Imola GP 2021: Race Report

If the first two rounds of this F1 season are anything to go by, 2021 will be a hell of a year - in a good way.

Summary

Lewis Hamilton stormed to pole position, on Saturday, despite the Red Bulls having the superior machinery. 

Sunday brought rain to the classic Imola track, with drivers starting on wet tyres. Max Verstappen was the fastest away from third on the grid, with a fantastically judged move on Hamilton into turn 2. 

As the drivers pitted for dry tyres, Hamilton seemed to have the faster car and was catching Verstappen, but unusually, he made a mistake and hit the barrier while lapping George Russell. This dropped the champion to ninth, but he was saved from further losses by a red flag, which came out due to a massive crash between Russell and Bottas into Tambarullo.

Following the race restart, Verstappen pulled out a gap to take victory ahead of Hamilton, who fought back to P2 and Lando Norris, who drove a super race to achieve his second podium. 

Elsewhere, Sergio Perez couldn’t convert a mega P2 starting position with a scruffy race. He wasn’t alone, with many drivers at new treats struggling for confidence at a wet and challenging Imola. 

That’s a race win apiece between the GOAT and the Dutch challenger, with Hamilton leading the championship by a point due to getting the fastest lap. 

I like F1 in 2021.

Biggest Winner: Max Verstappen

Verstappen was imperious on Sunday and took a well-deserved victory. From the overtake on Hamilton to how he controlled the race without mistake, Max came close to perfection. He seemed a bit rattled on the radio as Hamilton closed in, but I think that we all would in that situation. He nearly lost the lead at the race restart with a clumsy slide across the curbs. Charles Leclerc helped by not knowing that it was a rolling restart due to radio issues. But even if Leclerc had got Max, I sense he would have won anyway - the Dutchman and Hamilton are in a league of their own. While Hamilton managed an escape perhaps comparable to West Brom in 2005, Max made the fewest mistakes and should be proud of his mature drive to victory. 

Biggest Loser: George Russell

Being in F1 is about not just accumulating points and wins but ensuring that your stock as a driver is as high as possible. Sunday saw George Russell’s stock take a hit. 

The Brit was doing brilliantly, challenging Valtteri Bottas for ninth in harsh conditions. On warmer tyres and possessing greater confidence, Russell looked to pass Bottas on the outside on the left-handed kink before Tamburello. However, despite having space, he lost control on the still wet track and grass, spinning into Bottas and taking them straight to the scene of a high-speed accident. For me, the stewards were correct to label it a racing incident, caused chiefly by Russell. Should Russell have gone for the move? Absolutely. 

As for what the drivers thought, Bottas pointed the blame with his middle finger at a furious, adrenaline-fuelled Russell, who maintained that Bottas moved late, causing the incident. 

Toto Wolff needs to decide whether Lewis Hamilton’s 2022 teammate will be the tried tested Bottas or the young but raw talent of George Russell. Neither of them did themselves any favours on Sunday. Bottas shouldn’t have been in ninth, which Hamilton later turned into second, and Russell should not have made a mistake. The big issue that Wolff will have with Russell, though, will be the lack of ownership and responsibility taken by George for his error. Mercedes operates famously on a ‘no-blame culture’. Even if Russell felt Bottas was to blame, Wolff would want Russell to address the media in the considered and diplomatic fashion that he has maintained up to this point in his short F1 career.

The narrative now is not Russell beating a Mercedes or scoring his first points. Instead, it paints Russell as a hot-headed, finger-pointing youngster. A stark portrayal to that of Russell’s rivals: Norris, Verstappen and Leclerc on the same day. Hopefully, George will bounce back. 

Since writing the above, George has released a statement, apologising and taking responsibility for his part in the clash. What I said still applies.

Moment of the Race: Max’s pass on Lewis

Max’s overtake into the first braking zone of the race was very much Lewis-esque in that it was firm but fair. He showed a slow-starting Hamilton to the outside of the track in a fine racing manoeuvre, showing the respect and maturity between the two in bucket-loads. I cannot wait for more battles between the two, but I will call it now - Lewis and Max will crash at some point this season. While they respect one another, neither will give an inch. Watch this space before they run out of it.

Honourable Mention: Miami GP

It’s a bit off topic but still highly relevant for the future of Formula One - there will be a Miami Grand Prix in 2022. The circuit will go around the Miami Dolphins stadium. From the track details that I’ve seen, racing could be pretty good with the looping corner before the pit straight, hopefully encouraging overtaking. Austin is an excellent venue for a Grand Prix and should not be forgotten. For Formula One to develop in the United States as Liberty Media wish, getting more US races (and drivers) will be essential in achieving that. A 10 year contract also shows that they’re not messing around. A good move for F1. How about Africa next?

AJontheLine Line of the Weekend: “Move on, let’s race”.

Having put in a storming lap, good enough for P3, in qualifying, Lando Norris was gutted to find out that his time had been deleted for exceeding track limits. It was a matter of millimetres and demoted Lando to P7. Still, I’m glad that the FIA were strict with him after the mud-like transparency of track limits in Bahrain. After posting on social media to apologise to his team and the fans, Norris received an uplifting message of reply from the polesitter, Lewis Hamilton. 

“Nobody can knock you for giving it your all. Amazing lap. It’s great to see you and the team shine. Move on, let’s race”. 

Race they did, with the two of them achieving the 699th and the 700th British podium in F1. 

Italy is known for making many tasty things. As F1 heads to a double header in Portugal and Spain, the prospect is mouth-watering.