Imola GP: What We Learned
The Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio Del Made In Italy E Dell’emilia Romagna 2021, or Imola GP for short, last weekend saw many twists and turns as F1 returned from a three week break for the second race of the 2021 season.
It is still early days on a long season, but last weekend showed us what we can expect from what looks set to be a thrilling campaign.
Here are five key lessons learned from the 2021 Imola Grand Prix.
1. The Title Fight is On
The Bahrain Grand Prix in March was a close run battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. Only seven tenths of a second separated the two as they crossed the finish line.
However, with Mercedes struggling throughout that weekend, the fact that Hamilton still took home the victory, with Valtteri Bottas comfortably in third, seemed like a massive missed opportunity for Verstappen and Red Bull.
Hamilton then taking pole position on Saturday was also a sign that the seven time world champion wasn’t going to give up to Red Bull without a huge fight.
But Verstappen took the lead of the race at the opening corner in impressive fashion and, besides a nervy spin under the restart, never looked like giving up his lead.
It was a dominant victory from the Dutchman, perhaps the most comfortable of his F1 career. He controlled the race from the front without ever really looking in trouble. He didn’t back down from the fight at that first corner either, something Hamilton has perhaps gotten too used to from his teammate over the years.
This won’t be the last time these two face off on the track and for that we can all be excited.
2. Valtteri Bottas and George Russell Both Have A Lot To Do
On lap 32, the Mercedes and Williams drivers collided in a crash that caused the race to be stopped with red flags. It was appropriate because both driver’s weekends raised red flags in their tussle for the second Mercedes seat for 2022.
Bottas qualified eighth in a Mercedes. While they’re not the dominant force we’ve become accustomed to seeing, they are still right up there with Red Bull as quicker than the rest of the pack. A top four or five finish should be the bare minimum on Saturdays.
The Finn’s race was somehow even worse. By the time Russell went for the overtaking move, it was in the fight for ninth place. Williams were slowest in 2018, 2019 and 2020, while Mercedes were winning championship after championship. They should not be racing for position on track under any circumstances.
Hamilton cannot afford to have a teammate so far back while Verstappen and Sergio Perez pressure the Englishman into the first corner off the line. The role reversal on the opening lap was unexpected but Mercedes cannot afford to have this happen again, that’s how fine the margins are between victory and defeat.
Meanwhile, Russell’s inability to take blame or accountability for his role in the incident was a bad look. The Briton has not had a lot of on-track action in the Williams due to how slow it is, but he is by means no rookie either. He handled himself poorly and put Mercedes and Toto Wolff in a very tricky spot post-race.
To go up to a driver after a shunt as big as Bottas experienced and tap him on the head while he is still in his seat is unacceptable. The fact that Russell had the time to get out of his car and walk over to Bottas and the Finn was still in his own car should have been a sign that he hadn’t gathered his bearings yet.
This tweet also showed no respect to Bottas, who was still being treated in the medical bay following the accident. Emotions were running high, but as the head of the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association, this is not acceptable behaviour of someone in his position.
Russell’s apologetic response on Monday was a move in the right direction, but Imola showed that he still has a lot to learn if he wants to be driving for Mercedes.
3. Qualifying as Intense as Ever
The battle for pole position on Saturday was amazing. Lando Norris in the McLaren almost snagged top spot but was half a tenth off Hamilton’s time before his lap was deleted for the most marginal of track limits exploit.
Charles Leclerc also looked quick too. A second consecutive fourth place finish was impressive, with the Monegasque also admitting afterwards that they sacrificed qualifying performance for race pace on Sunday, potentially by opting for a wet weather setup in anticipation for what was to come on race day.
Perez out qualifying Verstappen in only his second race in the Red Bull was also very impressive. The Mexican claimed after the session that he’s still not comfortable in the car.
“I think I’m not there, I’m not there with the car,” said Perez on Saturday. “It’s the amount of time it takes me to get there, I should be right there from Practice One but I’m not there in terms of consistency with the car. It just shows how much work I put in, it’s a great result and great boost in confidence.”
The gap from Hamilton to Bottas, first to eight, was under half a second. That kind of gap in 2020 puts Bottas in third. To be so far back shows that any kind of mistake in Q3 could have huge consequences for the final result of the driver and the team. Norris dropped from second to seventh when his lap time was deleted.
This many cars being this close together is extremely exciting and suddenly Saturdays are looking just as important as Sundays again.
4. New Drivers are Still Adjusting to New Cars
The conditions of the Imola GP were a birth by fire for those drivers that joined new teams for 2021. Carlos Sainz, Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, Daniel Ricciardo, Yuki Tsunoda, the two Haas drivers and Perez all had moments that showed their lack of experience in their new machinery.
Alonso went off before the race even started. Sainz complained to his race engineer about how many mistakes he was making, Perez went off after the restart which proved very costly.
The Bahrain Grand Prix hid a lot of the issues these drivers are having because testing was also conducted at the same venue. They all had that much more experience in their cars at that point. Imola is a completely different circuit and comes with its own challenges.
These drivers will take another few races to adjust. Ricciardo described it as “bad habits,” to Sky Sports that he needs to kick out. The Renault of 2019 and 2020 drivers differently to his McLaren now. Some drivers have even described it as like driving in a different formula.
Once F1 arrives in Portugal in two weeks, the races will start coming in thick and fast. Portimao is quickly followed by Barcelona as the European leg of the calendar kicks into gear.
For now these drivers still have allowances to make mistakes as they get up to speed in their new teams and environments. It will only become a problem if after six or seven races these drivers are still uncomfortable in the car. It will on be by then that we can truly judge their performances. Until then, patience is required while we still only see glimpses of what they can do in their respective teams.
5. McLaren are in Safe Hands
With Ricciardo struggling for pace, the Australian was ordered by his pit wall to let his teammate pass into fourth place. Ricciardo obliged at Turn Seven under the impression that if he could keep up with Norris then they would swap the two cars back.
It didn’t work out that way, however, as Norris drove off into the distance. The Briton drove superbly and deservedly earned a podium place — the second of his F1 career.
Ricciardo accepted he wasn’t on the pace and played his role in the team incredibly professionally. Everyone knows the seven time race winner’s talent, but he is still not up to speed in the McLaren. He spoke after the incident very eloquently and showed that, with these two drivers, McLaren are in safe hands.
“I think that’s where I certainly got to swallow my pride,” said Ricciardo post-race.
“Honestly, the team were fair enough. They gave me time to try to show my pace. There were some laps where I had a bit and I could do a decent time. To be honest, when I did push, I killed the front-left tire.
“So, I think they gave me the time to show what I had and today, it wasn’t enough. So, I am not going to get into any fisticuffs because it’s fair enough.”
Once Ricciardo does get to grips with the car, the team will have as formidable a driver pairing as anyone on the grid.
