Talking Formula

Hungary's Hungaroring served up the final instalment in the first triple-header of the season. Lewis Hamilton took control of the championship, taking his 2nd win of 2020 and overtaking his teammate in the drivers standings. The prospect of a wet race failed to materialise and it was business as usual for the Silver Arrows. Before discussing the racing, the display against racism from the drivers and F1 as a whole was once again, embarrassing. In Austria we saw the strongest display even though some drivers chose not to kneel. One week later, the TV pictures cut away after a few seconds to an airshow display, which I believe took place minutes beforehand. Hoping for a better effort this weekend, I cringed at how it unfolded. Some drivers were late, many didn't know where to stand, Giovinazzi did both and embarrassingly forgot his 'End Racism' t-shirt. Still only the same drivers took the knee. It was rushed, ill-thought out and lacking impact.  We then saw Hamilton disa...

F1 made history in Austria as for consecutive weekends, a race was held at the same venue, the Red Bull Ring. Despite arguments over social media hashtags, the 'Styrian' Grand Prix offered the unique opportunity for the teams and drivers to apply what they learned from Round 1.  A chaotic weather forecast spilled into Saturday and we were treated to a blockbuster qualifying session. Delayed sessions along with a potential cancellation, it teetered on the edge of disappointment but the stewards rightly deemed the conditions safe enough for track action. After all, these are 20 of the best drivers in the world.  Having impressed once again in practice, Racing Point and Sergio Perez especially, were unable to find similar pace in the wet. Ferrari had yet more issues as this time it was Vettel who knocked Leclerc out of Q2, with Q3 only rewarding the remaining Ferrari with a lowly 10th. Carlos Sainz stole an unexpected 3rd for McLaren, Esteban Ocon superbly placed his Renault into...

As soon as Max Verstappen started slowing coming out of Turn 1 my head was almost in my hands. The only excitement we were guaranteed in Sunday's Grand Prix was the Red Bull driver running the medium tyre and trying to beat the Mercedes on the alternate strategy. Thankfully the racing gods had something else in mind. To see cars finally line up on the grid and the lights go out made me giddy. An intriguing weekend started with Racing Point impressing and Ferrari seeming to have taken two steps back - most of its lap time being lost through engine performance. Qualifying saw Valtteri Bottas take a surprising pole position, pulling it out of the bag when it mattered, albeit he luckily escaped being beaten by Hamilton after he went off on his final run. Hamilton who was handed a 3-place grid penalty for failing to slow down under yellow flags as other drivers had done so, lined up P5. Lando Norris promoted up to P3, arguably outperformed his machinery as McLaren seemed convinced Racin...

At least half a dozen of the 2020 drivers are confirmed for next season, but many have not yet finalised deals. 2021 had the potential to be a driver merry-go-round, but now it looks set to be calmer than previously imagined. Part 1 will look at five teams - Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, Renault and Racing Point. 2021 would have beckoned the start of a new era of cleaner aerodynamics, fairer regulations and the hopeful beginning of closer on-track battles. Due to the economic impact of the pandemic, it was inevitable the regulations aimed at breathing new life into the sport would be delayed until 2022. Team stability into next year is now more advantageous and the market seems less out of sorts.  Nevertheless, there have been prompt moves from Ferrari to secure Carlos Sainz Jr. to partner Charles Leclerc, replacing Sebastian Vettel who will depart the Scuderia at the end of the season. Daniel Ricciardo was plucked from his underwhelming Renault seat, to form the ultra-charismatic an...