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Formula 1 drivers warn against "Mario Kart" DRS plan

Formula 1 drivers warn against "Mario Kart" DRS plan

Leading drivers have warned Formula 1 chiefs against trying to make the sport too much like "Mario Kart", following the addition of a third DRS zone at the Austrian Grand Prix.
In a bid to try to help overtaking around the Red Bull Ring, the FIA has added an extra DRS zone between Turns 2 and 4.

But while a lack of overtaking has been an issue in F1 this season, top drivers like Sebastian Vettel are fearful about a push that could make grand prix racing too artificial.

"I don't know if it is a solution to put in [extra] DRS zones," said Vettel.

"Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of people that maybe like the idea of Mario Kart, including myself, I played it when I was young, but then again I think it shouldn't get artificial. We will see how it works out.

"Maybe it helps with overtaking and so on, but if you end up driving past another car it isn't very exciting either.

"There is more tension and more excitement if the car is behind and maybe something will happen rather than just sailing past."

Romain Grosjean joined Vettel in worrying about the fact that half the track in Austria was now DRS could make things too easy.

"Let's see how it goes," said the Haas driver. "When I saw it first of all, I was a bit sceptical because I think it's a lot of DRS zones, basically every straight.

"So we just need to see how it goes into racing and if it's not like Mario Kart where I pass, then you pass, and then I pass back."

Kimi Raikkonen added: "Half of the track is DRS, so it should make it pretty easy. I don't know if it's too easy or not.

"Obviously we want overtaking but there must be a point where it's kind-of artificial overtaking. But let's see."

But not all drivers were so sceptical of the change, with world champion Lewis Hamilton thinking that the extra DRS zone could make things better.

"I think ultimately they're doing that to try and make racing more exciting because it's not exciting enough, and the fundamentals are too big to change within the season," he said.

"We're trying to make the best with what we have. I think the way they've got it set up, you can get DRS in one zone, you can overtake, and then the other guy can get DRS in the next part.

"So it could be good maybe. It's not particularly the easiest of tracks to follow on, so it will be interesting."

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Mercedes unleashes biggest F1 update in Austria

Mercedes unleashes biggest F1 update in Austria

Mercedes has unleashed its biggest update of the season so far for its Formula 1 car at the Austrian Grand Prix, as it bids to pull clear of rivals Ferrari and Red Bull.
Just a week after the Brackley-based team introduced an engine upgrade in France, a raft of changes to the W09 – including to the sidepods and rear wing – are proof of an aggressive push at this stage of the season.

Having opted for a more conventional sidepod layout, rather than the concept introduced by Ferrari in 2017 that was copied by several other teams, Mercedes locked itself into that route for the entire season.

But with a well thought out plan to make a change, tweaks made in this area to play both to the aerodynamic demands of the car as well as helping the engine operate at its maximum potential.

Mercedes AMG F1 W09 side pods

Mercedes AMG F1 W09 side pods

The sidepod update consists of several changes, which all centre around the slimming of the inlet and targeted as a way of improving flow consistency around the sidepod's undercut to the rear of the car.

On the upper corner of the sidepod bodywork, and connected to the slat that runs over its leading edge, a new flow diverter can be found (red arrow).

This not only looks to change the direction of the airflow's travel but also encloses the side impact protection spar that might otherwise protrude out of the bodywork.

Mercedes AMG F1 W09 mirror mount

Mercedes AMG F1 W09 mirror mount

The W09's facelift is not only isolated to the sidepods, with a new outboard mirror stalk installed to support the already lengthened mirrors (in France).

The stalk clearly fulfils an aerodynamic purpose though, as at its base the surface is twisted to encourage airflow to travel in a certain direction.

Mercedes AMG F1 W09 rear wing

Mercedes AMG F1 W09 rear wing

At the rear of the car, the design team from Brackley has taken a leaf out of McLaren's book (inset), which has utilised the wording minutiae in the regulations to add overhanging strakes in a box area that's supposed to create the transition between the wider upper section of the wing to that of the narrower lower section.

The aggressive overhaul in Austria is in contrast to a relatively minor change that was made at the French Grand Prix to a winglet on its front brake duct.

Mercedes W09 front brake fins, French GP

Mercedes W09 front brake fins, French GP

The usual single element (inset) cast aside in favour of a twin element configuration, much like the ones above and below it have done over time.

The role of these winglets is to improve the direction and flow quality of the air as it is disturbed by the front wing and passes by the brake duct fence and suspension elements.

This in-turn reduces the turbulence created by the tyre alongside and has a performance knock-on effect for the aerodynamic surfaces downstream.

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No German Grand Prix on 2019 calendar

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It is set to be another brief reappearance from the German Grand Prix with no deal in place for the 2019 season.

Both the Hockenheimring and the Nurburgring have struggled for funding in recent years with no races in 2015 or 2017 due to financial issues.

The Hockenheimring will host the latest return of the German Grand Prix on July 20-22, but it is set to disappear from the calendar again in 2019.

According to Auto Motor und Sport, the German Grand Prix will be making way for the second US race in Miami.

“We are not surprised but of course it’s a great pity,” Hockenheim boss Georg Seiler added to Sport Bild.

“We talked with Liberty Media but made it clear time and time again that we are interested in continuing only if the financial risk is minimised.

“We have not been able to reach a viable model at least for the upcoming season.”

However, Seiler is confident the German Grand Prix can make another return in 2020.

“The goal remains a fundamentally changed business model,” he added.

“To what extent our ideas can be aligned with those of Formula in the future, we will see.”

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2 hours ago, MIKA27 said:

I wouldn't know for the states but here in Australia, SKY have the bloody rights meaning, we can't get F1 TV here...

So, you are watching the same Sky feed we are via ESPN in the US?  Have you ever seen in a Ferrari grid interview on Australia TV?

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13 minutes ago, BrightonCorgi said:

So, you are watching the same Sky feed we are via ESPN in the US?  Have you ever seen in a Ferrari grid interview on Australia TV?

Nope, never.

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8 hours ago, MIKA27 said:

Nope, never.

A friend did not believe me at first and then spent some time thinking of it to concur he had never seen a grid interview of a Ferrari driver...  No Schumi, Rubinho, Vettel, Masa,,,, nothing...  

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LOL, Martin Brundle tried, really tried to talk to Kimi during the Austrian GP gridwalk.  In typical arrogant Ferrari fashion they brushed him off.  I've seen Ferrari do this a few times.

 

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I swear I've just about had it with F1. Does anyone have a clear video of what Vettel did to "impede" the backmarker known as Carlos Sainz??? It's seems like everytime you turn around they're penalizing Vettel for some minor transgression, where they would never hit Lewis with a penalty. F1 is 100% predictable these days... If something mechanical happens to one of the Mercedes cars it WILL be Bottas... and that's exactly what has just happened in Austria. It seems very bizarre that nothing bad ever happens to Lewis. I guess he has a lucky rabbit's foot in his gear! I guess the F1 bosses don't really want to see a tittle fight, and they only wish to disadvantage Vettel and watch Hamilton sail off into the sunset. All this in spite of the fact that Mercedes isn't the dominant team that they once were. They seem to have a slight edge right now with the recent updates they have brought to Austria, but it's a very slight edge. It seems that the bosses are hellbent on helping Lewis gain as much of a lead as possible... This is my opinion and I'm sticking to it! Lewis Hamilton is darling of the F1 bosses... /end of rant

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51 minutes ago, Baldy said:

LOL, Martin Brundle tried, really tried to talk to Kimi during the Austrian GP gridwalk.  In typical arrogant Ferrari fashion they brushed him off.  I've seen Ferrari do this a few times.

 

Lol... Does Kimi really talk anyways???:D

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1 hour ago, Baldy said:

LOL, Martin Brundle tried, really tried to talk to Kimi during the Austrian GP gridwalk.  In typical arrogant Ferrari fashion they brushed him off.  I've seen Ferrari do this a few times.

 

Haha, I saw that. It looked like Kimi was going to say something, but no dice. ?

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38 minutes ago, Baccy said:

I swear I've just about had it with F1. Does anyone have a clear video of what Vettel did to "impede" the backmarker known as Carlos Sainz??? It's seems like everytime you turn around they're penalizing Vettel for some minor transgression, where they would never hit Lewis with a penalty. F1 is 100% predictable these days... If something mechanical happens to one of the Mercedes cars it WILL be Bottas... and that's exactly what has just happened in Austria. It seems very bizarre that nothing bad ever happens to Lewis. I guess he has a lucky rabbit's foot in his gear! I guess the F1 bosses don't really want to see a tittle fight, and they only wish to disadvantage Vettel and watch Hamilton sail off into the sunset. All this in spite of the fact that Mercedes isn't the dominant team that they once were. They seem to have a slight edge right now with the recent updates they have brought to Austria, but it's a very slight edge. It seems that the bosses are hellbent on helping Lewis gain as much of a lead as possible... This is my opinion and I'm sticking to it! Lewis Hamilton is darling of the F1 bosses... /end of rant

Lol, you spoke too soon. His team totally messed up there!

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LOL.  NO!

I'm a Hamilton fan and by default Mercedes.  Everything that could go wrong have gone wrong for this team today.  Having said that Hamilton's pouting spoil brat attitude after his team messed up yet again is not very professional.  Grow up kid, put your head down and do your part.  Had it not been for Mercedes he could have been Alonso and McLaren.  

Happy for Max and the great win today and for RB.  Not a fan of Ferrari but respect to them for not swapping drivers and allowing them to race.  Did not expect Ferrari to do that.

 

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VETTEL BREAKS BRITISH HEARTS TO WIN INCIDENT PACKED RACE

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Sebastian Vettel broke the collective hearts of Britsh fans when he spoiled the party at the British Grand Prix, taking a well-deserved victory while Lewis Hamilton recovered from an early spin and proceeded to storm through the field from the back to claim second place in an incident-packed race at Silverstone.

It was a race of two halves which began with a poor start by pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton, which turned into a shambolic first lap which not only tripped him up but also accounted for others.

The ‘race’ really began after the second of two safety car periods that concertina-ed the field and led to an enthralling four-way shootout between the two Ferrari drivers and the Mercedes duo in the final ten laps of the race.

Bottas led when Bernd Maylander peeled the safety car into the pits with, with Vettel on fresh tyres tucked in behind the leading Mercedes as he waited until DRS was available to pounce and take the lead with a fine move to claim the lead and maximum points.

This threw Bottas, who had driven impeccably all afternoon, thereafter he tripped up and slipped back further as Hamilton got past to claim second place and Raikkonen muscling past his fellow Finn to snatch third place.

Ferrari were quick and shrewd to bring Vettel and Raikkonen in when the first safety car appeared, swapping the Pirelli mediums for fresh softs. Mercedes kept both their cars out.

When unleashed, after the safety car, the difference in rubber told. Vettel was unstoppable once DRS was enabled and then swooped on the brakes at the end of the Wellington Straight to take the lead from Bottas and bag maximum points not long after.

Vettel said afterwards, “Obviously the Safety Car spiced it up. I think I surprised Valtteri and I wasn’t sure I’d make the corner but I did and it worked really well. I’m very, very happy.”

“Big thanks to the team for supporting me and also people in the background because yesterday I was a bit damaged. Today it was no problem.”

“With all the adrenaline going it was fine. Probably I will feel it tonight but it doesn’t matter, the tape held up. I enjoyed the race a lot and I think the people enjoyed a lot.”

“A great day,” concluded Vettel who now leads the championship by eight points after ten rounds and adds a second British Grand Prix winner’s trophy to the one he won in 2009 with Red Bull.

From pole, Hamilton was tardy off the line and slipped down to fourth but was tagged by the front of Raikkonen’s Ferrari, which spun him around and turned his afternoon to one of damage control which he managed admirably to finish second.

However his scything through the field highlight the enormous deficit between the Mercedes, indeed the same with Ferrari drivers, as powered past Merc customers and the Renaults with consummate ease. Formula 1 has two distinct divisions with a widening gap between the haves and the nots.

Hamilton questioned strategy used by the Reds, “Interesting tactics I would say from this side [looking at Ferrari drivers] but we’ll do what we can to fight them and improve in next races. This is the greatest race of the year and this is the greatest crowd.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to bring it home for you today but thanks for the support. It’s you guys that helped me get through today We’ll take it on the chin, keep pushing hard, but believe me I will not give up.”

Bottas did not put a foot wrong all day until he allowed Hamilton through late in the race, thereafter his tyres simply had no answer to Raikkonen’s Ferrari on fresh softs.

Raikkonen summed up, “I tried. Obviously, my view is I did the best I could but there seems to be an awfully opposite look at what I’m doing, unfortunately.”

Of the lap one incident with Hamilton the veteran said, “My bad, but that’s how it goes sometimes. It was my mistake, so that’s fine. I deserve it, I took the 10 seconds and got fighting.”

Max Verstappen looked good for a podium at one point, but in the wake of three impressive race weekends (winning in Austria last Sunday) he spun out of contention late in the race when the Red Bull suffered brake failure in Turn 16 on lap 48.

Teammate Daniel Ricciardo, who was edged by his younger teammate all weekend was rewarded with fifth place.

Nico Hulkenberg benefitted from the Haas pair tripping up at the start, kept it clean to claim sixth place and Best of the Rest in a car that clearly was no match for the big three.

In seventh place, Esteban Ocon had a strong race on the doorstep of the Force India factory at Silverstone, his teammate Sergio Perez was 11th.

McLaren’s Fernando Alonso turned 17th on the grid to eighth in the race after another gutsy race peppered with choice radio chatter. Teammate Stoffel Vandoorne was 12th.

Magnussen recovered from his first lap incident to take ninth on a day in which Haas rightfully expected much more from their drivers.

Romain Grosjean virtually signed his F1 departure papers with another woeful weekend, involved in the first lap scuffle with his teammate he then tangled with Carlos Sainz late in the race when heading for sure points.

Williams were slowest of all, finishing their home race with Lance Stroll in 13th and Sergey Sirtokin 14th. A miserable day for the once mighty British team.

2018 British Grand Prix -027

FIA Blow-By-Blow Report

At the start, Vettel got away superbly to take the lead ahead of pole position man Hamilton. The Briton’s team-mate Bottas also swept past and Hamilton found himself third as the field went through Abbey.

The situation was then made worse for Hamilton as Raikkonen braked too late and collided with the right rear of the Mercedes. Hamilton spun off track and dropped to 17th place. Raikkonen later received a 10-second time penalty for causing the collision.

At the front, Vettel was free to pull away and by lap eight the German had built a 5.7s lead over Bottas, with Verstappen a further four seconds behind. Raikkonen was now fourth ahead of Ricciardo and the Renault of Hulkenberg.

However, Hamilton was powering through the pack, and on lap eight he had climbed back to eighth place behind Leclerc. He was, however, now 25.7s behind Vettel. He made light work of passing the Monegasque and then breezed past Hulkenberg on lap 10 to sit 13.0 behind fifth-placed Ricciardo.

Raikkonen pitted on lap 13 to serve his penalty and after the hold he took on medium tyres to emerge in 10th place.

Verstappen was the next to pit, on lap 17, with the Dutchman also taking medium tyres. The Red Bull driver emerged in fifth place.

Behind him, Raikkonen was now on a march and in short order he dismissed Sainz, Ocon, Leclerc and Hulkenberg to sit in sixth place ahead of the next pit stop, on lap 18, for Ricciardo.

Leclerc was the next to visit pit lane but immediately after his pit stop he reported a problem and he was told to stop his Sauber. He pulled off track at Turn 3 where his strong run of recent points finishes ended.

Vettel then pitted on lap 20, taking on medium tyres. He rejoined in the lead and after Bottas made his stop the German led ahead of the Finn and Hamilton. Hamilton was now 5.8s behind the championship leader but he required a pit stop.

That stop arrived on lap 25, with the Mercedes driver taking on mediums. He rejoined the action on sixth place, 11s behind Raikkonen and 28.2s behind race leader Vettel.

The German was now 3.5s clear of Bottas, with Verstappen almost 10 seconds further back and with Ricciardo fourth ahead Raikkonen.

Bottas then began to close up to Vettel and on lap 30 the gap was down to 2.8s. Hamilton too was picking up the pace and by lap 30 he was running quickest and closing in on Raikkonen.

Red Bull then pitted Ricciardo for a second time on lap 30, with the Australian taking on a fresh set of soft tyres. He rejoined in sixth place, behind Hamilton, who was now just 4.9s behind Raikkonen.

The complexion of the race changed completely on lap 32. Marcus Ericsson overcooked his entry to Turn 1 and he lost the front end of his car. He spun and careered off track and into the barriers.

The safety car was immediately deployed and during the caution, Vettel, Verstappen and Raikkonen all pitted for fresh soft tyres as the field bunched up.

Bottas now led the race behind the SC, with Vettel second ahead of Hamilton, Verstappen, Raikkonen and Ricciardo.

On the restart Bottas held his advantage ahead of Vettel and Hamilton, bit behind them Raikkonen attacked Verstappen. He passed the Dutchman but the Red Bull driver returned the favour in the next corner and he held onto fourth place.

The Safety Car was almost immediately deployed again as behind the leaders Sainz tried to pass Grosjean in to Copse. It was tight, with Sainz leaving little room, and the result was that the Frenchman clipped the back of the Renault and they both went off track and out of the race.

The Safety Car left the track at the end of lap 41 and Bottas again held the lead ahead of Vettel and Hamilton, with Verstappen fourth ahead of Raikkonen and Ricciardo.

Vettel than began to exert pressure on Bottas and after a long tussle the German managed to sneak past the Finn with a good move under braking into Brooklands.

Behind them Verstappen spun and then retired from the race.

Bottas, whose tyres were fading, was then passed by Hamilton and he quickly slipped into the clutches of Raikkonen who brushed past his compatriot to take P3.

And that was the way it stayed with Vettel crossing the line ahead of Hamilton to take his 51st career win, putting him tied third with Alain Prost on the list of most wins in F1.

Hamilton’s superb recovery from the back of the field was matched to some degree by Räikkönen’s march to the podium from 10th after serving his penalty.

Bottas was fourth ahead of Ricciardo with Hulkenberg sixth for Renault. Ocon took seventh ahead of  Alonso, Magnussen and Gasly.

2018 British Grand Prix -022

2018 British Grand Prix -017

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VETTEL: SILLY TO THINK THAT ANYTHING WAS DELIBERATE

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British Grand Prix winner Sebastian Vettel scoffed at suggestions by Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes questioned if Ferrari used ‘dirty tactics’ when Kimi Raikkonen collided with Lewis Hamilton on the opening lap of the race at Silverstone.

The incident put paid to Hamilton’s ambition of winning a record-breaking home race as he was forced to recover from the back of the field, storming through to claim second place.

Limiting the damage while his arch-rival Vettel bagged max points to take his lead in the drivers’ standings to eight and the Reds extending their gap at the top of constructors’ points standings after ten rounds

Hamilton was incensed and skipped the post-race trackside interviews with Martin Brundle, before saying on the podium, “Interesting tactics I would say from this side.”

After the race, Mercedes chief Toto Wolff quoted his tech boss James Allison, who has worked at Maranello and with Raikkonen, asking: “Do you think it is deliberate or incompetence?”

But Vettel rubbished the theory, “It’s silly to think that anything happened was deliberate. I don’t think there was an intention and I think it’s unnecessary to even go there.”

Raikkonen accepted responsibility and the 10-second penalty for his actions, “He spun, it was my bad but that is how it goes sometimes. It was not a straightforward race. It was my mistake so that was fine. That is how it goes.”

2009 F1 World Champion, Jenson Button, making a welcome return to the grand prix paddock as an enthusiastic pundit, said of the incident, “It’s definitely not intentional. This is not the way anyone goes racing anymore. But it’s tough and there is high tension.”

“It’s not easy to overtake in a Formula 1 car and they’re trying to make those moves stick on lap one. They made mistakes but that’s what racing is all about. You try not to but sometimes you slip up, it doesn’t always go your way,” added Button.

Vettel departs Silverstone leading the championship from Hamilton by eight points and Mercedes trailing the Reds by 20 in the constructors’ title race.

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VERSTAPPEN: WE WERE SO SLOW IT WAS A JOKE

Max Verstappen

A week after winning the Austrian Grand Prix Max Verstappen found himself walking back to the pits after spinning out of the British Grand Prix on a day that the Red Bull simply had no ammunition to take the fight to Ferrari and Mercedes.

Already in qualifying with everything dialled up to the maximum, Verstappen was seven tenths shy of the pole-winning time of Lewis Hamilton, Indeed Saturday was a bad day for Renault-engined cars at what has become a power-hungry circuit.

After spinning out late in the race as a result of brake failure on his Red Bull, Verstappen told reporters, “We were too slow on the straight to do anything. You could see all the time when we had a safety car we were like drag racing. We were so slow it was a joke.”

“On lap one I had a brake-by-wire issue but then it recovered. However, after the second safety car, the brake pedal went literally to the floor, the rear brakes locked up and I spun off the track. It is racing, I’ve had it many times before and for sure it will happen in the future.”

“We will now start to investigate what actually happened, but even without the brake issue we were just too slow on the straights to do anything

“For sure I would have liked to have finished fifth and get some points but now we go home with nothing,” lamented the Dutchman who is now sixth in the championship, 77 points down on championship leader Sebastian Vettel

Instead, it was teammate Daniel Ricciardo who inherited fifth, the Australian echoing his teammate, “We didn’t have the legs.”

Team chief Christian Horner added, “Our drivers were, unfortunately, powerless to attack or defend against our opponents today and we were extremely exposed on the straights. We knew all weekend, our straight-line speed was no match for Mercedes or Ferrari.”

Next year Red Bull will join Toro Rosso with Honda power units until then they are enduring a final season with TAG-Heuer badged Renault engines.

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BOTTAS: WE RISKED IT TO STAY OUT AND TRY WIN THE RACE

Vettel vs bottas

It was one of those moments which have caught Mercedes out in the past, namely when to pit when things change unexpectedly during a race as happened during the British Grand Prix on Sunday, in which the F1 world champions slipped up with their strategy, costing Valtteri Bottas a podium if not a victory on the day.

A safety car period was triggered when Marcus Ericsson fumbled his approach to Turn 1, lost the front end of the Sauber, spun off and hit the barriers.

Ferrari were quick to react and pitted both their cars for fresh tyres while the Mercedes pitwall kept their boys out and as it turned out Bottas paid the price.

It was argued afterwards that it would have made sense to split the strategy and keep Hamilton out longer on the softs due to his recovery drive while pitting the Reds by pitting Bottas for fresh softs too, but they failed to do so and no doubt we will hear why in their race debrief later in the week.

After the second safety car period, it did not take long for Sebastian Vettel to dispatch Bottas for the lead of the race, the fresher Pirelli soft tyres on the Ferrari aided by DRS allowed the German to be daring on the brakes into Brooklands (Turn 6) and take the lead where he stayed until the chequered flag waved to end the race.

Meanwhile, Bottas tripped up on wasted tyres which had gone off the cliff, powerless to stop the passage to the podium of teammate Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen.

After finishing fourth, Bottas explained, “We took the risk to stay out and try to win the race. At that point, if the team had asked me if I wanted to win or secure second place, I would have said ‘go for the win’ but looking back, for the result it would have been better to stop. That’s a fact.”

“Afterwards it’s quite easy to say we should have pitted to keep the position. We took a risk to be first but ended up fourth so I think it was five laps too much. I thought there was a possibility to go to the end.”

“From our calculations, it should have been OK but it wasn’t. I was really trying everything I could to stay ahead. I tried my best but it wasn’t good enough.”

With regards to Vettel’s clinical race winning overtake, the Finn said, “He dived in and there wasn’t anything l could do any more. It was like driving on ice. I did everything I could to defend but it was just a matter of time. It was just a matter of time and then it was the same with Lewis and Kimi.”

Bottas leaves Silverstone fifth in the championship standings with 104 points, 59 adrift of his teammate Hamilton and 67 shy of Vettel.

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GASLY LOSES TENTH PLACE AFTER PEREZ CLASH

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Toro Rosso driver Pierre Gasly lost a point sfter the British Grand Prix on Sunday after collecting a post-race penalty that promoted Sergio Perez to 10th place and lifted Force India above McLaren in the standings.

Stewards imposed a five-second penalty and two penalty points after ruling that Gasly had caused a collision with Perez and gained a place as a consequence of his actions.

“With two laps to go, Gasly pushed me off track,” said Perez, whose teammate Esteban Ocon finished seventh.

“I gave him enough space but that was not enough: we still made contact and I lost the place. I believe it was an unfair move,” added the Mexican.

The race stewards reasoned after reviewing the incident: “The Stewards reviewed video evidence, heard from the driver of car 10 (Pierre Gasly), the driver of car 11 (Sergio Perez) and the team representatives. The Stewards felt that Gasly’s manoeuvres were generally reasonable and that he was attempting to make a good racing pass. Perez left his sufficient room throughout.”

“However, Gasly touched the sausage kerb at the apex of turn 16 which caused him to collide with Perez. This subsequently forced Perez off the track on driver’s left before turn 17 and severely compromised his ability to race through turns 17 and 18, and Gasly was thus able to pass Perez.”

“The Stewards determined that Gasly was wholly or predominantly to blame, and while the collision was light it led directly to the pass. Therefore the Stewards ordered a 5-second penalty.”

As a result Force India are now a point clear of McLaren in the constructors’ standings after ten rounds. The Woking outfit drop to seventh, while the Pinks are now only two points behind fifth-placed Haas.

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GROSJEAN OUT OF CONTROL AND IN THE WARS AGAIN

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Haas driver Romain Grosjean was in the wars again, this time at the British Grand Prix after he clattered into the side of Carlos Sainz’s Renault on lap 38 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, putting an end to both their races.

The pair were racing for position, with Grosjean apparently faster but his impatience got the better of him as he kept it pointed ever-narrowing gap through flat-out Copse, he locked up and was seen (through the onboards) correcting the slide before the collision.

The Stewards “reviewed video evidence, heard from the driver of car 8 (Romain Grosjean), the driver of car 55 (Carlos Sainz) and the team representatives.”

“The drivers gave clear evidence that agreed. Car 55 had a run on the outside of Car 8 going into the very fast Turn 9. While the driver of car 55 did slightly tighten his line towards the apex, the drivers agreed that this was not the entire reason for the incident.”

“The driver of Car 8 explained that he had braked, where he would not normally brake, at the entry of the turn to avoid an incident, but as soon as his front wing was in the turnbulence from Car 55 he had a slight understeer and as the cars were very close they made contact and subsequently both cars crashed.”

“The drivers agreed that it was a racing incident and the Stewards determined that neither was wholy or predominantly at fault and took No Further Action.”

Grosjean, who famously blamed Marcus Ericsson for his silly mistake during the race in Baku, this time reported over the team radio: “He just turned into me, mate.”

But later toned it down, “I haven’t seen much. Obviously, Carlos can say I didn’t leave him enough room, I can say he didn’t leave me enough room. It’s a shame it finished like that. It was still possible to score points.”

Sainz simply called it as the stewards saw it with Grosjean present, “I think it could have been avoided – but this is Formula 1. We gave each other just enough room and I think he lost the car.”

“I was risking to try and overtake Romain, made a move around the outside into Copse and I think he just lost a bit the car on entry and we just tangled,” explained the Spaniard.

On the opening lap of the race, the Frenchman once labelled the first-lap-nutcase by Mark Webber, clattered into his teammate Magnussen who was not pleased with his teammate.

Magnussen recovered to finish ninth on a day when a double points finish was a real possibility for the American outfit.

Team principal Guenther Steiner confirmed, “Romain apologised to Kevin, I guess he waited with his braking a little bit too long. This is obviously not acceptable because we keep on losing points while having a good car.”

Despite the apology, Grosjean said in the post-race Haas team press release: “At the beginning of the race with Kevin, I think it was a mistake from both of us. It shouldn’t happen, so we need to work on that to ensure it doesn’t happy anymore.”

A week ago in Austria, Grosjean scored the first points of his season which has been marred by mistakes and track antics not expected of a driver of his experience and stature.

The cost of ‘bent metal’ at Haas must be adding up and mostly inflicted by the wayward Frenchman who is surely on his way out of Formula 1 if he does not change his ways dramatically and rapidly, with Ferrari reportedly happy to snap up his seat for their protege Antonio Giovinazzi.

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2018 British GP - Post Race Reaction - Part 1

2018 British GP - Post Race Reaction - Part 2

2018 British GP - Post Race Reaction - Part 3

 

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I wish Hammy could've won it.  Would be the most epic drive in 20 years.  2nd place is utterly amazing.  He would've won by a country mile if he had a clean first lap.  

This season will be a neck and neck to the final race.

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