Page 15 - Trackside Engineering News Today

The drivers and teams report back on all the action from a busy final practice and qualifying session at the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2021...

The drivers and teams report back on all the action from a busy Friday practice at the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2021...

Red Bull With Leclerc out, Verstappen inherited the de facto pole and made it count. He had to be aggressive at the start to cut across Bottas but after that, his race was uncomplicated and he sailed serenely to the finish line for his first win in Monaco, and took the championship lead to boot. Perez had to work slightly harder but made his soft tyres last really well to pit late and overcut his rivals. He came home a very decent fourth, after a spirited attack on Norris ahead proved fruitless...

The drivers and teams report back on all the action from a busy final practice and qualifying at the fifth race of the season, the Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco 2021...

Mercedes After opting to run the hard and medium compound tyres in FP1, Mercedes found themselves in the mix with those on the same strategy, but behind the few who ran the soft compound. Roll on FP2 and with most drivers on the same compounds, it was easier to see a pecking order emerge – and as it stands Mercedes are not the quickest here. Hamilton might have to find something special on Saturday if he wants that all-important pole in Monaco. Lewis Hamilton – FP1: 1:12.995, P5; FP2: 1:12....

Mercedes With Red Bull getting the beating of both Mercedes drivers in FP3, it looked set for a titanic battle for pole. Hamilton seemed fractions behind his team mate through Q1 and Q2 but as he so often does, pulled a lap out of the bag when it mattered at the start of Q3. With the wind picking up and the track moving away from them, the top three didn’t improve on their second runs leaving the reigning world champion with his 100th pole position, an absolutely astonishing feat. Bottas had ...

Mercedes Barcelona is something of a Mercedes stronghold and they certainly started well, topping both sessions with Bottas getting the best out of the W12 in the morning before Hamilton returned the favour in the afternoon session. With plenty of laps under their belts, it was a very solid day for the team, which looked even better when the struggles of their rivals was taken into consideration. As it stands, they start tomorrow as favourites for pole. Lewis Hamilton – FP1: 1:18.627, P3; FP2...

Mercedes Bottas made a great start from pole, and also at the subsequent restart behind the Safety Car. But the Finn couldn’t extract the same pace from the W12 today as Hamilton and spent much of his race under pressure. Much of that pressure came from his team mate, who wound up victorious but was made to work hard for the win. First, he had to pass Verstappen, then he was made to sweat it out in the dirty air behind his team mate for lap after lap before finally squeezing past for the lead...

The drivers and teams report back on all the action from a busy final practice and qualifying at the third race of the season, the Formula 1 Portuguese Grand Prix 2021 from Portimao...

Mercedes A rocky opening to FP1 that saw Hamilton label the car as “undriveable” morphed into a pretty solid day in the end for the Silver Arrows. The reigning world champion struggled to get his soft tyres into a good working window in the first session, but nailed his preparation lap in FP2 to grab the top spot. As for Bottas, he looked the happier of the two in the morning before dropping back marginally as the day wore on. Top in both sessions as a team – but can they stay there tomor...