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Formula 1

Race starts at 4 pm in Azerbaijan/8 pm in Malaysia

With the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping across Europe this time last year, the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship had to be suspended. Many venues could not be used due to health restrictions and Baku in Azerbaijan was one of them, so there was no Azerbaijan Grand Prix for the first time since 2017 when the city was included as a venue for one of the rounds.

Baku, like Monaco, is also on a coast, in this case that of the Caspian Sea. Its City Circuit, however, could not present a more different street race challenge compared to Monaco. With a long, high-speed section parallel to the seafront, it is one of the easiest street circuits for overtaking.

Two tracks in one
One of the best ways to describe the layout of the Baku City Circuit is that it’s two tracks in one: half Monaco, half Monza. The twisty Old City section has a similar vibe to the streets of Monte Carlo, while the long straights and big braking zones are a characteristic it shares with the Italian Grand Prix venue.

Most street circuits don’t tend to register the same level of maximum g-forces as traditional tracks and Baku is no different. Because of these lower forces, it isn’t a demanding race physically for the drivers, as there is less strain on their neck. There are also more straights for them to do switch changes and there is a bit more margin for error with the barriers, so it is less mentally demanding too.

Baku City Circuit F1

But like street circuits, especially those in old cities like Baku, there are unforgiving walls of the old buildings and the surface has low grip. Unlike in 2019, Pirelli has made a decision to go one step softer on the compound range, providing the softest combination of tyres for this weekend. In 2019, the top three teams ran near-identical one-stop races, and no one used that season’s Hard compound in the race.

Because the corners don’t generate as much energy as other tracks, the drivers are more dependent on brake heat to keep the tyres warm. However, because of this, the softer tyre compounds are more sensitive to overheating and breaking apart, so it’s a tough balance to find between keeping the tyres warm and not overheating them.

Related: Brembo talks about braking at Baku

The championship so far
After a forgettable time at Monaco, Lewis Hamilton has been overtaken by Max Verstappen who is now 4 points in the lead after 5 rounds. The two drivers each have almost double the points of Lando Norris, who is in third position. As for the Constructors Championship, the Monaco win also moved the Red Bull Racing team to the top but with just 1 point difference. 60 points further back from Mercedes-AMG is the McLaren F1 team.

 

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After a year’s absence, Formula One cars will once again speed around the Baku  City Circuit for the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. This will be the fifth time in 6 years that the event has been run at the same venue along the coast of the Caspian Sea.

Demanding on brakes
It is the second street circuit to be used so far, after Monaco two weeks ago. Being a street circuit with narrow roads and tight turns, the track is classified as one of the most demanding tracks for brakes. On a scale of 1 to 5, Brembo engineers give it a 4 on the difficulty index, the same as the Sakhir Circuit in Bahrain.

The layout includes four 90° corners at the start which are highly demanding on the brakes, followed by other turns where the angle changes continuously and, consequently, so does the use of the brakes. The track has several technical corners like Turn 8 near the old town fortifications where there is no room for error.

Carbonfibre + aluminium
In addition to aluminium-lithium calipers and carbonfibre discs, Brembo also supplies F1 teams with brake pads, also made from carbonfibre. There are 5 different types for the front and 2 variations for the rear. They vary according to the specifications of the material used, the internal ventilation and the geometry.

The length of each pad ranges from 160 to 190 mm and the surface area from 50 to 90 sq. cm. while the weight varies from 150 to 300 grams. The pads have a friction coefficient of 0.5 and the operating temperature is the same as the discs. Both have very high thermal conductivity since they are in direct contact and made from similar materials.

20 seconds of braking per lap​
Over the 6 kms of circuit with 11 braking zones, the brakes are used for just under 20 seconds per lap. This is twice as much as on the Imola track and 1.2 seconds more than Monaco. Despite this, at Baku, the load on the brake pedal from start to finish is lower, 53.5 metric tons.

In ​5 of the 11 braking sections, the load does not even reach 90 kgs; deceleration is just 3.8g and braking lasts for 1.86 seconds. In 4 braking sections, on the other hand, the brake system is in use for over 2.13 seconds even if the load on the brake pedal reaches a peak of 166 kgs and does not exceed 140 kgs in the other cases.

5.5g right after the starting line​​​
Of the 11 braking sections of the Baku City Circuit, 4 are classified as very demanding on the brakes, another 4 are of medium difficulty, and the remaining 3 are light. The most challenging one for the brake system is the first corner where the cars arrive at 334 km/h and then have to slow down to 125 km/h within just 1.85 seconds. To do this, drivers apply a load of 131 kgs on the brake pedal and as the car decelerates, there will be a force of 5.5g as they cover a distance of 107 metres.

 

♦ Charles Leclerc, who had qualified with the fastest time and crashed at the end of the final session but could claim pole position on the grid, lost that position as the damage to his Ferrari’s gearbox was too great. This gave Red Bull driver Max Verstappen the pole position, with Mercedes-AMG’s Valtteri Bottas alongside. Uncharacteristically, Lewis Hamilton had qualified only in seventh (and moved up to sixth).

♦ The tightness of the circuit makes passing difficult so the status quo was maintained for most of the front runners although Alpine F1’s Fernando Alonso managed to move up two positions from his grid position to 14th.

♦ Left alone to represent Ferrari, Carlos Sainz slowly took time off the gap with Bottas which was about 3 seconds with 10 laps completed.

♦ By lap 13, gaps were beginning to open up as some drivers were urged to pick up the pace. Sergio Perez, who was 20 seconds from his Red Bull team mate, was trying hard to get past Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel.

♦ Nikita Mazepin (Haas F1) and Lando Norris (McLaren) were some of the drivers who got black and white flags to warn them about track limits. If they did it too many times, the Stewards would give them time penalities.

♦ With 29 laps done, all eyes were on the pits to see who would come in for their tyre changes. It was Lewis Hamilton who was the first, follow by his team mater Bottas was was around 63 seconds behind Verstappen. And then disaster struck for the Finn to make it worse as a front wheel could not come off the Mercedes-AMG. As a result, the tyre could not be changed – and it meant retirement for Bottas.

♦ Amazingly, Pierre Gasly (Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda), who was just ahead of Hamilton, came in and returned to the track still ahead of the Mercedes-AMG driver. But Vettel was quick to exploit the pit stops, passing Gasly and Hamilton to take fifth place.

♦ With half the 78-lap race completed, Verstappen was not secure yet as he had a lead of only 3 seconds ahead of Sainz. With Bottas out, there was a strong possibility of Hamilton losing his championship lead and implications for the team as well.

♦ With 30 laps remaining, Norris was in third – too far from Sainz but 7 seconds ahead of Perez. Vettel was a further 11 seconds but trying very hard with what has been an uncompetitive car.

♦ Hamilton was not giving up easily and pushed hard although, unlike other tracks where he could push forwardm difficulty overtaking held him back behind other cars.

♦ As the laps counted down, Perez was one of the more aggressive drivers, trying hard to pass Norris and be on the podium place instead of the McLaren driver.

♦ Yuki Tsunoda (Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda), who seemed to show promise at the start of the season, was the last car to pit and he was down in 16th position.

♦ As 10 laps remained, Hamilton came in for a new set of tyres, aiming to go flat out to the finish and improve his position from seventh and more importantly, try and set the fastest lap and get that one bonus point. He was the only driver to come into the pits twice – and he was also about to be lapped by Verstappen.

♦ Perez kept the pressure on Norris right till the end, coming within less than 2 seconds, but his fight could not continue as Verstappen crossed the finish line – and into the championship lead.

With all its twists and turns as well as tight corners, you would think that the street circuit for the 67th Monaco Grand Prix would be the toughest on brakes among all the circuits of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship. However, it’s not and according to Brembo technicians, the Monaco Circuit falls into the category of tracks that present an average challenge for the brakes. On a difficulty index scale of 1 to 5, it is classified as a three, exactly the same as the tracks of the last three races.

The circuit stands out for its high aerodynamic load and the considerable percentage of braking time. The calipers and brake fluid reach high temperatures and vapour lock was a common phenomenon in the past, causing the lengthening of the brake pedal action. ​

F1

​Brembo carbon doesn’t melt at 3,000°C
Carbon discs began to be used in Formula 1 in the 1980s, and then spread into other motorsport competitions. Indeed, no other element offers that special combination of light weight, high thermal conductivity and absence of dilation, even at 1,000°C, a distinguishing feature of Brembo’s F1 discs.

The density of carbon is 1.7 grams per cubic centimetre, compared with 7.8 grams for steel and 7.3 grams for gray cast iron. Its thermal expansion coefficient is 1/15th that of steel and 1/11th that of cast iron. The melting point of carbon is higher than 3,000°C, compared with the 1,200°C of cast iron and 1,800°C of steel. ​

3 metres make all the difference​
Carbon discs aren’t suitable for road use, mainly because the braking system doesn’t reach the minimum operating temperatures needed, but also due to their high consumption. Some of their benefits, however, can be found in the carbon ceramic discs of which Brembo is the main worldwide manufacturer.

Carbon ceramic discs allow a saving of 5 to 6 kgs in weight compared with traditional cast iron discs. What’s more, their lifespan may even equal that of the vehicle they’re mounted on, depending on how it’s driven. But, above all, carbon ceramic guarantees a reduction of about 3 metres in the braking distance from 100 km/h to 0 km/h compared with a traditional disc. ​

4.6g deceleration after the tunnel
Of the 11 braking sections of the Monaco Circuit, two are classified as very demanding on the brakes, another two are of medium difficulty, and the remaining 7 are light. The hardest for the braking system is the one that comes after the tunnel (Turn 10): the cars arrive at 307 km/h and have to get down to 90 km/h within just 121 metres. To do this, the drivers brake for 2.47 seconds, applying a load of 146 kgs on the pedal and experience a deceleration force of 4.6g.

870 braking points
Despite being the shortest World Championship track at just 3.337 kms, the Monaco Circuit has 11 braking points per lap (although only one of them is particularly intense). On 4 turns, the brakes need to be used for no more than 1.1 second. The drivers use their brakes for 18.7 seconds, corresponding to 27% of the total race time.

Notwithstanding the 7 braking points per lap where the load on the pedal is less than 90 kgs), the overall load exerted by each driver from the starting line to the checkered flag is more than 62 metric tons. Only in Singapore – also a street circuit – is the figure higher than this. It also has to be said that the braking system is used about 870 times on the Monaco track, from start to finish.​ ​

The 2021 Monaco Grand Prix will start at 3 pm in Monaco/9 pm in Malaysia tonight.

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Race starts at 3 pm in Monaco/9 pm  in Malaysia

After a forced cancellation last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Formula 1 World Championship is able to return to the classic street circuit of Monaco this year for the fifth round. This will be the 67th Monaco Grand Prix since the first one was held in 1950 as the second round of the inaugural Formula 1 World Championship. Although it was not run in the first half of the 1950s, when it resumed as a venue on the calendar, it would remain there every year with 2020 being the first time that there was no Monaco GP.

The Monaco circuit runs around the seaside resort city and is narrow with many tight turns, but the drivers love it. It is a challenging track with no run-offs, just concrete walls and barriers, and the relentless nature of the circuit is what makes it so special.

This year, Aston Martin joins Mercedes-AMG to supply the FIA Official Cars. At Monaco, the Safety Car will be a Vantage (below) while the Medical Car will be a DBX SUV (above).

“For me, personally, in terms of workload for the driver, Monaco is the toughest because there is no time to rest” said Mercedes-AMG’s Valtteri Bottas. “It is literally corner after corner, and even the straights aren’t really straight, you are always turning even just a little bit.”

“There’s really no race like it… it’s such a unique, intense weekend for the drivers and the team, with no margin for error. It puts the fire under your ass, and we love the challenge!” added his boss, Toto Wolff.

The 3.337-km circuit has been resurfaced in a number of locations and it’s in good condition, according to Mario Isola, Pirelli’s Head of F1 and Car Racing. “There’s significant track evolution, thanks also to the support events. We saw solid performance from all three compounds, with a similar time gap between all of them. We’ve seen nothing to suggest that teams will deviate from the usual one-stopper at Monaco, with the soft and the medium preferred,” he said.

The key to competitiveness is to gradually build pace through each session in order to peak during Saturday’s crucial qualifying session. That process is even more difficult this year due to the reduced duration of Friday’s practice sessions. With the narrowness of the track, it is vital to get a good position on the starting grid.

While completing a lap, the driver’s vision at high-speed and their ability to react quickly to any changes in the environment is crucial. This is especially challenging at a track like Monaco, which is narrow and twisty, with blind corners and potential surprises around every one of its 19 corners (8 left-handers and 11 right-handers).

As the weekend progresses, the drivers are filtering through different reference points to pick the quickest lines, the latest braking points and progressively build confidence. This is particularly crucial in Monaco, knowing any accidents in the practice sessions could limit their running and even their chances to take part in Qualifying.

Intense super-short, super-quick lap
With limited overtaking opportunities in Monaco, single lap pace in qualifying is vital which puts pressure on the outlap to ensure the car crosses the start line in optimum shape to begin the timed run. The driver will adjust their brake balance continuously through the outlap while weaving, accelerating and braking to generate temperature in the brakes and tyres, while also charging the ERS system so they have maximum power to deploy on the timed lap.

In Monaco, the challenge and intensity are crammed into a super-short, super-quick lap that requires maximum precision and maximum concentration. There’s no relenting… one slip of focus, and the driver and team’s hard work will be wiped away.

Hamilton at the top
Lewis Hamilton continues to lead in the Drivers Championship, as does his team. His closest challenger is Max Verstappen who is 14 points behind and whose Red Bull Racing team is also second, 29 points behind the Mercedes-AMG team.

The most successful driver at Monaco has been the late Ayrton Senna, with 6 wins that started when he was with Lotus in 1987. Senna also contributed 5 wins to McLaren’s total of 15 wins, the most of any constructor.

The Turkish Grand Prix, which was to replace the cancelled Canadian GP, has also been postponed and will possibly be cancelled altogether. Most of the F1 teams are based in the UK and stricter travel restrictions (imposed recently by the UK) relating to Turkey make it difficult for the teams to travel there.

The race promoters hoped that the situation will change later on and a new date on the 2021 calendar can be scheduled. This development means that there will again be two races in Austria, like last year. The first will be the Styrian Grand Prix on June 27, and the second will be the Austrian Grand Prix on July 4. Both races will be run at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg.

Last year’s Turkish Grand Prix was a wet one,
This weekend, F1 will be back on the streets of twisty Monaco street circuit after not being able to run in 2020.

This weekend will see the fifth round run in Monaco, which was forced to cancel last year due to worsening COVID-19 pandemic conditions. It was one of 7 races on the 22-round calendar which had to be cancelled.

The National Vaccination Program in Malaysia is free of charge.

♦ No incidents on the opening lap for a change but Lewis Hamilton lost his lead at the first corner to Max Verstappen, while Charles Leclerc slipped past Valtteri Bottas to take third place. Not a great start for the two Mercedes-AMG drivers.

♦ There was some puzzlement as Pierre Gasly seemed to have started in the wrong position, which the Stewards looked into. They later found that he had moved too soon at the start and gave him a 5-second penalty.

♦ Although Leclerc had gotten in front of Bottas, he could not run away and the Mercedes-AMG driver was cautious too. Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez ere getting closer to the front.

♦ On lap 9, Scuderia Alphatauri’s Yuki Tsunoda had to pull to the side of the track as his car seemed to lose power (it was later reported to be a fuel pressure issue). His parked position being hazardous brought the Safety Car out. The day before, the Japanese driver had made critical remarks about what he felt was difference in performance between his car and team mate Gasly’s – but later apologised to his team, saying he was frustrated by the way the car behaved.

♦ The Safety Car was only required for one lap and by lap 10, the race resumed, with Verstappen still ahead and trying to extend the gap from Hamilton again.

♦ While the Safety Car was on the track, Antonio Giovinazzi raced into the Alfa Romeo pits to get the tyres changed… but a delay saw him fuming for longer than necessary and when he rejoined, he had dropped all the way to the back.

♦ Lance Stroll was waiting to pounce on Fernando Alonso the moment the Safety Car moved off, and when he did so, he timed it perfectly and powered past the Spaniard on the outside of Turn 4 to take 10th position.

♦ Going to lap 20, Hamilton was still behind Verstappen but the gap was not changing much. However, the British driver had concerns about his tyres although he is well known at being able to manage them when things get tough.

♦ At the one-third mark – 22 laps – the watching began as the leaders waited to see who would head to the pits first. The Safety Car had made a one-stop strategy a realistic possibility but for Verstappen, the gap was still too small. Further back in the field, though, the rush to the pits started as one driver after another came in.

♦ Bottas came in on lap 24 and on the next lap, Verstappen decided to also come in and spent just 4.2 seconds getting the tyres changed. When he rejoined, he slotted into fifth, just behind team mate Perez. But it was only momentarily as Perez dutifully moved aside to let him start the chase. Hamilton, in spite of tyre concerns, decided to stay out a bit longer and see if he could get a good gap in the lead.

♦ Toto Wolff was unhappy seeing that Haas driver Nikita Mazepin making it difficult for Hamilton to get by. He informed the officials and asked for action to be taken to make sure the Russian driver did not cause unnecessary problems. When other drivers have complained about him, Mazepin has used his rookie ‘inexperience’ as an excuse.

♦ Hamilton was finally called in on lap 29 and a hard-charging Verstappen quickly took over the lead. The chase was on again for Hamilton, now with fresh tyres and a gap of 2 seconds to close. As an indication of his determination, he set the fastest lap as the race crossed the halfway point.

♦ At the other end of the field, Nicholas Latifi pushed Giovinazzi to make a mistake on lap 37 and swept by to take 16th position, just behind his Williams team mate Georg Russell. Sebastian Vettel and Alonso, both past world champions, were also engaged in a battle for 11th place.

♦ Ricciardo was trying whatever he could to prevent Perez from passing him and eventually, his weaving was noticeable and he received an official warning (via his team) to stop such driving tactics.

♦ On lap 43, Hamilton was asked to come in for a set of mediums which would be advantageous when the race entered its final stages. His position was taken by Bottas who kept the Red Bull in sight and when Hamilton got back, he was 22 seconds behind Verstappen. He was about a second quicker per lap than the Red Bull driver, and if he kept that pace, he would catch up by the last lap as 22 laps remained.

♦ By lap 48, Perez finally out-manoeuvered Ricciardo on the outside and grabbed fifth place, with Leclerc next on his list.

♦ On lap 53, Hamilton was trailing his team mate and ready to pass, but Bottas didn’t seem to want to give up his position readily. But he got called in for another set of tyres so Hamilton was able to see Verstappen right in his sights. The gap was around 10 seconds and the number of laps remaining in the race was 12.

♦ With 9 laps remaining, Bottas was in fourth but with fresh tyres, he would be able to displace Lerclerc (who had done only one tyre change) and get up on the podium. There was even the possibility of second place if the Red Bull tyres couldn’t last till the end.

♦ As the 60th lap started, Hamilton was slipstreaming Verstappen’s car and going into Turn 1, the Mercedes-AMG surged past on the outside and took the lead. Having dropped a place, the Red Bull team decided to bring him their car in for a new set of tyres, by which time the gap to Hamilton had stretched to 23 seconds. He therefore had to just keep ahead of Bottas who was about 11 seconds behind. The new tyres gave Verstappen to set a very fast lap so he could get that 1 extra point.

♦ Once again, it was Hamilton who took the chequered flag at the Spanish Grand Prix, the victory being his 98th in his 14 years of racing in F1. The top four finishers ended the race as they had started it, and Tsunoda was the only non-finisher.

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Race starts at 3 pm in Spain/9 pm in Malaysia

Although last weekend’s race was held in Portugal, which is just next door to Spain, the journey from the circuit in Portimao to the Catalunya Circuit in Barcelona for this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix still covered 1,300 kms. While the event in Spain was revised to August last year (due to cancellations and postponements in the early part of the year), the Spanish Grand Prix is back in its usual period on the calendar for the third round of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship.

No information on track conditions
For the first time since 2014, the F1 teams did not have a pre-season test session at this circuit so the teams don’t have as much information as in previous years. According to Pirelli, the tyre-suppliers for F1, weather conditions are likely to be considerably cooler than last year, but the high-energy demands of the track remain. This is especially so for the very long Turn 3 right-hander, which puts considerable forces through the front-left tyre in particular. Turn 9 is also challenging for the tyres and as a result, the hardest compounds are still considered the most appropriate choice.

Track layout modified
The track layout has changed this year, with a modified profile to Turn 10 to improve safety. The result is a left-hander that is slightly wider than the previous version, which has allowed for a bigger run-off area and will shorten the braking zone, with a higher entry speed to the corner. The lap is also now 20 metres longer.

“Car balance in Spain can often be influenced by the wind, as it sometimes changes direction during the day. There is usually a tailwind on the main straight in the morning, producing a headwind into the high-speed corners. This provides good car stability. But the wind tends to rotate to the opposite direction later in the day, which gives drivers a tailwind into the fast corners and makes the balance trickier,” said Toto Wolff, the Mercedes-AMG team boss.

The well-known demands of the track make a one-stopper very challenging – although the likelihood of cooler weather should help this year. In 2020, the race was won by Mercedes-AMG driver Lewis Hamilton with a soft-medium-medium two-stopper, although Sergio Perez finished fifth after stopping only once from soft to medium, while Valtteri Bottas was on the podium using a three-stop strategy.

The Catalunya circuit is a track where it’s quite difficult to overtake for most of the lap, although the long downhill straight can give a power and DRS advantage to help line up a passing move. All this makes qualifying position and race strategy particularly important to gain track position. With a number of support races as well, the surface should evolve reasonably quickly with more rubber laid down, compared to some other F1 rounds this year where Formula 1 has been the only track action.

“It’s always tricky in Barcelona with the grip and tyre usage, so there’s lots for us to learn and understand. I think the new Turn 10 was interesting and, on our side, we have room for improvement there,” said Alpine F1 Team’s Esteban Ocon.

Championship is wide open
After three rounds, the championship remains wide open although Lewis Hamilton managed to increase the gap from Max Verstappen after winning last weekend. The pair have alternated first and second places since the championship started, with Verstappen fiercely determined to beat reigning champion Hamilton this year.

In the Constructors Championship, the two Mercedes-AMG drivers have been picking up lot of points to pass the 100 mark. This puts the team 18 points ahead of Red Bull Racing, with McLaren 30 points further back. So far, Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN, Haas F1 and Williams Racing have yet to score a single point.

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Romain Grojean’s escape from the burning wreck of his Haas F1 car at the Bahrain Grand Prix last November captured worldwide attention. It was amazing that he came out of the inferno, suffering only severe burns to his hands. The safety measures to protect drivers had worked even though the way the car broke up shocked everyone.

Despite his valiant efforts to recover, Romain was not allowed to drive in  the final two races of the season – a season that would be his last in F1, which he entered in 2009. During his career, the 35-year old drive had 179 starts and stood on the podium 10 times.

Romain Grosjean F1
He was inside and inferno when his car caught fire but miraculously, Romain escaped with only severe burns on his hands.

The F1 world shared his sadness at not having a chance to have a last drive that was not remembered as the one of the dramatic accident. But Toto Wolff, boss of the Mercedes-AMG team, made a commitment to Romain that his crash would not be the closing story of his time in F1. He offered the driver a chance to drive one last time – and it would be in Lewis Hamilton’s World-Championship-winning racing car.

Preparing for drive at Paul Ricard
Romain has already been to the Mercedes-AMG F1 team’s base in England to undergo a seat fit and has spent time in the simulator in preparation for a specially-organised drive at the Frenchman’s home track, the Paul Ricard Circuit, on June 29. He will also take part in a series of demo laps ahead of the French Grand Prix which will be on  June 27.

“I am so excited to jump back in an F1 car! It will be a special opportunity for me and to drive a World Championship-winning Mercedes will be a unique experience. I’m very grateful to Mercedes F1 and to Toto for the opportunity. The first I heard about the chance to drive a Mercedes was in my hospital bed in Bahrain when Toto was speaking to the media and made the invitation. Reading that news cheered me up a lot!” said Romain.

Romain Grosjean F1

F1 Tota Wolff and Romain Grosjean
Last December, Toto Wolff made a commitment to Romain to let him have a drive in a F1 car so that his memory of his last drive would be a good one, and not of the accident.

A commitment from Toto
Toto said that the idea first came when it looked like Romain would be ending his active career in Formula 1. “We didn’t want his accident to be his last moment in an F1 car, and we are very happy to support Romain with this special opportunity,” he said.

“I have known Romain since his days in Formula 3 when he won the Championship. He enjoyed a long and successful F1 career and we wanted to make sure that his final memories would be at the wheel of a championship-winning car,” Toto said. “Romain’s accident reminds us of the dangers these guys face each time they climb into the cockpit but it’s also a testament to the incredible steps this sport has taken to improve safety over the years. I know the F1 community will celebrate seeing Romain back on track.”

While he leaves F1, Romain is not stopping racing altogether. He will compete in the IndyCar series for Dale Coyne Racing with RWR.

♦ It seemed like a good, incident-free start to the race… at least for the first lap. Then, as the second lap was beginning, Kimi Raikkonen ran into the back of Antonio Giovinazzi (his team mate). The front wing came off and he tried to drive on but could not and had to turn off into the gravel. An early start as usual for the Safety Car which was deployed to allow the Alfa Romeo to be removed and debris cleared. Giovinazzi, however, was still in the race and Daniel Ricciardo was waiting to pounce on the ‘wounded’ Alfa Romeo.

♦ Although Valtterri Bottas was in the lead, his engineers saw the brakes overheating (smoke was coming out too) and this was a concern for the restart when the Safety Car moved off on lap 6. Max Verstappen was ready for the moment and got around Lewis Hamilton to slot into second place and aim for the race leader.

♦ But the World Champion was not going to settle for third place, and within a lap, he slipped part Verstappen to regain second position less than a second behind his team mate.

♦ Lando Norris had used his tyre advantage to overtake Sergio Perez for 4th place, but then the Mexican driver who is with Red Bull Racing this year out-maneuvered the McLaren driver going through Turn 1 with the help of DRS.

♦ Ricciardo had started from 16th position and steadily worked his way up the field. By lap 18, he was able to pass Sebastian Vettel to grab 10th position and start thinking of some points to take home at the end of the race.

♦ Bottas didn’t make things easy for Hamilton, who was showing a lot of determination to take the lead. On lap 20, as the cars raced around Turn 1, Hamilton surged around his team mate and into the lead. It was like a replay of the 2020 race when Hamilton did the same thing.

♦ With a third of the race done, most cars were changing their soft tyres for harder ones. The two Mercedes-AMG cars were ahead of two Red Bulls, with one Ferrari (Charles Leclerc) about 12 seconds further back. Verstappen was within striking distance of Bottas but never had a clear chance to overtaken, allowing Hamilton to concentrate on building up his buffer with a succession of fastest laps.

♦ At the halfway mark, it was still both Mercedes-AMGs ahead, and then two Red Bulls. Fernando Alonso was the better-placed Alpine in 6th, watching Ricciardo’s progress and waiting for a chance to attack the McLaren driver, Both Ferraris were still in the points, but in 9th and 19th positions, they could easily drop out too. In fact, Leclerc was under threat from the second Alpine driven by Esteban Ocon, just a couple of seconds away.

♦ On lap 36, Verstappen started the chain of pit stops to get onto harder tyres to sustain an offensive. While Bottas shot in after the Dutchman, Hamilton was willing to stay out a bit longer, telling team that he thought the tyres were still okay, but he was ordered in. At that point, he had a 4-second lead and Perez inherited the lead of 12 seconds. But if he came into the pits, he would immediately fall to 4th.

♦ 22 laps remained as Hamilton sped after Perez, setting a fastest lap again. Verstappen had no answer to the speed of the Mercedes-AMG. He also had to watch his mirrors for Bottas who had been given encouragement personally by the team boss to go after the Red Bull.

♦ On lap 47, Nikita Mazepin, the ‘bad boy’ of the F1 world with his controversial behaviour, caught the attention of the Stewards who investigated him ignoring  blue flags, which required him to allow the race leader to pass. The Russian drver has made some mistakes before, and explained that he was new and ‘unaware’. This time, he got a 5-second penalty although that was of no great consequence since he was at the back of the field anyway.

♦ By lap 51, Perez was probably finding it difficult with the old tyres, and Hamilton got by to regain the lead. The Red Bull driver then came in for the long-overrdue tyre change and as expected, slotted into 4th place when the rejoined.

♦ With the softer tyres, Perez pushed hard and got a fastest lap. He was making steady progress up the field in the final 10 laps but had still to get past some cars. As 5 laps remained, Hamilton was in a reasonably comfortable and safe lead, 5 seconds ahead. Bottas was not trying any harder and would settle for third, with Perez not within striking distance.

♦ 2 laps before the end, with a 30-second gap, Bottas rushed into the pits to get soft tyres and he was planning to go for the fastest lap and snatch that 1 bonus point from Perez. Veerstappen did the same thing since he had a 32-second lead ahead of Bottas, and he too was eyeing that 1 precious point.

♦ As Hamilton took the chequered flag, Verstappen and Bottas were both trying hard to be quickest driver of the day – and Bottas was the one because Verstappen’s time was deleted due to track limits infringement.

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