Football News: Formula 1: Turkey Talking Points
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Formula 1: Things To Think About After Istanbul Park
1. New Surface Made The Track Difficult
The track has recently been relaid which has created a lot of problems. From the moment the cars went out on it, they found it to be like an ice rink as the fresh tarmac leaks oils slightly. It has removed the power advantage for the Mercedes power units.
2. Odd Qualifying - Even Odder Pole Sitter
I doubt anyone would have backed Lance Stroll to be sat on pole before this weekend began. It was one of those poles that is a major shock as Max Verstappen had been out on his own as the fastest right up until Q3. Even then, when watching their two fastest laps side-by-side, Stroll's was not particularly impressive, but at least it was clean. Verstappen, on the other hand, just completely overdrove his car, constantly running out onto the kerbs and spinning up the wheels. The Dutchman threw away seconds, literally, through his own poor driving. I would be very surprised if anything like it happened again, as Verstappen will learn I am sure. The rain made a huge difference.
3. Rain!
Knowing the race is going to be run in wet conditions is always a big plus. Rain always seems to make races more exciting.
4. Not Even Waiting For The Start
George Russell and Antonio Giovinazzi never even made it round to the grid without a crash. Russell ended up starting from pitlane, along with his teammate Latifi. Giovinazzi was rescued and made it to the grid in time to fix the minor damage he had suffered.
5. Mercs Tyre Problems
Mercedes were really struggling to get the tyres up to their operating temperature and that made them struggle to get any grip. It does make me wonder if it is related to their new wheels they introduced to fix their previous problem of the tyres overheating. They used to struggle with their extra downforce putting too much load through the tyres on top of the overheating and that would cause tyres to blister. They designed new wheels which took the heat away from the tyres and enabled the cars to make the tyres last longer. Do those wheels take too much heat away when in cold conditions?
6. Gasly Given Late Penalty
Pierre Gasly was being investigated while on the grid before the formation lap after the team had asked to change his power unit over night. After being granted permission, they decided not to do it for strategy reasons. As the cars are in 'parc ferme' conditions the night before a race, changes are only supposed to be made in the case of a problem. Clearly Alpha Tauri did not have a problem or they would have changed it no matter the strategy issue. Hence Gasly was demoted from 13th on the grid to last.
7. The Start
The start was certainly interesting! Verstappen bogged down getting off the line and slipped back. Vettel got a stormer and put himself right into the mix, while Ocon spun and Bottas spun in sympathy with him on the first corner. Those two also tangled together later in the lap and ended up at the back. Hamilton was struggling early on and ran wide allowing Vettel, Verstappen and Albon to get past, to chase after the Racing Points. The Pink Mercs seemed to be running away with the race early on.
8. Verstappen Again Pushing Too Hard
Maybe Verstappen might need a bit more time to learn his lesson as his race was plagued by him overdriving and making silly errors as a result. It was the driving of an inexperienced rookie, which he is certainly not. He has always pushed hard, but this was different, it was silly driving, taking it way beyond the limits and being punished time and time again, but continuing to do it. For such a good driver it was a big surprise.
9. Pink Mercs Strategy Disaster
Racing Point made a complete mess of the strategy with Stroll and cost him any chance of a win. He ended up 9th as his tyres grained and car after car overtook him. It was lucky they split the strategy, so Perez managed a second. It is interesting that Perez, who is out of a drive next season, finished second after a drive that mainly just kept out of trouble.
10. Bottas
Once again, when it matters, Bottas is found wanting. He spent most of the race spinning and ended up a lap down on Hamilton, when he was the one driver who could have stopped the Brit from winning the title. You do have to wonder why he has a drive in the best car for next season, while Perez is pushed out by Racing Point. It is an odd world.
11. McLarens
As the track dried out towards the end, the McLaren's came into their own and were absolutely flying, Norris getting the fastest lap as he chased down Stroll. They ended up either side of the Red Bulls in 5th and 8th, a good result for them.
12. Ferraris
The shock result of this race is probably Ferrari ending 3rd and 4th, especially as Vettel was the one who came 3rd after Leclerc blew it trying to take Perez on the last lap and Vettel slipped past him. Vettel seemed much more like his old self, is there a revival on the cards for the former champ?
13. Another Win And Another Championship
Hamilton might not be everyone's cup of tea, but there is no denying he is an incredibly fast driver and knows how to win. He has added that Prost-like care of the car and tyres to his speed and it won the race for him. He was able to just turn up the wick and make the inters last most of the race. The team kept wanting him to come in for a tyre change to be safe, but he kept on pulling away and increasing his lead until it was all over. It was an excellent drive on the track where his career first took off in his GP2 (now F2) days. Back then in 2006 he had to come from the back of the pack after a spin on lap 2 to finish second. It was a performance that made all the watching F1 bosses take notice and also made the other teams question the legality of his car! Now in 2020 he is a 7 time world champion, equal with the great Michael Schumacher, and out on his own as the winner of the most F1 races in history, but it was this track that put him on the road to that success.
Written by Tris Burke November 15 2020 18:50:20