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Thread: 2021 Russian GP: Post Race Analysis

  1. #1
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    2021 Russian GP: Post Race Analysis

    After one of the most exciting qualifying sessions of the season, one could only hope the Grand Prix would be as good.... and it didn't disappoint.

    Mercedes had an interesting weekend. In practice they looked to be in position to dominate the race, but mistakes by the team put the drivers out of position in qualifying, which put them down the grid. Lewis, who made an unforced error in Qual, seemed dejected and sounded like Mercedes' hope for victory would be near impossible, while Toto Wolff was still thinking of a 1-2. Lewis made a pretty poor start and once again could not make a pass on a McLaren. Once the car had clean air, it was a rocket, and behind anyone but a McLaren, he flew past with ease down the straights. The battle with Lando was exciting and Lewis was being very safe and fair while Lando struggled to keep his car on track. In the end the team made the right call by demanding a pitstop for intermediates, and that won Lewis his 100th career victory. A moment of silence for Bottas who was once again a pawn for Lewis Hamilton. An engine change just weeks after taking one was an obvious strategic move by Mercedes to try and impede Verstappen's progress. Who didn't smirk when Bottas appeared to put zero effort into holding Max up. Truthfully Bottas looked completely unmotivated in the race, and who can blame him?

    Red Bull gambled and it paid off for Max, and cost Perez. It would have been nice for Perez to give Hamilton more of a challenge, but he didn't have the pace to really threaten him. Red Bull split the strategy calls relatively frequently, so it was not a surprise to see them keep Perez out on dries and Max boxed for Inters. It was going to play out for one or the other. Fortunately for the championship it was a great call for Verstappen as he made up a bundle of places in the last lap and a half. His drive through the field in the first 10-15 laps was very impressive, but his race was set to finish 5th or 6th. A tremendous damage limitation race for them. Red Bull used to be fastest and most consistent team in pitstops, and since the rule change, they have not looked great. Costly pitstop for Perez.

    Ferrari can be happy and disappointed with this race. Carlos had a great starting position, though a podium was never going to be likely. He drove a great opening stint, but the team pitted early rather than pushing through the graining stage of the tires, and that dropped Sainz back. He fought hard and being on the right tires at the end gave him a surprising podium. Leclerc looked very impressive going through the field and points were very likely. Hard to judge how good the engine upgrade is, but it certainly appears to be a positive gain. Unfortunately Leclerc couldn't control the car in the rain while on slicks and his race was ruined. It has to be said that Ferrari's pitstops were not good enough either.

    McLaren, oh what a race it could have been. Lando Norris drove a brilliant race, up until the last couple laps. It's hard to say if he could have kept Lewis behind in the dry, but it absolutely was plausible. As a team, they unfortunately made the wrong call for the pitstops. The team should have known the rain was going to come harder and overruled Lando, but Lando was also very adamant to stay on slicks at that time. Such a heart break. Ricciardo got a great result by pitting for intermediates early, and earned important points in their battle against Ferrari. To be completely honest and fair, Lando Norris should have received a post race penalty for going over the pit entry line. Wet or not, it's his responsibility to make that entry. Tsunoda get's 2 penalties for grazing the white pit entry line in Austria, but Lando slides right through and onto the racing track. Much more dangerous. Another example of biased, inconsistent rulings by the Stewards.

    Alpine were pretty good in the race. Alonso was one of the stars that did not get enough attention. His clever mind is still as sharp as ever as he practice going through the escape route in turn 2 as he had full intention of missing turn 1 to avoid accident. Pretty sneaky. He was also one of the last cars to pit for inters, yet still managed to finish 6th. Ocon had a day to forget and I don't think the TV coverage even showed him during the race.

    Alfa Romeo in the points. Never count out Raikkonen to put in a solid drive. 8th place is a big result. Giovinazzi has had some really impressive moments over the past few races, all in an attempt to keep his ride. Today's result may have hurt that goal tremendously.

    Williams back in the points after George Russell had another incredible qualifying result. Truthfully his race looked to be a disaster as he dropped down the grid hard and if it wasn't for being one of the first to pit onto inters, he would have been out of the points. I didn't even see why or when Latifi DNF'd.

    Aston Martin had a chance at points but blew it. Vettel was having a strong race, but was one of several drivers to make the wrong call at the end of the race. Lance Stroll need become more aware of his surroundings. Back to back races he's crashed into his teammate.

    Alpha Tauri looked dreadful. Gasly had a poor qualifying, not happy with his team's calls. Despite being an MVP all season, he made no progress through the race. Tsunoda was embarrassingly slow when it transitioned to a wet track. Fans keep saying he deserves time to adapt to F1, but he has shown that he is not improving and does not deserve to be in F1. He is fortunate to have the connections he has, as typically at a team like Red Bull, he would have been given the boot long ago.

    Haas had their best starting positions, but still couldn't climb out of last. Mazepin didn't seem to want to obey blue flags and always seemed to hold up anyone coming through. Schumacher must have had some issue to force a DNF.

    Drive of the Day: Max Verstappen. 20th to 2nd. He drove the car into the top 10 very quickly, and was key to making the right decision to switch to inters, and then was an ace in the tricky conditions to finish 2nd in a very high pressure race. Lando did have a DOTD race up until the last 2 laps when it was partially his error decision to stay out which cost him the race.

  2. #2
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  3. #3
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    Does anyone have any news on the performance of our updated PU?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Toothlessrage* View Post
    Does anyone have any news on the performance of our updated PU?
    I have average lap time in speed the entire race for Leclerc. Note: rain hit on lap 45 which affected EVERYONE's average lap time speed.

    Leclerc was 7th overall in average speed.
    It's not how start but how you finish.

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    Quote Originally Posted by jgonzalesm6 View Post
    I have average lap time in speed the entire race for Leclerc. Note: rain hit on lap 45 which affected EVERYONE's average lap time speed.

    Leclerc was 7th overall in average speed.
    But he was also in traffic all the time, a good comparision would be with the average of verstappen as he too was in traffic most of the time.

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    Quote Originally Posted by jgonzalesm6 View Post
    I have average lap time in speed the entire race for Leclerc. Note: rain hit on lap 45 which affected EVERYONE's average lap time speed.

    Leclerc was 7th overall in average speed.
    So basically we have to wait for the Turkish GP for a definitive answer, right?

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Toothlessrage* View Post
    So basically we have to wait for the Turkish GP for a definitive answer, right?
    definitieve is too acute. We need to see how Leclerc's new PU does over the span of several race tracks. Turkey won't define the new PU.
    It's not how start but how you finish.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by jgonzalesm6 View Post
    definitieve is too acute. We need to see how Leclerc's new PU does over the span of several race tracks. Turkey won't define the new PU.
    Well, I hope things turn out for the best!
    We all do..

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