2020 Portuguese GP - Portimao

[Nitrodaze]

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We come to the circuit of Portimao Portugal, with Rebull clearly on the up and Mercedes seemly stagnating as they typically do at this stage of each previous seasons. With six races to go, Hamilton can feel Verstapenn begin to apply pressure as Redbull typically do at the close of each previous seasons.

This is the first wildcard opportunity for Mercedes to close the constructors championship. And for Hamilton to set a new record for the most wins in F1. The battle for second place in the drivers championship also gets more interesting, as Verstapenn threatens to close up and pass Bottas to seize the runners up position from a lacklustre Bottas [mainly due to poor luck]. Bottas would need to be on his best form for the rest of the season or face the embarrassment of falling to 3rd in the championship. A situation that would definitely invite criticism from all quarters.

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The battle for fourth in the drivers championship is equally close, with Ricciado surging clear with a good 10 points lead. With six races to go, there is all to fight for, for Perez in 5th at 68 points through to Leclerc in 8th position with 63 points. In the constructors, the fight for 3rd is even closer, with Racing Point leading the way with 120 points from very closely bunched 4th and 5th placed Mclaren 116 points and Renault 114 points.

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The Portimao circuit have all the hallmarks to produce an eventful race weekend. It is undulating on the straights with crazy slopes into corners like the Nordschleife, fast flowing corners like Spa, a couple of tight chichanes like Monaco and likely to be smooth and less grippy like Sochi. Like Mugello, Portimao is a very wide track, hence overtaking shall be just as easy as was seen in Mugello.

This track was constructed in 2008, hence this is the first and probably the last time that F1 shall stage a race on this track for the foreseeable future. Which makes this race equally as historic as Mugello. The winner of this race may well go down in history as the first and only driver to win a race in Portimao in a F1 car.

This track is likely to be a true test for drivers and Pirelli tyres, especially if it rains. It is quite possible that existing tyre compounds may not hold up to the demands of this short 2.6km circuit. That said, Pirelli coped admirably with the little known Nurburgring track, it should do very well here too.

[truefan72]

Wow skyF1 falling over themselves (especially DiResta with some ridiculous logic) to try and defend verstappen in shunting lance. Finally Davidson comes back and says 100% verstappen’s fault.
DiResta is beyond hope. With his commentary. Sometimes I think he tries to be a contrarian just to stir things up
: had to edit the name errors. I’m getting really tired with my iPhone these days autocorrecting my texts

[Nitrodaze]

Controversy starts the weekend as the homophobic Russian, Vitaly Petro is appointed steward for this race weekend. There is no love lost between Petrov and Hamilton. Hence, the decisions from the stewards office shall be very interesting at this race weekend.

This one strikes me like another very dodgy decision made by the FIA. But we shall be properly entertained every which way, l am sure.

[Nitrodaze]

Wow skyF1 falling over themselves (especially forests with some ridiculous logic) to try and defend verstappen in shunting lance. Finally Davidson comes back and says 100% verstappen’s fault.
DoResta is beyond hope. With his commentary. Sometimes I think he tries to be a contrarian just to stir things up

I try not to critisize media pundits if l can. It does not go without notice that they did not do a thorough analysis of the pitlane practise fiasco, a few races back. They seem to avoid controversy as much as possible. To the point that they have become quite irrelevant in their journalistic role. We now turn to independent views to get a thorough introspection into controversial events that occur during the race wekends.

[Bagwan]

It looked to me like Max got off easy there , as it should have been obvious that Lance was going for another lap , being that his DRS was open and Max was never able to get fully along side of him .
And , it sounds as though Lance let him off for it by saying he had no idea he was there .

I don't quite understand .

[truefan72]

Hmm the decision by racing point to drop Perez is looking more and more ridiculous with every race and session. He completely outclasses stroll in Q1 & Q2.

[truefan72]

Is Albon out of new softs?

[truefan72]

That is a fantastic lap by Leclerc

[Bagwan]

This track , apart from the drain covers , is epic .
I'll predict more than a few yellows , with many trips through the kitty litter , and , perhaps 11 drivers still standing at the checkered flag .

And , that was an epic battle for pole there , with Hammy snatching it at the last moment from the Finn . Clever choice , it seems , to go for that 2 lap run .

I'm looking forward to this one .

[Nitrodaze]

Mercedes are not stagnating at all really are they. I thought Verstapenn was good to get into the mix of the Mercedes, but the Mercedes is still very much outside the league of the Redbulls. Yep, l do talk rubbish sometimes.

Leclerc 4th and vettel 15th tell us it is more than performance going on here. Ferrari are not bothering with Vettel anymore. That gap is simply telling.

[Nitrodaze]

Hmm the decision by racing point to drop Perez is looking more and more ridiculous with every race and session. He completely outclasses stroll in Q1 & Q2.

I think Stroll coming back from Self Isolation lack the time in the cockpit to dialup his performance back to where he was before. He would ramp up in the next race, l am sure. That said, Perez is making a strong point about being dropped when his replacement is not looking good in a Ferrari that is able to make 4th in Q3.

[Nitrodaze]

What has Bottas got to do to beat Hamilton? Once again, he seemed on top of it. He was the man to beat all through the weekend and in most of the qualifying until the very last moment when it mattered. It is exhausting going against such talent and falling short most of the time.

[Jag_Warrior]

What has Bottas got to do to beat Hamilton? Once again, he seemed on top of it. He was the man to beat all through the weekend and in most of the qualifying until the very last moment when it mattered. It is exhausting going against such talent and falling short most of the time.


Although a Hamilton fan, I do feel for Bottas. It's almost like Lewis puts just enough on the table to make Bottas think that he's got one in the bag, then he brings another chip out from his pocket and takes the pot.

[Bagwan]

Sad weekend for Vitaly Petrov , as he's left his stewarding position to go home , because his father has been shot and killed .

[truefan72]

Mercedes are not stagnating at all really are they. I thought Verstapenn was good to get into the mix of the Mercedes, but the Mercedes is still very much outside the league of the Redbulls. Yep, l do talk rubbish sometimes.

Leclerc 4th and vettel 15th tell us it is more than performance going on here. Ferrari are not bothering with Vettel anymore. That gap is simply telling.

Yup at this point it might be fair for all involved is to release vettel from his contract and stick in one of their gp2 guys. Vettel can go on and prep with Aston Martin and away from the bad situation and fwrrar can stop pretending like they care at all about him.

[truefan72]

Sad weekend for Vitaly Petrov , as he's left his stewarding position to go home , because his father has been shot and killed .
Wow. Thats awful!
Despite his comments towards Hamilton and his work on social justice. Its still a shame for that to happen on a human level

[Nitrodaze]

Sad weekend for Vitaly Petrov , as he's left his stewarding position to go home , because his father has been shot and killed .

Wow that is a blow to the gut. Condolensces to Petrov.

[djip]

I think Stroll coming back from Self Isolation lack the time in the cockpit to dialup his performance back to where he was before. He would ramp up in the next race, l am sure. That said, Perez is making a strong point about being dropped when his replacement is not looking good in a Ferrari that is able to make 4th in Q3.

The hiring of Vettel (which has certainly cost a boatload of money) is a total mystery to me. Aside from ensuring that Stroll jr. can look good against a former world champion (which he definitely is not against Perez), or for the PR exercise for the Aston Martin brand, this makes no sense. Vettel seems washed up, time to retire. Same as Alonso if you ask me, I believe that was a stupid move from Abiteboul.

[The Black Knight]

Sad weekend for Vitaly Petrov , as he's left his stewarding position to go home , because his father has been shot and killed .

Very sad alright. His comments were bang on and it was great he told it like it is. He didn’t deserve this. I wish him well.

[truefan72]

Wow verstappen getting no penalty????

[truefan72]

Completely wrecks perez race. I guarantee you if it was hamilton they would have issued a drive through and penalty points before the end of lap one.

[truefan72]

Drivers of the race so far perez and leclerc

[truefan72]

So stroll gets a 5 sec but verstappen got nothing...interesting (not really, more like shameful by the stewards)

[truefan72]

Racing point are getting screwed by the stewards.

[truefan72]

Perez back up to p6 and flying is incredible. Meanwhile stroll cant keep it on the track. Smh
Shoutout to Russell

[truefan72]

That was a lot of weaving by ricciardo

[truefan72]

Albon getting shafted again by rbr. No need to stop him. Oh well

[truefan72]

Hmm perez looks like a sitting dick with those softs. Should have put him on hards. Hope he keeps p5

[truefan72]

Meanwhile Bottas has nothing for Hamilton. Absolutely nothing

[truefan72]

Congrats to Hamilton. All time leader in F1 race wins. Never in my lifetime did i think i would see this happen. And an amazing fight back for the win. Then absolutely smashing the competition. Historic achievement

[truefan72]

One final thing: i have absolutely loved every one of the different tracks F1 has gone to this season so far. I can’t wait for the Turkey GP, one of all time favorite tracks. Mugello and Portimao need to be in steady rotation on the F1 calendar.

[Nitrodaze]

One final thing: i have absolutely loved every one of the different tracks F1 has gone to this season so far. I can’t wait for the Turkey GP, one of all time favorite tracks. Mugello and Portimao need to be in steady rotation on the F1 calendar.

Yeah, what a track? This is one track with all the characteristix of the old school circuits. It tested the drivers massively, with the race winner finishing the race with a cramp to boot. I thoroughly enjoyed this race, and do hope it could be in the calendar of every F1 season going forward.

[Nitrodaze]

Racing point are getting screwed by the stewards.

They really hammered Stroll with penalties. The collision with Norris was a racing incident at best. It certainly was in line with Masi's gloves off racing mantra. Breaching track limits was his own fault though.

[Nitrodaze]

That was a lot of weaving by ricciardo

I don't understand why the stewards did not do anythiong about that one. It clearly was a dangerous weaving on the straight in front of a car with DRS open. It could have been a nasty incident. But where were the stewards on this occasion?

[Nitrodaze]

Albon getting shafted again by rbr. No need to stop him. Oh well

Albon clearly did not get good service from RBR at this race. He was put on the wrong tyres and stopped into bad traffic. He was made to look very ordinary, especially with Gasly ahead in what should be a slower car which incidentally is getting better service from his team.

[Nitrodaze]

Meanwhile Bottas has nothing for Hamilton. Absolutely nothing

I bet Bottas would be feeling hard done by Mercedes not putting the soft tyres on his car at his pitstop after he clearly stating that was his preference. It was a very unhappy Bottas we saw at the post race interviews, which is understandable. Even with softs, he would have been comfortably ahead of Verstapenn and possibly taken the fight to Hamilton. So what was that about Mercedes?

[Nitrodaze]

Drivers of the race so far perez and leclerc

Quite a few drivers excelled today. Perez is definitely the star of this race coming from dead last to nearly stealing 5th place. Leclerc drove a fantastic race in the Ferrari. But so did Ocon and Gasly. I would mention Russell as well, running in the top ten for a good while before his pitstop put him out of contention. Russell would be great to watch in a more competitve car.

[Nitrodaze]

CONGRATULATIONS! LEWIS HAMILTON

Today we experienced a truly historic moment as Hamilton sets a new bar for the most wins by a single driver in F1's history. And he doesn't seem to be slowing down yet. I wonder if he could take it to 100 wins, which would really put down a proper challenge for the up and coming drivers.

For those that are yet to appreciate him, he has laid down an unchallengeable achievement. I watched a Sky broadcaster say a few month's back that Hamilton is not the fastest that has ever being in F1. She missed the point by a country mile and showed how much she doesn't really comprehend, of what it takes to consistently dominate year in year out in F1. The immense work that go into staying ahead in the face of some very talented competition seeking to forge ahead.

The only other person who really knows on the current grid is Sebastien Vettel.

[Bagwan]

They really hammered Stroll with penalties. The collision with Norris was a racing incident at best. It certainly was in line with Masi's gloves off racing mantra. Breaching track limits was his own fault though.

Nope , he squeezed Norris too tight .
He could have run much wider from where he was .

[Nitrodaze]

Nope , he squeezed Norris too tight .
He could have run much wider from where he was .

But he was ahead, l think Norris wanted to race him through to the next corner without taking precautions that Stroll might want to take the racing line. It was 50:50 at worst really. They both squeezed each other. The Steward replacement for Petrov was a safety car driver, so l can see how that might elude him.

[The Black Knight]

I just watched Kimi’s first lap. I think it’s the best first lap I’ve ever seen in F1. 16th to 6th - incredible stuff. Needs to be applauded - mighty impressive.

IMO it’s better than Ayrton in Donnington. If he had drove like that all throughout his career he would be up there with the greats.

Bottas though, whew, he got his ass handed to him today. Hamilton really has the measure of him and I think this year even more so than others.

[truefan72]

They really hammered Stroll with penalties. The collision with Norris was a racing incident at best. It certainly was in line with Masi's gloves off racing mantra. Breaching track limits was his own fault though.

Agreed

[truefan72]

I bet Bottas would be feeling hard done by Mewrcedex not putting the soft tyres on his car at his pitstop after he clearly stating that was his preference. It was a very unhappy Bottas we saw at the post race interviews, which is understandable. Even with softs, he would have been comfortably ahead of Verstapenn and possibly taken the fight to Hamilton. So what was that about Mercedes?
Tbf to mercedes the softs were not going to make it 20 laps as perez showed. But they could have pit him on the mediums. I know he didn't have a fresh set but as perez and ocon showed, even a slightly used set would have comfortably taken him to the end. A driver should be allowed to pick his own tire though and if bottas wanted to go on a different compound they should have obliged. None of that nonsense about a strategy locked in because hamilton pitted. Mercedes try too hard to over manage the races and it really isn't necessary

[truefan72]

I don't understand why the stewards did not do anythiong about that one. It clearly was a dangerous weaving on the straight in front of a car with DRS open. It could have been a nasty incident. But where were the stewards on this occasion?
Seemed like a clear cut penalty to me. Once again the stewards were inconsistent and poor in general. They probably spent more time looking at screens about track limits and missed everything else...except for protecting verstappen and screwing over racing point at every opportunity.

[truefan72]

Albon clearly did not get good service from RBR at this race. He was put on the wrong tyres and stopped into bad traffic. He was made to look very ordinary, especially with Gasly ahead in what should be a slower car which incidentally is getting better service from his team.

Those were some really dubious calls and I'm now convinced that rbr have zero interest in the welfare of their #2 driver. If i were albon i would have my reps on the phone with haas for that open seat. Anything is better than the complete disaster of rbr second seat.

[Nitrodaze]

Tbf to mercedes the softs were not going to make it 20 laps as perez showed. But they could have pit him on the mediums. I know he didn't have a fresh set but as perez and ocon showed, even a slightly used set would have comfortably taken him to the end. A driver should be allowed to pick his own tire though and if bottas wanted to go on a different compound they should have obliged. None of that nonsense about a strategy locked in because hamilton pitted. Mercedes try too hard to over manage the races and it really isn't necessary

Yep, Bottas got the number two driver treatment today. That said, Mercedes had their eyes on Hamilton making the New World Record of 92 race wins. It meant more to Mercedes than for Bottas winning an insignificant race win. Besides the softs would have not been any good towards the end it seemed.

[Nitrodaze]

I just watched Kimi’s first lap. I think it’s the best first lap I’ve ever seen in F1. 16th to 6th - incredible stuff. Needs to be applauded - mighty impressive.

IMO it’s better than Ayrton in Donnington. If he had drove like that all throughout his career he would be up there with the greats.

Bottas though, whew, he got his ass handed to him today. Hamilton really has the measure of him and I think this year even more so than others.

I agree, it surprised me, l thought there was some kind of mistake going on with the transmission. Kimi drove a magnificent race but the car let him down. His duel with Sainz on lap 44 had me jumping out of my seat.

[Nitrodaze]

I notice logging into the site has improved greatly. So thank you Site Administrator

[Bagwan]

But he was ahead, l think Norris wanted to race him through to the next corner without taking precautions that Stroll might want to take the racing line. It was 50:50 at worst really. They both squeezed each other. The Steward replacement for Petrov was a safety car driver, so l can see how that might elude him.

Yes , he was ahead , but Lando was inside , and Lance knew it .
And , he was far enough inside that it broke Lance's front wing when they made contact .
If you're going to try an outside move like that , you've got to get it done earlier , or expect the inside guy to try to hold his position on the inside .

I do get what you're saying , but Lando and Lance both arrived at the apex at the same time , and Lando could not have been farther to the right and Lance had lots of space to his left .
I believe both deserved space . Many others showed good examples of how that's done at that corner this race .

[Nitrodaze]

Yes , he was ahead , but Lando was inside , and Lance knew it .
And , he was far enough inside that it broke Lance's front wing when they made contact .
If you're going to try an outside move like that , you've got to get it done earlier , or expect the inside guy to try to hold his position on the inside .

I do get what you're saying , but Lando and Lance both arrived at the apex at the same time , and Lando could not have been farther to the right and Lance had lots of space to his left .
I believe both deserved space . Many others showed good examples of how that's done at that corner this race .

I am glad you described it well, because what you describe is pure racing. Not sunday crocket at the club. Stroll was nose ahead, that should count for something. With Masi's gloves off racing, Stroll did everything by the book. He had no obligation to make it easy for Norris who was hedging his bet to somehow claw his way back in front.

Well, it doesn't matter now, the punishment has been served and Racing Point's weekend was ruined when they had the potential to acheive more.

[The Black Knight]

But he was ahead, l think Norris wanted to race him through to the next corner without taking precautions that Stroll might want to take the racing line. It was 50:50 at worst really. They both squeezed each other. The Steward replacement for Petrov was a safety car driver, so l can see how that might elude him.

I disagree. Stroll is an idiot that isn’t good enough for F1. He shows intermittent phases of moderate speed but that is it. Max was in the wrong on Friday in FP2 but Stroll was 100% wrong today. Norris had nowhere to go today. Lance didn’t give him enough room. His fault - 100%. He deserved the penalties.

[Nitrodaze]

What about Sainz, What a great start. It was great to see a Mclaren leading the race from. two struggling Mercedes for the short while it lasted. If Ferrari can sort out a great engine for 2021, Sainz would be quite a spectacle in the Ferrari next season.

The pace difference of the Mercedes from the rest of the teams, means they cannot be punished for a lull in their performance as we saw at the start of the race. Imagine if that was Verstapenn in Sainz's position ahead of the Mercedes. That may have given us a great scrap at the front. Unfortunately, the Redbull under Verstapenn could not fire up the tyres quickly enough to make that happen.

[Nitrodaze]

Those were some really dubious calls and I'm now convinced that rbr have zero interest in the welfare of their #2 driver. If i were albon i would have my reps on the phone with haas for that open seat. Anything is better than the complete disaster of rbr second seat.

I hear alot of people saying Redbull should swap Gasly for Albon. I think the result may well be the same. Even Christian Horner said that. He also said fast cars are difficult to drive. Those Mercedes must be hidious to drive then. I think Gasly may want to stay in Alpha Tauri till the end of the season. The way he is going, he might challenge for 4th or 5th in the drivers championship. Why risk that for the dodgy 2nd Redbull car, l wonder.

[N. Jones]

This was a crazy race.
Stroll needs to go. He is useless everyday.
Gasly should stay right where he is. Red Bull believe in a #1. The #2 driver is only there because he has to be.

[Tazio]

I hear alot of people saying Redbull should swap Gasly for Albon. I think the result may well be the same. Even Christian Horner said that. He also said fast cars are difficult to drive. Those Mercedes must be hidious to drive then. I think Gasly may want to stay in Alpha Tauri till the end of the season. The way he is going, he might challenge for 4th or 5th in the drivers championship. Why risk that for the dodgy 2nd Redbull car, l wonder.I think it is true that the RB is a handfull to drive, however I don't think you should sell "The Gas Man" :sailor: short! One good way to judge a driver is how he does against his teammate. He has outscored Kvy-dawg :dork: 4.54 to 1, while Max has outscored Albon 2.57 to 1. That is almost double the beat down! :eek: :bandit::kiss::angel::angel::devil:

[truefan72]

What about Sainz, What a great start. It was great to see a Mclaren leading the race from. two struggling Mercedes for the short while it lasted. If Ferrari can sort out a great engine for 2021, Sainz would be quite a spectacle in the Ferrari next season.

The pace difference of the Mercedes from the rest of the teams, means they cannot be punished for a lull in their performance as we saw at the start of the race. Imagine if that was Verstapenn in Sainz's position ahead of the Mercedes. That may have given us a great scrap at the front. Unfortunately, the Redbull under Verstapenn could not fire up the tyres quickly enough to make that happen.

I was really happy to see Sainz taking the lead. It was epic and exciting. It meant we were going to have a race on our hands. Also with kimi exploding up the grid looking like like me on the F1 2020 video game playing against the AI. Those were some great opening laps and between looking at the live feed, and following the race on my F1 App, it was almost an overload of excitement and hard to keep up with all the goings on. I was entertained :)

[Nitrodaze]

I disagree. Stroll is an idiot that isn’t good enough for F1. He shows intermittent phases of moderate speed but that is it. Max was in the wrong on Friday in FP2 but Stroll was 100% wrong today. Norris had nowhere to go today. Lance didn’t give him enough room. His fault - 100%. He deserved the penalties.

Ok, BK, you don't like him because of his money. If Verstapenn pulled that move, he would not be penalized. We would all say that was acceptable aggressive racing. Where is the equality in that? Rich people can be discriminated against too.

[Nitrodaze]

I think it is true that the RB is a handfull to drive, however I don't think you should sell "The Gas Man" :sailor: short! One good way to judge a driver is how he does against his teammate. He has outscored Kvy-dawg :dork: 4.54 to 1, while Max has outscored Albon 2.57 to 1. That is almost double the beat down! :eek: :bandit::kiss::angel::angel::devil:

Oh, don't get me wrong. I am not selling Gasly short at all. I hold him to very high esteem actually. And you would see that if you look at all of my previous posts about him. My point is, he is doing great where he is, why risk it all in the 2nd seat at Redbull that appears to be cursed.

That 2nd seat at Redbull did no favours to Webber, Ricciado, Gasly and now Albon.

[djip]

Ok, BK, you don't like him because of his money. If Verstapenn pulled that move, he would not be penalized. We would all say that was acceptable aggressive racing. Where is the equality in that? Rich people can be discriminated against too.

I am not a big fan of Stroll Jr (neither of Stroll sr BTW ...) because i don't like when daddy's money is buying / protecting a seat. I have to admit though that he is not a bad driver. Not WDC material by far, but a good midfield driver. He can pull it out on his days.
however what strikes me is that he seems to yo-yo , meaning that the dominos have to fall in place for him to perform. This screams for "lack of set-up skills" : if the car is good, he is good. If the car is not set-up properly he struggles. could it be that it is Perez who is doing the bulk of the set-up job ? And who, incidently can himself get results when the car is not at best.

Regarding sunday's racing incendent my view is that he was 100% at fault. Many other drivers pulled the same move, and did n ot end up sending the other guy off the track .Overly agressive, utterly stupid move ! Penalty fully deserved.

[The Black Knight]

Ok, BK, you don't like him because of his money. If Verstapenn pulled that move, he would not be penalized. We would all say that was acceptable aggressive racing. Where is the equality in that? Rich people can be discriminated against too.

Money has nothing to do with it. He is a waste a grid slot. The only reason he has a drive is Daddy and that doesn’t justify a F1 seat. F1 is the pinnacle of motorsport with limited seats and no one should have a drive in it that is not up to the required level. He has had nearly 4 seasons now to get up to the required level and he isn’t there. There have been many, many drivers that have come to F1, performed a lot better and been dropped.

[N. Jones]

Ok, BK, you don't like him because of his money. If Verstapenn pulled that move, he would not be penalized. We would all say that was acceptable aggressive racing. Where is the equality in that? Rich people can be discriminated against too.

You think Max wouldn't be penalized for that? I think he would cause its a normal penalty for not giving enough room when trying to pass on the outside, correct? (I'm not being sarcastic, just asking questions).

[Nitrodaze]

You think Max wouldn't be penalized for that? I think he would cause its a normal penalty for not giving enough room when trying to pass on the outside, correct? (I'm not being sarcastic, just asking questions).

He punted out Stroll in free practise and took out Perez at the start of the race with no penalties. Are those less serious than Stroll's collision with Norris?

[Nitrodaze]

Money has nothing to do with it. He is a waste a grid slot. The only reason he has a drive is Daddy and that doesn’t justify a F1 seat. F1 is the pinnacle of motorsport with limited seats and no one should have a drive in it that is not up to the required level. He has had nearly 4 seasons now to get up to the required level and he isn’t there. There have been many, many drivers that have come to F1, performed a lot better and been dropped.

That is not the point. The question is, was it a racing incident or not? It should not matter whether he is driving because Daddy's money bought the seat. If you leave the prejudice of his money out of it, ordinarily, was it a punishable incident?

My argument is that Stroll and anyone else should be allowed to stick their elbows out in a duel for position. He took the long way round, but managed to get his car ahead before the point of collision. The collision happened as he was taking the racing line with half a car length ahead. Norris could have backed off to avoid a collision but decided to make it very difficult for Stroll. It was clearly a racing incident.

[Bagwan]

That is not the point. The question is, was it a racing incident or not? I should not matter whether he is driving because Daddy's money bought the seat. If leave the prejudice of his money out of it, ordinarily, was it a punishable incident?

My argument is that Stroll and anyone else should be allowed to stick their elbows out in a duel for position. He took the long way round, but managed to get his car ahead before the point of collision. The collision happened as he was taking the racing line with half a car length ahead. Norris could have backed off to avoid a collision but decided to make it very difficult for Stroll. It was clearly a racing incident.

He assumed Norris would back out .
Had he left a few feet more room , with Norris compromised on a tighter line forced to go slower , he would have been golden .

Of course , with Lando protecting the outside , the move should have been inside , unless Lance was assuming that Norris would lurch right at the last moment .
But , in order to get to the point of assuming that Lando goes right , you'd have to try to prompt it with a "dummy" to get him moving .

But , he didn't .

Instead , he went left , onto the curbs , and compromised his own grip on entry , so , despite being 18kms faster going in , he broke his front wing on Norris's car .

Two bad assumptions as I see it .

I like Lance , but , though he really impresses me sometimes , he also makes me shake my head other times .
He wasn't being a tool , like Max in practice , but it wasn't pretty .

[Nitrodaze]

He assumed Norris would back out .
Had he left a few feet more room , with Norris compromised on a tighter line forced to go slower , he would have been golden .

Of course , with Lando protecting the outside , the move should have been inside , unless Lance was assuming that Norris would lurch right at the last moment .
But , in order to get to the point of assuming that Lando goes right , you'd have to try to prompt it with a "dummy" to get him moving .

But , he didn't .

Instead , he went left , onto the curbs , and compromised his own grip on entry , so , despite being 18kms faster going in , he broke his front wing on Norris's car .

Two bad assumptions as I see it .

I like Lance , but , though he really impresses me sometimes , he also makes me shake my head other times .
He wasn't being a tool , like Max in practice , but it wasn't pretty .

I think you should watch it again. I have watched it a couple of times now and l don't see any reason to change my opinion. With DRS he arrive at Norris a such speed that he was forced to overtake on the outside. He had properly passed Norris but slowed down to turn into the chicane. But Norris decided to stick it into a fast closing space on the apex of the corner. I think it was a red mist moment for Norris, seeing the Racing Point suddenly darting through.
Watch it again l say.

[Nitrodaze]

I just watched Kimi’s first lap. I think it’s the best first lap I’ve ever seen in F1. 16th to 6th - incredible stuff. Needs to be applauded - mighty impressive.

IMO it’s better than Ayrton in Donnington. If he had drove like that all throughout his career he would be up there with the greats.

Bottas though, whew, he got his ass handed to him today. Hamilton really has the measure of him and I think this year even more so than others.

I just watched the onboard of Kimi Raikonen's start. And l say, it was simply legendary. We shall be talking about this one for years to come. The most overtakes that anyone has ever done in an F1 car within two laps. sixteenth to sixth in a lap and half. DOUBLE WOW!

[djip]

I just watched the onboard of Kimi Raikonen's start. And l say, it was simply legendary. We shall be talking about this one for years to come. The most overtakes that anyone has ever done in an F1 car within two laps. sixteenth to sixth in a lap and half. DOUBLE WOW!

True - It looked like playing on the computer in "beginner" mode !

[Nitrodaze]

True - It looked like playing on the computer in "beginner" mode !

Haha, that's it!

[The Black Knight]

That is not the point. The question is, was it a racing incident or not? It should not matter whether he is driving because Daddy's money bought the seat. If you leave the prejudice of his money out of it, ordinarily, was it a punishable incident?

My argument is that Stroll and anyone else should be allowed to stick their elbows out in a duel for position. He took the long way round, but managed to get his car ahead before the point of collision. The collision happened as he was taking the racing line with half a car length ahead. Norris could have backed off to avoid a collision but decided to make it very difficult for Stroll. It was clearly a racing incident.

You’re the one that brought up money, buddy. Stroll should have given Norris more room, other drivers did it, similar moves and both got around successfully. The difference is the lack of space Stroll gave Norris, so yes, penalty was 100% deserved for Stroll.

[The Black Knight]

I just watched the onboard of Kimi Raikonen's start. And l say, it was simply legendary. We shall be talking about this one for years to come. The most overtakes that anyone has ever done in an F1 car within two laps. sixteenth to sixth in a lap and half. DOUBLE WOW!

It wasn’t even a lap and a half, it was a lap and a bit of the straight. Mighty impressive stuff. Amazing driving.

[N. Jones]

He punted out Stroll in free practise and took out Perez at the start of the race with no penalties. Are those less serious than Stroll's collision with Norris?

Stroll, Yes. Perez, no.

[N. Jones]

It wasn’t even a lap and a half, it was a lap and a bit of the straight. Mighty impressive stuff. Amazing driving.

If only Kimi actually cared...

[truefan72]

More hate towards Racing point by the Stewards. SMH
https://the-race.com/formula-1/racing-point-to-raise-big-issue-of-perez-reprimand/

[N. Jones]

Yeah.... he was moving around quite a lot during the first defense.

[Nitrodaze]

Yeah.... he was moving around quite a lot during the first defense.

Yeah yeah, but did not punish Ricciado who was doing the same. Where is the consistency in that?

[N. Jones]

When did that happen?

[Nitrodaze]

When did that happen?

Read the thread, there was alot said about it already.

[airshifter]

Due to time constraints, I didn't watch the race until last night.

Those are the kinds of opening laps we need, and to think they happened at a track that shouldn't have been on the calendar! Great stuff.

I liked the track, plenty of side by side racing through the field by mostly respectful drivers who battled it out the right way. A few bad moves here and there, but we all know racing is about risks, and sometimes drivers take more than is available to them.

Start to finish, overall a great race. Between Kimi and Sainz, the opening laps were wild. It seems like the cars that were slow to get on top of the tires fared well in the end, but they sure struggled at the race start. And from there, enough action to keep things interesting.


I hope this track ends up on the calendar for upcoming years. The only real complaint I have is that the DRS zone was much too long, and didn't even make the overtakes hard for the most part. Fix that, and there is a lot of potential to be had.