22/10/2023
NEWS STORY
Speaking on Friday, Fernando Alonso said he was at a loss to understand why his team had introduced its latest upgrades on Sprint weekend, where there was essentially only one session in which to test them.
With this in mind, and the fact that Aston Martin has actually taken a step backwards this weekend, it comes as no surprise that Alonso has opted to revert to the previous spec which means that both the Spaniard and his teammate will be starting from the pitlane as Stroll has stuck with the new spec - albeit with a few changes - allowing the Silverstone-based outfit to run the race as a glorified back-to-back test..
Joining them will be the Haas pair who have discovered that the American outfit's much-anticipated upgrade, particularly the new rear wing, has not been the magic bullet that was expected. Indeed, like Aston Martin, the team appears to have taken a step back.
In Haas' case this is particularly frustrating because the upgrade has been promised for some time, and while Kevin Magnussen was keen to play down hopes surely nobody expected it to be the damp squib that it clearly is.
With all due respect, might one suggest that Guenther Steiner focus less on Andretti and his own media profile and concentrate a little more time in getting the American outfit into shape.
Speaking after winning the Sprint, Max Verstappen once again admitted his dislike of the format, this time suggesting that it gives away the plot of the Grand Prix that follows.
The Dutchman may have a point, for other than the boring, processional nature of yesterday's event, we now have a much better idea of the issues anticipated today, particularly in terms of tyre deg.
Also, all involved will be aware that the Dutchman wrapped up his win in the first corner, so the likes of Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton will surely have been watching replays, though, starting from sixth, the Red Bull driver has his work cut out.
Once again, track limits are set to play a significant part, with some drivers still not learning their lessons from the Red Bull Ring and various other tracks since, including Qatar.
Our gut feeling, based on the evidence thus far, is to watch Hamilton today, the Briton is on strong form at present and is clearly happy with the latest upgrade. Also, in light of recent events, appears determined to stamp his authority at Mercedes once again.
Carlos Sainz admits he went the wrong way in tyre choice yesterday, believing that others would also opt for the softs, so it will be interesting to see if lessons have been learned.
According to Pirelli, a two stop will be the favourite strategy, running a combination of medium and hard, though this depends on how many sets of the two compounds each driver has available.
This being a Sprint weekend the teams actually have less tyres than usual. Consequently, the majority of the 'big guns' have just one set of fresh hards - though the McLaren pair have two - and two sets of fresh mediums - while the McLaren pair have one.
The pitlane opens and the drivers begin to head out, pole-man Leclerc among the first to emerge.
Track temperature is currently 40 degrees C, while the air temperature is 29 degrees. It is also significantly windier than on previous days.
"I've lost the button on the back of the magic brake," reports Russell.
"My drink is leaking really badly," says Perez, "I'll need a new balaclava."
Meanwhile, Stroll has been noted by the stewards for heading to the grid rather than the start. "Oh, damn," he says, "I'm on the grid."
An interesting milestone for Lando Norris and George Russell today as both are contesting their one hundredth grand prix.
Stroll will be investigated after the race.
"Today is warmer, more wind," says Max Verstappen, "which will influence tyre deg. Just need to try and stay out of trouble and work our way forward."
All are starting on mediums bar Hulkenberg and Stroll who are on hards. Fresh rubber for all bar Albon.
They head off on the formation lap, Norris slow to get away and overtaken by Hamilton.
The grid forms.
They're away! Strong starts from Leclerc and Norris, while Hamilton 'does a Max' and forces Sainz wide. Into Turn 1 Norris has the lead, while Leclerc is just ahead of the Hamilton/Sainz scrap and Verstappen also closing in.
As Sainz edges ahead of Hamilton, Verstappen almost gets through on the outside of the Mercedes but runs wide, as does Russell behind.
Through Turn 3 Piastri and Ocon clash as Russell and Perez seek to take advantage.
Norris leads and behind the two Ferraris are battling as Piastri fights with Perez.
At the end of Lap 1, Norris leads, followed by Leclerc, Sainz, Hamilton, Verstappen, Piastri, Ocon, Russell, Perez and Gasly.
Norris already has a 2s lead as the Ferraris battle one another with Hamilton and Verstappen in hot pursuit. Further back, Russell is all over Ocon as they battle for seventh. The Frenchman fears he has a damaged sidepod following his clash with Piastri.
Russell is under investigation for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
Russell passes Ocon in Turn 11, as Perez also passes the Alpine. Next to challenge Ocon is his teammate.
"Tell Esteban not to make me lose time," warns Gasly. Indeed Ocon is told to yield to his teammate.
Hamilton nails Sainz into Turn 12 to take third, as Verstappen falls 1.2s behind the Ferrari.
That said, Verstappen subsequently passes Sainz to claim fourth, now just 1.4s down on Hamilton.
Ocon has seemingly lost 40 points of downforce and has dropped to last.
Of those starting from the pitlane, Magnussen is up to 15th, Alonso 17th, Hulkenberg 18th and Stroll 19th.
On Lap 6, Hamilton leaves Leclerc for dead to claim second, the Ferrari driver offering no resistance.
"Box the car," Ocon is told on Lap 7, he duly obliges.
Both Haas drivers have time deleted for track limits violations.
"Russell is going off, a lot," reports Perez.
Hamilton and Alonso both have times deleted.
Zhou pits at the end of Lap 9, the Alfa Romeo driver rejoining in 19th as he seeks to undercut Albon.
"We've got to retire the car," Piastri is told on Lap 11, the McLaren probably having been damaged in that clash with Ocon at the start. "Recharge on and no big lifts," he is told.
Albon, Bottas and Magnussen all react to Zhou's early stop.
Magnussen makes a move on Leclerc in Turn 12 and in the process the Ferrari runs wide and momentarily stays ahead before handing the position back.
Verstappen is now up to third, 4.4s down on Hamilton who is 2.8s down on race leader Norris.
Check out our Sunday gallery from COTA here.
Once again, Perez complains about Russell's track limits violations.
Hamilton posts a new fastest lap (41.879).
As Sargeant makes a move on Magnussen and fails.
The stewards have noted the Verstappen/Leclerc incident.
Sargeant makes another move on Magnussen and this time it sticks, allowing the American to claim 17th.
Norris is told to maintain the gap to Hamilton as the Mercedes driver ups his pace.
"I don't know what's going on in Turns 8 and 9, but I'm struggling for balance," reports Norris.
"Try and avoid the kerbs he is told," whilst also advised that the wind is inconsistent.
Verstappen pits at the end of Lap 16, rejoining in 9th on mediums.
This should trigger stops from a number of his rivals.
Indeed: "Box, box," Norris is told, as Sainz and Perez also pit.
Norris rejoins in 4th on hards, Sainz 8th on mediums and Perez (medium) 11th. Tsunoda also pitted.
After 17 laps Hamilton leads by 6.5 as Verstappen is advised that the Briton looks to be on a one-stop strategy.
"Do you think you've got another 5 laps on this tyre, can you handle it?" "I'm not sure, man!" he admits.
Meanwhile, as Gasly pits, Verstappen posts a new fastest lap (40.989).
Hamilton locks-up and runs wide in Turn 1, as Norris and Verstappen trade fastest sectors.
Alonso and Hulkenberg both pit at the end of Lap 19, the Spaniard rejoining in 16th and the German in 18th.
"Verstappen now in our pit window," Hamilton is told. "Thanks, man, I'm struggling out here!"
He subsequently pits, rejoining in fifth on mediums. However, it's not one of Mercedes best ever stops.
Leclerc now leads Russell, but both have yet to stop. Norris is third, 2.4s ahead of Verstappen, with Hamilton now 6s down on the Dutchman.
As Sainz posts a new fastest lap (40.667), Russell pits.
"So far behind," sighs Hamilton as his teammate rejoins in 8th and is immediately embroiled in a battle with Gasly.
Albon has two successive lap times deleted.
Ricciardo [pits from ninth at the end of Lap 22, rejoining in 15th on hards.
"Our race is with Verstappen, he's gone medium-medium, so he has to stop again. We think Plan B, do you agree?" "Yes," he replies.
Leclerc pits at the end of Lap 23, thereby promoting Norris back into the lead, 2.4s ahead of Verstappen.
Meanwhile, Alonso passes Zhou to claim tenth.
Magnussen is shown the black and white flag.
"We are on the same strategy as Russell behind, with the hard," Leclerc is informed.
Verstappen has closes to within 1.260s of Norris, as Albon makes a great move on Zhou for 11th.
"We can use these tyres," Hamilton is assured, "Norris is pushing hard."
Indeed, Norris is having to push hard for Verstappen is closing. So hard in fact that he exceeds the track limits in Turn 19.
As Verstappen closes in on his prey, Hamilton snaps: "You've given me a hell of a gap to close!" The Mercedes driver is 6.4s down the leaders.
Into Turn 12, Verstappen nails his prey. Norris tries to come back at him but is unable to.
"I don't know if he went off or not," says Norris. "Hard to see from my side."
Replay shows he didn't.
The stewards are looking at an incident involving Sargeant and Stroll.
Albon makes his second stop at the end of Lap 29, as does Magnussen.
A number of hard runners report that they are struggling.
Despite losing out to Verstappen, Norris remains around a second behind. He even reports the Dutchman for exceeding the track limits in Turn 19.
Hamilton remains just 4.5s behind.
"Wind has got very strong all of a sudden," reports Hamilton.
Sargeant makes his second stop at the end of Lap 32. He rejoins in 17th.
Despite starting from the pitlane the Aston Martins are up to tenth (Alonso) and eleventh.
"Mate, these brakes are **** compared to yesterday!" shouts Verstappen.
Hamilton now just 2.669s down on Norris who has fallen 3.8s behind the leader.
Indeed, Norris pits at the end of Lap 34, rejoining in 6th, 3.3s down on Leclerc, on another set of hards. Tsunoda and Hulkenberg also stop.
Verstappen pits at the end of Lap 35, as does Sainz. The Dutchman rejoins in 4th, on hards, 1.6s ahead of Norris. Sainz rejoins in seventh.
So, after 35 laps, Hamilton leads Perez by 7.4s with Leclerc a further 6.2s behind, 1.3s up on Verstappen.
Perez pits at the end of Lap 37, as does Gasly. The Mexican rejoins in 7th on hards.
Sainz posts a new fastest lap (40.575), as he closes to within 0.684s of Russell.
Verstappen closes on Leclerc as Sainz passes Russell.
Hamilton pits at the end of Lap 38, the Briton taking on a fresh set of mediums as he rejoins in 4th, 6s down on Norris, as Verstappen passes Leclerc for the lead.
On the same lap, Norris makes short work of Leclerc to claim second, 1.242s down on race leader Verstappen. In the process the Briton posts a new fastest lap (39.881).
Russell makes his second stop at the end of Lap 39.
In his pursuit of Sainz, Perez posts a new fastest lap (39.737).
Stroll pits at the end of Lap 40.
As they battle for 5th, Sainz and Perez both exceed the track limits and have their times deleted.
"My brakes are just *****," snaps Verstappen, when told where he is losing out to his team mate.
On Lap 43, Hamilton nails Leclerc on the run to Turn 12 to claim third. He posts a new fastest lap (39.582) in the process.
"Still a big gap ahead," complains Hamilton. "You're pulling them in, mate," he is assured. "P2, maybe even the win!"
Check out our Sunday gallery from COTA here.
"****, it too late for Plan C," sighs Leclerc when given a whole list of options.
Alonso passes Tsunoda for 9th, the Spaniard having pitted for hards, leaving Leclerc and Ricciardo as the only drivers seemingly on a one-stopper.
As Sargeant passes Ricciardo for 14th, it is clear that one-stop is not the way to go.
"Please no talking, I'm in the braking," shouts Verstappen, when told he is matching Hamilton's pace, the Dutchman clearly feeling the pressure.
After 48 laps, it's: Verstappen, Norris (+ 3.9s), Hamilton (+ 1.3s), Leclerc (+ 5s), Sainz (+ 2.1s), Perez (+ 4.5s), Russell (+ 12s), Gasly (+ 14.2s), Alonso (+ 2.8s) and Stroll (+ 3.7s).
"Very late move, man," says Stroll of Tsunoda after passing him for tenth.
Suddenly, Hamilton is all over Norris, as Alonso reports a "rear suspension failure".
Having battled for several corners, Hamilton finally nails Norris for second, as Aston Martin tell Alonso that they can't see an issue.
As Toto Wolff smiles, Hamilton is 5.2s down on the race leader.
Sainz is all over his Ferrari teammate as the Maranello outfit's strategists get it wrong again.
Elsewhere, Alonso has pitted, where his car is pushed back into its garage.
Having finally opted to make a second stop, Ricciardo, running last, posts a new fastest lap (39.366).
"Why did I have to let Sainz by... let's talk after the race," says Leclerc. The fact that the Spaniard is already 1.7s up the road probably answers his question for him.
"I see Norris is slowing," says Sainz. "Let's go!"
Albon, currently 11th, is given a 5s penalty for exceeding track limits violations.
Meanwhile, Perez is all over the rear of Leclerc's car, the Mexican making short work of the Ferrari.
As Albon is investigated for "multiple track limit infringements", the youngster complains of a worrying vibration.
As Verstappen once again not to be spoken to while braking, Hamilton has closed to within 2.8s.
There is just over one lap to go.
Tsunoda pits at the end of Lap 54.
Hamilton closes to within 1.8s of Verstappen...
The Dutchman crosses the line 2.225s ahead of the Mercedes, while Norris retains third, ahead of Sainz, Perez, Leclerc, Russell, Gasly, Stroll and Tsunoda... who claims an additional point courtesy of the fastest lap of the race (38.139).
Albon is eleventh, ahead of Sargeant, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Zhou, Magnussen and Ricciardo.
"Leading the race, I could control it a lot," says Norris, "but I'm happy.
"We knew our struggles," he adds, "it was just degradation. The pace over the first ten laps of every stint was strong, I just couldn't hold on.
"It's progress," he insists. "I did the best I could, I'm still happy... to finish on the podium here is better than we expected coming into this weekend."
"I think we have to congratulate Red Bull," says Hamilton, "they have done an incredible job and been flawless all year.
"My team did a fantastic job to bring the upgrade here, come in fighting and really happy with this result."
"The whole race I was struggling with the brakes," admits Verstappen, "which definitely made my race a bit tougher. You could see, it was really close at the end.
"It's incredible to win my 50th Grand Prix here, very proud of course and we'll keep on trying to push for more."
Of course, it will be interesting to hear Leclerc's thoughts as Ferrari strategy robs him yet again, while Aston Martin will be ruing the fact that they have been leapfrogged by McLaren in the team standings.