Bring on the clowns (AKA Eff Wun’s crop of overpaid prima donnas). How many times do I write, “You don’t win the race at the first corner, you only lose the race at the first corner.”
So here we have a four times world champion in Sebastian Vettel saying, “My start was too good and then I ended up with nowhere to go,” he told reporters trying to explain how and why he hit Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) at the first corner. “Too good?” He received a five second penalty from the stewards for being too good.
While all the mayhem was happening behind him, Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) just drove away from the rest and was never challenged, having collected pole position in Qualifying. This was a career 75th pole for Hamilton and he is undoubtedly the best driver in the current F1 field.
Second placed Max Verstappen (Red Bull) was lucky at the first corner, taking to the outfield and rejoining in second, a place he was never to lose. After the race, Verstappen showed his immaturity saying he was “angry” with the press as he feels they do not treat Sebastian Vettel in the same way as him following the German’s collision at the French Grand Prix.
Verstappen had started his season with six consecutive race weekends with an on-track incident. “I hope when we get to Austria that the journalists ask him if he will change his approach because that is what I heard for so many races,” Verstappen told Sky Sports F1. He continued his tantrum saying, “Mistakes happen and they happen to the best of us. But it makes me angry because they won’t be as bad on him as they were on me.”
In a race of changing fortunes for the Ferrari number 2 driver, the loquacious Kimi Raikkonen lucked his way to the final step on the podium. With his seat likely to be whipped out from under him at the end of the year, Kimi should enjoy what is left of the season.
Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull), running in third place for most of the race, and catching his team mate, had a front wing failure, dropping him back to 4th.
Bad boy Vettel finished in 5th, one minute behind Ricciardo.
“I don’t know if it was a failure or we hit some debris but that broke, so then already with the soft tyre, we were struggling when we left the pits and then I think a few laps later the team said the right part broke, so both parts identically seemed to break.” Questions will be asked back at the Milton Keynes factory.
Hot property Charles Leclerc was the last of the point scorers in 10th in the Sauber, once again showing a maturity greater than his age. Ferrari is the team where he should go.
Romain Grosjean, the Haas driver who is remembered more for his crash history, finished 11th and after half the year is yet to score a point in the championship table, but scoring well in the ‘chumpionships’. There will be a seat vacant at Haas very shortly.
Result
1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull
3 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari
4 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull
5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari
6 Kevin Magnussen Haas
7 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes
8 Carlos Sainz Renault
9 Nico Hulkenberg Renault
10 Charles Leclerc Sauber
11 Romain Grosjean Haas
12 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren
13 Marcus Ericsson Sauber
14 Brendon Hartley Toro Rosso
15 Sergey Sirotkin Williams
16 Fernando Alonso McLaren
Did not finish
Stroll Williams tyre failure
Perez Force India engine
Gasly Toro Rosso crash
Ocon Force India crash
