Red Bull took a double win on Sunday in the sixth F1 race of the season in Barcelona. Max Verstappen won and rose to the top of the World Series. Sergio Perez was another.
Mercedes showed signs of recovery. Eventually George Russell was third and Lewis Hamilton fifth. Ferrari wedged between them Carlos Sainz.
Ferrari led the World Championships before Barcelona Charles Leclerc had to be suspended due to a technical problem for clear leadership. Valtteri Bottas was nicely sixth behind the top stables.
Sport went through an F1 expert Jukka Mildhin with the weekend’s biggest topics of conversation.
Where did the race go?
Leclerc, who started from the pole position, was allowed to drive quite calmly at the top spot. Verstappen, who had left the second square, had lost his position after spinning on the sand in a quadruple where Sainz had also previously driven out.
There was no way Verstappen could get past Russell, who was in second place, because the Dutch car was dazzling with the DRS, the rear wing that could be opened.
Until round 27/66, the most dramatic moment of the race was seen. Leclerc suddenly roared on team radio, “No, no, no! What happened?”
The Monaco drove to the depot and stopped.
– Leclerc’s annoying interruption and a big technical problem with Ferrari solved the race. However, it happened at a relatively early stage. After that, the Red Bull team game – both the work of the strategy team in the depot and the cooperation between the drivers – ultimately decided the victory of the whole race, says Jukka Mildh.
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said after the race that the strategy went new as Verstappen spun on the sand. After that, the strategy was three pit stops. With the new tires, Verstappen was able to drive at a good pace and reach the top.
All the top ten drivers, except Valtteri Bottas, visited the depot three times. The hot conditions in Barcelona, with an air temperature of 35 degrees and a track temperature of almost 50 degrees, were difficult for the tires.
After driving 47/66 laps, Perez, who held the top spot, was instructed on team radio to pass the upcoming Verstappe if his pace is better. “Terribly unfair,” Perez said, but did the work as instructed.
In addition to Leclerc, there were problems with other Ferrari-powered cars over the weekend, Mildh recalls. Bottas’ second rehearsals on Friday were interrupted. In the race, Bottas’ teammate Alfa Romeo, a Chinese newcomer Guanyu Zhou had to suspend.
– In my opinion, the fault is probably in the engine components or peripherals. Something Ferrari needs to be able to react to quickly. In any case, the problem was so critical that the power dropped quickly. Ferrari probably knows what caused the fault, and they have already begun precise action, Mildh says.
What are we talking about?
Car upgrade packages were the topic of discussion at the Barcelona race. Many teams had brought significant developments to the sixth race weekend of the season. The cost ceiling of the F1 series places its limits on the development of cars, so it is cheaper for garages to make big changes at once than to develop a car with minor upgrades.
There was even talk of copying, as Aston Martin’s updated green car was so reminiscent of a Red Bull car. There was a similarity in the design of the side pontoons, for example.
– There is a lot of twisting about how information has been transferred and how much information has been exported when many of the stables have moved to other stables, Mildh knows.
The Aston Martin stable was also in the whirlwind of copying in 2020. At that time, the stable was still known as Racing Point. The stable was barked under the name “pink Mercedes” because the car was so strongly reminiscent of last year’s Mercedes spending game. At the time, Racing Point received fines and a penalty of 15 points for the manufacturers ’points. The punishment eventually came from the brake cooling pipes.
Bottas praised that Alfa Romeo’s upgrades had a positive impact on the pace. The Swiss stable had made changes to the front and rear wings, among other things. After the time trial, Bottas said the seventh box would not have been possible without the updates.
However, Mildh cites the upgrades as one possible cause for Ferrari’s problems, among other things.
– When changing the car, there may be engine problems or other technical problems. The stables really have to balance a lot. The Barcelona race at the start of the European season is traditionally a turning point for teams. So far, it has been an investment to get used to new cars with significantly different aerodynamics than last year. The first development packages have now been made, so this is one crucial point in the season.
As always in Formula One, it’s all-season racing equipment where teams have to think about what priorities to focus on and where to dare to take risks.
What about Bottas?
Valtteri Bottas drove sixth. He took third place in the race a couple of times due to other depot stops. In the end, Bottas lost to Sainz and Hamilton when they came back with fresher tires. Unlike the other drivers, Bottas only visited the depot twice.
– Bottas drove a good race, but the start was really hard again. I don’t know what’s rotting there now. It may still be a technical matter. Somehow I would imagine that Bottas has already found a feeling so far and knows what he is doing himself. It’s an area she definitely needs to explore, Mildh wonders.
Wear of tires was also a problem for Bottaks. He himself told Viaplay after the race that the last bet without a pit stop was a little too long and it was a considered risk.
– That tactic choice was wrong in this situation. Some solution had to be made, and now it didn’t go to the button. Still a good performance, he is still heavily in the top ten, Mildh praises.
Surprise
Although Mercedes has dared to rise, Mildh is surprised to raise the performance of the team that took the previous eight manufacturer titles.
– Given the back distance they were on, the change is really significant. It can be seen visually in the fact that the car can be driven really low these days. The bottom of the car has a much bigger impact on performance than ever before. The whole concept of the new F1 car is based on that.
– Mercedes has solved that problem, and the car no longer bounced straight.
The pace is also indicated by the fact that Lewis Hamilton crashed Haas in the beginning Kevin Magnussen with and fell on his tail. He was already ready to give up the race to save the engine, but eventually rose to fifth.
– Mercedes is coming back pretty well. Whether there is enough time for this season is a different question.
The flop
No major failure from the Barcelona race can be raised. However, there are two names in Mildh’s mind, Sainz and Magnussen.
The spins at Sainz and Verstappen at the start of the race were due to a strong gust of wind typical of the Barcelona track. According to Mildh, this also provided lessons on how gusts of wind can affect modern cars.
– However, I would have expected more from Sainz. Is it a flop, hard to say, but the difference with a teammate is really big.
Now, however, Sainz was allowed to bring in points for his team, and the knockout was not fatal, as in Australia, where Sainz had to suspend at the outset.
– If a single situation is raised, the Haas drivers made it to the race from good positions, but Magnussen hurried at the start of the race and hit Hamilton. Magnussen could have placed space on the outer curve. He was too greedy at first, Mildh criticized.
Magnussen started from the eighth box and the second Haas driver Mick Schumacher box ten. In the end, Haas was left without points when Schumacher was 14th and Magnussen 17th.
What next?
The F1 season continues as early as next weekend with the legendary Monaco race. The competition is quite different from that in Barcelona, as we move to a narrow and slow track.
Mildh points out that Red Bull needs to get the air cleaned up quickly. Sergio Perez was furious with the team order, which could lead to a loss of victory.
Ferrari is still very strong, according to Mildh. Because Monaco’s track is clearly slower, Ferrari’s reliability problems there may not be met in the same way.
In addition, it will be interesting to see if Mercedes shows progress on a slower track as well.
In Monaco, overtaking is difficult, even rare, so the time trial is known to play a very big role.