It’s the last of the six sprint races this season, which I know will cause some people to cheer but I like the sprint format – the races are too predictable so having just one practice session increases the challenge. It was interesting to hear from some of the drivers – a definite split between those in favour, those against, and those who acknowledge that it’s to make it more interesting for the punters 🙂
Fortunately the post-race penalties didn’t change the result of the Mexico GP, unlike the mess after COTA. Despite crashing out on Turn 1 of his home race, PER is still P2 in the Drivers’ Championship but he’s only 20 points ahead of HAM so that battle might go to the final race… which leads to a couple of points:
- VER has said it’s not up to him to help PER win points, demonstrating what a great teammate the brat is
- there are concerns about running in Abu Dhabi, given the UK Foreign Office have issued travel advisories for the UAE regarding terrorist attacks [planetF1]; the FIA has, of course, been quick to deny the rumours
HUL and NOR have been summoned to see the stewards after a collision in practice
Checking the official FIA docs page, the outcome was “no further action”
Qualifying (for the race)
Ah, wait – Qualifying has been delayed by 15mins due to debris on the track
It’s pretty grey and overcast; 60% chance of rain during Quali
Qualifying session 1 (Q1)
PIA 1:11.494
STR 1:11.420
NOR 1:10.623
Radio from VER complaining his car is bouncing “like a kangaroo”
Pit lane incident involving RUS and GAS will be investigated after the session – the race director has said they must not drive slowly in the pit lane
Radio for SAI, “No rain expected for 2-3 minutes”
LEC 1:10.472
5mins left; bottom 5 are MAG, BOT, SAR, ALB, ZHO
Radio for HAM telling him they’ll take another set of tyres; HAM asks if they’re not safe; told they’re not confident (he’s currently P8)
Top 7 stay in the pits but most of the other cars are on track
ALB jumps to P4, triggering a few more to leave the pits
Radio from STR reporting “drops of rain”
2mins left; LEC, PIA and the Alfa Romeo pair (BOT and ZHO) are the only ones still in the pits
RUS 1:10.340
Chequered flag; bottom 5 are BOT, SAR, OCO, RIC, ZHO
RIC P16
OCO P14, TSU P16
Back of the grid: TSU, RIC, BOT, SAR, ZHO
Replays of many pit lane incidents where slow cars are not hugging the left side of the very narrow pit exit; there could be a lot of penalties coming after Quali
Qualifying session 2
The weather radar suggests the rain will pass to the north of the circuit, but it’s looking very dark over the track
Unsurprisingly there’s a long queue waiting at the pit exit
Green light; just HUL, MAG and GAS remain in the garages
VER 1:10.162
Haas were right to wait – it hasn’t rained yet, so they benefit from the track evolution; they go P8 and P9
Radio for HAM reporting that the track temp is dropping
5mins left; bottom 5 are HUL, MAG, GAS, ALB, ALO
(ALO P2)
NOR 1:10.021
Chequered flag; bottom 5 are HUL, OCO, MAG, GAS, ALB
GAS P13
HUL P11
Middle of the grid: HUL, OCO, GAS, MAG, ALB
Top 10 shootout is between NOR, VER, PER, ALO, SAI, HAM, LEC, RUS, PIA, STR
Qualifying session 3 starts shortly…
Another queue as they wait for Q3 to start; the sky is getting darker and there’s a few waterproofs being put on in the crowd
Radio for LEC telling him they expect rain in about 7mins, but there are people in the stands who might say it has already started
They might want to open a gap from the car in front, but the drivers also want to set a time before the rain starts
VER 1:10.727
LEC P2
Yellow flag – PIA is on the grass but recovering
Order after the first run: VER, LEC, STR, ALO, HAM, RUS, NOR, SAI, PER, PIA
There’s thunder and lightning – expect a red flag any moment
Radio from ALO, “It’s night!”
Race control: “Change in climatic conditions” … so maybe they won’t suspend the session
The main straight is pitch black – how can it be safe for anyone to run?
Red flags with 4:19 left on the clock
Race control: “Session will not be resumed”
The weather radar does show heavy rain for a while, but it’s interesting that they’ve decided not to wait
Provisional grid: VER, LEC, STR, ALO, HAM, RUS, NOR, SAI, PER, PIA, HUL, OCO, GAS, MAG, ALB, TSU, RIC, BOT, SAR, ZHO
So who has been summoned by the stewards? 10 (GAS) twice, 11 (PER), 31 (OCO), and 63 (RUS)
- GAS: 2 grid spot drop
- OCO: 2 grid spot drop
- RUS: 2 grid spot drop
No mention of GAS’ second infringement or anything for PER
Revised Provisional grid: VER, LEC, STR, ALO, HAM, NOR, SAI, RUS*, PER, PIA, HUL, MAG, ALB, OCO*, GAS*, TSU, RIC, BOT, SAR, ZHO (*2 place penalties for RUS, OCO and GAS)
Meanwhile the storm was so strong that it ripped the roof off the grandstand! Fortunately no-one was injured
Sprint Shootout (quali for Sprint)
This shootout sets the grid for this afternoon’s Sprint race; yesterday’s Quali (and subsequent penalties) are for Sunday’s race
Reminder: the mandatory tyres for SQ1 and SQ2 are the medium compound, and softs for SQ3
The weather looks a lot better than Friday’s stormy Quali session
Shootout session 1 (SQ1)
VER 1:11.888
SAI 1:11.796
Radio from VER, surprised to see his teammate blast past to start a flying lap; his engineer says “that was unexpected”
3mins left; bottom 5 are STR, ZHO, ALB, TSU, SAR
Yellow flags – OCO is off, in the tyre wall – Red flags with 0:33 remaining
ALO has a front left puncture
Race control: SQ1 will not be resumed
OCO gets himself out of the Alpine; no sign of any marshals
Replay shows OCO blast past inside ALO – looks like OCO ran wide (on a fast lap) and hit the Aston Martin
Back of the sprint grid: OCO, STR, ZHO, ALB, SAR
Start of SQ2 delayed while track workers remove OCO’s car, clean up the debris and check the tyre wall
Another replay shows ALO checking his mirrors, watching for OCO, but the Alpine ran wide on the kerbs and he was trying to recover when he hit ALO
Incidents involving RUS, NOR, PIA and OCO will be investigated after the session – failing to follow race directors instructions – maximum delta time (i.e. going to slow on their out lap)
Shootout session 2
Both Red Bulls sitting at the end of the pit lane, heading a small queue
Aston Martin mechanics still working on ALO’s car so he might not be able to run in SQ2
Radio from VER reporting “it’s gusty on track”
VER 1:11.449
3mins left; bottom 5 are RIC, BOT, TSU, ALO, GAS because none of them have set a time as yet, but they’re just about to leave the pits (except ALO)
90secs left; everyone except ALO on track
VER 1:11.262
Chequered flag; bottom 5 are HAM, RUS, RIC, GAS, ALO
RIC P2, NOR P11
GAS P10, BOT P11
PER 1:11.230
HAM P4, GAS, P11
RUS P5, HUL P11
NOR 1:11.331; MAG P11
Middle of the grid: MAG, HUL, GAS, BOT, ALO
Top 10 shootout is between NOR, PER, VER, RIC, LEC, HAM, SAI, RUS, PIA, TSU
Qualifying session 3
Green light for SQ3 but they’re all sitting in the garages
5mins left; still no-one on track
3:45 left and suddenly everyone starts to head out
VER passes a bunch of cars in the pit lane and pit exit – everyone else wants to preserve their soft tyres, but VER wants to get on with his lap
PIA 1:11.189
NOR 1:10.622
VER P2
LEC P3
TSU P3
Chequered flag
RIC P5
PER P3
SAI P7
HAM P4
RUS P4
Front of the grid: NOR, VER, PER, RUS, HAM, TSU, LEC, RIC, SAI, PIA
NOR says it feels like one of the worst laps he’s done, but he’s P1
Provisional grid for the sprint: NOR, VER, PER, RUS, HAM, TSU, LEC, RIC, SAI, PIA, MAG, HUL, GAS, BOT, ALO, OCO, STR, ZHO, ALB, SAR
Now we wait, again, for any penalties to be announced
Sprint Race
Grid: NOR, VER, PER, RUS, HAM, TSU, LEC, RIC, SAI, PIA, MAG, HUL, GAS, BOT, ALO, OCO, STR, ZHO, ALB, SAR
NOR leads everyone away on the formation lap
Everyone on soft tyres except MAG, HUL and SAR on mediums
Long wait for the grid to form up
01/24: VER leads into Turn 1
ALO runs wide
HAM around PER
PIA runs wide
RUS dives inside NOR to steal P2
02: VER, RUS, NOR, HAM, PER, LEC, TSU, SAI, RIC, PIA
DRS enabled
ALO has a look inside HUL but the Haas holds on to P13
03: VER and HAM are the only ones not to have DRS behind someone
04: HAM tries to defend but PER has DRS to take P4
Now HAM has DRS but LEC is challenging the Mercedes
05/24: VER, RUS, NOR, PER, HAM, LEC, TSU, SAI, RIC, PIA, GAS, MAG, ALO, HUL, OCO, STR, BOT, ALB, ZHO, SAR
NOR reclaims P2
06: ALO harrying MAG for P12… and takes the place
OCO takes P14 from STR
Radio from ALB reporting oil coming out the back of BOT’s car
07: HAM is heading a DRS train – he has six cars with DRS behind him
ALB takes P17 from BOT
08: PER past RUS for P3… but RUS fights back and reclaims the place
09: PER hangs onto RUS’ tail, presumably charging his battery for another attack
10/24: VER, NOR, RUS, PER, HAM, LEC, TSU, SAI, RIC, PIA
PER inside RUS into T1 to take P3 again
RIC is all over SAI’s rear wing
11: SAI seems to be fighting his Ferrari, allowing RIC to close right up
12: RIC around the outside of SAI into Turn 1, then inside in T2, but SAI hangs on to P8
13: ALO alongside GAS but can’t quite steal P11
14: RIC inside SAI in T2 to take P8 but SAI reclaims it
PIA snags P9 from fellow Australian RIC
15/24: VER, NOR, PER, RUS, HAM, LEC, TSU, SAI, PIA, RIC
ALO makes the pass on GAS for P11
Radio from VER wanting a decision about (some high speed setting); he’s told they’ve been giving him the OK for the past 3 laps
17: TSU has DRS behind LEC
18: VER nearly 2sec ahead of NOR, who in turn is over 8sec clear of PER
GAS locks up; STR swoops past for P12
19: PIA leading the DRS train of RIC, ALO and STR
20/24: VER, NOR, PER, RUS, HAM, LEC, TSU, SAI, PIA, RIC, ALO, STR, GAS, OCO, ALB, HUL, MAG, BOT, ZHO, SAR
RIC looks outside PIA but the McLaren retains P9
LEC closing on HAM
21: LEC blasts past HAM to take P5
TSU attacking HAM now
22: TSU easily past HAM for P6 – the Mercedes is struggling
RIC finally passes PIA for P9
23: ALO now on PIA’s tail
24/24: RIC closing on SAI
ALO storms past PIA but runs a bit deep and PIA reclaims P10
VER takes the chequered flag
Provisional result: VER, NOR, PER, RUS, LEC, TSU, HAM, SAI; RIC, PIA, ALO, STR, GAS, OCO, ALB, MAG, ZHO, HUL, BOT, SAR
Race
Pit lane is open; drivers can make their way to the grid
Grid: VER, LEC, STR, ALO, HAM, NOR, SAI, RUS*, PER, PIA, HUL, MAG, ALB, OCO*, GAS*, TSU, RIC, BOT, SAR, ZHO (*2 place penalties for RUS, OCO and GAS)
There was a bit of activity around RUS’ car, maybe an issue with the front right corner but the team tell Martin Brundle there’s no problem
Alpine have taken the sidepod off GAS’s car but that’s now reassembled
Oh dear – did the singer forget the anthem’s words or did her mic cut out?
SkySports report that RUS’ front-right brake was overheating on the way to the grid so they replaced it
Air temperature 21°C; track 47°C; humidity 59%; risk of rain 0%
Radio for SAI telling him they expect the track temp to drop 4° during the race
VER leads everyone away on the formation lap
Everyone on soft tyres except SAR on mediums – will it be a 2-stop or 3-stop race?
LEC is off, into the tyre wall at Turn 7
LEC has returned to the track but he’ll head to the pits… no, he’s parked it
01/71: There’s a collision before they reach Turn 1
Safety Car deployed
Race control: SC will lead the cars through the pit lane
02[SC]: VER, NOR, HAM, ALO,
Replay of ALB making a good start but he was hit by HUL and then MAG
Replay shows a tyre (not the whole wheel) got lose and bounced across the track, hitting a couple of cars
PIA’s rear wing is broken; he’s pushed into the McLaren garage
The loose tyre hit RIC’s rear wing, damaging it
Red flag – race suspended
03[SC]: SC leads everyone into the pit lane; the teams are allowed to make some changes (e.g. tyres) and repair damage “like for like” before the restart
LEC has run back to his car – is he going to try to restart it and get back to the pits?
Lots of activity in the pit lane – many teams working to repair cars in the hope of restarting
Replay of NOR and HAM passing both Aston Martins at the start
LEC has finally made it back to the pits
Replay shows HUL is squeezed between MAG and ALB as they approach Turn 1
Race control: Race will resume at 14:31 local time; it’ll be a standing start as usual
Looks like PIA and RIC are getting ready for the restart
“Any cars that were worked on in their garage during red flag period would be permitted to leave the pits with the field, but instead of going to the grid must return to, and take the restart from, the pit lane.”
Radio from RIC, “Thank you guys for repairing the car”
VER leads everyone away on the formation lap; everyone on softs except PIA on mediums
Order is: VER, NOR, HAM, ALO, STR, RUS, PER, SAI, OCO, TSU, GAS, BOT, ZHO, SAR, HUL; PIA, RIC will start from the pit lane; out: MAG, ALB, LEC
04/71: A clean start
ALO dives under HAM, stealing P3
05/71: VER, NOR, ALO, HAM, RUS, PER, STR, SAI, GAS, TSU
HUL fastest lap 1:20.643
06: VER f/lap 1:15.745
DRS enabled
Radio from RUS, “Let’s work together, I won’t attack in the first laps”
07: NOR f/lap 1:14.940
NOR has DRS behind VER
08: NOR has a look outside VER into Turn 1
NOR has another look but VER defends
09: VER has opened just enough lead to deny DRS to NOR
10/71: VER, NOR, ALO, HAM, RUS, PER, STR, SAI, GAS, OCO, TSU, HUL, BOT, ZHO, SAR, PIA, RIC
Radio for RUS saying he needs to pass HAM
11: PER has DRS behind RUS
14: PER inside RUS in T1 for P5
Radio from RUS asking “Are we working together or are we doing our own race?”; “We’re still discussing” – that’s not a great reply
15/71: VER, NOR, ALO, HAM, PER, RUS, STR, SAI, GAS, TSU
SAI has closed up on STR
16: Radio for RUS telling him they need more management; RUS asks whether they want to race or concede places; he’s told they need to manage the tyres
17: STR has DRS behind RUS
TSU touched the grass, causing him to run wide
18: PER dives inside HAM for P4
Mercedes need to rethink their strategy
19: HAM pits; mediums go on; rejoins P11
20/71: RUS pits; mediums; P11
Radio from HAM, “I’ve got a problem with my left front, it’s starting to steer right”
21: PER pits; mediums; P10 between the Mercedes pair
22: HUL pits from P8; softs; P15
23: STR pits from P4; mediums; P10
PER attacking HAM… and passes him for P7
24: ZHO pits, retires
25/71: VER, NOR, ALO, SAI, GAS, TSU, PER, HAM, RUS, STR, OCO, BOT, SAR, HUL, RIC, PIA; out: ZHO, MAG, LEC, ALB
STR straight past RUS for P9 – that’s a customer Mercedes engine passing the manufacturer
26: ALO pits from P3; mediums go on; rejoins P6
27: SAI pits, followed by GAS and TSU; bit of an unsafe release of SAI; they rejoin P8, P12 and P13, all on mediums
28: VER and NOR pit; mediums for both; rejoin still P1 and P2
29: RUS closing ready to attack teammate HAM
VER’s lead is 5sec; NOR nearly 6sec ahead of ALO
SAI takes P8 from OCO
30/71: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, STR, HAM, RUS, SAI, OCO, BOT, GAS, SAR, TSU, HUL, RIC, PIA
31: RUS still has DRS behind HAM, but SAI is catching RUS
32: PER is catching ALO
Radio from RUS saying he’s been quiet because he thought it was obvious he’s faster than HAM
SAI now has DRS behind RUS
34: Radio from HAM reporting he’s starting to struggle with the tyres
35/71: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, STR, HAM, RUS, SAI, GAS, BOT
SAI has DRS but RUS doesn’t; SAI takes P7
36: TSU takes P10 from BOT
37: NOR f/lap 1:14.845
SAI now tucked up under HAM’s wing
SAI easily takes P6
38: VER f/lap 1:14.682
39: OCO past HUL for P13
40/71: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, STR, SAI, HAM, RUS, GAS, TSU, BOT, SAR, OCO, HUL, RIC, PIA
BOT pits from P11; retires – that’s both Alfa Romeos out
41: RUS has been told to lift and coast to deal with temps
42: GAS has DRS behind RUS
43: GAS inside RUS and easily takes P8
TSU is over 1sec/lap faster than RUS, which is just embarassing
45/71: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, STR, SAI, HAM, GAS, RUS, TSU, SAR, OCO, HUL, RIC, PIA; out: BOT, ZHO, MAG, LEC, ALB
Radio from GAS reporting a problem with his brakes
SAR pits
46: RUS pits; used softs go on; rejoins P11
Radio for HAM telling him he can use all the tyres; HAM laughs and says he has been for the past 5 laps
47: PER pits; softs; P7
HAM pits; softs; P9
48: ALO pits from P3; softs; P5
HAM inside OCO to take P8
Radio from HAM, “We should have gone to the hard tyre man” – really? I thought everyone hated the hards
49: GAS passes teammate OCO for P9
GAS f/lap 1:14.521
50/71: VER, NOR, STR, SAI, ALO, PER, TSU, HAM, GAS, OCO, RUS, SAR, HUL, RIC, PIA
GAS breezes past HAM for P8
51: Radio from HAM, “I’m in his DRS and I’m still not catching (GAS)” 🙁
52: SAI pits from P4; softs; bit of a slow stop; P7
53: STR pits from P3; softs; slow stop; P6
55/71: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, TSU, STR, SAI, GAS, HAM, RUS
OCO f/lap 1:14.206
56: PER f/lap 1:14.124 – he has DRS behind ALO
TSU pits from P5; softs; P10
57: VER pits; softs; P2
58: PER still has DRS behind ALO
Radio for RUS telling him to retire the car – high (and rising) oil temps
59: RUS pits; retires
VER f/lap 1:14.044
60/71: NOR pits; softs; P2
Now everyone is on soft tyres
PER alongside ALO but the Aston hangs on to P3
62: NOR f/lap 1:12.486
65/71: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, STR, SAI, GAS, HAM, TSU, OCO, SAR, HUL, RIC, PIA
PER gets close but ALO continues to defend P3
66: PER is the only one with DRS; the next nearest battle is GAS 4sec behind SAI
69: VER has lapped everyone from OCO (P10) down
Radio from SAI reporting a problem with downshifts
70/71: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, STR, SAI, GAS, HAM, TSU, OCO, SAR, HUL, RIC, PIA
PER dives inside ALO into Turn 1
71: ALO has DRS behind PER but can he hang on to the Red Bull?
ALO closes on the back straight… reclaims P3
VER takes the chequered flag
NOR P2
PER has DRS as they run side by side up the hill but ALO just hangs on to P3 – the gap is 0.053sec
Provisional result: VER, NOR, ALO, PER, STR, SAI, GAS, HAM, TSU, OCO; SAR, HUL, RIC, PIA
DNF: RUS, BOT, ZHO, MAG, ALB, LEC
Fastest lap: NOR
Hopefully no post-race penalties🤞
The next race is USA #3, Las Vegas… but it’s a night race, starting at 1am my time, so I’ll watch the highlights later.
[2023 calendar and driver line-up]
