So the F1 season is over and it went out on Sunday with a bit of a whimper it must be said but Yas Marina, despite being an impressive facility has never really produced brilliant races. The race never got going in terms of drama or excitement, there was some overtaking of note down the field but it will not be a race to remember.
Firstly though let us praise the sport and everyone involved for getting the season going in the time of covid! To have completed 17 races in six months is an amazing achievement, when the 17 race schedule was finally released there was a thought in my mind that we may lose some of those. And during the initial lockdown I, along with many others doubted for a while that we would have anyone racing at all. Formula One you have done a mega job this year and I commend you all!! I will be looking back over the season in my review blog but for now it is enough to say thank you.
For Max Verstappen to have got a second win of the year on Sunday, and from a brilliant pole position earned on Saturday was in my mind something that was owed to Max after he has driven brilliantly all year. He has eagerly chased down the Mercs and got everything out of his RedBull often having to settle for third spot as his rivals have been too fast, but he has shown determination, passion and a huge amount of speed and that is something that he deserves a lot of respect for. One win would not have been ample reward for his efforts this year so I was very pleased to see him seal the win this weekend, even if it was a dull affair.
As for Mercedes they did not look like the force they have been all year and did not really present any kind of challenge to Verstappen. Whether this was because of reliability concerns causing them to turn down their motors or they simply didn’t have the speed remains to be seen but it cannot be overlooked that in recent weeks Mercedes power plants have had issues. The theory that this made them play it safe has some grounding to it and after a full season of racing it is not really surprising. This does not I should say detract from Max’s performance but one wonders if the title had been on the line if they would have found some more pace.
For Valtteri it was a solid weekend after a difficult few weeks where bad luck and struggles have seen him fail to bring home any good results and finishing ahead of his team mate is probably something he needed going into the winter. For Lewis however it was more difficult weekend as he was struggling with the after effects of Covid and openly admitted that he was far from in perfect shape, Well done to him for coming back and I personally think a third place was pretty good considering the situation.
I know it was shame for Russell that he didn’t get a second race in the Merc and there were some that felt that was unfair, but I was pleased to see Lewis back. I think after such a successful season and one where he clinched that seventh title it would have been wrong if he hadn’t have been able to finish it in the car. He may not have been up to full strength but he finished the season properly and that is only right.
The real focus point of the race was the season long hard fought battle for third place in the constructors championship. This eventually went the way of McLaren after both Norris and Sainz had good races, but Racing Point had their hands tied behind their backs a little when Sergio Perez was forced to take new parts and start from the back row. With Stroll fighting in the lower reaches of the top 10 it was there for McLaren to take. It is unquestionably a great result for McLaren and another sign of their continued improvement and I do feel happy for everyone at Woking but I must confess that I was rooting got Racing Point as they have done so well for so now with much less resources and they have had a great season. To have seen them clinch third place in their last season before morphing into Aston Martin would have been terrific and a great reward for the hard work that they have put in. It wasn’t to be but well done to everyone in the team and I hope as Aston they are very strong next year. It has been great to see these teams moving themselves up the field in the last couple of seasons and I look forward to seeing that continue.
Other than that there isn’t much more to say. Some had to say their good byes to teams and some to the sport as a whole and to those who we will see in F1 again i was them the best for the future and to those heading to new teams, namely Vettel, Ricciardo and Sainz I very much look forwards to seeing them in their new cars next year. The Sergio Perez situation is till not clear, bit Ted Kravitz on Sky Sports F1 siad that it is expected that RedBull will take him to partner Max next year so we will have to watch this space for that one.
F1 2020 is over and I have to say I think it has been thoroughly enjoyable. I have been very pleased with the action and and as mentioned earlier very relieved that we were able to be entertained by the sport that we loved this year. I have also I have to say enjoyed writing this blog this year, it was a good move to start doing it back in March and put my thoughts and opinions into words. I will be continuing to write it over the winter and on into next year. starting with my 2020 season review which I will prepare and hopefully post next week. But for now thanks F1 for a another season of action. Bring on 2021…….
My F1 talk 