There was no news between Qualifying and the Race, so off we went. Verstappen held the lead from the grid but LeClerc took Norris's third place straight away. Hamilton, who wasn't sure about his soft tyre choice, made up one place, whilst his old nemesis, Alonso, fell back.
Just as I picked my phone to complete Wordle, Sainz makes a DRS pass on Verstappen round the outside of a corner, perfectly timed to take a second helping of open wing. This is the first time in a long time that someone has overtaken him. He radioed in to say the car was "loose"; was there something mechanically wrong with the car as it smoked it's way about and then his brake was on fire, or his tyre, or his engine. Verstappen pushed on for a while until the flames coming out the back of the car stopped in. It's his first reliability failure for a many a season. At this point, Perez was in 6th and ino position to step in to his team mate's shoes.
There was a flurry of pit stops by Lap 10, early on the 58 lap race. Sauber, once again, had a poor stop and will need to make changes.
Just as Sainz pitted from the lead and came out second behind Alonso, Hamilton radioed in with an engine failure. The moaning minnie pretty much manifested it for himself. A Virtual Safety Car was called, which was a gift for those who hadn't already pitted: Alonso, Ocon and Gasly.
Sainz and LeClerc were told to hold positions and later on there were more team orders, with Piasti moving over for Norris.
Everyone carried on from this point until the last lap when Russell had a major collision with the wall that left his car on it's side. This meant that everyone finished under a Virtual Safety Car. Alonso was subsequently given a 20 second place penalty for driving "unusually" and causing Russell to crash. Sainz invited LeClerc to move close to him and celebrate the 1, 2 finish together, but he didn't...sour grapes? He took Fastest Lap though; it feels likes a long time now since he has won a race. The McLarens were 3rd and 4th and Perez was 5th, hardly scooping up the points upon Max's retiral.
Sainz climbed very slowly and gingerly out of the car, so his recent surgery was apparent. The officials were trying to rush him about but it wasn't going to be possible. To make matters worse, he was then interviewed by Guenther Steiner.
The top ten was finished by Stroll, Tsunoda, Alonso and both Haas, which is a massive result for the American team. Albon, Ricciardo and Gasly came next, which was decent.
What can we look forward to in Japan and China? The return of a second chassis for Williams? Further wins for Ferrari? Further mechanical failure for Red Bull? Certainly more speculation about who will drive for which team in 2025.
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