Formula One is back after the mandatory summer break. It’s been a month since the Belgium Grand Prix.
Free Practice had a few red flags, but most notably it was the FP2 incident when PIA ran into the tecpro wall in Turn 3, followed by RIC … and RIC broke a metacarpal on his left hand. He’s out for the rest of the weekend and possibly the next race; Liam Lawson will replace him at Zandvoort but we’ll have to see what happens at Monza. [F1]
Qualifying session 1 (Q1)
LAW is on track for his first F1 Quali session; his car is carrying number 40
HAM 1:26.764
BOT 1:26.000
PIA 1:25.400
SAR 1:24.780
Radio from VER complaining about a lack of grip
NOR 1:23.260
ALO 1:22.793
VER 1:22.786
NOR 1:22.392
PIA 1:22.059
RUS 1:22.052
NOR 1:21.434
PIA 1:21.254
VER 1:21.230
5mins left; bottom 5 are HUL, LAW, BOT, MAG, SAR
HAM blocked by STR
SAI leaves the pit lane and taps tyres with PIA
ALB 1:20.939
Looks like it’s started to rain with about 3mins left of Q1
Everyone on inters but some are quite old
Chequered flag; bottom 5 are ZHO, MAG, LEC, BOT, LAW
ZHO P15, OCO relegated to P16
BOT P18
OCO P16
LAW P20
LEC P14, ZHO P16
Back of the grid: ZHO, OCO, MAG, BOT, LAW
Radio from LEC telling his team that track position is key to not getting knocked out in Q2
Qualifying session 2
Air temperature 17°C; track 19°C; it’s not currently raining but there are black clouds over the track
Everyone on inters again
The stewards have decided there’s no further investigation for the Q1 impeding incident; given how blatant that was, they’re basically saying the drivers will just have to live with it
SAR 1:23.161
VER 1:21.921
SAR 1:21.780
VER 1:20.690
GAS runs very wide in Turn 3 but stays out of the wall
NOR 1:20.629
VER 1:20.282
Clouds seem to be clearing and the track is drying; will someone risk dry tyres?
PER pits; will he take on dry tyres? No, fresh inters
The majority of cars pit; they all stick to inters
5mins left; bottom 5 are PER, TSU, HUL, GAS, SAI
VER 1:19.652
(PER P2)
ALB 1:19.399
VER is the last to pit; everyone will use inters for the rest of Q2; NOR is still on the same inters that he started this session with
PIA 1:19.392
Chequered flag; bottom 5 are TSU, NOR, GAS, HUL, SAI
HUL P10, SAR P11
VER 1:18.856
GAS P9, TSU P10
SAI P8, GAS P10
HAM pits – he’s P12
SAR P10, STR P11
Middle of the grid: STR, GAS, HAM, TSU, HUL
Top 10 shootout is between VER, PIA, ALB, ALO, LEC, RUS, NOR, PER, SAI, SAR
Qualifying session 3
Air temperature 18°C; track 23°C
DRS enabled for Q3 because the track’s now dry
PIA and PER on inters; ALB, RUS, SAI and SAR on softs
VER on inters
PIA pits for softs
Everyone running on dry, soft tyres except VER
RUS 1:18.245
ALB 1:15.743
SAR P2
SAI P3
SAR is in the tyre wall at Turn 2 – red flags
Session suspended with 8:13 on the clock
SAR is out of the car; seems ok
Only 4 lap times so far; order is ALB, SAR, SAI, RUS
When the session resumes, will they do one push lap + pit + one push, or two push laps with a cooldown in between?
Replay of SAR touching the kerb and losing the rear of his Williams; the gravel trap is pretty skinny there so it didn’t slow him much before he hit the tyre wall
SAR’s car has been removed; the track workers rebuild and check the tyre wall
It’s taking them a while to fix the barrier
Right, cars are queueing at the end of the pit lane ready for the restart
SAI starts a fast lap but then aborts it
ALB pits
ALO P3
RUS 1:12.578
LEC P2
5mins left; order is RUS, LEC, ALB, SAR, ALO, SAI; no time yet for VER, PIA, NOR, PER
NOR 1:12.049
PIA P2
PER P5
VER P3
LEC has stopped on the grass but he’s only just off the racing line
Red flag; 4.05 on the clock, so probably only time for one flying lap
Replay of LEC understeering into Turn 9, onto the grass, bounces off the tyre wall and stops
Order is NOR, PIA, VER, RUS, LEC, PER, ALB, SAR, ALO, SAI
LEC has found a deckchair to watch what’s left of Quali
Q3 restarts but no-one rushes out of the pit lane; there’s only 8 cars left in this session
Chequered flag; order is NOR, PIA, VER, RUS, LEC, PER, ALB, SAR, ALO, SAI
VER 1:10.567
PIA P2
NOR P2
PER P3
ALO P3
ALB P3
SAI P5
RUS P3
Front of the grid: VER, NOR, RUS, ALB, ALO, SAI, PER, PIA, LEC, SAR
The stewards have a few incidents to review
Provisional grid: VER, NOR, RUS, ALB, ALO, SAI, PER, PIA, LEC, SAR, STR, GAS, HAM, TSU, HUL, ZHO, OCO, MAG, BOT, LAW
“Yuki Tsunoda will drop three places on the Dutch Grand Prix grid after being given a penalty by the stewards for blocking Lewis Hamilton during Saturday’s qualifying session at Zandvoort.” [F1]
The only other penalty: “A separate, alleged impeding incident involving Hamilton and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll resulted in no further action from the stewards, while a coming together between Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz at Turn 2 saw the Spaniard given a reprimand and Ferrari fined €5000.”
Haas have changed multiple power unit elements on MAG’s car so he’ll start from the pit lane instead of P18
Grid: VER, NOR, RUS, ALB, ALO, SAI, PER, PIA, LEC, SAR, STR, GAS, HAM, HUL, ZHO, OCO, TSU, BOT, LAW, MAG* (*pit lane)
Air temperature 17°C; track 29°C; humidity 67%
It’s cloudy but currently dry; FIA say risk of rain during the race is 70%
VER leads everyone away on the formation lap
Everyone starting on soft tyres except HAM and HUL who are on mediums
Radio for ALO telling him there’s probably a little rain about 5 minutes away
VER is not hanging around – he’s back on the grid but the rear of the field are a few corners behind
01/72: Everyone cleanly through Turn 1
ALO inside RUS into Turn 3; steals P3
SAI now past ALB… but the Williams reclaims P5
Looks like the rain has started
02: VER, NOR, ALO, RUS, ALB, SAI, PIA, STR, BOT, HUL
PER, ZHO, GAS, LEC, TSU, LAW and MAG all pit for intermediate tyres
Ferrari don’t have tyres ready for LEC
ALO has taken P2 from NOR
Radio for NOR saying the rain is easing up, asking if he can keep it on track; “yeah, yeah”
03: VER and ALO pit
RUS fastest lap 1:47.161
PER is up to P2 – inters were the right choice
Radio from HAM saying they should have switched to inters
04: PER f/lap 1:27.522
NOR pits, as does HAM
LAW f/lap 1:26.818 – setting fastest lap time on his first F1 race
05/72: PER, ZHO, GAS, VER, LEC, ALO, SAI, TSU, MAG, RUS, OCO, LAW, ALB, PIA, NOR, STR, BOT, HUL, SAR, HAM
PER f/lap 1:24.342
RUS pits – too late?
06: VER f/lap 1:23.461
VER nearly rear-ends GAS; passes the Alpine for P3
OCO f/lap 1:23.380
LAW given 10sec penalty for impeding in the pit lane
ALO inside LEC to take P5
07: VER f/lap 1:22.503
NOR f/lap 1:22.403
ZHO easily past ZHO for P2
PER laps SAR who’s still on the dry tyre
08: VER f/lap 1:22.116
Red Bull have told both drivers they need to make these inters last because more rain is coming in a few mins, but VER has got his foot down
Radio for SAI telling him LEC has front wing damage… but not that they’ve told LEC to let SAI through
09: SAI takes P6 from his teammate
10/72: PER, VER, ZHO, GAS, ALO, SAI, LEC, TSU, MAG, OCO
MAG pits from P9; he’s now on softs – but I thought there was more rain expected in a couple of minutes?
PIA 1:19.061
11: ZHO, ALO and SAI all pit
DRS enabled … so the stewards think the track’s dry enough
Just the front four on inters; everyone else on softs except ZHO on mediums
12: VER and GAS pit, as does LEC
PIA f/lap 1:18.587
LEC gets a new front wing as well as softs
13: PER pits from P1; everyone now back on dry tyres; rejoins P2
NOR f/lap 1:16.654
Radio from PER asking “Did Max undercut us?”; “yes” … so I guess VER got the preferential treatment despite being behind PER
14: SAI f/lap 1:16.472
NOR f/lap 1:16.200
Radio from RUS asking what went wrong, he was meant to be on the podium and he’s currently P18
15/72: VER, PER, ALO, GAS, SAI, ZHO
SAI attacking GAS into Turn 1 but the Alpine hangs on to P4
16: Yellow flag – SAR is in the tyre wall at Turn 8 – surely that’ll require the Safety Car?
SC deployed
17[SC]: RUS and STR pit; RUS takes on hard tyres – trying to run to the end?
VER, PER, ALO, GAS, SAI, ZHO, MAG, ALB, OCO, TSU, NOR, LEC, HAM, PIA, BOT, HUL, LAW, RUS, STR; out: SAR
GAS given 5sec penalty for speeding in the pit lane
ALB is still on the soft tyres that he started the race with – why not pit under SC?
18[SC]: Radio from PER asking if there’s more rain expected; told there’s some about 35 minutes away
20/72[SC]: VER, PER, ALO, GAS*, SAI, ZHO, MAG, ALB, OCO, TSU, NOR, LEC, HAM, PIA, BOT, HUL, LAW, RUS, STR; out: SAR (*GAS has 5-sec penalty)
Radio from SAI complaining it’s hard to keep temperatures behind the SC
21[SC]: SC in at the end of this lap
VER slows everyone down as the SC heads into the pit lane
22: PER defends from ALO into Turn 1
PIA runs a bit wide, BOT steals P14
23: ALB has taken P7 from MAG
Replay shows MAG moved under braking … but that’s not unusual for MAG
24: OCO past MAG for P8
25/72: VER, PER, ALO, GAS, SAI, ZHO, ALB, OCO, MAG, TSU
VER f/lap 1:15.783
Incident involving MAG and ALB noted – moving under braking
PIA dives inside BOT to steal P14
Black and white flag for MAG
26: VER f/lap 1:15.664
HAM gets past LEC, takes P12
PIA passes LEC too
27: VER f/lap 1:15.659
ALO has DRS behind PER
28: NOR closes on MAG; inside into Turn 1; moves up to P10
SkySports commentators report that VER was told to pit first (on lap 3); Red Bull claim it was to defend from ALO
29: VER f/lap 1:15.499
Black and white flag for TSU for forcing a driver off the track
HAM takes P11 from MAG
30/72: VER, PER, ALO, GAS*, SAI, ALB, OCO, ZHO, TSU, NOR, HAM, MAG, PIA, LEC, HUL, BOT, RUS, STR, LAW; out: SAR (*GAS has 5-sec penalty)
VER f/lap 1:15.374
PIA inside MAG for P12
31: Radio from VER reporting “darker clouds are coming”
TSU takes P8 from ZHO
32: NOR has DRS behind TSU, but HAM now has DRS behind NOR
TSU defends but NOR goes around the outside of AlphaTauri for P9
Radio for LEC telling him they expect rain in about 10 mins
33: ZHO defending against HAM, but with DRS the Mercedes takes P10
34: VER f/lap 1:15.342
RUS takes P16 from BOT
NOR closing on TSU
35/72: VER, PER, ALO, GAS, SAI, ALB, TSU, NOR, HAM, PIA, ZHO, MAG, HUL, LEC, RUS, BOT, STR, LAW
VER f/lap 1:15.272
STR pits; softs go on
36: MAG pits
Half distance; air temperature 17°C; track 26°C; humidity 66%
37: VER f/lap 1:15.221
RUS inside LEC for P14
38: VER f/lap 1:15.167; he’s almost 6sec clear of PER
Radio for VER, expecting light rain in about 5mins
ZHO pits; softs go on
BOT has passed LEC around the outside at Turn 1
39: VER f/lap 1:15.071
40/72: VER, PER, ALO, GAS, SAI, ALB, OCO, TSU, NOR, HAM
Newbie LAW closing on LEC
41: LAW inside LEC to take P15 from the Ferrari
LEC now has DRS and reclaims P15
42: SAI pits; softs go on; rejoins P11
LEC pits and retires
43: NOR pits from P8; softs; rejoins P14
44: OCO pits from P6; softs; rejoins P13
SAI f/lap 1:14.975
45/72: VER, PER, ALO, GAS, ALB…
ALB pits – his first stop
SAI f/lap 1:14.962
NOR f/lap 1:14.905
46: PER pits from P2; softs; rejoins P4
HAM pits from P6; softs; rejoins P14
47: GAS pits; serves his 5sec penalty; rejoins P6 just in front of RUS
GAS on new softs; RUS on 30-lap old hard tyres; GAS pulls away
48: PER f/lap 1:14.318
49: ALO pits from P2; problem with the front left; rejoins P5
PER f/lap 1:14.867
50/72: VER pits; softs; rejoins still P1, about 5sec clear of his teammate
VER, PER, SAI, ALO, TSU, GAS, RUS, ALB, OCO, NOR, HAM, PIA, ZHO, STR, MAG, HUL, BOT, LAW; out: LEC, SAR
51: ALO f/lap 1:14.153
GAS takes P5 from TSU
Looks like more rain coming in about 10mins
52: VER f/lap 1:13.941
ALO uses DRS to close on SAI, takes the inside line and goes P3
53: ALB inside TSU for P7
Radio from TSU asking the team to check for damage – did he hit RUS?
Incident involving TSU and RUS under investigation – causing a collision
54: OCO passes TSU
Radio for VER telling him the rain will be quite heavy
56: ALO f/lap 1:13.862
HAM around the outside of NOR for P9
57: ALO f/lap 1:13.837
Radio from VER asking if it’ll be extreme or intermediate wet tyres; team’s not sure yet
58: SAI defending P4 as GAS closes
59: RUS touched the grass, almost lost the car but saved it
RUS lets HAM through for P7
60/72: VER, PER, ALO, GAS, SAI, ALB, HAM, RUS, OCO, NOR, PIA, TSU, ZHO, STR, HUL, BOT, LAW
It’s raining in Turn 1
61: PER pits but the Red Bull mechanics weren’t ready
Only a few are staying out
62: VER pits, as does ALO
Everyone has switched to inters except OCO who is on extreme wets
LAW unlaps himself
Radio from OCO complaining about the tyres, but it might be the right decision
63: Yellow flag – PER runs wide at Turn 1; rejoins
TSU given 5sec penalty for causing a collision
ZHO is in the tyre wall – VSC deployed
64[VSC]: PER pits
Red flag
PER is released from the pit box but the lights at the end of the pit lane is red, so he has to stop
Replay shows TSU had run off at Turn 1 but was recovering as ZHO aquaplaned off into the tyre wall at T1
Radio from VER asking why it’s been red flagged – given the series of offs at T1, I think it’s the right call
65/72[Red Flag]: VER, ALO, GAS, SAI, HAM, PER, NOR, RUS, ALB, PIA, OCO, TSU, STR, HUL, BOT, LAW, MAG; out: ZHO, LEC, SAR
The cars (and some mechanics) are under cover in the pit lane
The rain is still coming down pretty hard
Radio for SAI telling him there’ll be a 10-20min break in the rain, so they could complete the race
Red Bull mechanics working furiously on PER’s car
Replay shows PER clip the wall with his front-right as he came into the pit lane
Race control: ORDER FOR RESTART: 1, 14, 11, 10, 55, 44, 4, 63, 23, 81, 31, 22, 18, 27, 77, 40, 20
So that’s PER back to P3, before he pitted: VER, ALO, PER, GAS, SAI, HAM, NOR, RUS, ALB, PIA
Red Bull mechanics still working on PER’s rear wing, and they’re going to replace the front wing
Interesting to hear LAW’s engineer tell him there was nothing he could do to avoid impeding MAG, which is why he got a penalty
It’s stopped raining; the sun’s out; there’s a 10+ minute gap before the next rain is expected
But there’ll be a 10 min warning before the restart, so they may have to wait until the next downpour has passed
No sign of the SC yet though – they’ll usually do a few laps to check conditions before announcing the restart
Race Control: race will resume at 17:14 local time
Race Control: use of intermediate tyres is mandatory
Race Control: rolling start procedure
PER leaves the pit lane, so he can resume his correct position for the restart; followed by most of the remaining field
65/72[SC]: SC leads VER out of the pit lane
Order is VER, ALO, PER, GAS, SAI, HAM, NOR, RUS, ALB, PIA, OCO, TSU, STR, HUL, BOT, LAW, MAG; out: ZHO, LEC, SAR
Some drivers already choosing to run in the wet rather than the dry line
66[SC]: SC in at the end of this lap
Radio for VER, “light rain expected in 6-7 minutes time”
The drivers are complaining about losing tyre temps because the SC’s speed
VER slows as the SC enters the pit lane
67: ALO right on VER’s tail into Turn 1
RUS closing on NOR… and takes P7
PER given 5sec penalty for speeding in the pit lane
68: ALO still within 1sec behind VER
RUS is limping back into the pits – puncture
Incident involving NOR and RUS noted – causing a collision (presumably the cause of his puncture)
69: VER has opened 1.7sec lead over ALO
70/72: VER, ALO, PER*, GAS, SAI, HAM, NOR, ALB, PIA, OCO, STR, HUL, TSU, LAW, MAG, BOT, RUS (*PER has 5sec penalty)
HAM has a look at a gap but doesn’t risk it
Incident involving NOR and RUS – no further investigation
71: HAM all over SAI’s tail
HAM almost close enough to touch the Ferrari
72: HAM has a look; did they touch?
VER takes the chequered flag
ALO P2
PER* P3 but he’ll drop to P4
Provisional result: VER, ALO, GAS, PER, SAI, HAM, NOR, ALB, PIA, OCO; STR, HUL, LAW, MAG, BOT, TSU, RUS
DNF: ZHO, LEC, SAR
Fastest lap: ALO
Update: MAG had a 5-sec penalty for falling more than 10 lengths behind the SC, dropping him from P13 to P16
[2023 calendar and driver line-up]
