MAX WINS AN EXCITING SPANISH GP AFTER CHARLES LECLERC RETIRES FROM THE LEAD
at one point in this race it looked as though Ferrari were guaranteed the win, with Max Verstappen determined to destroy his own race with sheer frustration, fast forward to the end of the race, Max Verstappen takes the lead in a Redbull one-two.
Verstappen slotted in behind the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, the Ferrari was well in control and looked almost certain to take the victory and 25 points, things were not helped when the Dutchman lost the rear of the RB18 heading into turn 4 on lap 9, this dropped him down to fourth and almost half a minute off the lead.
Verstappen was stuck having to battle with the slightly slower Russell in the Mercedes, the battle lasting longer than it should due to a misbehaving DRS flap on the Redbull, this led to the return of the frustrated Max on the team radio, as the team tried to fix the issue.
The race and Max’s mood turned on its head when the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc retired with a power unit issue. With the Ferrari out of the equation, it was a pretty easy run to the end for the reigning champion.
SERGIO PLAYS THE TEAM GAME
Sympathy must be with Sergio, who qualified well and kept himself in the fight, as things shaked out with pit stops made and cars retiring, the Mexican driver was in the lead and in control. Surly Perez would have to move over to let Max through?
The call was made, not quite a brutal as “Valtteri, it’s James..” but just as effective, Sergio was told that Max was on a different strategy and that he was also faster. Sergio moved over and let Max through and remained in second for an important result for the team, not for Sergio.
A TALE OF TWO RACES FOR MERCEDES
Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes are in uncharted waters this season with a car that isn’t quite competitive enough, Mercedes brought a raft of upgrades in the hope to get into the fight with Ferrari and Redbull.
Hamilton qualified in sixth with a podium looking like a possibility, however this ended before the end of the first lap, when Hamilton and Magnussen touched coming round turn four, the HAAS car was on the outside and made contact with the Mercedes on the inside, the contact sent Magnussen into the gravel however he was able to continue, Lewis was a bit more unlucky, suffering a front left puncture.
It looked as though Lewis was going to get up to fourth, behind his teammate, Russell, which would have been a great recovery drive under the circumstances, however, with a few laps to go, Lewis and George Russell were both told to lift and coast, a water leak in the power unit for both Mercedes cars, was giving the team some concern, this dropped Hamilton further down the order, coming home in fifth behind Carols Sainz in the Ferrari.
“ I would save this engine if I was you, i’m sorry”
Lewis Hamilton team radio after contact with Magnussen
George Russell continues to show what a talent he is, an assured drive in a Mercedes that is not really in the fight, keeping the fast charging Max Verstappen behind for a number of laps, admittedly helped by intermittent DRS issues for Verstappen. Russell drove an assured and intelligent race leading to a podium for the young British driver.
LECLERC AND A DNF
The Spanish GP is not known for providing exciting races, however in 2022, it gave is a rare sight, a Ferrari DNF for Charles Leclerc, a big part of the Prancing Horse’s title challenge is that the Ferrari seemed to be very reliable, it may not have the speed of the Redbull, however it just didn’t break down.. until today!!
Charles was having a Hamilton-esque drive, took pole, led into the first corner, then disappered into the horizon, the Ferrari driver quickly built up a nice two-second gap, which was extended further when Max Verstappen, who was running in second, lost the rear of the Redbull into turn four, leading to a short trip through the gravel. The gap was not far off 30 seconds ahead and seemingly cruising to another win and 25 points, then the unthinkable happened, the Ferrari power unit decided that enough was enough, ending the Monagasque’s race.
The other side of the Ferrari garage didn’t fair much better. Carlos Sainz started the race in a good position, until a crosswind caught out the Spaniard sending him into the gravel at turn four, the put the Ferrari back into the pack, increasing his position to fifth, however this will be little comfort for Sainz and Ferrari with Redbull running in first and second.
Further down the order, Latifi in the Williams managed to take a moral victory over his teammate Alex Albon, which will be welcome for the Canadian, who has had a terrible start to the 2022 season. Yuki Tsunoda took the last of the points in tenth for Alfa Tauri, a quietly assured race for the Japanese driver.
Aston Martin and Sebastian Vettel will be reasonably pleased with eleventh, the Aston Martin car had a raft of upgrades, and looked as though it has produced a car with some decent race pace.
Finally, Valtteri Bottas is proving how god a driver he is with another points finish, taking sixth ahead of both Ocon and Norris.
One thing is for sure, when you think a race is going one way, it will usually change direction!!!!