EMILIA-ROMAGNA: Strategy
NUMBER SEVEN
Today is a day of strategy. Some get it right, some do not.
Imola is not a track that lends itself to overtaking, so the work must be done in the pit lane. Most of the pack are split between strategies – 2 early stops or 2 later stops. Those that go long are rewarded with not just 1, but 2 perfectly timed safety cars to aid their stops. The others find themselves slipping down the grid.
Our winner, and a reminder that he is still the reigning World Champion: Max Verstappen. An equally bold and borderline insane overtake into Turn 1 sees Verstappen take pole off Piastri and hold the lead until the finish. He goes long in his first stint and gets the lucky stops, nails the restarts and loses the McLarens completely. Nice.
Before we get to the others, let’s discuss the safety car incidents. First up is Ocon. Lap 29 and he limps his Haas onto the grass as it conks out completely, forcing him to retire. Almost 20 laps later and poor Antonelli suffers the same fate in his Mercedes at his home race. It’s not a great race for either team, with Ocon’s teammate Bearman coming in at P17, and Russell at P7 for Mercedes – not his usual podium finish.
McLaren have a pretty good day with a P2 P3 finish, but their strategy suffers a couple of wobbles. Piastri loses pole to Verstappen before going for an early pit in Lap 14. The stop is a lengthy 3.6 seconds, and he slips down the grid. Norris goes long but dives in to pit in Lap 28, just moments before the virtual safety car advantage. They also don’t seem to be able to get anywhere near the Red Bull. Interesting.
Ferrari and Williams opt for a similar driver strategy split, with Hamilton and Albon lucking out and Leclerc and Sainz suffering. The Ferraris qualify nowhere – Hamilton starts P11 while Leclerc is P12. Both drivers are in attack mode – Leclerc makes contact with Gasly and sends him flying across the gravel, while Hamilton hunts down Antonelli. Leclerc’s early pit is an initial success with the undercut proving effective, but a second stop in Lap 29 means his tyres are cooked by the finish, and he is out paced by Albon in the final lap for P5. The story is very similar for Sainz who goes for the early stop and suffers towards the end, settling for P8. Hamilton and Albon luck out on the later stops, with both putting in undeniably impressive performances regardless, resulting in Hamilton at P4 and Albon (IN A WILLIAMS!) at P5.
It's a shocker for Aston Martin. Initially, it looks hopeful – with Alonso qualifying P5 and Stroll P8, but it goes downhill from there. The team choose not to split strategies, and the early stops for both mean neither benefit from the safety cars. Also, Alonso’s brakes are entirely on fire at one point. It’s a P11 and P18 finish. Shame.
2 special mentions go to Hadjar for RB and Tsunoda for Red Bull. Hadjar nails qualifying with a P9 start and keeps the position to come home with points. Tsunoda starts in the pit lane and manages to climb up to nab the last point at P10.
Sauber sandwich the rest, with Hülkenberg taking P12 and Bortoleto the last of the finishers at P18. In between are the 2 Alpines – Gasly P13 and Colapinto on his debut for the team at P16, and then Lawson for RB at P14.
To Monaco!