Tag Archives: Sebastian Vettel

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Russia — Qualifying results

Leclerc and Ferrari keep rolling with pole in Sochi, Vettel P3; Hamilton P2

Ferrari’s stunning second half turnaround continued as their ascendent young star driver scored his fourth consecutive pole position at Sochi Autdrom during Saturday qualifying for tomorrow’s Russian Grand Prix. A week after the rapidly improving Monegasque was left seething after he felt denied a win in Singapore due to fortuitous pit strategy by his senior teammate, Sebastian Vettel, Leclerc gave his best effort to try and get back to the winner’s circle for the third time this season with a blistering 1:32.613 lap time, over 4-tenths ahead of Vettel. Vettel could do no better than the third fastest time of the day and the confidence boost after his much-needed if somewhat lucky Singapore victory could be short lived under the onslaught of his stablemate’s consistent excellence. With their superior straight-line speed now married to improved downforce aerodynamics the Prancing Horses have definitively relegated mighty Mercedes to the second best team on the track and this time at a venue where Mercedes have always dominated previously. Lewis Hamilton, the Silver Arrows’ ace, did manage to split the Ferraris with the second fastest time and the reigning world champion and current points leader will be looking to slipstream himself in front of Leclerc when the lights go out and the cars take off down the long, fast first straightaway.

Mercedes themselves were also temporarily split when Red Bull’s Max Verstappen bettered Valtteri Bottas P4 to P5. But, while they proved that they can fly faster than Mercedes at certain circuits, Verstappen will have to take a 5-spot grid penalty come Sunday. Additionally, their second driver, Alexander Albon, crashed heavily in Q1, most likely also necessitating a gearbox change, and so and will start from the rear of the grid. The two McLarens of Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris showed well and qualified P6 and P8 respectively and the two Renault’s of Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo were P7 and P10 on the timing sheets respectively. Romain Grosjean came home ninth fastest and Haas will be desperate to score some points tomorrow in a season that has come apart rather badly for them.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Russian GP:

POSNODRIVERCARQ1Q2Q3LAPS
116Charles LeclercFERRARI1:33.6131:32.4341:31.62818
244Lewis HamiltonMERCEDES1:33.2301:33.1341:32.03019
35Sebastian VettelFERRARI1:33.0321:32.5361:32.05322
433Max VerstappenRED BULL RACING HONDA1:33.3681:32.6341:32.31015
577Valtteri BottasMERCEDES1:33.4131:33.2811:32.63218
655Carlos SainzMCLAREN RENAULT1:34.1841:33.8071:33.22220
727Nico HulkenbergRENAULT1:34.2361:33.8981:33.28915
84Lando NorrisMCLAREN RENAULT1:34.2011:33.7251:33.30120
98Romain GrosjeanHAAS FERRARI1:34.2831:33.6431:33.51719
103Daniel RicciardoRENAULT1:34.1381:33.8621:33.66118

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live on EPSN2 starting at 7AM here in the States. Can Hamilton out-drag Leclerc to take the lead on Lap 1? And even if he does can his Mercedes hold off the ultra-rapid Ferraris for the rest of the race? Hope to see you then to find out how it all shakes out in Sochi!

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Singapore — Results & aftermath

Ferrari outfox Mercedes in strategic Singapore GP as Vettel bests teammate Leclerc for win; Vertsappen P3

In a tense and highly strategic Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday, where track position was king on the extremely tight Marina Bay Street Circuit, resurgent Ferrari made the right calls while Mercedes gambled and lost. Sebastian Vettel, who has had a run of poor races recently and been eclipsed by the rising star of his younger teammate Charles Leclerc, was called to the pits on Lap 20 to respond to the similarly timed pit stop of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. While Leclerc was at that time leading the race and controlling the pace of the field from the front while nursing his tires, the Monegasque phenom had just passed the pit entrance when Ferrari’s brain trust saw that Verstappen’s crew were laying out tires for the Dutchman. Vettel, running just in front of Verstappen, happened to be right at the pit entrance, however, and fortuitously for him it was he who got the call to go for the undercut and ditch his Soft Pirelli’s for fresh Hard compound tires to hopefully get to the end of the race with only that one stop. It proved to be just the luck that Vettel, a four-time World Champion who frankly looked as if he had lost his touch in 2019, needed to get back to the top step of the podium and take a much-needed win to sooth his battered ego.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

While Vettel rejoined the race in P10 he emerged in front of Verstappen, plus all of the cars in front him had yet to pit, including his teammate Leclerc and the two Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. When Leclerc came in for his own set of Hard tires a lap later Vettel’s pace on fresh rubber on his out lap was good enough get him in front of his formerly front running teammate. The now irate Leclerc was now doomed to look at Vettel’s gearbox for the rest of the race and he complained bitterly about the team’s decision making, which had essentially switched him from P1 to second place. Meanwhile Mercedes rolled the dice with Hamilton, who now led the race. While they ran Bottas only until Lap 23 until pitting him they kept Hamilton running at the front despite ever declining pace in regards to the two Ferraris and Verstappen’s Red Bull. It slowly became apparent that the Mercedes pit wall was either hoping for a Safety Car to provide them with a cheap and quicker pit stop than the usual 27-second delta under green flag conditions or they were trying to calculate the precise moment when the twin Ferraris would run into the slower traffic in front of them, thereby making a standard pit stop not as costly to Hamilton’s track position when he blended back in. But in the end it didn’t pay off.

There was no Safety Car at this time — in fairness there would be a raft of them later in the race — so Hamilton pitted on Lap 26 and was only stationary for 2.4 seconds as his Hards went on. But the Ferrari’s were barely impeded by the traffic in front of them and when Hamilton emerged he was behind not only Vettel and Leclerc but also Verstappen’s Red Bull. He did beat his teammate out for P4 but this was somewhat engineered by team orders to Bottas to hang back and cede Hamilton that position. The Englishman’s only hope of getting back to a podium finish after starting from P2 on the grid was that he had newer tires than his rivals that would enable him to make some passes at the end of the grueling 61-lap contest. But three Safety Car periods in the last 25 laps put paid to that hope and while the elite cars in the top five could pass inferior machines in twisty old Marina Bay none of the elite top five could pass each other. Vettel controlled his post-Safety Car restarts masterfully and kept his hungry and angry young teammate behind him to come away with his first F1 win since Belgium last year, a much needed salve to his frayed confidence. Leclerc had to settle for a somewhat hard-luck P2 and saw his win streak end at two. But it was an outstanding day for the famed Scuderia from Maranello, as they showed that the Prancing Horses could be fast not only on the wide open country tracks of Europe but also a high downforce street circuit like Singapore.

Continue reading →

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Singapore — Qualifying results

Red hot Leclerc seizes third pole in a row besting Hamilton and Vettel at tricky Marina Bay Street Circuit

Ferrari’s ascendent young phenom Charles Leclerc, winner of the previous two Grand Prix from pole position, made it three poles in a row in Saturday qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix tomorrow night, laying down a blistering lap late in Q3 to steal the top starting spot away from not only his teammate Sebastian Vettel but also the rival Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton. After performing so well at the last two high speed circuits, Spa Francorchamps and Monza, which also saw Leclerc win in dominant fashion, the Prancing Horses were expected to falter at the narrow and technically demanding confines of the tightly contained though beautifully illuminated Marina Bay Street Circuit. But instead Ferrari’s latest downforce upgrades merged perfectly with their horsepower advantage and Mercedes quickly found themselves surprised by the speed of the Scuderia’s blood red steeds on this corner-filled street circuit. Vettel appeared to lay down the time to beat early in the last qualifying session and the Silver Arrows of Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas found themselves tangled up in traffic and behind not only he and his speedy teammate but also the Red Bull of Max Vertsappen.

But with time running out Vettel could not improve and had to abort his last flying lap after a series of small errors. Meanwhile his upstart stablemate Leclerc pushed the very limits of adhesion, throwing his SF90 around around the many corners of this street circuit with controlled abandon. The rapidly improving Monegasque came across the line at 1:36.217, more than 2-tenths better than Vettel’s early fast lap. Mercedes wisely had released their men at the very last moment this time and well behind the rest of the gaggle of cars on this cramped track, leaving their men free to fly unencumbered by traffic. Hamilton made the most of that and also tested the track limits by kissing the wall once or twice during his strong final run. But despite his excellent effort the Englishman still found himself trailing Leclerc by just under 2-tenths as the checkered flag flew. Hamilton will line up along the pole-sitting Leclerc in P2 with Vettel a somewhat disappointed P3. It is now clear that Ferrari are finally able to take the fight to Mercedes and compete for wins on equal terms regardless of the circuit. And in Leclerc they may just have found the rare driver who can better Hamilton on a regular basis, as well.

When all was said and done Verstappen could only set the fourth fastest time but still had enough pace to relegate Bottas to P5 on the grid. His rookie Red Bull teammate Alexander Albon acquitted himself very well in his first-ever visit to this ultra-demanding circuit and qualified P6. Rounding out the top 10 on the grid the McLarens sandwiched the two Renaults, with P7 Carlos Sainz starting ahead of P8 Daniel Ricciardo and P9 Nico Hulkenberg and Sainz’s teammate Lando Norris behind them with the tenth fastest time.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Singapore GP:

POSNODRIVERCARQ1Q2Q3LAPS
116Charles LeclercFERRARI1:38.0141:36.6501:36.21718
244Lewis HamiltonMERCEDES1:37.5651:36.9331:36.40819
35Sebastian VettelFERRARI1:38.3741:36.7201:36.43716
433Max VerstappenRED BULL RACING HONDA1:38.5401:37.0891:36.81315
577Valtteri BottasMERCEDES1:37.3171:37.1421:37.14618
623Alexander AlbonRED BULL RACING HONDA1:39.1061:37.8651:37.41116
755Carlos SainzMCLAREN RENAULT1:38.8821:37.9821:37.81819
83Daniel RicciardoRENAULT1:39.3621:38.3991:38.09518
927Nico HulkenbergRENAULT1:39.0011:38.5801:38.26418
104Lando NorrisMCLAREN RENAULT1:38.6061:37.5721:38.32919

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live starting at 8AM on ESPN2 here in the States. Can Leclerc make it 3 wins in a row or will Hamilton reassert his authority as the top driver in the F1 paddock? Can Vettel surprise from P3 for a much-needed victory of his own in a season that is slipping away from him? Or will young Max have some tricks up his sleeve to pass his rivals and make a run towards victory? Hope to see you then to find out how it all shakes out!

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Italy — Results & aftermath

Leclerc holds off two Mercedes for second consecutive win in front of delirious Ferrari fans at Monza; Bottas P2, Hamilton P3; Vettel spins out of the points early

Rising star Charles Leclerc earned his second consecutive win and a permanent place in the hearts of Ferrari fans with a hard fought victory at Autodromo Nazionale Monza in Italy on Sunday. Coming off his first career win at historic Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium a week ago Leclerc arguably topped that personal first by fighting off both formidable Mercedes to take the win in front of the delirious tifosi at what Ferrari and Italians in general have always considered the most important race of the year. Using every defending skill and trick in his arsenal to hold off the Silver Arrows of first Lewis Hamilton and then Valtteri Bottas, Leclerc delivered the first Monza win for the famed Scuderia from just up the road in Maranello since 2010 when Fernando Alonso took the honors. The Ferrari SF90 now has reliably superior straight line speed to the Mercedes and the ultra-fast Monza circuit was the perfect proving ground for that, confirming the post-summer break trend that began at Spa. While it is too late for Leclerc to come anywhere close to challenging Hamilton for the title this season the talented Monegasque served notice that he could be the English 5-time champion’s biggest rival in the coming years.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Leclerc led from pole and he and Hamilton made their first stop for tires a lap apart, with Hamilton boxing on Lap 20 just one lap before Leclerc came in on Lap 21. But Ferrari opted to put Leclerc on the Hard Pirelli compound while Mercedes opted for Medium tires. It was an intriguing decision by Ferrari with potential pitfalls if Leclerc could not make the Hard tires work effectively for the remainder of the race. He was the only driver that opted for this strategy. The two contenders on their different tire compounds promptly began battling for the lead in spirited fashion and when Hamilton tried to make the pass on Lap 23 after closing the gap to within a whisker’s distance Leclerc essentially shoved Hamilton off track to maintain his lead. Leclerc was shown the black and white flag for that but that only serves as a caution against future behavior and is not a penalty. Similarly, when Hamilton had reloaded and made another go at Leclerc on Lap 36 after two brief Virtual Safety Car periods Leclerc locked up through the edge of the chicane and drove straight over the curbs. But the stewards ruled that he gained no real advantage over Hamilton even while rejoining in front of the Mercedes. By this time Hamilton’s tires were going off and his teammate Bottas, who had stayed out longer on his first stint than the two frontrunners and pitted on Lap 28 for his own set of Mediums, was closing down both of the leaders from his P3 position. When Hamilton had a lockup of his own on Lap 42 of the 53 lap contest and had to take the escape route into the chicane it was clear his tires were shot. Bottas easily inherited P2 without any internecine warfare and set about trying to catch Leclerc to try and take the victory for himself.

But Leclerc had other ideas on this day. Continue reading →

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Italy — Qualifying results

Ascendent Leclerc grabs second consecutive pole as Ferrari look strong for home race; Hamilton P2 & Bottas P3 in messy quali as teams get timing wrong for late runs in Q3

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc grabbed his second pole position in a row in a strange Saturday qualifying for tomorrow’s Italian Grand Prix. In front of the rabidly pro-Ferrari tifosi in the stands of the legendary Autodromo Nazionale Monza, the fastest of F1 circuits, Leclerc laid down a storming lap early in Q3. That ended up as the best time when nearly all the teams inexplicably left it too late later in the session and all but McLaren’s Carlos Sainz failed to make the start line prior to Q3 expiring. It was a strange ending but the Ferrari faithful will take the result of having their young Monegasque hero on the pole even if the confusion at the end of Q3 prevented Sebastian Vettel from bettering his P4 time. The two Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas split the Prancing Horses and will start P2 and P3 respectively. Hamilton will be looking to put young Leclerc back in his place while Leclerc will be looking to maximize the SF90s newly superior pace to score his second consecutive win tomorrow. With the two elite teams of the sport lining up side by side in the first two rows the start could well be the pivotal moment of the race.

Further back on the grid, Renault found startlingly good pace with their chassis’ downforce defects turning into advantages at ultra-quick Monza. Daniel Ricciardo set the fifth fastest time while his teammate Nico Huikenberg was P6. Sainz pulled his McLaren up to P7 by dint of persistence and running the most laps of any other runner, while the Red Bull of Alexander Albon could do no better than a P8 time in his second qualifying effort for the team since being promoted for the Belgian GP a week ago. His more heralded teammate Max Verstappen barely made an appearance in Q1 and will start at the back of the grid due to engine penalties. Racing Point’s Lance Stroll earned a solid P9 on the grid while Kimi Raikkonen, who caused a longish red flag period in Q3 after losing it in the Parabolica and backing into the barriers, is slated to start P10 but may face grid-spot penalties if he damaged his gearbox in the incident.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Italian GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 16 Charles Leclerc FERRARI 1:20.126 1:19.553 1:19.307 18
2 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:20.272 1:19.464 1:19.346 16
3 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:20.156 1:20.018 1:19.354 17
4 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:20.378 1:19.715 1:19.457 17
5 3 Daniel Ricciardo RENAULT 1:20.374 1:19.833 1:19.839 13
6 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 1:20.155 1:20.275 1:20.049 14
7 55 Carlos Sainz MCLAREN RENAULT 1:20.413 1:20.202 1:20.455 20
8 23 Alexander Albon RED BULL RACING HONDA 1:20.382 1:20.021 DNF 15
9 18 Lance Stroll RACING POINT BWT MERCEDES 1:20.643 1:20.498 DNF 19
10 7 Kimi Räikkönen ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI 1:20.634 1:20.515 DNF 16

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race airs live on ESPN2 beginning at 9AM Eastern here in the States. Hope to see you then to find out if Ferrari can win in front of the home fans or if Mercedes will spoil the Prancing Horses’ party!

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Belgium — Results & aftermath

Leclerc scores maiden F1 win as Ferrari bests Mercedes in Belgium; Hamilton P2 & Bottas P3 for Silver Arrows

In the first race back from the summer break and on a sunny Sunday at Spa-Francorchamps that was dimmed by the tragic death of up and coming Formula 2 driver Anthoine Hubert in the feature race on Saturday, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc made good on the flashes of brilliance he has so often shown this season to score his maiden Formula 1 victory at one of the most legendary circuits on the calendar. The Prancing Horses finally put together their pace advantage with enough aero efficiency and reliability to best the normally supreme Silver Arrows of Mercedes. Leclerc started from pole and his senior teammate Sebastian Vettel began in P2 after Ferrari locked out the front row in Saturday qualifying, forcing Mercedes to play catch-up with their drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas starting in P3 and P4 respectively. Hamilton was able to better Vettel late in the race to seize P2 and then did an outstanding job closing the gap to Leclerc. But the Englishman ran out of laps and had to settle for a second place finish, which hardly did his massive points lead in the Drivers’ Championship any harm whatsoever. Bottas, who was re-signed by Mercedes for another year during the break, finished P3.

Despite finishing off the podium in P4 Vettel did yeoman’s work for his team. After being the first of the top runners to pit on Lap 16 and doffing his starting Soft Pirelli’s for the more durable Mediums, Vettel inherited the lead when first his teammate, then Hamilton and then Bottas pitted on the successive laps of 21, 22 and 23. But rather than fighting to keep the lead Vettel played the good solider and gifted P1 back to Leclerc on Lap 26. The proud German 4-time champion then played a superb rear gunner role for Leclerc’s benefit holding up Hamilton for several laps before finally being passed on the Kimmel Straight on Lap 32. It was an unusual show of selflessness for any F1 driver let alone Vettel and must have been appreciated by the team. But having pitted so early, with the team perhaps banking in a late Safety Car that never materialized, Vettel was doomed to stop again for fresh rubber on Lap 34 while the top 3 sailed away from his grasp.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

The race got off to a choppy start with a nasty tangle between Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen going into Turn 1 at La Source. The result was floor damage for Raikkonen but a catastrophic steering failure for Verstappen that sent the Dutchman spearing off into the barriers at the top of the hill. Thankfully Verstappen was uninjured but his day was over almost before it began, putting an end to a superb recent run that saw him win two of the previous four contests, as well as his finishing streak of 25 consecutive top 5 finishes. The ensuing Safety Car period was too early to benefit anyone strategically and only lasted until the end of Lap 4.

Outside of the elite Top 4 and with Verstappen and Raikkonen’s misfortunes blowing the points positions wide open McLaren’s Lando Norris looked to score a massive P5 result after his teammate Carlos Sainz suffered a breakdown on Lap 3. But Norris’s car died on the start finish straight on the last lap of this 44 lap tilt. So the heartbroken rookie could only watch as car after car was able to finish in front of him and he slid down the order and out of the points in P11. The main beneficiary of Norris’s agony was Alexander Albon, making his debut for Red Bull after being promoted from Toro Rosso during the summer break. Albon gladly took that P5 position, while Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Toro Rosso opportunistically grabbed P6 and P7 respectively.  Nico Hulkenberg salvaged at least a little something for struggling Renault with an eighth place finish despite the fact that he will not be returning to the factory team next year. The second Toro Rosso of Pierre Gasly, who was demoted back down from Red Bull to make room for Albon, soothed his injured pride just a little bit with a P9 result. And the second Racing Point of Lance Stroll took the last points paying position by coming home in P10 after wheel banging his way past Haas’ Romain Grosjean late in the race.

Top 10 finishers of the Belgian Gran Prix:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 16 Charles Leclerc FERRARI 44 1:23:45.710 25
2 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 44 +0.981s 18
3 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 44 +12.585s 15
4 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 44 +26.422s 13
5 23 Alexander Albon RED BULL RACING HONDA 44 +81.325s 10
6 11 Sergio Perez RACING POINT BWT MERCEDES 44 +84.448s 8
7 26 Daniil Kvyat SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 44 +89.657s 6
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 44 +106.639s 4
9 10 Pierre Gasly SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 44 +109.168s 2
10 18 Lance Stroll RACING POINT BWT MERCEDES 44 +109.838s 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

The next race is in but a week’s time at the similarly legendary Autodromo Nazionale Monza circuit right in Ferrari’s backyard. With the Scuderia on the ascent that high speed circuit should suit the Prancing Horses’ straight line advantage and the tifosi will be looking for an even better result from their pilots at the expense of mighty Mercedes. Hope to see you then to find out how it all shakes out!

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Hungary — Results & aftermath

Hamilton redeems Mercedes’ 2-stop gamble by hunting down Verstappen Red Bull for victory late in the game; Ferrari’s Vettel & Leclerc P3 & P4 but miles off the pace

The last race before the summer break turned into a thrilling affair in Hungary on Sunday, with Red Bull’s Max Vertsappen seeking to win his first race from pole and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton looking for redemption after a disastrously sloppy run at a rainy Hockenheim a week ago. It all came down to a crucial strategy call by the Silver Arrows braintrust that even the supremely skilled Hamilton was uncertain would succeed. With an insurmountable lead to the trailing Ferraris behind him and having wrung the life out his Hard Pirellis chasing down Verstappen in the lead for 18 laps, his best attempts to pass all thwarted, Mercedes gambled and called Hamilton back in for a fresh set of Medium tires on Lap 49. The strategists had worked the sums and believed that Hamilton’s fresher and better performing rubber would be able to make up huge chunks of time on the Dutchman, who was running a conventional one-stopper and had switched to the Hards off of Mediums way back on Lap 25. While it took several laps to begin paying off and Hamilton voiced his doubts about the call during that limbo period the maneuver finally started coming good on Lap 59 when the delta between Hamilton’s tire performance increase and Vertsappen’s aging Pirrellis’ drop off began to intersect.

At first it crept up to over a second a lap pace advantage for Hamilton. By Lap 65 the English defending champion was more than 2 seconds a lap faster than the struggling Vertasppan, who could do nothing to avert his fate at the front of the race. With the Red Bulls’ tires completely shagged, Hamilton made an easy pass down into Turn 1 on Lap 67 to take the lead with three laps remaining at the Hungaroring. Verstappen subsequently dove to the pits on Lap 68 to change to Soft tires and set the fastest lap for the bonus point but it was cold comfort for the surging prodigy, who was looking for his third victory in the last four GP, as well as running then table in Hungary after his first-ever career pole position. But Verstppen was a victim of his success to a degree and the team were unwilling to roll the dice on throwing away his front-running track position with a like-for-like stop when Hamilton hit the pits for his second stop. So Hamilton rewarded team Mercedes’ excellent strategy gamble with qualifying lap after qualifying lap to take the win and restore what the 5-time champ will certainly see as the natural pecking order of F1 in 2019. But one thing is for certain — Verstappen in the intpoving Red Bull versus Hamilton in the on-the-limit Mercedes is the fight that every Formula1 fan has been anticipating for some time now. If the second half of the season is going to be anything like these last several tight races that battle is going to be epic.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

It was certainly not all good news for Mercedes, or Red Bull for that matter. Their second driver, Valtteri Bottas, who appears to be genuinely at risk for keeping his factory Merc seat, had just the start he didn’t need after out-qualifying Hamilton in P2. Continue reading →

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Hungary — Qualifying results

Verstappen finally grabs maiden pole at Hungaroring for ascendent Red Bull; Bottas bests Hamilton P2 to P3; Ferrari trails

Red Bull’s phenom Max Verstappen finally came good with his first career pole position during Saturday qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix. Despite having seven F1 GP victories already under his belt by the age of 21 pole position has eluded him in this Mercedes dominated era. Not any more. The Dutch wunderkind blistered the Hungaroring to the tune of 1:14.572, shattering the lap record and besting the next closest competitor, Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas, by a slim .018. Although it may be too late to do anything about Mercedes hegemony after their mostly dominant first half this year Verstappen and Red Bull are showing signs of challenging the inconsistent Ferrari for second in the Championships. Young Max has won two of the last three Grand Prix, including his masterclass at the rain-soaked Hockenheimring last weekend, and the RB15 with him behind the wheel is clearly on the ascent. Ferrari and Mercedes had better watch out.

Bottas’ P2 was a welcome respite after whispers have begun about his future at the Mercedes factory team after crashing out in Germany last week. That he grabbed the second spot on the front row at the expense of his teammate Lewis Hamilton, who could do no better than a P3 start on the grid, was all the more satisfying for the Finn. Hamilton will line up in Row 2 alongside the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, who recovered after spinning his Prancing Horse firmly into the barrier on the exit of the last turn in Q1 to qualify in P4. Leclerc is another star driver who, like Hamilton and Bottas, will be looking for redemption after a miserable time of it in Germany last race. Leclerc’s teammate Sebastian Vettel, who conversely had a terrific run from last to P2 in Hockenheim, could do no better than the fifth fastest lap in qualifying. The second Red Bull of Pierre Gasly was once again well behind his team leader in P6. But McLaren’s Lando Norris out-performed expectations with a very solid P7 time.

The other McLaren of Carlos Sainz was P8, proving that the team have finally found consistent pace for the first time in years. Rounding out the top 10 qualifiers, Romain Grosjean drove his older-spec Haas up into P9 and the Alfa-Romeo of Kimi Raikkonen will start P10.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Hungarian GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING HONDA 1:15.817 1:15.573 1:14.572 16
2 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 1:16.078 1:15.669 1:14.590 19
3 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 1:16.068 1:15.548 1:14.769 22
4 16 Charles Leclerc FERRARI 1:16.337 1:15.792 1:15.043 17
5 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI 1:16.452 1:15.885 1:15.071 18
6 10 Pierre Gasly RED BULL RACING HONDA 1:16.716 1:16.393 1:15.450 19
7 4 Lando Norris MCLAREN RENAULT 1:16.697 1:16.060 1:15.800 18
8 55 Carlos Sainz MCLAREN RENAULT 1:16.493 1:16.308 1:15.852 20
9 8 Romain Grosjean HAAS FERRARI 1:16.978 1:16.319 1:16.013 21
10 7 Kimi Räikkönen ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI 1:16.506 1:16.518 1:16.041 20

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race, the last before the big summer hiatus, airs live on ESPN2 beginning at 9AM here in the States. Hope to see you then to find out of Verstappen can once again take it to the Formula 1 super powers and drive Red Bull back into the conversation when we talk about elite teams.

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Germany — Results & aftermath

Verstappen reigns supreme in wet & wild German GP; Vettel battles back from 20th to P2; Kvyat an unlikely P3 as treacherous Turn 16 brings disaster for Mercedes, Leclerc

Sunday’s German Grand Prix from a wet and wooly Hockenheimring had a chaotic throwback feel from beginning to end. But Red Bull’s wunderkind Max Verstappen outlasted all other rivals in the trickiest of mixed conditions to add another stunning victory to his increasingly impressive resume. The young Dutchman showed again why he is considered the future of Formula 1, as he put on another masterclass of wet weather driving. He even overcame a spin to vanquish the elements, the circuit and his rivals en route to the win, his second in the last three contests. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel salvaged the Scuderia’s day at the races after their young challenger, Charles Leclerc, crashed out midway through the race. Vettel kept his cool even when his car did not seem to be working that well and piloted his Prancing Horse from the back of the field and twentieth on the grid, where he was relegated after a turbo issue caused him to miss Saturday qualifying entirely, all the way up to a P2 finish. It was a remarkable turnaround for the 4-time champion and may give Vettel the confidence boost he needs after a hard luck first half of the 2019 campaign. Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat earned the the last place of the podium with a stellar P3 finish, a dark horse result if there ever was one and a great moment for both the new father and the Toro Rosso team.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Meanwhile Mercedes had a disastrous day as they suffered the rare ignominy of both their cars finishing out of the points.* How it all unfolded was as surprising as it was dramatic. The race began with formation laps under the Safety Car on the wet circuit which had been drenched with rain about forty minutes prior to the start of the race. That trimmed four laps off the scheduled 67-lap race distance but no customers would be asking for a refund when the day was done. With the whole field starting on full Wet Pirelli rain tires as the lights finally went out for the start, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton got away cleanly from pole and his teammate Valtteri Bottas swamped Verstappen to grab P2 when the Red Bull man spun his rears and bogged down. Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen even bettered Verstappen’s start, though the Dutchman quickly retook P3 from the veteran Finn. The chaos to follow was foreshadowed when Racing Point’s Sergio Perez spun and crashed out bringing out the first of many Safety Cars of the day. That sent the main contenders scrambling to the pits for Intermediate tires on a track that was very damp but no longer soaking wet. It was the right call as the time difference between those who stayed out on full wets and those who changed to Inters quickly proved.

The next chapter in this epic occurred when Daniel Ricciardo’s Renault blew an engine on Lap 15 and prompted a Virtual Safety Car. That sent Charles Leclerc diving to the pits for fresh Inters, a clever call by a Ferrari team that has often not made those this year. Continue reading →

2019 F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain — Results & aftermath

Hamilton continues mastery at Silverstone with lucky win, hard-luck Bottas P2 after missing out during Safety Car; Leclerc salvages P3 for Ferrari as Vettel collides with Verstappen

In a barnburner of a British Grand Prix on Sunday Mercedes ace Lewis Hamilton took advantage of a mid-race Safety Car period to duck into the pits for his one and only tire change and gain an advantage on the race leader and his teammate, Valtteri Bottas. Worse still for Bottas, he had already stopped for a like-for-like tire switch for another set of Medium Pirellis, meaning the Finn would definitely have to stop again for the mandatory second tire compound. So Hamilton not only got a relatively “free” pit stop under the greatly reduced Safety Car-induced speeds of his competitors but also gained the race lead via that maneuver. It was one he would never relinquish as both Mercedes pulled away from the field when the Safety Car was withdrawn at the end of Lap 23. The pole-sitting Bottas was doomed to make another stop on Lap 46 for fresh rubber during fully green flag track conditions costing him in the neighborhood of 20 seconds as Hamilton, who had shrewdly gambled on holding out for a one-stopper, raced around the course. And even though Bottas went onto the Soft Pirrelli’s Hamilton still maintained that gap of over 20 seconds and even set the fastest lap for the extra point on his won Hard tires en route to his record 6th British GP victory at Silverstone. Once again, the fact that Formula 1 does not immediately close the pits and force the drivers to bunch up together before the pits do open when a full course caution occurs like so many other top series do — IndyCar, IMSA, NASCAR — led to a driver at a fortuitous position on the track gaining a major advantage over his competitors. Bottas will feel hard done by the way his strategy failed to play out amidst the roulette-like luck of the Safety Car deployment. But Hamilton and his home fans were jubilant as the victorious Englishman grabbed a Union Flag from one of the marshals after finishing first, happily driving it around and wearing it proudly on the podium for all to see.

Safety Car shenanigans aside, the race itself was undoubtedly one of the best of the season with battles all over the field and fierce whee-to-wheel jousting. While Mercedes eventually showed their clear superiority, the battle between the Ferraris and Red Bulls was race-long and decidedly intense. Ferrari’s Chalres Leclerc and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen renewed their door-banging acquaintance of two weeks ago in Austria for lap after lap to open this race. They even took it into the pits with Verstappen muscling his way past Leclerc after both cars had been serviced on Lap 14 for a momentary advantage. But Verstappen struggled with grip on exit and Leclerc immediately passed the Dutchman back on track, maintaining his P4 position with authority. When Alfa-Romeo’s Antonio Giovinnazi beached it in a gravel trap on Lap 20 bringing out that fateful Safety Car Leclerc pitted again for Hard tires but still emerged in front of Vertsappen. But once the race went green again Verstappen was able to dispatch Leclerc and his own teammate Pierre Gasly, who was finally running a competitive race, for P4. This puts him directly behind the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel and Verstappen set about hunting the German down. In short order Vertsappen was on the Prancing Horse’s tail and on Lap 36 he made a forceful pass for P3 streaking into Stowe. But as Verstappen decelerated for the upcoming corner, Vettel, certainly keen to retake the position, failed to slow enough and rammed into the back of the Red Bull bouncing Vertsppen’s car off the track with some force. Amazingly Vertsppenn’s mount was intact and able to continue. Vettel, however, was forced to pit for a new nose due to his miscalculation, a race-destroying own goal by the 4-time champion that saw him drop from a possible podium to a lowly P16 finish. Once again the formerly peerless Vettel committed an unforced error with dire consequences for his championship aspirations.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Leclerc was able to take advantage of the Verstappen-Vettel melee and zip on by both cars to inherit the P3 position that the Monegasque would never relinquish. It was Leclrec’s fourth consecutive podium finish and the young driver is surely looking like the future at Ferrari. Gasly also took advantage of his teammate’s misfortune to seize P4, the young Frenchman’s best finish of the season. The stricken car of Verstappen was badly wounded but still managed to drive home P5. If Red Bull can stay this close to Ferrari on performance for the remainder of the year there should be plenty more great battles to come between these four closely matched drivers.

Further back in the top 10 McLaren’s Carlos Sainz stayed out fo trouble and patiently worked his way up to a solid P6 finish. The two Renaults of Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Huilkneberg both finished in the points in P7 and P10 respectively. And the veteran Kimi Raikkonen showed his savvy and skill at Silverstone by willing his overmatched Alfa Romeo up to P8, while Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat also did well to come home P9.

Top 10 finishers of the British GP:

POS NO DRIVER CAR LAPS TIME/RETIRED PTS
1 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES 52 1:21:08.452 26
2 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES 52 +24.928s 18
3 16 Charles Leclerc FERRARI 52 +30.117s 15
4 10 Pierre Gasly RED BULL RACING HONDA 52 +34.692s 12
5 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING HONDA 52 +39.458s 10
6 55 Carlos Sainz MCLAREN RENAULT 52 +53.639s 8
7 3 Daniel Ricciardo RENAULT 52 +54.401s 6
8 7 Kimi Räikkönen ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI 52 +65.540s 4
9 26 Daniil Kvyat SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA 52 +66.720s 2
10 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT 52 +72.733s 1

Complete race results available via Formula1.com.

The next race is in two weeks time — the German Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring. Hopefully the action at the British Grand Prix is a harbinger of good things to come as the battle between Ferrari and Red Bull heats up even more. And of course Bottas will be looking for retribution against his championship leading teammate Hamilton. Hope to see you then to see how it all shakes out!