Abu Dhabi GP Race Report

The last race of the season is always a race of lasts.  Gasly got a guard of honour as he left the Alpha Tauri garage for the last time.  Vettel wore a helmet with photos of his supporters. Ricciardo had all his family with him.   Williams explained how to make the racey car go vroom vroom please no crash to Latifi.

Everyone was clean away at the start, I feel everyone has improved greatly this season in this respect.  Hamilton continued to have awful luck in Abu Dhabi as Sainz tapped him off the track.  He came back on track in front of the Ferrari and was finally made to give the place back.  By Lap 9, Russell asked, as he seems to do most races, if he was free to race his team mate.  Once confirmed, he was straight past him.

Mercedes are keen to pamper Hamilton as they gave Russell a 5.something second pit stop and then released him into the path of his friend Norris.  He was given a 5 second penalty for this.  There were a few slow stops, including Verstappen and the departing Vettel (his last pit stop?).

Alonso took the last bad luck as he retired for his last race with Alpine, on this stint has a race driver with the Enstone-based team.   Latifi and Schumacher finished as they started and continued by crashing into each other.  Vettel finished the race asking: "How did we get the strategy so wrong?"

With 3 laps to go, Hamilton lost all sort of functions on his car, pitting and retiring.  He could have brought out a safety car to finish the Abu Dhabi race with a bang, as is traditional.  

Verstappen had an easy win; not even a little panic about something not feeling right on the car.  LeClerc took second place, with Perez behind him and taking second place in the championship.  Vettel scored one point for finishing 10th and Ricciardo scored two for finishing 9th.

There were doughnuts all round.

Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying Report

The big news at the event was mostly about those leaving the paddock: Vettel, with everyone celebrating his career, Ricciardo, potentially heading to a third driver job at Red Bull travelling full circle, Schumacher, who turned out to be too expensive despite the sponsorship money he brought and Latifi, unmentioned really.  Where were the Latifi tribute helmets?

Latifi's last qualifying session was the first session and he was out plum last.  Schumacher was out in the second Qualifying session.  Alonso was happy with 11th, I think his expectation of his soon-to-be-ex team was very low.

In the third session, Vettel finished 9th with Ricciardo behind him and due to take a 3 place penalty.  At the front, it was two Red Bulls, then two Ferraris, then 2 Mercedes.  There are plenty of people still fighting for points or to prove a point in the race, so it could be explosive.

Brazil GP Race Report

Following a shaken up Sprint, Russell looked confident on pole.  Otmar, team principal of Alpine, told us that he has advised his battling drivers that they need to be cognisant that there are a thousand people working to get them on the track and not to push each other off it.

Hamilton, notably, did not sing along with the Brazilian national anthem, tut tut for an honourary citizen.

Russell got off to a great start and maintained his lead ahead of his team mate.  It looked like everyone was clean away until, Ricciardo, out for "points and fun" and starting 11th, tagged pole winner Magnussen, who spun and came back round and took him out of the race.  The Safety Car came out.  No one pitted at first but Albon came in eventually for some new Medium tyres.

Russell managed to hold the lead from the restart but behind him old foes, Hamilton and Verstappen came together with the Red Bull needing a new front wing.  Hamilton: "You know how Verstappem is."  Immediately LeClerc and Norris tagged each other, sending LeClerc into the wall but able to escape and rejoin the race in 18th, right behind his championship nemesis this year.  Ferrari were able to recover the podium place from Norris with Sainz overtaking him.

Despite these incidents all looking like racing incidents, Verstappen and Norris were both awarded 5 second penalties.

Just as LeClerc put in Fastest Lap, Ferrari called him to the pits for new tyres, in a very Ferrari move.  There was a lot of potential pit stop overtakes but nothing of note.  The displeasure with Alonso at Alpine manifested itself in a very long pit stop for him.  Au revoir.

When Hamilton passed Perez for second place, the crowd went wild.  I don't think anyone would mind a Mercedes victory at this race to feel reassured that there are a number of drivers that can win a race.  An angry Hamilton came in for a third set of tyres as did Perez, then Russell.

Having soldiered through 52 laps, trying not to vomit or poop in in his pants, Norris lost power on his McLaren and came to a stop on the track.  He sat dejectedly by the side of the track.  A Virtual Safety Car was set then a real one came out.  The McLaren was cleared and Russell was ready to lead the restart.  He checked with his team whether he was racing Hamilton, who was right behind him, or whether they were going to hold position to maintain the 1 2.

Further back, Ocon was given firm instructions not to fight his team mate Alonso.  Russell was clean away at the restart, then the main fight was Perez and Sainz, with Perez holding the place initially then losing it.  Ocon "let" Alonso through, with Vettel falling back.  LeClerc had finally made it back up to the place he started despite his team endlessly pitting him.  Russell slowly pulled out enough of a lead to be out of hte DRS zone ahead of Hamilton.  Perez became a sitting duck, with even Alonso taking 5th place from him.  Vestappen was fighting back from calamity and easily took his team mate.  LeClerc pushed and pushed for Sainz to give him the podium and extra championship points.

With Russell taking the win, I expect this means him and Hamilton will be bitter rivals next year.  Somehow Hamilton took Driver of the Day, despite many other stronger contenders.  Is this the surprise winner of the year that we've been waiting for?  Not really, in my book.  Verstappen was told to give the place back to Perez and refused.  Examples up and down the parc ferme of how team mate relationships differ.  I think the happier dynamics of this year will be gone next season.

Brazil GP Qualifying and Sprint Report

It was a doozy of a Qualifying session, interrupted by rain but without endless red flags and pauses.  The headline, of course, was Magnussen getting pole to the shock and immense joy of his Haas team.  He was rewarded by doing a shed load more press.  This is the nearest thing we've had to a surprise winner, the first season I can ever remember not having one underdog race winner.

A red flag was brought out when Russell misinterpreted the advice of visiting the beach whilst in Brazil and beached his car in the gravel.  Verstappen, whom some would consider the natural pole-sitter, was second and Russell kept third place, as his red flag, followed by the rain, meant that no one else could set a quicker lap than the initial laps set.  Williams managed a creditable 11th place, just ahead of a frustrated and sarcastic LeClerc.  Once again Ferrari, Ferraried things up again, by being the only team to send a car out on wet weather tyres on a dry track.  Norris took 4th place despite having been suffering from a bad bout of food poisoning and looking like the shell of a man.  Unfortunately this all set the grid places for the shorter spring and not the main race, which would have been much more interesting.  

A new day and a new event, the Sprint...Magnussen held his position off the start, with Russell challenging but ultimately not taking second from Verstappen.  Carlando were battling in 4th and 5th.  Alonso's team mate pushed him off the track,  The inevitable happened on the third lap and Red Bull were in the lead, by midway through the Great Dane was 6th.

With the one (world champion-driven) Alpine having to pit for a new wing and tyres and ending up at the back of the pit, the Aston Martin drivers battled with Stroll pushing the (world champion-driven) Aston Martin off the track.  Stroll was given a 10 second penalty for the event, so doubly bad for the team.

Verstappen and Russell (miraculously) were able to battle it out for the lead.Whilst Albon spun his Williams and, having qualified 11th, will start last (Alonso starting next to him).  The Mercedes were absolutely storming, Russell able to take the lead and Hamilton battling for third from Sainz.

Did Verstappen have a fault with his car from the beginning of the race or was he playing it safe (very off-character if so), as not only Russell got past but Sainz too, damaging the Red Bull front wing in the process.  Next, Hamilton was cleanly past on the main straight, to the delight of his countrymen.  I suppose if Verstappen can have several home tracks, then Hamilton can scoop this one up through his honoury citizenship.

Not really a maiden win for Russell but glory nevertheless.  Perez asked if Verstappen would give him the place to get himself an extra point, which he needed in his championship battle again LeClerc.  I don't understand why Red Bull didn't put team orders in place for this.

Then the post-race shenanigans happened.  Zhou, Ricciardo and Hamilton were being investigated for a starting procedure infringement.  Gasly was called to the stewards for breaching some kind of speed limit.  Gasly was now close to having too many penalty points and being awarded a race ban.  Stroll denied any wrongdoing, as did Ocon, who is clearly now just riding out his Alonso experience.

With Verstappen starting 4th on the grid for the main race, the grid wasn't too "back to normal" after the sprint.  It's set for an interesting race, if only at the start.

Mexico GP Race Report

It was a party atmosphere in Mexico, although not for Hamilton, who was booed the whole weekend.  There was great hope that the new design regulations would enable more overtaking here.

It was a good start for everyone, no incidents, Verstappen maintaining his lead but not completely unchallenged.  Russell went for it but after a few corners his team mate passed him and left him to battle Perez.  Selflessly, he let the home hero past for a podium position.

Gasly forced Stroll off the track and was awarded a 5 second penalty.  The team had a new chance this race to see if they can serve a penalty correctly.

There was no way Perez was going to have a good race.  When that many people are cheering you on, there's only one thing that will happen in Formula 1.  It started with a poor first pit stop.  Then slight trouble with his DRS wing, but it came back and he was easily able to overtake the Ferrari of LeClerc.   Sainz also had a troubled pit stop.

Hamilton came out from his pit stop behind Verstappen, who had pitted before.  Russell decided to stay out.  Unfortunately he didn't stay out that long and came out of his pit in 4th.

One of the most interesting tussles of the race was between Tsunoda and Ricciardo.  The Australian was just out for a battle and ended up sending the Alpha Tauri over his front wheel putting him out of the race.  The McLaren served a 10 second penalty for the incident.

Alonso retired at the side of the track and brought out a Virtual Safety Car but his car was cleared very tricky and no one  was able to take a cheap pit stop.

The final lap crept up on me, with Verstappen claiming victory and winning the most races in a season ever.  Hamilton was second and the Mexican third.  Unlucky and frustrated Russell finished 4th.  Miraculously Ricciardo stormed along and finished 7th, keeping 10 seconds ahead of Ocon to keep his place when the 10 second penalty was deducted and being crowned Driver of the Day in the most unexpected twist of the season.  He was also ahead of his team mate, which have been the first time since his win at Monza last year.

In other surprising finishes, Albon was 12th in his Williams.

It wasn't the most exciting of races and more overtaking had been predicted.  It was a shame that when Gasly and Ricciardo did overtake and it went slightly awry, they were penalised, which would also discourage overtaking attempts in the future.  The Ferrari drivers were very downhearted about being one minute behind the Red Bulls

Mexico GP Qualifying Report

The focus for the weekend was firstly, a Mexican, Perez, racing in Mexico which seems to be a more exciting location to have a native driver than anywhere else on the planet and, secondly, Christian Horner being quite irate at being punished for breaking the rules.

We were told this would be a good circuit for Williams but both cars were out in Q1 in 19th and 20th.  I don't need to say what order the drivers were in.  Vettel, who was supposed be on a "winning" streak, was out.  Hamilton was in first place, ruining the fiesta, with Perez in 7th.  Ricciardo, however, was through to Q2, to end the season on a high!

Again, no real surprises in Q2.  Ricciardo headed the drivers leaving Qualifying.

Ferrari had an awful show, qualifying 5th and 7th.  The Alpines might as well have not run as they were 9th and 10th.  Verstappen predictably took pole ahead of the two Mercedes, Russell then Hamilton.  George was kicking himself as he felt he could have taken pole.  It looked like there could be several different potential winners, but only one probable winner, Verstappen.

CotA US GP Qualifying & Race Report

With a few grid penalties being taken, Qualifying was already almost redundant as a method of arranging the starting grid; we just had to enjoy Sainz' supreme performance to gain pole.  LeClerc was clearly frustrated in second and Verstappen had a double-word champion bounce and nonchalance about his third place.  Amidst it all, the paddock was waiting with pitch forks and placards to hear what punishment would be handed to Red Bull for their breach of the cost cap last year, with many people comparing it to the Spygate of yesteryear.  Then the Red Bull camp was shaken by the death of Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz.  How much this unsettles their future is unsure.  The team chose to celebrate their co-founder by playing the Rolling Stones instead of their usual dross and wearing jeans.  

On race day, the stars were out to see the spectacle.  They'd actually already missed it as Ricciardo arrived on track horseback and may as well have continued that way for the heady heights on 17th on the grid and finishing a thrilling one place off last, after a gripping battle with Latifi.  Geri Halliwell manhandled Ed Sheeran about the Red Bull garage for maximum publicity.

The passing of Mateschitz was somewhat preempted as he had been ill but what to do on race day was somewhat hastily prepared with David Coulthard trotted out to ask the crowd to applaud for an unspecified length of time.  Anyone associated with Red Bull was given front line status for this and drivers unblessed by the caffeinated spirit of extreme sports regulated to two lines back.  As Hamilton ranked in this number, he made sure to fist bump a large number of children, who didn't know who he was, who had been lined up next to the grid, presumably to promote inclusivity.

Hamilton then put in a complaint to his team about his brakes on his out lap, mechanics worked furiously to completely replace the brakes on both sides.  No problem with his start though.

Verstappen made a great start from second place and Sainz  a poor start from pole and was then bumped by Russell.  He spun, going to the back of the grid, radioing in with puncture then being wheeled into the garage.  I think he did longer driving Sky TV presenters around the track than he did in the race.  The Aston Martins did very well off the grid, in third and fifth on the second lap.  I'm sure it's not a spoiler to say they didn't finish that well.

Latifi spun his Williams on Lap 6, a notable race for him, as this is the first time his accidents have only had a negative effect on himself.

The race went on and Verstappen was struggling with wind.

People came into the pits, people came out.  Not much happened.  Then Bottas spun and beached himself in the gravel, which is quite a feat as CotA is mainly tarmac run off area.  A Safety Car came out and gave LeClerc, Vettel and Alonso a cheap pit stop.

Just after the Safety Car period finished, another started as Alonso took off over next year's team mate, Stroll.  I wonder who the new boss will blame, his expensive new star or his son?  I have no idea how but Alonso pitted and rejoined the race, still ahead of Ricciardo and Latifi.  Stroll was out of the race and with footage of cars driving through a lot of debris and smoke, the true extent of the damage was to be seen.

Gasly continues to be in the wrong place at the wrong time this season, being more than 10 car lengths behind the car in front during the Safety Car period and getting a 5 second penalty for that.  Turns out that, in the taking of the penalty, he was also in the wrong place at the wrong time and got another 5 second penalty.

Hamilton pitted to try the undercut with 20 laps to go and set off a fantastic chain of events.  Verstappen responded but had a shocker of a stop with a wheel gun failing.  LeClerc must have been told to do whatever Max did and also pitted, exiting the pits ahead of his rival.  In turn, they were behind Vettel leading the race with Hamilton behind him.  Hamilton overtook Vettel and went off to fight for his first win of the season and Vettel went into the pits for an abysmal stop that saw him drop right out of the points.  Predictably, Verstappen hunted down and overtook first LeClerc then Hamilton to take the win.  The action continued to the very end with Vettel and Magnussen racing for a few points and Russell taking the point for Fastest Lap off Red Bull.

Overall, probably one of the best races so far this season: a challenge for the drivers, nothing controversial coming out from the race directors and some great battles for the spectators.

Japan GP Race Report

The race was supposed to be dry at the start and then rain later during the event but the rain came down quite heavily as the drivers took to the track to drive round to their start positions.

LeClerc made a better start than Verstappen (who couldn't go diagonally quick enough to cover off the Ferrari) and clearly thought that in the wet, his rival wouldn't push too hard.  He was wrong and he did.  Verstappen took a risky pass and made it stick.  He was clearly out to race and not play it safe for the mathematically-possible championship.

The rain was coming down hard and the on-board shots showed how little the drivers could see.  One world champion, Alonso, hit another, Vettel.  This was not the biggest event of the first lap, as we were watching Alonso try and take Hamilton, we saw a flash of scarlet at the side...was LeClerc out of the race?  No, it was his team mate Sainz.  The Safety Car was out and we saw Albon pull to the side of the track with car failure and Gasly push a huge piece of hoarding around the track like a snow plough.

The race was then Red Flagged and we fast-forwarded through a lot of the coverage.  The drivers got back in the car and then the restart was suspended and I went  back to fast-forwarding.  I think the FIA needs to consider how racing can happen in wet weather conditions.  Eventually, the cars set off for a rolling start and the rain started to get heavier.  Drivers were asked on the radio what the visibility was like.

Despite the plumes of water behind the drivers, Latifi and Vettel came in for Intermediate tyres.  After a very brief period of analysis most of the rest of the pack came in too.  Russell decried the choice immediately and Schumacher was told that they would change to Inters when there was a Safety Car.  Schumacher led the race for a few metres and can now retire having fulfilled his father's legacy.

The race continued a little damp, with Hamilton and Ocon being the biggest battle on track.  Latifi, miraculously stayed in the points.

The clock counted down to the end of the race.  When it went red and the last lap occurred, Verstappen was in the lead and LeClerc in second and defending fiercely from Perez. To win the championship, Verstappen had to win and have the point for fastest lap if LeClerc was in second.  Zho though, held that prize.  Alpine finished a sterling 4th for Ocon and 7th for Alonso.  Latifi scored points for Williams and the McLarens finished exactly where they started.  Gasly, finishing last, will be glad with his new job at Alpine.

However, the eagle-eyed spotted that LeClerc went off the track and came back on holding his place against Perez.  Race Control also saw this and investigated and put the championship contender back a place, giving Verstappen the World Champion title.  So that's that.  At least someone told Johnny Herbert so he could tell Verstappen.  Probably not how Max dreamed it would be.

Japan GP Qualifying Report

With talk of budget cut fouls and a little driver reshuffle between the Alpine, Mercedes and Red Bull stables, this was going to be an interesting weekend.

Gasley massively struggled with his brakes and was out in Q1 along with the predictables: Stroll, Magnussen and both Williams.  Latifi was both last and 5 places behind last, having "Latified" someone last weekend.

The second Qualifying session was very tight.  Ricciardo had an amazing qualifying, up until the point Russell knocked him out by three milliseconds and put him in 11th place.  Vettel was through to Q3 and home boy Tsunoda was out.  The big news was Perez claiming the fastest time and Alonso (who was fastest in the wet practice session) second fastest time.

To finish it was all very predictable, with Verstappen taking pole despite have an awful final lap, ahead of LeClerc.  Charles was hoping for a little bit of rain on race day.  Vettel was very emotional to have driven his last Suzuka Qualifying.

There was some discussion whether Verstappen would receive a penalty for turning close to Norris.  He got a reprimand and many would say the stewards continue to favour the Dutchman.

Singapore GP Race Report

Tuning into the Singapore GP coverage, it was dry, then it was very, very wet.  And the race was delayed.  Then, just as abruptly, the rain stopped.  Water was cleared from the track and off the cars went to the grid.  

As predicted, Ferrari had put on woolen wheels and Perez took LeClerc at the start.  Hamilton lost out to Sainz and Verstappen was down to 12th from 8th.  Predictably it was a Williams that spun first, less predictably it was Albon not Latifi.  Hamilton radioed in to his team to say that they should have listened to his tyre call.

Zhou was the first driver to retire, colliding with Latifi (of course).  The first Safety Car was out.  It was too soon for anyone to take advantage and pit.  Latifi, having sustained a puncture and got back to the pits, was also out of the race.

By Lap 11, Verstappen was back up to 8th.  Brundle thought this put Verstappen back into contention for the podium.  A third of the way through the race and Verstappen was stuck behind Alonso.  The old man, out for his Sunday drive, must have been thinking that he'd done this 350 times before and will be doing it another 350 times in the future.  Unfortunately the Alpine engine, thought otherwise and conked out.  A Virtual Safety Car was called.  The only driver to pit was George Russell, who gave slick tyres a go.  As the Safety Car ended, we watched the Mercedes slip and slide over the track.

There was a third (Virtual) Safety Car for Albon, who collided with a barrier.  He managed to extricate the car but left his front wing behind in the wall.  That was two Williams out.

Next Ocon's Alpine engine died.  That was two Alpines out.   Fourth Virtual Safety Car and now Ted Kravitz was hallucinating slick tyres.

Rather brilliantly, Hamilton slid into a corner but managed to pull back out in between Norris and Verstappen who were battling.  He massively held up the championship leader, who then radioed in frequently that Hamilton's wing was about to fall off.  The floodgates opened for cars to come in for slick tyres: Gasly, LeClerc, Magnussen, Tsunoda, Vettel, Hamilton.  LeClerc overshot his pit spot and caused himself a 5+ second pit stop and cost himself the win.

Tsunoda couldn't keep his slick-tyred car on the track and, lo and behold, a fifth Safety Car.  At the restart, a frustrated Verstappen attacked Norris and went straight on down a slip round and did a handbrake turn.  He came back on track in...8th!  And needing to pit again.

Next up, Schumacher and Russell rub tyres and Russell picks up a puncture.

With 14 finishers, for Verstappen to start 8th and finish 7th was abysmal.  It wasn't like he was up and down but kept plummeting down and regaining the position.  It was certainly a fantastic race for Perez.  Nobody had Ricciardo finishing the race 5th, right behind his team mate.  Nobody had Latifi finishing the race and he didn't.

Singpore GP Qualifying Report

Well, the weekend kicked off to a thrilling start: rain and accounting.  Have Red Bull cheated the cost cap system?  Well, probably.  Are the other team principals outraged?  Yes.  Have they probably also been cheating the system?  Probably.

Then it was all "will it, won't it rain?"  There were lots of Yellow Flags for drivers having minor incidents, none of which were broadcast.  Despite putting on a second set of intermediate tyres, Ricciardo was out in 17th.  Bottas and Ocon were also out of qualifying, letting their team mates carry the can.

The second Qualifying session was dominated by the decision of when to change from Intermediate tyres to Slicks.  It was Charles LeClerc, de facto Ferrari strategist, who asked for Slicks, however, he was given Inters.  It was Lance Stroll, who actually went first and everyone braced themselves for a Red Flag when he hit the wall.  It didn't help him and he was out with Russell and fellow soft-compounders Zhou and Vettel, who messed up a corner.

In the last couple of minutes, it was close for pole position: Hamilton, then Alonso, then LeClerc.  Verstappen was trying too hard, aborting two laps, being called in, possibly because he was on the edge for fuel testing.  He will start 8th.  There was a lot of swearing.

At the end we saw LeClerc's helmet design for Singapore...gold and shiny...very Monaco.

Italy GP Race Report

The race started with a bananas grid, McLaren scored the second row and Williams were 8th and 10th.  It's always tempting to get your hopes up at races like this.  It was LeClerc's to lose though, with Verstappen starting in 7th and both rear gunners at the back of the pack with Lewis Hamilton.  Would Russell, starting 2nd, break his duck?  Norris went nowhere off the grid and caused the pack to have to move to avoid him.  It made a messy start, with LeClerc hearing the crowd roar as he kept his lead, Russell going off the track to secure the Ferrari in place and Ricciardo taking a confident 3rd.  Gasly was up to 4th, showing his dance card for the silly season recruiters.  Two laps in though Verstappen was in 3rd and on to the podium.  De Vries held his 8th place, with Williams team mate Latifi sinking to 14th.  By 5 laps in, Verstappen had overtaken Russell for 2nd.  Sainz was making excellent progress through the field to save his team mate from the Dutchman's clutches, whilst Perez just couldn't overtake the "slower" cars.  Hamilton had some incident at the start and couldn't get past 18th for a long time.  Perez was pitted and given a catherine wheel, which smoked it's way around the track.

Ricciardo held up the pack well and was in position to pick up a podium place if anyone Ferraried up at the front.  De Vries found himself in no position to overtake anyone in front of him, just needing to hold up everyone behind him.

Former Ferrari driver, Vettel, in his last Italian race, lost power and pulled off to the side of the track, bringing out the Virtual Safety Car.  Ferrari brought in LeClerc for a "free" stop and came out in 3rd ahead of Ricciardo.  The mechanics swarmed around the car like panicky wasps, in their celebratory yellow and black uniform.

The next round of pit stops shook things up more, with some teams winning and some losing.  Ricciardo and Gasly were battling on track, then Alpha Tauri did a poor stop and gave McLaren the place.

Alonso came in and was retired.  Was it the curse of the World Champion?  Or the curse of the former Ferrari drivers?

LeClerc continued to manage Ferrari's strategy from his cockpit as radio transmission was all about Plan B, Plan C and Plan D.  He's a busy man: lead driver, chief strategist, PR.

Stroll was retired in his Aston Martin.  Monza was putting drivers and their vehicles under pressure.  With 6 laps to go, Ricciardo's engine failed and last year's race winner was out and the Safety Car made an appearance.  His victory last year was a highlight of the season, this year his retirement saw a sour end to the race under the Safety Car.  Where the FIA trying to prove that they can handle these technically-tricky situations?  But only in Verstappen's favour.  The crowd, rightly, booed.  De Vries finished 9th and brought home some points for Williams.  I wonder whether the money this brings Williams will be more than Latifi brings in as a pay driver?  He also made Driver of the Day.

Ferrari told LeClerc he had raced well and managed the tyres well in a dejected tone.  I think they are starting to get scared about what LeClerc will say and do to the media and back behind closed doors.

Italy GP Qualifying Report

It was another Qualifying where the result of the session would not reflect the grid.  A Qualifying without purpose.

Off the track, Albon had appendicitis and was off for surgery leaving reserve rookie, Nyck De Vries to race in his place.  He started one tenth of a second off Latifi's pace, seemingly putting the nail in the coffin of the Canadian's career.  For no apparent reason, the Ferrari drivers had been dressed in yellow, like expensive bananas.  However, following on from the Dutch GP, the elegant and civilized Tfosi were breath of fresh air, if only because of the lack of flares.

In the first session, both Aston Martins failed to make the grade (great choice there, Fernando).  The Haas just couldn't catch a break, as they crossed track limits lap after lap.  Latifi's car just drove off the track and through a chicane despite his immense driving skills and he was out with his rookie team mate De Vries through.

Unfortunately, De Vries couldn't keep his Williams on the track all the way round on his final quick lap and was out in 13th but will move forward with other drivers taking penalties.  Ricciardo managed to get his car through to the final session though!

LeClerc took the pole from Verstappen to the delight of the crowd.  The commentary team frantically tried to work out who would start where, following penalties.  They still didn't know at the end of the broadcast.

Netherlands GP Race Report

Before the race Lewis Hamilton was out adjusting a sound system near his pit as it made the turn in close.  He had an eye for detail in this race that he did have the potential win.  However, most agreed it was Verstappen's to lose.

It was a clean start, then Magnussen couldn't keep his car on the road and went through the gravel, touched the wall and just as it looked like a Safety Car would be coming out, KMag kept the car going and went out the other side of the corner and rejoined the race behind Latifi.

The were some early pit stops, led by Vettel.  Alonso, having fought past both Alfa Tauris also pitted.  Some of the last in this phase were Sainz and Perez.  Perez went over the Ferrari wheel gun and Ferrari Ferraried things up by not having the right tyres ready and giving Sainz a 12 second stop.

Then there was not a lot of action for a long time.  After the Mercedes finally stopped and the proper order was resumed, Hamilton overtakes Perez.  The Mercedes are showing strength in straight line speed, as witnessed last race by Albon's Williams.

It wasn't until Lap 44 that Tsunoda pulled over at the side of the track, well on it really, telling his pit that the tyres weren't properly fitted.  All the teams came out into the pit ready.  His team told him they were fine and to keep going, so he did. Unfortunately, he had undone his seatbelt so had to pit anyway.  After the Perez spin and Safety Car yesterday and as the Red Bull's sister team, once again, something smells fishy at the sea side track of Zanderboorg.  Under the Virtual Safety Car, different teams did and didn't pit and for different tyres.  The key beneficiaries were the Mercedes, who were now 2nd and 3rd behind Verstappen.

10 laps later, Bottas stops on track.  Sainz Ferraris things up for himself, by overtaking Ocon under the Yellow Flag, next to the stranded car.  With the Alpha Romeo parked at the end of the straight, there was no clear way to remove the car.  The Ferrari was then released unsafely in front of an Alpine, placing an order for another penalty.

In retro 2021 style, Hamilton was in the lead under the Safety Car but lost it to Verstappen on the first corner.  The radio waves were blue with Lewis complaining to his team.  I'm not sure why.  It clearly distracted him because Russell went straight past him on the straight.  It seemed to all be about Russell being pitted for different tyres and not staying out to play the important role of "buffer" between himself and his current nemesis.  Just as we were processing this, LeClerc was past him for the last podium position.

The end of the race crept up on me.  Guido van der Garde wasn't good enough for the podium interviews and David Coulthard (at best an honorary Belgian) stood up.  Verstappen didn't get the hint to address the crowd in Dutch (or he doesn't speak Dutch?).  Russell joked about how close he and Hamilton are.  I think things are going to go the way of Rosberg and Bottas now.

Netherlands GP Qualifying Report

In Qualifying 1, there was nothing much to report beyond the bellowing cheers of the sea of orange-shirted fans as Verstappen lapped his way to first place.  Verstappen and LeClerc were confident of their first run times and didn't go out for a final run, as did Albon in his Williams!  Ricciardo went out in 18th with his team mate finishing 5th, don't know if he's driving slowly as a gesture to his team.  Vettel went wide across the pretend gravel and also went out.

There was no real shock in Q2 - Alonso went out.  The action was all down to pigeons and flares, which sounds like a fun night out in the 70s.

After the first runs in Q3 LeClerc was leading, so tension was mounting.  Stroll proved that money can buy you a lot of things but it can't buy you a consistent race car, as he was out with a technical problem.  In the closing minute, Perez spun, bringing out the yellow flags.  This meant that Verstappen was guaranteed pole as no one  could go quickly past his team mate's beached car.  The Orange Army got what they came for and it looked like we were in for a boring race.

Belgium GP Race Report

The race start was initially all clear with Alonso making a great get away into second.  Less great for the Williams, who started 6th and 11th and fell way back to 7th and 12th almost immediately.  Then Hamilton shunted Alonso, flying across the top of him and causing his own retirement.  Perez was back in second but completely undeservedly.

Lap 2 saw a Safety Car come out as Latifi (surely not driving again next year...Ricciardo for Williams?) put a tyre into the gravel and spun, taking out Bottas.

Verstappen cruised along, carving up the competition, with no one putting up much resistance.  This looked like it could have been a day for an underdog to swoop in for a glorious points position.  For Alonso, this would have proved he is not too old for this game.  For Ricciardo, it would prove he deserves a drive somewhere next season.  However he was overtaken by Albon in his Williams so there we go.  For Albon, this race was a chance to show off Williams' straight line speed and wave two fingers at Red Bull (as it goes passed him).

Once a quarter of the race had passed, Verstappen was behind his team mate and calling for him to move over.  Perez obviously fought hard and nearly took him out...no he didn't.  When Verstappen finally pitted from the lead, Sainz took the lead back.  LeClerc was a couple of places back and looking to overtake Perez, who did fight hard and nearly take him out.  In this case though, Russell overtook him.

When Verstappen did catch up with Sainz though, before half distance, it was an easy overtake.  With the Red Bulls firmly in the lead, the race focused on Albon and Ricciardo's fight for 9th.  The Battle of the Red Bull Rejects, if you will.

The second pit stop window opened and Ferrari double-stacked, with one tyre being slightly slow for LeClerc.  This wasn't too bad as he was, crucially, out ahead of Albon (!).  I imagine Alonso giving an "I told you so" shrug in his cockpit after a slow pit stop.

Then in a shock turn of events, Hamilton gave an interview and admitted that the crash with Alonso was his fault.

With five laps to go, Norris reported to his team that he was "really struggling" with his tyres.  He was told it was "too late for Plan G".  I assume Plan G wasn't to be part of the Albon train.

Ferrari hadn't really done too much to cock up their own race, until the last lap, when they pitted LeClerc to go for fresh tyres to get the fastest lap point.  Unfortunately they brought him out right in front of  Alonso, who immediately overtook him but he got the place back in the last few corners, not managing fastest lap.

Verstappen made winning look so easy.  All eyes on 2023 now.

Helmet cam was back and the porpoising looked dreadful, I don't know why we haven't seen anybody vomit into their own helmet yet.  I also wonder what Bottas and Hamilton said to each other as they sat and watched the race.

Belgium GP Qualifying Report

All the talk in Belgium was of Alonso and Ricciardo with a sprinkling of fear over the future of the race track.

Danny Ric's luck continued to plummet in the first session of Qualifying, just behind his team mate, he had a lap time disqualified and found himself falling down the grid as drivers popped in their last lap.  He did make it through though.  Albon put in a great lap to go 6th and Vettel was knocked out.

The big scalps in the second session were Ricciardo and Gasly.  The big news was Albon through, this seeming to be a great track for Williams.

In the final session, team mates were helping each other with a tow and every driver was tripping up another driver.  LeClerc gave Sainz a tow but he ruined it dropping his tyre into the gravel trap.  Albon finished 9th ahead of Norris.

With many grid penalties to be taken, it was very mixed up but impossible to understand qualifying.  Really, what was the point?  I had no idea who was starting where despite having watched the whole thing.  Perhaps, if you are taking a penalty, you should be disqualified from Qualifying and have sets of tyres removed?  Still rain predicted for the race... 

Hungary GP Race Report

Another day in Hungary and another set of weather conditions; the race was set to be windy and cold with several drivers locking up wheels and driving off the track on the way to the grid.  Finally it was announced that heavy rain was expected, so all predictions were off.

Vestappen and Perez were very slow to take their place in the formation lap.  Russell's youth showed when he failed to back the pack up in response to this.

Hamilton complained of a vibration in his brakes on the grid.  Getting his reason for not besting his team mate in early, although as it turned out the race would come to him.  Russell made a good start from pole and held his position, then, suddenly, there was a Virtual Safety Car on Lap 2 to clear debris on the track from a collision between Albon and Vettel.  With new engines in their motors, the Red Bulls flew past the Alpines afterwards.  They kept on moving up the grid, with Norris going backwards.  On Lap 21, we heard some very sweary radio from Verstappen.  Possibly with some engine trouble, it was hard to hear.  He was told to try "Fail 20", yesterday it was "Fail 21".  The Alpines had fought off the grid and continued to fight as they circled the track.  It didn't benefit the team, as Ricciardo earned a few pennies of his salary, taking both cars in the same corner.  The race continued and half way through, after a few botched pit stops, LeClerc mounted his attack on race leader Russell.  You could see the Ferrari was quicker and Russell played every card he held.  Finally, all the DRS and battery boosts aligned and LeClerc was passed and into first place.

Next came the second round of pit stops.  The Red Bulls went early and Mercedes went later, which led to Crofty saying: "The race leader is now in 6th".  Ferrari surprised everyone apart from me by putting on hard tyres when they had not run well for anyone else.  I wasn't surprised because it's exactly what Ferrari would do; putting the hard tyres on or losing them or trying their new chocolate compound.  Never matter, Verstappen overtook LeClerc but then spun and lost the place back, with Russell taking advantage of a surprised Perez behind his team mate.  Inevitably Verstappen did get back past LeClerc.  Brundle kept telling us how Ferrari have a mistake with the tyres.  Verstappen announced a new hip hop sensation "Little Drizzles".  Was the heavy rain here at last?

Further down the pack, Ricciardo locked up his tyres and nudged Stroll, sending him spinning and earning himself a 5 second penalty.   It's like he's composing the longest resignation letter ever.

For quite a while, Hamilton led the race but he was out by himself and we didn't see much of him.  He'll be happy with that on the records for this year though.  The hard tyres on the Ferrari made even the struggling Mercedes look good as Russell overtook LeClerc.  Hamilton was able to carve his way past Perez and Sainz and LeClerc found himself in 6th.  With 3 laps to go, Alonso was told that there would be rain on the last lap.  Next, Bottas retired at the side of the track and brought out a Virtual Safety Car.

In the end, it looked like an easy first place for Verstappen and I couldn't really tell you how he ended up there.  Red Bull were happily surprised with their win.  LeClerc will be wondering what he has to do to catch a break and whether his team are with him or against him.  Luckily he has a nice long holiday now to ponder this.  There's a seat going at Aston Martin.

There was lots of action during the race but were was the helmet cam?  It was back in abundance prior to the race but nothing during the race.  What a shame.

Hungary GP Qualifying Report

With heavy rain for FP3, Latifi took his Williams around the track fastest.  Could the team translate this into a superb qualifying result in the dry?  Though thick, dark clouds loomed.  Everything this week has been overshadowed with Vettel's news that he has created an Instagram account.  And used it to announce his retirement at the end of the season.  LeClerc wishes that were true.  Vettel's retirement post didn't divert the media's attention from his crashing out in the dry, from the lead, last weekend.

With the track evolving as the session went on, every car was out at the end of the first Qualifying session.  Fernando "wily old fox" Alonso backed everybody up to try and make the most of it.  Despite lots of potential, there were no surprises for the drivers leaving the Qualifying: Tsunoda, Albon, pensioner Vettel, Gasly and Latifi.  Williams and Alpha Tauri just haven't brought it again this season.  Latifi swearing all the way back to the pits for a mistake at the end of the lap which cost him dearly.  Gasly had a lap deleted.

With 4 minutes to go in the second Qualifying session, Perez felt drops of rain.  There was no one interesting in the bottom 5 any way, so it really didn't matter.  It can only have been a couple of drops though as Ocon and Bottas then put in a quick lap each and knocked out Perez.  The Mexican had already been having a rocky session with a lap time deleted for exceeding track limits and then having it re-instated.  He felt he was blocked by Magnussen on his fast lap.

On to the final session and Red Bull's bad luck continued with Verstappen losing power in the final run. The reliability issues that bounce between Ferrari and Red Bull has landed in Austria.  Sainz looked good for pole.  His team mate couldn't beat him.  Then, out of nowhere, Russell took it, with his team mate Hamilton ending the session with a DRS problem in the pits.  Norris scored 4th, 5 places ahead of his team mate Ricciardo.

Russell was first to acknowledge that beating the Ferraris in the race was unlikely and Hamilton was pretty dejected that it wasn't him taking the pole when it was a possibility for the team (and by team, he usually means him).

France GP Race Report

In response to an Insta Story between races, Ricciardo had lined up a long interview with Sky to explain that the problem with his performance is not him but the car.  Apparently, he cannot dance with this partner.  Some would say that the best dancers can perform with anyone - as the Strictly pros will tell you any day of the week.  And I'm sure his will tell us this next year.

LeClerc made a textbook start and held his position from Verstappen to lead the race.  Alonso also made an excellent start and made up 2 places.  Zhou dropped back to the end of the grid.  Ocon spun and hit Tusnoda and sending him off and right to the back (and earning the home boy a 5 second penalty).  Sainz only made up a couple of places on the first lap with Magnussen shooting up 7 places.  How did all these drivers jump forwards?  It seems Bottas lost 6 places somehow.   Choosing the harder tyres certainly cost those drivers.

The race plodded on and nothing much happened, Verstappen seemed to give up on the idea of overtaking on track.  Lap 18 our of 53 and a Yellow Flag came up, who was it?  Was it just the red and black stripes on the track making me think it was a Ferrari?  No, it was a Ferrari, LeClerc Ferraried up his own race, possibly due to old tyres or another throttle pedal problem?  No, he later admitted a mistake. We heard his radio back to the team, breathing heavily and furiously ending with a roar.  Unlike last year, Verstappen did check in to see if his rival was okay.  Many cars pitted under the ensuing Safety Car, Hamilton briefly taking the lead before pitting and losing it to Verstappen who had pitted a couple of laps earlier.  To even things out, Ferrari sent Sainz out of the pit box straight into Albon's Williams and we awaited his penalty.

Upon the restart, Sainz carved his way up the grid, past Ricciardo, Norris and Alonso almost in the same lap.  And so the race went on.  Sainz overtook Russell.  Hamilton went very wide off track.  Latifi took  his newly upgraded car for a wee spin.  

Finally, with 10 laps to go, Sainz goes for the podium place by overtaking Perez, who had a dull, dull race.  It was a maneuver that took several corners, during which Ferrari told him to box over the radio.  Russell, buoyed up by the move, went to take Perez too and nearly caused a collision.  Sainz then pitted and came out 9th, not sure why, how bad were the tyres?  Ferrari believe this was the safest option.

Russell is told that he will be able to hunt Perez down.  Sainz passes Ricciardo (as does Ocon), Ocon and Norris. then Alonso, setting fastest laps as he goes.  Following a Virtual Safety Car brought on by Zhou retiring at the side of the track, Russell caught Perez sleeping and passed him.

Merecedes were "freestyling" their set up this weekend and probably did not expect two podium places.  Hamilton finished by exhorting his team to "keep pushing".   Verstappen was very happy with his 25 points.  LeClerc was very harsh on himself and his mistake.  Fans need the battle, Rachael Brooks, for Sky, seem to be suggesting we should all club together to get him a sports psychologist or mentor.  We all want the fight.

Unusually, for a race with only one short Safety Car, an even briefer Virtual Safety Car and not much action, 6 cars didn't finish.  One week to go until the next race and we'll get to see what else Ferrari have in their arsenal to scupper their own races.  Fishes in the tank?  Choosing square tyres?  Forgetting to fuel the cars?  The mind boggles.