Our F1 season predictions were probably wrong - and that’s tremendous

Last week, we did a podcast episode on AJontheLine, predicting the upcoming F1 season. And while it was enjoyable, with some exciting and amusing thoughts, I suspect that our predictions will be whole-heartedly wrong. But that’s tremendous.

While one may look at this poor foresight as a lack of knowledge or understanding, I look at it differently. It means that we are heading towards a fascinating season of Formula 1.

I put Red Bull as the fourth fastest car, but that looks wrong as they seem favourites now. Similarly, I put Alpine last, and they seem quick as I write during the first practice session of the season. 

I could see Charles Leclerc as one of the biggest favourites for the championship in that lightning-fast Ferrari, but how can I count out his teammate Carlos Sainz? He beat Leclerc last year and held his own against Max Verstappen back in their Toro Rosso days. The fastest Ferrari driver battle will be a spicy and tightly-contested spectacle - and it could decide the champion.

Mercedes look like they are genuinely struggling with ‘porpoising’ (listen to this podcast for more on that) but have a fast car if they can sort that out. Will they come back later in the season? Will their drivers, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, the legend and the apprentice, remain harmonious? They surely need to initially as they get their car back to the front.

McLaren is so hard to call as well. Surely Lando Norris can find his first victory and Daniel Ricciardo his form. However, those brake issues were less than ideal last week. Either way, it is so good to see the team in a good, stable place with plenty of sponsors.

Then there is the ‘midfield’, the most confusing of the lot. Any remaining team could be the best of the rest or better on any given weekend. Will Haas, having dropped their Russian money for an old friend, be the biggest surprise? Will Fernando Alonso get the championship battle he returned to F1 for? Will Alpha Tauri shock the world and be better than the midfield? Pierre Gasly was fastest in the first session of the year, and young Yuki Tsunoda looks ready to balance his unfiltered brilliance with maturity.

There are so many questions, and those above are just the tip of the iceberg. This is a new F1 season feeling, but this time it is all-new. The shakeup in the regulations means that we can’t call anything. And that’s more than okay. Sit back, enjoy this season and join us on AJontheLine for all of the biggest talking points.

Hungarian GP Report: Sacre Bleu!

The Hungarian Grand Prix was being hyped up after the title-defining British Grand Prix, and I was concerned that it wouldn't live up to it. However, like a chocolate brownie, the battle of Budapest is impossible to overrate and delivered again. With a first time winner, crazy weather, a comeback drive, battles between the best and underdogs succeeding, this race had it all. 

Lewis Hamilton started from pole position after a scintillating lap in qualifying, giving him his 101st pole position. Behind Hamilton was his teammate Bottas, and then the two Red Bull's, who were seeking revenge after last time out. Drama on the horizon? Surely.

How do you complicate a Grand Prix? A downpour of rain just before the start of the race, of course. That's precisely what happened. Tension built, and when the lights went out, there was minimal grip. It was anybody's race.

Hamilton got away well but, his rear gunner certainly didn't. Verstappen, Norris and Perez all muscled their way through, but in a bid to make up the places, Bottas braked later than those ahead. Unfortunately, it was ambition ahead of the physics of friction. The Fin sailed into the back of Norris, leading to several drivers either being knocked out of the race or heavily damaged. Crucially for the championship, Verstappen was one of those who took on significant damage. 

Bottas was out.

Perez was out.

Norris was out.

And so too was the red flag.

As the drivers emerged from the pit lane, they were still on wet weather tyres, but the track had dried much quicker than anyone had predicted. Who was going to take the risk to pit for dry tyres and lose track position? As it turned out, everyone. Everyone except for the race leader Lewis Hamilton. Incredibly, Hamilton was the only one to line up on the grid. He had to race around the track and then pit on his own while everyone else, all on the right tyres, went past him. After avoiding all of the drama at the start, Hamilton was last.

So who led now? George Russell - I'm not joking, but only for a few corners before he was told to let these that he'd overtaken in the pit lane past. Somehow, Estaban Ocon was leading from Vettel, with Williams' Latifi in third. The championship protagonists of Hamilton and Verstappen were out of the points. 

If Lewis Hamilton was going to win his 100th Grand Prix, he would need to pull out one of his best ever performances. After making his way past the Alfa Romeos and Mick Schumacher, he pitted to undercut Verstappen and, crucially, Daniel Ricciardo with a brilliant move around the outside of the Aussie driver at turn 1. This allowed him to push into the clean air and get up to fifth position, but he was stuck behind the one-stopping Carlos Sainz on fresher tyres.

Ahead, Alonso led while Ocon and Vettel pitted. Given the searing pace of his out lap, Vettel should have taken the lead. However, his slow pit stop was enough to allow Ocon to remain ahead - just. 

Hamilton's tyre charge had allowed him to close in on Fernando Alonso for the battle that we all wanted to see for fourth position. Oh, and it did not let us down. The ten lap battle was pure, clean and hard racing. That was what it looked like to see the two most outstanding of their respective generations battling it out. Alonso may have just turned 40, but he still has it. He also won the race for Estaban Ocon. Alonso's defence meant that Hamilton only had three laps to catch and pass the two leaders by the time the Brit got through Alonso and Carlos Sainz for third. While he was only two seconds off the lead, it was enough. 

Estaban Ocon also spent 70 laps in the race lead with Sebastian Vettel, a four-time champion, pressuring him. Ocon is the guy that beat Verstappen in Formula 3. He's the guy who got dropped from F1 for a year. The Frenchman comes from humble beginnings, and now he is a Grand Prix winner for a French team in Alpine. To say he deserved that win is an understatement. 

More than half on the grid are now race winners in F1. I think that speaks of the incredible era of Grand Prix racing that we live in. 

Following the race, heart-breaking news arrived in the form of a Seb Vettel disqualification - his car didn't have enough fuel remaining in the car for a sample. Unfortunately, that's a slam dunk. Vettel was a champion on and off the track. Along with Hamilton, he fought against the proposed law that threatens the LGBTQ+ community in Hungary. Love is love. And we love Seb.

Further back, Verstappen managed to rescue two points for ninth position - incredible given that he was driving with so much damage. To the delight of many, the Williams pair of Latifi and Russell managed to bag a remarkable ten points to get them above Haas and Alfa Romeo in the championship. Finally, Russell has scored some points for Williams. His tears following the race showed what that meant to him. 

Biggest Winner: Lewis Hamilton

Going into Silverstone with a 33-point deficit to Verstappen and then coming out of Hungary, two races later, with an eight-point advantage, has to be a win for Hamilton. 

Lewis was lucky that Max got caught up in the pandemonium that was turn one. Still, he made that luck by qualifying on pole and was unfortunate to lose so many positions with the fast-drying track at the restart. Either way, it was a storming drive back to what is now second. He drove his heart out and will deserve a break in the championship lead.

Biggest Loser: Valtteri Bottas

Bottas had a tremendous weekend until he threw out the anchors too late at turn one. But the mistake could be integral for his future.

A stellar driver from Russell will be vital in helping his cause for the Mercedes seat next season. Especially when he is compared to Bottas, who was playing a game of ‘bowling’ at turn one, to quote Charles Leclerc. Ouch.

Moment of the Weekend: Lewis Hamilton vs Fernando Alonso 

It was the battle that got me into Formula One - King Lewis vs Rey Fernando. It was tense, it was exciting and vital for the race winner. Neither would give in, and it looked like a stalemate until Alonso made a slight mistake at turn one. You can’t give Lewis Hamilton or Fernando Alonso an opportunity like that. Alonso is in the top four drivers on the grid for me.

Honourable Mention: Estaban Ocon 

He won! Arguably, Estaban should be the biggest winner, and I imagine Jimmy or Joe will rightly argue so. I didn’t choose him because I wanted to look at the big picture. Nevertheless, to hold off Sebastian Vettel for almost the whole race is remarkable. Ocon is underrated, and now he has led more laps than all but Hamilton and Verstappen this year. Let us also not forget that Ocon out-qualified Alonso, despite qualifying just 17th two races ago - what a turnaround that is. 

AJontheLine Line of the Week: 

Daniel Ricciardo: F***

David Croft (Commentator): Sorry for Daniel’s language.

Nico Rosberg: No, but it was the right word.

 Martin Brundle is a world-class commentator, and I always miss his voice when he isn’t there - I know I’m not the only one. However, it was less difficult this weekend when his replacement was the one and only, straight-talking Nico Rosberg. He offered brilliant insight all weekend, and on Saturday, his inner racing driver came out, and it was very amusing.

Well, there is your chocolate brownie of a Grand Prix - probably the best race of the season. Our hunger for F1 will ramp up now with a four-week summer break until Belgium. At least silly season will keep us occupied. Will Lewis Hamilton’s new teammate be announced? I’ll let you know.

Listen to the Hungarian GP Review Podcast on AJontheLine, Apple Podcasts and Spotify.