So races can end under a safety car? Who knew?
Let’s start with the sprint race.
Carnage at the first corner made for an interesting weekend, and really, a more interesting championship battle. Remember how I said the championship battle was a two-horse race? I lied. Or more accurately, passed judgement based on the information I had at the time. It would seem that, at present, the situation is not as clear-cut as I originally presumed.
The past few weeks have shown that McLaren was somewhat unprepared for the lengthy season as championship contenders, and it’s clear as day that a driver hoping to win a fifth title is very different from a driver hoping to clinch their maiden one. The fact that both McLaren drivers missed out on valuable points in the sprint means Max Verstappen, who’s had a completely characteristic revival in the last few weeks, inches even closer in the battle for top dog. Have you seen that one meme of the guy in his boat being “chased” by the huge ship? It feels like that’s what’s happening.
Right now, the championship lead could change hands in the next grand prix, which is bad news for Oscar Piastri. He’s been in a rough spot over the last few races, and inviting Verstappen to the party only makes things more difficult. But there’s an old saying in Formula 1: It’s one thing to catch, it’s another to pass.
Speaking of the current champion, how has he come right back into this picture? McLaren stopped developing its car, and Red Bull didn’t. So Verstappen, with his exceptional ability and competitors stalling in growth, has seen a gap, and he’s going for it. It was very unsettling watching him drive off into the distance during this race, but hey, what can I do?
McLaren needs to drop the gauntlet if it wants to be serious about a driver winning this championship. The time has come to pick a driver and back them fully. Give them as much of an advantage as you can.
Charles Leclerc on the podium! Lewis Hamilton became the first driver to score 5,000 points! Scuderia Ferrari, we are leaving here with something! That Hamilton podium is coming, I feel it. He’s cooking.
The battle for second place in the Constructors’ Championship is heating up, but consistency is the name of the game. Ferrari and Mercedes are wishy-washy. Sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe sh*t. And this weekend Mercedes was sh*t, and Ferrari was good. We’ll see how it goes in Mexico.
I wonder if this is why Hamilton’s first season at Ferrari and his last few at Mercedes were not as good as they should have been. At no point could he fully rely on the team(s) to get things right.
I hope more people realize how complicated it is to win consistently and can marvel at what Hamilton and Verstappen have achieved.
Anyway, on the other end of the spectrum, Alpine gave team orders to its drivers Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly — for 17th and 18th place. Colapinto subsequently ignored the team orders. The reaction from Alpine was like Colapinto had slapped Gasly across the face.
I’m looking forward to Mexico. I can only pray the Ferrari brakes survive the altitude.
