Race Report: Belgian Sprint Race and Grand Prix 2023

There was a change of date in store for the Belgian Grand Prix weekend in 2023, with the event taking place at the end of July, rather than the end of August - something we've become very accustomed to over the years. However, despite this, the rain still fell, making it a proper Belgian Grand Prix weekend. And, with the addition of the Sprint for this year, there was hope for a lot of on track action.

Saturday was Sprint Day and Max Verstappen and Red Bull graced pole position, yet again. Oscar Piastri would start 2nd, with the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz in 3rd. And, with it raining cats and dogs at the supposed "lights out" time, the race start was delayed, eventually getting underway with some formation laps behind the Safety Car.

During the formation laps, it's quickly evident that visibility will be an issue here, with Mercedes' George Russell complaining that he can't see a thing on the straights. Elsewhere, Verstappen is told over team radio that the Safety Car will be out for 4 laps - a decision he thinks is wise.

With a track that's quickly drying, after the 4 laps, the Safety Car peels into the pits and with a rolling start, the now 12 lap race, gets fully underway. Piastri, Sainz, Pierre Gasly, Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez all jump into the pits for a change of tyre compound. Verstappen stays out with Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Esteban Ocon and George Russell following him across the line. By the start of the following lap, the rest of the field peel in.

Things have worked out like a charm for Piastri, who finds himself in the lead after Verstappen's stop. The latter rejoins the track in 2nd. Gasly, in the Alpine, is 3rd. Hamilton, however, is stuck in the pits as traffic continuously flows in and out. Eventually, he's back out in 5th, losing a spot to Perez.

Fernando Alonso, in the Aston Martin, started the race in a lonely 15th. He's now stuck in the gravel at Pouhon. Replays show that he was attempting an attack on Haas' Nico Hulkenberg before spinning out as the back end of his car stepped out. Thankfully, he missed the barrier and is ok. The safety car is deployed while the Aston Martin is recovered.

With 5 laps remaining, the safety car returns to the pits. Some drivers consider switching to the slick tyre but no one makes the jump. Pisatri leads across the line but down the Kemmel Straight Verstappen is all over the McLaren driver and blasts past him without a second thought. Further back, Williams driver; Logan Sargeant, receives a 5 second time penalty for speeding in the pit lane.

The second Red Bull of Sergio Perez is now under attack from Hamilton who makes contact with him on the exit of Stavelot. The Red Bull falls down the order before taking a trip through the gravel. He rejoins in 16th but is eventually told by the team to "box and retire." The incident is noted by Race Control and is later investigated by the Stewards with the Mercedes driver being handed a 5 second time penalty.

The track is looking close to slicks. However, Verstappen starts his final lap, storming to victory by over 6 seconds to second place man, Piastri. Gasly holds onto third with the Ferraris in 4th and 5th. Norris is 6th and, after his penalty, Hamilton comes home 7th. The top 10 is rounded out by Russell, Ocon and Daniel Ricciardo.

Dawn broke on Sunday with a 40% chance of rain for the race. A complete contrast to what was experienced less than 24 hours before. A 5-place grid penalty, due to a new gearbox, had Championship leader; Verstappen, starting down in 6th. But, it would be Ferrari and Charles Leclerc on pole with Sergio Perez alongside him. Nico Hulkenberg would start for Haas from the pitlane.

Leclerc leads the drivers away for the formation lap. The majority of cars are starting on softs bar the McLarens, Russell, the Aston Martins, Tsunoda and Hulkenberg, who are all on mediums. Everyone manages to get back into their grid slots with no fuss and the race begins.

It's a decent get away for Leclerc in the Ferrari with Perez right on his tail. Sainz locks up at La Source and with no where to go, squeezes Piastri who clips the wall and starts to fall down the order. However, back at the front, on the Kemmel Straight, Perez takes the lead from Leclerc. As for the second Red Bull, Verstappen is up to 4th by the end of the opening lap.

The yellow flag is now out to warn drivers of the stationary Piastri at the Fagnes chicane. The car is quickly recovered and the race goes green once again. Sainz is also struggling since his first lap tussle with the McLaren. He is told that he's lost "5% of aero balance,", which suggests that he is carrying extensive damage as the race progresses. It isn't long before he starts to tumble down the order.

Verstappen now has Hamilton in his sights, with the latter complaining about the car in front's (Leclerc) track limits at turn 9. On lap 6, Verstappen makes his move, taking the final podium spot from the Mercedes driver. With clear air ahead of him, Verstappen sets the fastest lap of the race so far with a 1:52.130.

There is movement in the pitlane with Norris coming in for fresh tyres. He switches to hards. Ocon, Bottas, Ricciardo and Magnussen join him. Sainz, who has dropped to the back of the field, also pits. But he's not retiring. He joins the track once again on medium tyres.

Back on the race track, McLaren's day gets worse when Norris is passed by a Williams and Alpine, demoting him to 16th. However, it's the complete opposite at Red Bull. Perez still leads from Leclerc but, with the help of DRS on the Kemmel Straight, Verstappen blasts past the Ferrari making it a Red Bull 1-2. The race is on.

In the mid-field, a battle is brewing between the Williams of Albon and the Alpha Tauri of Tsunoda. Using Williams' incredible straight line speed, Albon quickly makes his way past the Alpha Tauri, but Tsunoda isn't letting this one go. Just one lap later, Tsunoda repays the favour, taking his position back once again.

Perez pits from the lead but it's a slow stop. Unusual for Red Bull. Verstappen then comes in the next time around and it's back to business as usual. He's back on track 2 seconds behind Perez. It isn't long, however, until the reining World Champion is right behind his teammate. On lap 17, he makes the move, taking the lead on the Kemmel Straight.

The talk of rain starts to do the rounds over team radio. Three drivers; Stroll, Russell and Gasly, are yet to pit. If the rain is intense enough, this could work out well for them. Just like how it's all working well out front for Verstappen who has raced of into the distance, leaving Perez behind. The Dutch driver posts another new fastest lap of the race.

Sainz quickly reports that it's raining at turn 15. It also begins in the pitlane and is due to last for 10 minutes. Verstappen's pace drops as he tells the team "it's raining, quite a lot." Aston Martin call Stroll in for his first pitstop of the race. It's quite a bold move for the team who fit him with slicks, rather than inters. At the same time, the track isn't quite ready for that wetter weather tyre.

With the wetter conditions, Norris and his McLaren are starting to come alive. The higher downforce that they've set the car up with is paying off, for now. At the bottom of Eau Rouge, there's nail biting action for Verstappen who has a wobble going up the hill. He manages to save it. Despite this, he still manages to further widen the gap to Perez, which is now up to over 5 seconds.

With the sprinkling of rain dying out, Ferrari decide to call it a day for Sainz, who is still at the back of the pack. A new fastest lap of the race is also set, but not by Verstappen. This time it's Hulkenberg on a new set of soft tyres. Talking of new tyres, with the rain gone, round two of pit stops begin. Hamilton pits, setting off a chain reaction that sees Alonso, Leclerc, Perez and Verstappen also dive into the pitlane for fresh rubber to see them to the end.

Things start to seem a bit tense over team radio at Red Bull with Verstappen's engineer not overly impressed with how his driver handled the out-lap after pitting. "You used a lot of the tyre on the out-lap Max, I am not sure that was sensible," Verstappen is told. His lead to Perez is nearing 10 seconds now. He then sets another fastest lap. Over one second quicker than anyone else. "I'd ask you to use your head a bit more," Verstappen is later told. But, he wants to go faster and suggests that the team could do with a bit more "pitstop training."

There's a battle down in the mid-field for the final point between Gasly and Albon. With the help of DRS, Albon tries a move but is unsuccessful, with Gasly staying ahead. The squabbling gives Bottas in the Alfa Romeo a chance to join in on the fight. However, Albon bails and pulls into the pits for his final stop. Tsunoda is currently sitting nicely in 9th with Ocon not far behind. However, the Alpine overtakes the Alpha Tauri going into Les Combes. Gasly, in the second Alpine, is also now on the hunt.

The stewards have been relatively quiet today but, with only a handful of laps to go, Sargeant is shown the black and white flag for track limits. One more and it will be a penalty. Russell, who has only made one stop, is starting the struggle on his tyres, dropping back from Alonso in 5th. Norris is 7 seconds behind Russell, with the McLaren making plenty of gains during the wetter weather.

Hamilton is starting to close in on Leclerc but decides to abandon the hunt, instead pitting for his final set of tyres. Is he going for the fastest lap and that all important extra point?

It's Verstappen that wins the Belgian Grand Prix. His 8th consecutive win this season. Perez crosses the line in 2nd, giving Red Bull another 1-2 finish. Leclerc is 3rd and Hamilton, with the new fastest lap, in 4th. Then comes Alonso, Russell and Norris. With Ocon, Stroll and Tsunoda holding on to the final point positions.

Is there anything or anyone that can stop Verstappen this year? Only time will tell. Until then, it's time for the Summer Break. *Boooooo* See you guys in a few weeks for Zandvoort!

Opinion: Another New Qualifying Format?

You read the title right. The FIA has indeed bestowed yet another F1 Qualifying "format" upon us all. However, instead of improving the quality of on-track action, the goal of this is to aid F1 in becoming more sustainable for future race weekends. So, what does this format entail? And, more importantly, what do drivers, teams and fans make of it? Will we see it become a more permanent fixture in 2024? Here's my take on it.

Earlier in the year it was announced that a new qualifying format would be trialed at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. But, due to flooding in the area, the trial was pushed back to last weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix. A second trial will also be taking place during the Italian Grand Prix weekend in Monza at the beginning of September.

In usual qualifying circumstances, teams would have free tyre allocation, meaning they could fit their cars with either the softs, mediums or hards. With the new format, however, the team's rights to that free allocation is no more. Instead, each session will have a mandatory compound with all drivers on the same rubber at all times throughout each session. For example, the hard will be available in Q1, the medium in Q2 and soft in Q3. If it is a wet session, teams and drivers will have a free choice when it comes to the tyre compound.

Are you still with me?

There is quite a logical explanation as to why the FIA are trialing these changes. It's all about sustainability and becoming more environmentally viable for future purposes, with the main intention of bringing fewer tyres to each race weekend. Over the course of a regular race weekend, teams are usually set an allocation of 13 sets of tyres. With the new format, it's reduced to 11, which in time will lower waste, while at the same time, possibly giving team strategists a big "strategy headache." And, although the reduction to 11 sets from 13 doesn't sound too extreme, it does mean a total of 40 sets (160 tyres) could be saved over the course of the race weekend. That's nearly 4,000 tyres per season, presuming it becomes a permanent change.

Before the trial got underway, many were apprehensive as to what was on the cards, with some even wondering if we were about to have a replica of the disastrous 2016 Elimination-Style Qualifying. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were especially vocal on the changes after FP1 and FP2, saying;

"With this new format, you are just super limited with the tyre sets that you can use, and I didn't want to use them today (in practice) to at least have a bit more of a better preparation for tomorrow. We have to see what we can do to improve that, because we are literally saving tyres, which I think is not the correct thing." - Max Verstappen

"I only had one tyre for the session. So, not really a great format change they made for this weekend. It just means we get less running, so not ideal. There's a lot of wet tyres that I think they throw away after the weekend, like a lot. Maybe they should look at something like that rather than taking time on track away from the fans." - Lewis Hamilton

However, in my opinion, despite the limited running in practice, which isn't ideal for teams and fans, the new format gave qualifying that added extra spice. The first "big name" to drop out was George Russell and Mercedes who found themselves in 18th and out of Q1. On-track traffic seemed to be the cause of this. The same can't be said for Carlos Sainz and Ferrari, who were the big casualty of Q2 with Sainz blaming this on Ferrari's struggle to get to grips with the medium tyre. However, for the likes of Nico Hulkenberg, Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, the format worked like a charm and all three qualified in the top 10. But for Hamilton, it was perfect. His first pole position since 2021.

So, what was the official verdict from the drivers?

Kevin Magnussen, who was eliminated in Q1 said,“Makes no difference really.” A fair enough statement from a driver who wasn't able to reap all the benefits from the new format. However, the majority were more accepting of the possible changes with Sainz, Bottas and Yuki Tsunoda saying;

"Today I paid the price for it (the new format). For F1, if they want to spice it up – I don’t think they need to – but if they want to mix things up a bit then mix them up.” - Carlos Sainz

"I like it. I think it brings an extra element to the qualifying because there’s always going to be someone, some team who struggles on certain compounds." - Valtteri Bottas

“I think it’s good for the fans to have hard, medium, soft, it’s better than the same colour. It’s more fun to drive, it’s more challenging, so it’s OK.” - Yuki Tsunoda

As for fans on social media, it seems to be quite a 50/50 split on opinions. Some think it's worked well, others aren't so sure. Another percentage feel it could work well with a few more changes. For me, I am torn. I found qualifying different and more "on the edge," but was that the format or was that Red Bull scarifying their qualifying set up in favour of a race set up? Who knows. But for fans, they're here for the on-track action and with a reduced tyre allocation for the teams, it's written in stone that time on-track will also be heavily reduced. For the long term though, this new format definitely has it's advantages, but I think it needs to go through some "trial and error" before it's perfect. I'm not going to write this format off just yet. But right now, I wouldn't expect it to go permanent for 2024. I'll come back to you after Monza.

Race Report: Hungarian Grand Prix 2023

The Hungarian Grand Prix is one of the longest continuous races on the calendar that we can expect to see until at least 2032. This is thanks to a new contract extension that was confirmed this weekend during the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring.

Max Verstappen and Red Bull go into this race weekend with decent leads in both the Driver's and Constructor's championships. But can anyone stop them in their tracks? And, can second Red Bull driver, Sergio Perez, find that all important redemption that he's been searching for? Let's see.

There was a change in format for this weekend's qualifying sessions with hard tyres used in Q1, mediums in Q2 and softs in Q3. An experiment, if you will, on creating a more interesting and mixed up grid. Surprisingly it worked, with Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton out-qualifying Verstappen by a tiny +0.003. McLaren and Lando Norris found themselves in P3. Their second top three qualifying in as many races. There were also surprises for George Russell, in the second Mercedes, and Carlos Sainz, in the Ferrari, who found themselves in 18th and 11th, respectively.

Race day. The lights go green and Verstappen takes the lead from Hamilton into the first corner. Oscar Piastri, who started 4th for McLaren, jumps into 2nd, with Norris stationary in 3rd. Pole sitter, Hamilton, is down to 4th. There's also a blistering start for Sainz who jumps from 11th to 6th with the soft tyres.

However, for Alfa Romeo and Zhou Guanyu, it's a different story. A slow get away off the line see's him drop to 16th after a fantastic 5th in qualifying. Replays show that after his difficult start, he was the trigger that would go onto cause mayhem at turn one. He hits the returning Daniel Ricciardo from behind, who then collides with Alpine's Esteban Ocon. Ocon then makes contact with teammate, Pierre Gasly, with both Alpines coming to a standstill. Ricciardo, Ocon and Gasly get moving once again. Unfortunately, for the latter two, it's a trip into the pits where they both retire, for the second race in a row.

Perez, who started 9th, is currently battling Fernando Alonso for 7th. Alonso, who is known for good defending around the Hungaroring, isn't making it easy for the second Red Bull driver. Eventually, Perez is through. Making the move at turn one with the help of DRS. Back at the front, large gaps are starting to form between the drivers with tyre conservation already playing a part in the race.

Lap nine and our first pitstop is underway with Alexander Albon at Williams. He puts on the hard tyre and creates a chain reaction of other stops. Lance Stroll, Yuki Tsunoda and Valtteri Bottas pit the following lap to cover the Williams, but a slow stop for Tsunoda at Alpha Tauri sees him fall behind Bottas and Albon at the pit exit. Bottas then goes on to set the fastest lap of the race.

A few laps later there is movement down at Ferrari with Sainz coming in to get rid of the soft tyre. He switches to the hards and returns to the track in 11th. The pitstop window is well and truly open now with some of the front runners also diving into the pitlane. Hamilton and Norris make their stops without any issue. The same can't be said for Charles Leclerc in the leading Ferrari. His stop is disastrous at 9.4 seconds long. An issue with the left-rear causing this. Consequently, he takes a tumble down the order. Things are better at McLaren with a 2.0 second stop for Piastri. Unfortunately for the rookie, it's not enough to keep a net 2nd on the track, as his teammate's attempt at the undercut has worked like a charm. In all this pitstop "chaos," Verstappen continues on out front, over 20 seconds ahead of Perez and Alonso. All three are yet to stop, eventually coming in on lap 23, lap 24 and lap 20, respectively. Verstappen retains his lead.

Fresh rubber for Norris gives the Brit a new fastest lap of the race with a 1:23.499. However, it's Perez, now on the mediums, that's flying through the field. After his stop, the Mexican returned to the track in 7th, behind the Ferrari of Sainz. He quickly catches the Spaniard and passes him into Turn 1, moving up to 6th and demoting Sainz to 7th, who is now under threat from his teammate; Leclerc. One lap later, Perez makes another move taking 5th from Russell. The Mercedes driver is yet to pit but dives in at the end of the lap. The second Mercedes, and pole sitter, Hamilton, is struggling to keep up the pace with the top three of Verstappen, Norris and Piastri. To rub salt in the wound, Perez is now only 4.4 seconds behind Hamilton and is catching at a rate of knots. Perez's engineer motivates his driver over team radio, telling him: "Gap seven seconds. Podium is on."

In the mid-field, Russell is also on a mission after switching to the mediums. A strategy similar to Perez's. He passes Nico Hulkenberg in the Haas, Tsunoda in the Alpha Tauri and quickly catches up to the back of Alonso in the Aston Martin. Elsewhere, it's a tough day for Haas driver, Kevin Magnussen, who finds himself in 16th after being passed by Albon and then Ricciardo, a few laps later.

The Perez v Hamilton battle is brewing nicely with the Red Bull just about in DRS range of the Mercedes. Perez takes a lunge going into Lap 42, but Hamilton is quick to shut that door. However, Red Bull decide to go for the undercut, pitting Perez at the end of the lap. Piastri joins him in the pitlane. However, a 1.9 second stop for the Red Bull sees Perez exit right behind the McLaren.

There is more movement in the pitlane with stops for Leclerc, Alonso, Norris and Russell. It's a better stop for Leclerc who manages to undercut his teammate for track position. But, for Aston Martin and Alonso, it's slow. Another stubborn left-rear. Norris gets back out comfortably ahead of Piastri and Perez, whereas Russell jumps Alonso. Although things looked better for the Ferrari driver, Leclerc; he quickly finds himself under investigation for speeding in the pitlane and is punished with a 5 second time penalty.

Perez is still on the move, chasing down the final net podium spot. With the help of DRS, Perez challenges Piastri into Turn 1 but the young rookie doesn't make it easy. They're still squabbling over position going into Turn 2 with Piastri squeezed onto the grass. He eventually has no choice but to yield. Perez takes 4th with Norris his next target. This quickly becomes 3rd when Hamilton, sitting in 2nd, comes in for his second stop. He swaps to the mediums and tumbles down to 5th behind Norris, Perez and Piastri. Talking of Piastri, he's just received a track limit warning at Turn 4. One more and it could be a penalty.

There is also a battle commencing for the last points positions. Bottas finds himself in 12th behind the Williams of Albon but even with DRS there is just no way he can squeeze the Alfa Romeo through. Back at the front, it's still Verstappen leading after making his second stop. He sets the fastest lap of the race with a 1:20.504 - 1.5 seconds quicker than the previous fastest lap.

Not far to go now and Perez has left Piastri, who is now under threat from Hamilton, behind. With DRS, Hamilton dives down the inside of Turn 1 and takes 4th from Piastri. Russell is also gaining on the driver in front. This time Carlos Sainz. Will he manage to pass him and cut down the gap to Leclerc. Remember, the latter has a 5 second penalty. But, back to Perez. He's only 3.6 seconds behind Norris and catching. However, Norris is stuck in the midst of back markers and is slowly loosing his cool.

Entering the final 5 laps and things are winding down bar, the odd battle, here and there. Bottas has dropped away from Albon but Russell now finds himself in DRS range of Sainz and eases past on the start/finish straight. The back markers have somewhat worked in Norris' favour, the gap to Perez seems to have stalled between 3-4 seconds, with the Red Bull driver not making anymore gains. As the laps go by, Perez's pace drops and Hamilton makes gains towards the podium. With two laps to go, he's very nearly in DRS range.

A yellow flag. The first since lap one. Logan Sargeant takes a spin at the chicane and is passed by Tsunoda and Zhou. He comes into the pits at the end of the lap and switches off, retiring the car. But out front, it's Verstappen who takes the chequered flag with another dominant win, finishing 33.7 seconds ahead of everyone else! Norris finishes 2nd with Perez holding onto the final podium spot. Hamilton, who couldn't get in DRS range to Perez, settles for 4th. After his amazing start, Piastri comes home 5th and his followed in by Russell, who takes advantage of Leclerc's penalty. Leclerc, Sainz, Alonso and Stroll round out the points.

So, there it is. Another race done and dusted. And, one for the history books, in fact, with Red Bull breaking the record for most consecutive wins which now currently stands at 12. Incredible.

Only one more race to go until the Summer break!