By Joe Murphy
Mighty Max Verstappen reclaimed top spot in the Drivers’ Championship standings after an impressive win at his home Grand Prix. The action may have been dull at times over the course of Sunday afternoon, but the crowd from Zandvoort didn’t disappoint and generated a spectacular atmosphere. The orange flares and the roars at the chequered flag capped the spectacle, so let’s summarise action from the Netherlands as we analyse part two of this latest F1 triple header.
Max and Lewis on their own level… Again!
Max Verstappen was simply class all weekend. And you get the distinct feeling Lewis Hamilton was getting the maximum out of his silver arrow. Whilst it is important to remember that these two have the two quickest cars on the grid, still, the gap to the rest of the pack was so vast, it almost equates to the embarrassing. Teammates of these two, Bottas and Perez, both had respective strong races, but were simply not on the same level as these two. It is not the first time this season either, that this distinction can be made. Whether a second year for the Mexican at Red Bull, or the recent promotion of George Russell at Mercedes, can address this balance for the 2022 season, time will tell. Regarding the battle between the two front runners specifically, it was conquering homecoming hero Max Verstappen who was simply “too quick” for the seven time champion to keep up with, as the Brit admitted himself over team radio following the chequered flag. With Monza less than a week away, the two respective Championship standings would be hard pressed to be any closer. Will Lewis strike back immediately or will the Dutchman maintain or even extend his lead? Let’s wait and see developments over practice.
Pierre doubters becoming more rare by the race.
Only behind the three podium sitters of both Mercedes and Max himself, the Alpha Tauri was more out of position than me on a dance floor. The fact is, however, that seeing Pierre Gasly in and around the podium positions, is no longer surprising to see. In at best the fifth fastest car on the grid, Pierre is becoming confident and consistent, both attributes he failed to be whilst at Red Bull. With another year coming at the Italian team, you start to ask the question; why would the Frenchman move elsewhere? He is safely in a seat at Alpha Tauri and is in a car that he has proven can achieve podiums and even win a race. With a rumoured move to Alpine somewhere down the line due to French connections, or even a return to Red Bull on the cards, neither move would be out of the question in subsequent years. For now though, an overachieving car being driven by a seriously skilled driver, it’s a partnership that is working wonders for both parties. With another strong points finish in the bag, the team heads to Monza where Gasly himself has had tremendous success. A note on his teammate, whilst Yuki Tsunoda cannot match his teammates points, the Japanese Rookie has banked himself another year on the F1 grid too. With more experience and learning opportunities coming all the time, expect to see a more polished driver as the season presses on.
Ferrari looking strong, McLaren slightly off pace.
This weekend seemed to belong to Ferrari during Friday’s action with both Sainz and Leclerc rivalling Red Bull and Mercedes on track. Followed up with a solid points haul Sunday, Ferrari closed the gap to McLaren in their rivalry for third in the Constructors’ championship. Lando Norris showed somewhat of a recovery drive to move up the order whereas Daniel Ricciardo failed to use any of his momentum from an excellent result in Spa, albeit during the most fleeting of appearances, in the race that never really was. With Monza next in line, Ferrari will want to forget about their appalling showing last year and use the backing of the Tifosi home crowd to build on an encouraging showing in Holland. I’m sure Ferrari would take a repeat result from this weekend. For McLaren, the British outfit will want to move on and keep adding to their already impressive points tally. With both these teams having their lineups confirmed for next year, the performances of both these teams should continue to get stronger and stronger.
Disastrous weekend for Haas but Fernando impresses yet again.
Haas’ season as a whole could fairly be described as disastrous, and this weekend was an epitomy of their season so far. Both Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher making mistakes that affected other drivers on Saturday, most notably Sebastian Vettel, was bad enough, but then to tangle with each other and risk the ever-increasing repairs bill to climb further will not please owners or investors alike. Guenther Steiner has already described this season as developmental. However, a “write off” is proving more accurate. The only benefit is the extra experience gained by these two rookie drivers and the extra investment the team received prior to this campaign. It is hard to see where a Championship point is going to come from, unless nine cars fail to finish at any of the remaining races, however. Quite the opposite can be said for Fernando Alonso who yet again showed the experience and prowess to secure a tremendous sixth place finish at Zandvoort. After what can only be described as an inconsistent start, the Spaniard is starting to show the form and desire the two time world champion showed over fifteen years ago. This is especially impressive considering his absence from the sport. Alpine are running some impressive races as of late and much of this is down to the attributes of Fernando. Even Ocon’s victory was hugely down to the work of his teammate. The Frenchman can only benefit with another year alongside Alonso.
Williams back down to earth. Alfa Romeo build for next year…
George Russell may be elated at the prospect of racing alongside Lewis Hamilton next March, but he and his team were somewhat shown up for their true pace at Zandvoort. An incredible second place, podium finish, last week was always going to be an anomaly and would have been near on impossible to replicate with more predictable weather conditions on the Dutch coast. The team will still be happy with a solid run out this weekend, but after two points finishes in a row, Williams found their true pace here. It just goes to show that the more uneventful a race, the better reflected a team’s true pace. Williams are still the second or third slowest team on the grid at the moment, and it showed this weekend. Next up is Monza, where only four years ago they were starting on the front row. It just shows that despite some success since the summer break, the Constructor still has a long way to go to get back to the top. With regards to Alfa Romeo, the weekend didn’t get off to the perfect start when Kimi Raikkonen was confirmed to miss the race due to contracting Covid. A steady shift from Robert Kubica and a strong performance from Antonio Giovonazzi will please the team, however. With Valtteri Bottas now confirmed for next year, the team will relax having replaced experience with experience. They still need to make the car faster but there is no denying they are on a new upward trajectory as we approach 2022.
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