 1:17.161 1:16.958 17
5 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 1:18.148 1:17.534 1:17.238 20
6 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:18.336 1:17.827 1:17.437 19
7 3 Daniel Ricciardo RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 1:18.208 1:17.631 1:17.447 15
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 1:18.322 1:17.792 1:17.466 17
9 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 1:18.405 1:17.753 1:17.794 17
10 11 Sergio Perez FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 1:18.020 1:17.868 1:17.807 19

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live on NBC at 3PM Eastern here in the States. Can Vettel live to fight another day or will Hamilton issue the coup de grâce and be crowned 2017’s champion? Might Verstappen steal the spotlight from both veterans by laying down a marker as next year’s man to beat? Hope to see you then to find out!

2017 F1 Grand Prix of the United States — Results & aftermath

Hamilton moves closer to title with dominant win in Texas as Mercedes clinch fourth straight Constructors’ Championship; Vettel salvages P2, Raikkonen third after Verstappen penalized

Mercedes’ ace Lewis Hamilton had a superb weekend for both himself and the team at an American track that has come to seem like a second home to the Englishman. Starting from pole at The Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, the championship points leader was able to overcome a fast start by the last remaining obstacle to the pursuit of his fourth Formula 1 crown, Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. Vettel was quicker on the opening lap and got by Hamilton with authority. For a brief moment it seemed that Ferrari could put their miserable 3-race tailspin behind them and get back on level footing with mighty Mercedes. But Hamilton’s Silver Arrow proved the stronger car as the laps accumulated and the tires settled in. Hamilton closed down the German relentlessly and by getting to within DRS range was able to pass Vettel on Lap 6, taking a lead he would never really relinquish again.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Perhaps because of Ferrari having to trim downforce off the car to match Mercedes’ pace at this long flowing track the Prancing Horses were not quite as good on their tires as they had been in other races. While Vettel had to stop for fresh rubber on Lap 17, Hamilton ran until Lap 20 (although one could argue this was a lap too late as he really hit the cliff by then). Hamilton was then able to run his Soft tires until the end of the race on his way to the victory, while Vettel threw the dice for a second tire change on Lap 39 of 56. It didn’t pan out for the Scuderia man — he had lost too much track position. In the end Hamilton won decisively by over 10 seconds while Vettel pushed his way back to the front and then was let through by his teammate Kimi Raikkonen for P2, keeping the Drivers’ Championship mathematically alive for another race weekend. Hamilton’s win in the States also helped earn the Mercedes factory team their fourth Constructors’ title on the trot. And to think that most people thought Hamilton was mad to jump from McLaren to Merc back in 2013. It was also Hamilton’s astounding fifth win at COTA in six attempts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlnhuSGM_Mc

Raikkonen was awarded the last step on the podium in controversial fashion after Red Bull’s Max Verstappen made a stunning pass on him for P3 on the very last lap of the race. But the Dutch wunderkind who hurtled himself all the way up from a 16th place starting position after engine penalties, slicing through the field like a hot knife along the way, was deemed by the stewards to have exceeded track limits in gaining the advantage on Kimi. He was hit with a 5-second time penalty while waiting in the podium green room and had to give way to Raikkonen in shocking fashion. The 20-year-old phenom was justifiably livid at the decision in a race where track limits seemed to have been abused all day long with no similar consequences. In the end, though, the now fourth place Vertsappen could only take satisfaction in adding to his growing resume of superb overtaking drives, as well as signing a new multi-year contract with Red Bull, a smart move by the team in locking up such a prodigious if still maturing talent. Adding to the mixed feeling for Red Bull after the US Grand Prix their other driver, Daniel Ricciardo, suffered engine failure on Lap 16. It was a major disappointment for the Aussie after a roaring start from P4 on the grid and some hot and heavy wheel-to-wheel action with Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas.

Bottas lost ground late and finished P5 but it was still enough of a points haul to put Mercedes over the top for the title. Force India’s Esteban Ocon drove well despite battling the flu and finished P6, while his teammate and jousting partner Sergio Perez came home P8. That consolidated the team’s fourth place in the Constructors’ title, a remarkable result for the little Force India team. Carlos Sainz was extremely impressive in his maiden run for the factory Renault team, driving superbly to a P7 finish. Felipe Massa took P9 for underachieving Wiliams and Sainz’s old teammate Daniil Kvyat was P10 in his return to his Toro Rosso seat after a two-race enforced absence by the team.

Top 10 finishers of the US Grand Prix:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 56 1:33:50.991 25
2 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 56 +10.143s 18
3 7 Kimi Räikkönen FERRARI 56 +15.779s 15
4 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING TAG HEUER 56 +16.768s 12
5 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 56 +34.967s 10
6 31 Esteban Ocon FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 56 +90.980s 8
7 55 Carlos Sainz RENAULT 56 +92.944s 6
8 11 Sergio Perez FORCE INDIA MERCEDES 55 +1 lap 4
9 19 Felipe Massa WILLIAMS MERCEDES 55 +1 lap 2
10 26 Daniil Kvyat TORO ROSSO 55 +1 lap 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

The next race is in but a week’s time, just south of the border from Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. Can Sebastian Vettel prolong the inevitable or will Lewis Hamilton join the German in the elite 4-time F1 Champions’ club? Hope to see you then to find out!