The Future of Formula 1 is Here
The future and the present collide on track, but the present looks very bright for F1.
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen rightly take the headlines in Formula One these days. They are embroiled in the most intense title fight since 2016’s showdown.
However, Monza wasn’t just all about them. They crashed out together after contact at the chicane at Turn Two, but McLaren were still set for a victory and double podium before the two main rivals took each other out.
Daniel Ricciardo led the race from the start, and thanks to Red Bull’s uncharacteristically poor pit-stop, the Australian was set for victory regardless of what Verstappen did.
Lando Norris also passed Hamilton on the main straight moments before that incident.
This was McLaren’s moment at long last.
It’s been a long road from Brazil 2012 to now, with the team suffering the lowest of lows during that time. But this was a statement that McLaren are to be taken seriously. In fact, they are the only team to achieve a one-two finish in 2021.
It was yet another statement from this sport that the future is here and now. It was also last week when George Russell was announced as a Mercedes driver for 2022.
Verstappen has led the way for younger drivers, but they’re no longer a distant future, they are the present.
Verstappen still leads that charge, as he looks to become the first champion born in the 1990’s — and the late 90’s at that, as the era of drivers born from 1988–1996 will go down as a lost one.
But looking elsewhere from Red Bull, Ferrari have their youngest ever driver lineup. McLaren are being led by Norris, who is still only 21-years old. And now Russell joins his peers at the front of the grid going into the new regulations.
Esteban Ocon became a race winner in Hungary and is still only 24-years old. Pierre Gasly, 25, achieved the same feat at Monza last year.
The likes of Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso remain on the grid, but they do so entirely on merit. Hamilton is still the man to beat, and Vettel and Alonso have been tearing it up in the midfield battle this season.
If Verstappen does come out on top against Hamilton it will not only be a passing of the torch moment between two greats, but between two great eras.
The crop of drivers that came through in the early 2000’s containing Kimi Raikkonen, Jenson Button, Nico Rosberg and the aforementioned world champions will have finally been toppled.
If Hamilton manages to keep hold of his championship to take an eighth crown it will tell us there is still plenty of fight left in these old dogs yet.
With next season being a chance to reset the order and for teams like McLaren, Ferrari, Aston Martin and Alpine to catch up it will be a chance to really see who’s got what it takes to bring down the old guard.
If Alonso and Vettel are suddenly up there fighting with Charles Leclerc and Norris for podiums, or even race wins, then the true intergenerational fight will begin.
This campaign may only be a prelude to the true battle still to come.
This is what makes now such an exciting time to be a fan of Formula One. Netflix’s Drive to Survive deserves immense credit for helping everyone get to know these young guys. Their personalities have shone through there, as well as on social media and on Twitch.
We’ve seen them grow into superb racing drivers and now everyone is ready to see them battle each other for the top prize in motor racing.
Of course we must first conclude the showdown between Verstappen and Hamilton, they take up the headlines for a reason. But Monza gave us another taste of the future of the sport, and it’s one we should all be excited about.
