BLOGMAS DAY 10: SEASON REVIEW PART 2

Oh no. I've fallen behind on blogmas... But, Day 10 is here and so is Part 2 of my Season Review.

In my previous post, part 1, which you can find here: https://bronnypreece.wixsite.com/brontalksmotorsport/the-blog/blogmas-day-8-9-f1-2018-season-review-part-1 - I looked at the first third of the 2018 Formula One season. Covering races from the opener in Australia, to mayhem in Baku and steadiness in Canada. Now, it's time to move onto the middle of the season. Starting in France.

The French Grand Prix was held on Sunday 24th June at the Circuit Paul Ricard in the south of France. Sebastian Vettel went into the race one point ahead of nearest championship rival; Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton stuck his Mercedes in pole, with Vettel down in third.

A pretty quiet race to start this third of the season, Hamilton led the drivers away but an over-optimistic Sebastian Vettel pushed too hard into the first corner, tagging Mercedes' Bottas, causing both drivers to pit for damage at the end of the lap. Still on lap 1, a safety car got deployed thanks to an incident at Turns 3/4 involving all three Frenchman on the grid; Ocon, Grosjean and Gasly. Thanks to the first lap incidents, a number of drivers took advantage of the damaged cars including Sainz for Renault, restarting the race in P3 and Sauber's Charles Leclerc, restarting in P6. After the restart, Hamilton pretty much controlled the race, Verstappen, who was running in P2, dropped back and was out of reach to have DRS to try an overtake on Hamilton. By mid-race, Vettel, who had dropped to the back of the field on lap 1 was running back in the top 5. Bottas; in the top 10. The race continued at a steady pace. No car was able to challenge Hamilton who took the victory.

Just one week later came the Austrian Grand Prix. The home of Red Bull and Red Bull Racing's home race. It was the second Mercedes of Bottas that took pole this weekend, ahead of teammate Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel in the Ferrari.

A driver who had once won in Austria, Bottas had a relatively poor start, falling back to P4 by the first corner. The Finn recovered to P2, overtaking Raikkonen and Verstappen, just moments later. A clean start for the field, Vandoorne was the only driver to take enough damage to warrant a pit stop. Lucky for him, he could continue to battle on through the race. As for the others, things were about to get spicy. On lap 12, the Renault of Hulkenberg came to a halt on the start/finish straight followed by a gearbox failure for pole-sitter Bottas only two laps later. Ricciardo, at Red Bull's home race, was the next one to fall. On lap 54, the Aussie retired with an exhaust issue, with Kiwi; Brendan Hartley following suit less than one lap later. Hamilton, running in P2 at this point, retired on lap 64, giving Red Bull's Verstappen victory at the Red Bull Ring. A first for the Red Bull team. Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel also stood on the podium.

Next up up was the home race of reigning World Champion; Lewis Hamilton who pleased the majority of his home crowd by achieving yet another pole position.

A slow start for Hamilton meaning he fell to P3 in the opening corners. A hit from Raikkonen caused the home favourite to spin and fall to the back of the field. An incident in which Raikkonen was punished for. A 10 second stop-go penalty in which he completed during lap 14. Two safety cars made an appearance during the duration of the race. The first one came after Marcus Ericsson's DRS failed to deactive, causing him to crash at Abbey. At this point both Ferrari and Red Bull decided to pit both cars. Mercedes stayed out on track to gain track advantage. The secone safety car came on lap 38 when the Haas of Romain Grosjean and the Renault of Carlos Sainz came together. Other retirees of the race included Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen. A few laps before the chequered flag, Vettel overtook Bottas for the lead of the race. He subsquently went onto win the victory.

Time for a classic race. The German Grand Prix. This time, being held at Hockenheim. Missing from the calendar the year before, many Formula One fans alike were happy to see it make a return.

A few weeks before in Silverstone, Hamilton achieved pole infront of his home crowd. This time it was the turn of Sebastian Vettel, producing the quickest time in Q3 and giving him pole infront of his home.

A normal race start, so to speak. But everyone knew the rain was inbound. Not too much to keep an eye on in the first few laps bar the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton who had started down in P14 due to a grid penalty. The Merc made it's way through the field, picking off the slower cars, one by one. Back at the front, Vettel's Ferrari was flying. Bottas loosing a tenth, a hundreth, a thousandth, to the leader. By mid race, rain was still on everyone's minds. Teams were making strategy calls based on what would happen with the weather. They didn't want to bring their driver in for slicks and then a lap later, inters. On lap 28, Red Bull's Ricciardo had yet another retirement. Something which would become common in the later season. The rain was still yet to arrive and tensions were rising down at Ferrari. Vettel wanted team orders, however the team did not oblige. On lap 44, the said rain arrived. It was heavy, but, only at the northern tip of the track. Leclerc, Alonso and Verstappen were the only drivers to switch to intermediates, something which would not work out. The rain got heavier and on lap 52, race leader Vettel crashed. He was out. After the safety car restart, both Mercedes lead a one-two, positions they would hold for the remainder of the race. The rain gods answered Hamilton's prayers that day.

The final race before the Summer break. The Hungarian Grand Prix. A race that is either thrilling or boring. It's still a pretty awesome track.

The Mercedes started as they finished the last race. A one-two to begin the Hungarian Grand Prix, with Raikkonen starting third. Vettel would be P4.

At the start of the race, Hamilton led away well with Bottas in hot persuit. A breif virtual safety car on lap 5, courtesy of Max Verstappen who happened to retire early on with engine failure. After the first round of pit stops, it was Hamilton, Bottas then Vettel. Vettel briefly moved into P2 but a clash with Bottas hindered the move and let Raikkonen on through. Bottas was later involved in another incident, this time with Daniel Ricciardo. It was this clash that got him handed a 10-second time penalty which had no effect on his finishing position down in 5th. Hamilton, again, won the race by nearly twenty seconds over Vettel and then Raikkonen.

The summer break was over and the F1 circus moved onto Belgium aka "one the best tracks and races in the history of F1 don't argue with me."

Another pole for Lewis Hamilton, the surprises came in P3, P4 and P5. Ocon, Perez and Grosjean would line up in that order. Beating out the likes of Raikkonen, Bottas, Verstappen and Ricciardo to the hight grid positions.

The beginning of 2018 Belgian Grand Prix was a messy one. A three-car pile up, triggered by Hulkenberg at the first corner brought out the safety car. An accident which heavily resembled the one in 2012, Hulkenberg got away with a grid penalty for the following race rather than a race ban in which people had called for. Another retirment came for Ricciardo only a few laps later, as well as Raikkonen just moments before that. The safety car returned to base on lap 4, letting Vettel, who had over taken Hamilton just before the safety car, put his foot down and go. But, he failed. Quoted "as one of his worst restarts ever," he did however stay ahead of the Mercedes. As the race went on, Mercedes struggled with their tyres. Red Bull's Verstappen on the other hand was having a great day. Past the two Force India's, he was into a podium spot! The race settled down and Vettel went onto win. Hamilton could only manage 2nd and Verstappen 3rd. The Force India's of Ocon and Perez held on to score decent points for the team, finishing in 5th and 6th position.

The Italian Grand Prix. Described as a "special one," this race would go down as a classic. A pole for Raikkonen, the first in a while, giving him the edge on his fellow racers for the race. Vettel and Hamilton would line up in 2nd and 3rd. A one-two for Ferrari meant that the Tifosi were out in full support.

An "iffy" start for the Iceman, having to block off challenges from both Vettel and Hamilton. He retained the lead into the first corner. Drama at the back of the field saw Toro Rosso's Hartley get pinched by the McLaren of Vandoorne, tearing his front wheel off and causing an instant retirement. Going into the first chicane, Vettel and Hamilton came together, spinning Vettel all the way to the back of the field. A safety car helped him however limp back to the pits for a new nose. Said safety car came in at the end of lap 3, and, with Hamilton hot on Raikkonen's tail, he had to be on it. On the start/finish straight Hamilton was the quickest car and got past the Finn into the first corner, revealing Kimi of the lead. However, Raikkonen came back straight away and retook it once again. The real race came in the pit stops. Raikkonen came in before Hamilton, with Hamilton being told to "let it rip." On his out lap, Raikkonen would need to floor it in order to come out ahead of Hamilton after his stop. However, this strategy screwed Raikkonen over. He came out ahead of the Mercedes, but, Ferrari let the Finn carry on producing faster and faster laps. Later on in the race, Raikkonen's left rear became increasingly blistered. This was not good for the Ferrari driver, especially with Hamilton getting closer. However, a lock up for Hamilton gave him a flat spot. This did not stop him. Raikkonen continued to struggle and the now much slower Ferrari had a Mercedes right behind him. With the help of DRS, Hamilton took the lead. He took off, leaving Raikkonen behind. Verstappen was to finish 3rd but a post race penalty demoted him to 5th, giving Bottas the final podium spot.

So, that's the end of the European races. Stay tuned for the final 7 as we go long haul!

BLOGMAS DAY 8 & 9 - F1 2018 SEASON REVIEW PART 1

1 week of Blogmas down. 2 more to go. The next few posts are going to be looking back on the 2018 Formula One season.

Welcome to the 2018 Formula One Season Review Part 1.

The 2018 Formula One season began on 25th March 2018 with 11 teams and 22 drivers lining up on the grid in Melbourne, Australia. Lewis Hamilton was to start on pole for Mercedes, Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen right next to him on the front row.

The beginning of the race was uneventful. The first retirement being Sergey Sirotkin (Williams) on lap 4. Red Bull's Max Verstappen spun on lap 9, relegating the Dutchman down to 8th. The first round of pitstops began around lap 18 with Raikkonen pitting for softs. Race leader; Hamilton, pitted one lap later, emerging back on track ahead of the Finn. Down at Haas, disaster was about to strike. Both drivers; Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean, had to pull over and retire thanks to a cross-threaded wheel-nut being fitted loosley, resulting in this seasons first Virtual Safety Car. (VSC.) Sebastian Vettel pitted at this point, taking advantage of the VSC, emerging in front of Hamilton and thus, taking the lead. The rest of the race was relatively quiet with Vettel taking the chequered flag on lap 58. Hamilton was to finish 2nd with Raikkonen on the final step of the podium. There were five retirements overall.

Two weeks later, and the Formula One circus reached Bahrain for Round Two of the championship. Ferrari's Vettel started on pole ahead of Raikkonen, giving Ferrari a lock out on the front row.

The race began and positions shifted. Mercedes; Valtteri Bottas took 2nd whereas his teammate Hamilton fell down the order to 10th, clashing with Max Verstappen on lap two with the Dutchman taking a punchture to his left rear tyre. Meanwhile, Verstappen's teammate; Daniel Ricciardo, lost all power to his car, therefore retiring him from the race. Just laps later, Verstappen had the same problem, ending his race. An incident in the pitlane saw Ferrari tyre changer; Cigarini get struck by Raikkonen's car, breaking his leg in the process thus meaning race leader; Vettel, would have to extend his stint on his current tyres. As with the previous race, Vettel took the chequered flag after a late race attack from Bottas. Toro Rosso's Pierre Gasly took his first points in F1 after finishing 4th.

Now onto China. The third round started in Ferrari's favour with another front row lock out. Both Mercedes of Bottas and Hamilton would start on the row behind them.

A relatively quiet start to the race. Vettel got away well. The first round of pitstops came and Bottas managed to undercut Vettel, taking the lead from the German. Vettel subsequently took 2nd place from teammate Raikkonen. On lap 30, the Toro Rosso's of Brendan Hartley and Pierre Gasly came together at the first corner, with the Frenchman taking a 10-second penalty. A safety car was sent out due to the debris on the track. Both Red Bull's took advantage of this period, pitting for fresher tyres whereas the likes of Mercedes stayed out. Both Red Bulls, on fresher tires battled their way through the field with Verstappen coming together with Sebastian Vettel on lap 43, sending both drivers into a spin. Meanwhile, Ricciardo was up front battling Bottas for the lead, eventually finding a way past. Ricciardo was the eventual winner of this race.

Next up came the race we were all waiting for. Azerbaijan. Vettel again took pole, with Hamilton starting right next to him.

As with many races these days, the field got away cleanly. However, after the first few corners, some drivers had come together. Most notably Kimi Raikkonen and Force India's Esteban Ocon, leading the latter to retire from the race. A safety car was deployed and our round of pitstops had begun. The race begun again on lap 6 but only a few laps later on lap 11, Nico Hulkenberg hit the wall, meaning he was to retire. After this, the race setteled down. Well, until lap 40 that was. For a number of laps before this, both Red Bulls and been racing each other. The team decided to not deploy team orders and let the two race. On lap 40, the two came together, with both cars damaged, the team were in for a double retirement and thus, safety car number two was deployed. During the SC period on lap 43, Romain Grosjean hit the wall, sending him into retirement. Blaming Sauber's Marcus Ericsson during the process. At the restart, Bottas was leading but it wasn't long until he suffered a puncture, causing him to retire also. Lewis Hamilton was the winner. Raikkonen came second and a surprise for Force India when their driver Sergio Perez took 3rd.

After the hectics of Azerbaijan, Formula One came back to Europe with the Spanish Grand Prix. Vettel's string of poles were broken when Hamilton took pole. Bottas lined up beside him, giving Mercedes that all important one-two.

The beginning of a lap at Catalunya is very "windy," so it was no surprise when Romain Grosjean spun at turn 3 of the first lap, taking out the Renault of Nico Hulkeberg and Toro Rosso of Pierre Gasly in the process. More retirements were to come. Raikkonen lost power to his car on lap 25, Ocon had a similar issue on lap 40 and again, a similar issue for McLaren's Stoffel Vandoorne on lap 47. Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll (Williams) came together after a VSC period, both cars completed the race. Hamilton won the race by over twenty seconds. His teammate, Bottas, crossed the finish line in 2nd with Red Bull's Max Verstappen claiming his first podium of the season.

27th May. We're in Monaco. Usually described as "the most boring race of the year." This one lived up to it's name. Daniel Ricciardo was to start on pole, his first of the season.

The race began and the majority of drivers stayed in their qualifying order. On lap 18, race leader, Ricciardo, started to complain of a loss of power. For the remainder of the race, Ricciardo had to nurse his car home. It was later revealed that he had problems with the MGU-K and only had six out of eight gears working. After this, the race was quiet. Fernando Alonso retired for McLaren with gearbox issues on lap 53. On lap 70, Sauber's Charles Leclerc had a brake failure, sending him into the back of Brendan Hartley. Both drivers joined Fernando Alonso in retirement. Daniel Ricciardo managed his problems well, taking the chequered flag on lap 78.

Two weeks later and we're off to Canada. The home of Lance Stroll. Sebastian Vettel was back on pole with his main championship rival, Lewis Hamilton down in 4th.

As what seemed to be the running theme in 2018, the race started without incident until turn 5 where Brendan Hartley and Lance Stroll clashed, knocking them both out of the race. The safety car was deployed. During the restart, Perez and Renault's Carlos Sainz banged wheels but no major damage was reported and both drivers carried on. Fernando Alonso was again the next car to retire with mechanical issues. The most entertaining part of the race came at the end when model; Winnie Harlow, waved the chequered flag a few laps early. The results were officially taken from lap 68 instead of 70, meaning, Ricciardo's fastest laps were voided and Perez's overtake on Magnussen did not stand.

Come back soon for Part 2!

BLOGMAS DAY 7: GIRL POWER

I hate it, HATE IT, when it comes to sexism in the motorsport industry. Women have just as right as men when it comes to not only racing, but working behind the scenes as well. And, with the introduction of the new "W Series," my passion for this issue becomes bigger. Women WANT to race with the big guys. We do not need a separate championship such as this so-called "W-Series." However, although I will never agree with it, I will sit back and let that one play out.

A very small number of women have officially taken part in a Formula One Grand Prix weekend. And, an even smaller number have ever scored points. In fact, only women has ever done that, and it was only half a point if that.

I'm not here to talk about why there are so little women in motorsport and why they've had very little impact. Tha'ts here: https://bronnypreece.wixsite.com/brontalksmotorsport/the-blog/where-are-all-the-ladies

For Blogmas Day 7, I have picked my top 5 woman drivers. The point of this is that these are the ladies that I think will make a positive impact on motorsport with their skills and attitudes in the near future.

1. Tatiana Calderon

There was no doubt that Tata would be on the list. The 25 year old Colombian is currently the only female associated with a Formula One team; Sauber. She is currently the Swiss team's test driver.

Unfortunately, Calderon has had a mediocre time in the past year, racing in GP3, where she finished 16th overall. However, numerous point finishes made her the first female to score more than once in a GP3 race. A stat she can be proud of.

With a recent test in both a Formula One and Formula Two car, Calderon's future looks promising. I, for one, hope to see her contesting Formula Two in 2019. Could she be our first Formula One driver for some time?

2. Sophia Floersch

Sophia has been relatively unknown until late. A traumatic crash at the 2018 Macau GP saw the teen walk away with, luckily, only very minor injuries.

My heart aches for Floersch though. Although her accident has brought her talent to light, it could not have come at a worse time. The German 18 year old was one of several women lined up to test a Formula E car at the upcoming tests in Ad Diriyah. Unfortunately, Sophia will not be taking part but the news of a good handful of ladies getting a shot at this is wonderful news for advocates like myself.

Hopefully, Sophia can spend the winter break relaxing and recovering from the recent bang and can come back in the near future to show everyone who is boss in this motorsport world.

3. Natalie Decker

Natalie Decker. A name not too familiar in European motorsport, but in America, this lady is one to watch. At 21 years old, Decker currently races part time in NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series, part time in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and part time in the ARCA Racing Series.

I did not know of Decker until I researched some female racers. I watched a few of her races and now I can see why she constantly appears in the points, finishing 7th overall in the most recent ARCA series.

As mentioned before, I am against the "W Series," but Decker has been shortlisted as one of many drivers who could potentially take part. I hope she gets chosen to compete. It will be a good way for her to get her foot in the door in European motorsport and make a name for herself over here. Until, I look forward to her throwing those stock cars around the tracks!

4. Jamie Chadwick

Another driver aiming for the "W Series," Jamie Chadwick. If you don't know this name, wake up. The first female and the youngest person to ever win the British GT Championship and the first woman to win a British Formula 3 race, Chadwick is really making dents in traditional motoracing.

That's not all of Chadwick's feats. She has competed in several 24hour races and a number of Ginetta Junior races and championship. This girl cannot be stopped.

You cannot help but admire the racing skill and technique Chadwick possesses. She makes it look easy. I, for one, want to see this lady in Formula One someday.

5. Pippa Mann

Another racer who is well known over in the states, British born; Pippa Mann. A popular Indy Car driver, Mann started her motorsport career like many racers before and after her; Formula Renault. Although Mann is yet to win any championships, I admire her greatly.

Like myself, she is a big advocate for females in motorsport and her skill and experience could really be a positive and a boost to a Formula One team.

I admire how she is not afraid to say how she feels when it comes to females in motorsport. Pippa should be a women in motorsport ambassador rather than Carmen Jorda who is there for money.

So, that's my top 5 female racers. This was difficult to discuss. There are so many ladies to choose from.