F1 | GP JAPAN, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “VERSTAPPEN UNDISCUSSED WORLD CHAMPION, BUT WHAT CHAOS WITH THESE REGULATIONS”

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Max Verstappen is the World champion for the second time in his short career.

This is the first fixed point, with no ifs or buts. Regardless of the rain that hit the Suzuka circuit, regardless of whether the race lasted only 40 minutes, regardless of the penalty inflicted on Charles Leclerc by the sporting regulations and by the system of attribution of the points.

Both the Dutchman and Red Bull also dominated the Japanese Grand Prix taking out pole position and the win with almost a half a minute advantage on second place confirming the position at the top of this sport. A result that was also consolidated by the second place by Sergio Perez who, in the final laps, put Ferrari’s driver from Monte Carlo under pressure leading him to the mistake at the very end. With second place he equalled Leclerc’s points (249 points for both) and at this point of the season the situation for the Ferrari driver is not so rosy.

Even in the wet Ferrari confirmed its current limits. Competitive on the flying lap (in qualifying Leclerc missed pole position by only 10 thousandths of a second) while in the long run the differences with Red Bull come out, also linked to the degradation of the tyres that put Leclerc in crisis at Suzuka, but in any case he was the protagonist of an incredible defence stained only by the “long” stretch at the end that cost him second place.

Regulations in hand, I find the 5” penalty correct (this time coming after only a few minutes). Too bad that he had space to defend the position better but it is too easy to point the finger considering the difficult situation.

With the title definitively in Verstappen’s hands Leclerc has four grands prix (USA, Mexico, Brazil and Abu Dhabi) to try and save at least second place. It will not be easy staying ahead of Sergio Perez with this Red Bull.

Amongst the “others” congratulations to the two old men, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso. Thanks to their experience they knew how to handle a complicated situation finishing in sixth and seventh places. Well done also to Nicholas Latifi who, together with Vettel, was one of the first to pass from the intermediates so taking his Williams to ninth place ahead of Norris. It was an exciting tussle between Ocon and Hamilton for fourth place.

The real sore point of the weekend was the umpteenth case of confusion created by these absurd regulations. Despite having completed only 29 of the 53 laps (52% of the race) in the maximum time of three hours, full points were attributed. This is because the race was considered finished (the chequered flag was waved).

Honestly I find no big difference between finishing a race when the maximum time runs out or following a red flag.

After what happened in Spa-Francorchamps last year the Federation introduced new points systems that varied according to how many laps were raced. However, this points system is applied only if the race does not restart after a red flag…. To me this seems to be a useless complication, especially if it continues to be run on circuits hit by monsoons and/or cyclones. It may be appropriate to simplify these regulations and re-evaluate the calendars to avoid having three hour grands prix with cars committed on the track for much less time.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | GP SINGAPORE, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “INADEQUATE MARSHALS. LECLERC’S SECOND PLACE AT RISK”

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Once again the marshals and race directors have not confirmed they measure up to a Formula 1 that is growing exponentially, giving us incredible emotions. The final decision, that confirmed Sergio Perez’s win despite the 5” penalty, came several hours after the episode despite having all the tools for verifying in real time and there have already been similar episodes in the past. Guidelines are needed to give homogeneity in the judgments.

Today’s grand prix gave us incredible emotions, especially considering the conditions in which they raced. The race ended due to having reached the maximum time and not at the conclusion of the laps. This already lets us understand how demanding it was for the drivers.

I take off my hat to Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc. The Mexican was the protagonist of a great race and an excellent start. He gave his all and in the end he went into difficulty due to having made the most of the tyres. Red Bull confirmed that the car is extremely solid and is ready to open a new cycle that can be important.

It will be interesting to understand what went wrong for the driver from Monte Carlo at the start, but then he was the author of a race above his possibilities as the gap between him and his team mate amply demonstrates. With second place Leclerc gnawed a few points from his direct rival but the real problem is the five points lost over Perez who is now only two points behind. On the constructors front on the other hand Ferrari consolidated second place over Mercedes that left Singapore with only two points to its credit.

Instead the reigning world champion’s performance was weak. After the problems that stopped him in qualifying, Verstappen had various difficulties despite the overtaking he carried out to try and climb back. The duel between Alonso and Hamilton was very good. It was a pity that he was betrayed by the engine of his Alpine, just like Ocon.

It was an excellent performance by McLaren that said goodbye to Singapore with fourth and fifth places by Norris and Ricciardo. Good Aston Martin with Stroll’s sixth place and eighth place for Vettel who finished ahead of Hamilton’s Mercedes and Gasly’s Alpha Tauri.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | ITALIAN GP, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “VERSTAPPEN UNCATCHABLE. AN UNFORGIVABLE MISTAKE BY FIA”

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An intense and exciting weekend has ended with 336,647 fans present in the temple of speed in Monza that celebrated its 100 years of history in the best possible way. Beyond the full grandstands, I was positively struck by the presence of a very young public that is luckily getting closer to Motorsport.

We saw many duels on the track, starting from the Saturday in the challenge for pole position won by Charles Leclerc, author of an extraordinary lap. Both he and Carlos Sainz confirmed all the goodness of the Ferrari in a flying lap, while they were forced to pay a “cost” from Red Bull (Max Verstappen in particular) in the race.

It was a much deserved new win, the fifth consecutive win of the season and the first personal win at Monza for the Dutch driver who strung together a sequence of incredible laps, while managing to protect his tyres. Under these conditions the people on Ferrari’s wall tried all or nothing by bringing forward the card of the early pit stop, maybe hoping for a safety-car or VSC (that partially happened) even if it did not pay off at the moment, the fight for Leclerc is for second place with Sergio Perez, just as it is for Ferrari versus Mercedes. An interesting end of the season is expected.

Carlos Sainz’s comeback was also to be applauded. Having started from the rear he managed to climb up to the foot of the podium, crossing the finish line behind George Russell’s Mercedes. A positive result considering that the objective was fifth place, characterized by excellent overtaking. Behind him was Lewis Hamilton, he too forced to start from the rear, the author of a positive comeback but with times that were inferior to his team mate.

Also to be noted are the results achieved by Gasly and especially the debutant Nyck De Vries who immediately got into the points (ninth place) with the Williams and who was also voted the best driver of the day. He showed he is a reliable driver capable of not making mistakes. He deserves a chance. This was not a surprise for me since I had already had the opportunity to observe him in action in the karts.

It was a negative for the decision by FIA at the end of the race. The arrival behind the SC compromised an incredible show. The safety car entered the track too late and in an incorrect position. The double management with the race directors did not pay off. It seems to me that there is a lot of work to do in the relations between Liberty Media and the Federation.

Amongst other things, the Federation must seriously consider the idea of changing the regulations tied to the penalties for the replacement of parts. This weekend we saw nine of the twenty drivers penalized with an overturned starting grid compared to the result of qualifying. It is unsporting for the drivers to pay for the team’s mistakes. Besides, it is unacceptable to wait for more than 5 hours from the end of qualifying to have the definitive starting order. It is a regulation that must absolutely be reviewed.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | DUTCH GP, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “MAX DOES THE HONOURS AT HOME. FERRARI THE THIRD FORCE”

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Verstappen deadly. At this moment both him and the car have no weak points and give nothing away to the rivals at all. He was stratospheric for the whole weekend, starting with qualifying with the masterpiece the final part of the grand prix after the safety car came back. Lewis Hamilton could do nothing.

Mercedes made a mistake in strategy precisely with the seven times world champion by not changing the tyres but they managed to nibble away further major at the expense of Ferrari that is now the world championship’s third force.

Leclerc was certainly very good. With third place he achieved the maximum result but he paid practically half a second per lap to his direct rival. He was already out of the DRS zone in the second lap. Another mistake in the pits, this time at Carlos Sainz’s expense who then also ran into the 5” penalty slipping back to the eight place after the end of the grand prix. A major and unforgiveable mistake that cost the Spanish driver 10”.

We will already be back on the track in a week’s time in Monza for the Italian Grand Ptix. The track is favours Red Bull that is working well with little downforce…

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | GP BELGIUM, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “FERRARI MUST WATCH MERCEDES AT ITS BACK”

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We have left the summer break behind and the “new” season has begun with Red Bull always at the top but able to significantly increase the lead over its direct rivals Ferrari.

again Adrian Newey was the most skilled in interpreting the updated regulations. A superlative Max Verstappen relegated his team mate to more than 17” with the same car.

There are still 8 races to go to the chequered flag but now, – rightly – the title is in the hands of the Dutchman.

Ferrari said goodbye to Spa-Francorchamps with the podium thanks to Carlos Sainz’s third place but it paid a big gap of more than half a second a lap. The Spaniard made the most of his material while once again Charles Leclerc had to take “misfortune” into account. The rip-off visor (from the Dutchman it seems) got blocked in the brake socket overheating and damaging the sensors that led to the mistake of management of the speed limiter that cost the driver from Monte Carlo the 5” penalty. Honestly, I would not have risked the two points that were already sure to try and grab the extra point for the fastest lap. Each pit stop is risky. The choice did not pay off Sunday but it is part of the choices that must be made during a race.

It was a step forward by Mercedes. As expected Toto Wolff’s team benefitted from the change of regulations and moved to only 41 points from Ferrari which confirms the second place behind Red Bull but it must be careful.

Spa-Francorchamps was the also the stage for many penalties in the starting grid. Of the 20 drivers on the grid 8 had to serve penalties (Verstappen, Leclerc, Ocon, Norris, Zhou, Schumacher, Bottas and Tsunoda). It is a regulation I still do not like. Unsporting in that it nullifies the result of qualifying. Furthermore, it is mainly the driver who pays most when it should be the team to be sanctioned in terms of points. From here on will we be able to witness more and more of these episodes.

Now we await two tough races: the Dutch and the Italian GPs. For the spectacle I hope that it was only an unhappy episode for Ferrari even if the signs that we saw are unfortunately not positive.
On this occasion, I want to thanks all the fans who came to Imola for the sixth edition of the Historic Minardi Day. It was exciting seeing the garages full of young people.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | GP HUNGARY, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “ON PARITY OF TYES, MERCEDES IS THE BEST CAR. FERRARI MUST PONDER”

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It should have been the weekend of the Ferrari double and instead both Sainz and Leclerc finished off the podium. It was certainly a day for Ferrari to analyse since they made a number of mistakes in both the strategy and during the pit stops, especially with the Spaniard.
In these circumstances the car fell short of Red Bull and Mercedes. With the same tyres Mercedes with Lewis Hamilton performed decidedly better, so much so that the British champion set the race’s fastest lap.

At the moment the Ferrari package is not ready to win the world championship. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, protagonists of excellent overtaking and defence were blameless. However, with the fourth and six places they left many points to their direct rivals, just as Ferrari did a favour to a strongly growing Mercedes. They have three weeks ahead of them to ponder and plan the last part of the season in the best possible way with the aim of saving at least second place in the constructors and drivers championships.

This is not a surprise because they made us used to even more impressive comebacks but Max Verstappen deserves the title of “driver of the day”. He was the protagonist of a race in all out attack to then manage to advantage he had acquired. He made only one mistake that could have cost him very dearly, but he was good and lucky to take back control of the car. He is supported by a team that is aware of its strength and they work calmly without making any mistakes. At this point of the world championship they only have to manage the large advantage they have accumulated.

For the second consecutive grand prix Mercedes went onto the podium with both its drivers making a great leap forward on the ladder. The modifications carried out are paying off and they have taken away points from Ferrari whose advantage has been reduced to only 30 points.

I wish you all happy holidays and I look forward to seeing you on Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 at Imola for the sixth edition of the Historic Minardi Day.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | GP HUNGARY, GIAN CARLO MINARDI “FERRARI, A DOUBLE IS NEEDED”

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Hungaroring: on paper the track favours the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr. Ferrari must try to restart with a double in order to try and reopen the world championship that at this moment is in Max Verstappen’s hands with a 63 point lead on the driver from Monte Carlo.

A tryptich is opening that will say a lot about the outcome of the season: Hungaroring, Spa-Francorchamps and Zandvoort with Monza immediately after. They are three very different tracks between them but very demanding for drivers and cars. I am convinced that not all is lost for Ferrari but it must exploit every opportunity without giving any more gifts to its rivals. They will be three decisive rounds to understand if there will be the possibility to recover or if they have to race to win the greatest number of grands prix. The team is fighting at high levels after some difficult seasons.

The Red Bull-Ferrari tussle is giving Formula 1 appeal and it is important keeping the world championship open. We are entering into the last ten grands prix of the season and reliability will be a sore point for many.

Mercedes has been the most skilled up to now, with Red Bull paying at the start of the season. The W13 had shown strong improvement that it is now called to confirm. Up to now they have been very good at reaching the podium not such much for their own merits but dues to the mistakes of others. Today they have a car for fifth or sixth place. At Spa-Francorchamps we will be able to see its true potential.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | GP FRANCE, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “VERSTAPPEN PUTS HIS HANDS ON THE TROPHY. EXCELLENT SAINZ. FERRARI AND LECLERC MUST STILL GROW UP”

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Although there are still ten races in the calendar with this win Max Verstappen has forcefully put his hands on his second world championship. For Leclerc the 63 point gap really is a lot.

Sincerely, it is a real shame because we are facing a winning and competitive Ferrari but it must still grow up in order not to make these mistakes any more. They were not perfect in the pit stop again today and the one who paid the price was an excellent Carl Sainz who was able to recover from fifth place twice overtaking extraordinarily the expense of Russell and Ocon, passing them on the outside at Signes. And it was equally beautiful when he overtook Perez before the last stop.

On the other hand, it was a monumental mistake by Leclerc (which reminded us of Vettel’s episode in Germany), up to that point he had certainly been perfect. In the present time both he and Verstappen have no other rivals. They have an extra gear, even if the driver from Monte Carlo (together with the team) must make a leap in quality to become the champion he deserves.

Taking advantage once again was a Mercedes in strong growth. Beyond the double podium (second place for Lewis Hamilton and third for George Russell) they paid a gap of 10” from the winner. It will be interesting to see if they manage to repeat themselves also on other tracks.

It could become the third wheel of the fight for the world championship, even if Verstappen can start to manage the strong lead.

They will be back on track in a week’s time with the thirteenth grand prix on the Hungaroring track.

Gian Carlo Minardi

HISTORIC MINARDI DAY, 27 – 28 AGOSTO. BIGLIETTI IN VENDITA SU TICKETONE

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Manca solo poco più di un mese alla sesta edizione dell’Historic Minardi Day, in programma il 27 e 28 agosto all’Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari. Una manifestazione che è diventata a tutti gli effetti un appuntamento tradizionale del calendario, attirando anno dopo anno sempre più appassionati

Sarà proprio l’Historic Minardi Day ad aprire la seconda parte della stagione che fin qui è stata senza dubbio spettacolare con la Formula 1 e i concerti che sono stati la punta di diamante della programmazione. Si riparte dunque alla grande e per non perdere questo importante evento ricordiamo che è possibile acquistare i biglietti sul sito Ticketone.it e presso i punti vendita autorizzati Ticketone che dà accesso all’area paddock, terrazza e box incontrando piloti, tecnici e ingegneri che hanno fatto la storia del Motorpsort.

Il programma della manifestazione è ovviamente ancora in via di definizione e sarà annunciato nelle prossime settimane. Riguardo alle vetture, oltre all’intensa attività in pista che vedrà in azione incredibili vetture di Formula 1, tra le quali spiccano la Maserati 250F che partecipò al mondiale dal 1954 al 1956, la Wolf WR7 numero 20 ex Keke Rosberg, le Ferrari 642, 643 e 312 B2 fino ad arrivare alle più moderne Jaguar R1 (2000) e R3 (2002), Formula 2, Formula 3, F3000, GP2, Formula Italia, prototipi e Gran Turismo, insieme agli Historic Tributi in collaborazione con la Scuderia Tazio Nuvolari e la Scuderia del Portello, numerosi saranno gli appuntamenti all’interno dell’area paddock. Ricordiamo che anche quest’anno le vetture avranno il QRCODE per votare la preferita.

Non mancherà poi la F1X3 guidata da Alex Caffi, che farà provare ai suoi passeggeri la potenza e l’ebrezza di una Formula 1 con due giri di pista (info: squadracorseangelocaffi@gmail.com).

Sabato 27 Giusti Aste, in collaborazione con Vision Up, curerà la preziosa asta tematica “Auto d’epoca e Automobilia” Tra le auto che verranno proposte in vendita è da segnalare innanzitutto una bellissima Porsche con la quale il campione Andrea Mordini vinse il campionato italiano nel 2007, poi altre auto stradali sportive, la bellezza di 25, e una rara moto da corsa costruita a Modena.

L’asta sarà incentrata su una moltitudine di categorie per soddisfare collezionisti e amatori: oltre ad auto e moto verranno battuti parti di auto, accessori, automobilia, caschi, disegni, dipinti, sculture, orologi, modellini, vestiario, stampe, poster, arredi e altre varie curiosità. Si susseguiranno, per ordine di importanza, decine di lotti, diversi per tipologie e valore, ma tutti da scoprire, con vere e proprie occasioni di ottimi investimenti, oltre che, naturalmente, per appagamento della propria passione.

Infine non mancheranno gli appuntamenti con i libri di Nada Editori e Minarva edizioni, con convegni, presentazioni e dibattiti che sono da sempre momenti imperdibili di ogni edizione dell’Historic Minardi Day.

F1 | GP FRANCE, GIAN CARLO MINARDI “THE FERRARI-RED BULL TUSSLE IS CORRECT ON THE SPORTING SIDE AND POSITIVE FOR F1″

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This weekend the twelfth round of the World Championship arrives at Paul Ricard, a track that encompasses in its 5,842 metres fast curves and straights that alternate between slower and technical parts. It will be run almost a month later than last year and high temperatures are expected (40°C are forecast) and drier weather. It will be interesting to see how the new 18 inch compounds and tyres will perform in these conditions with Pirelli bringing the C2 (hard), C3 (medium) and C4 (soft) compounds.

As has already happened in other circumstances, the heat will be an extra unknown factor for reliability and all the teams have tried to defend themselves by making many openings. Many innovations are expected in all the pits, a symptom that they are chasing performance but I expect a tussle between Red Bull and Ferrari. Amongst other things that I like to underline, up till now we have seen a very correct tussle on the sporting side.

Contrary to what Toto Wolff stated in recent days, I am convinced that this duel on the edge of hundredths of a second, even if it is enclosed between four cars from two teams, is only positive for the image of Formula 1. We must not forget that we have come from almost eight years of absolute domination by Mercedes that regularly placed its cars first and second place. We used to approach the grands prix already knowing who would have won, except for upsets. Therefore, these declarations left me perplexed…

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | GP AUSTRIA, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “LECLERC, SCHUMACHER AND ALONSO. WHAT A SHOW”

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It was a wonderful Austrian grand prix on all fronts, in both the positions at the top as well as in the back. The turning points were not lacking starting with the flames that stopped Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari that was firmly in second position up to that moment, to the problem of the accelerator pedal on the sister car driven by Charles Leclerc who however managed to take home the win ahead of his direct rival Max Verstappen.

Ferrari took home its second straight win putting a patch on the criticism of the last few days; they were perfect across the board. Unfortunately the reliability partially ruined the celebrations. This was not a positive sign for the men in Maranello. They were major breakages that negatively affect the planned development.

For his part, Leclerc was fantastic. He made no mistakes overtaking Verstappen three times and this time he could do nothing against Ferrari’s superiority. On the other hand the Dutchman was very good in Saturday’s sprint race. The “domestic” tussle between Leclerc and Sainz did not affect the final result. In that part of the race Red Bull was superior.

Mercedes went onto the podium with Lewis Hamilton who crossed the finish line ahead of George Russell, however paying a wide gap. We are back to the pre-Silverstone gap but they were able to exploit the misadventures of others. It was an excellent fifth place for Ocon but Mick Schumacher was superb, in clear growth and he probably managed to “unlock” himself. I hope that this is a good omen for a second part of the season on the rise.

Fernando Alonso’s tenth place is also to be applauded. For part of the race he even held sixth place after starting in twentieth place. Once again he played a role in bringing points to Alpine.

Finally, there was no lack of penalties for having exceeded the track limits. The Red Bull Ring is equipped with sensors that promptly highlight non-compliance. It is a technology that should be used in all the circuits so as to “free” the marshals.

So now we wait two weeks for the Grand Prix in France and then the one in Hungary.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | GP AUSTRIA, MINARDI “MERCEDES, WILL A SWALLOW MAKE A SUMMER?”

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They were the real surprise at Silverstone with Lewis Hamilton reaching the podium behind Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari and Sergio Perez’s Red Bull. “Before Silverstone they suffered a major gap but they took many new developments to Silverstone that rewarded the efforts. It will be interesting to monitor the W13 to see if it will once again be able to put itself in the tussle between Red Bull and Ferrari.”

After Imola the sprint race is back:

We are at the half way point of the season and the points are starting to weigh double. Between Saturday and Sunday there are many points at stake and Leclerc could recover what he lost in Imola. Despite the episodes in Monte Carlo and England I am still confident. You always learn something from mistakes. We will have Carlos Sainz galvanized by his first win in F1 and Leclerc will be eager to show once again his excellent form.

The Red Bull Ring is a very fast circuit:

A very fast circuit. A lap can be covered in just over a minute (the record was set by Kim Raikonnen with 1:06.957 set in 2018) but it is also very demanding with important braking and acceleration. The Red Bull could be intimidating but at Silverstone Ferrari took pole and the win.

Making predicitons has become hard:

In such a hard-fought championship it is practically impossible to make predictions. Every time the final result overtures the predictions of the eve.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | THE BRITISH GP, THE POINT BY GIAN CARLO MINARDI “BRAVO SAINZ, BUT RED BULL IS A CUT ABOVE. SAFETY CAR? ITS ENTRY WAS WRONG”

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Excitement was not lacking in Silverstone, the stage for the tenth round of the Formula 1 World Championship. Once again the excellent work on the safety front by FIA in recent years avoided the worst with the terrible accident that saw Alfa Romeo driver Guan Yu Zhou as the protagonist, miraculously coming out of the accident unhurt. Honestly however, I cannot understand how it was possible that the roll bar of the C42 was completely destroyed and torn up.

Luckily the Halo held on saving the driver. In Formula 2 Roy Nissany was hit by Dennis Hauger after his car took off and struck the DAMS team racing car in the area of the cockpit.

At the restart we saw an unexpected race with Ferrari winning with Carlos Sainz who had already shown his potential in qualifying. However, Ferrari was once again imperfect, committing a careless act in regard to an excellent Leclerc. Without the entry of the safety car in the final part that reshuffled the cards he would certainly have taken home the win and thus taking advantage of Red Bull’s imperfect Sunday with Max Verstappen who had to settle for seventh place. Ferrari’s people on the wall could have changed the strategies bringing the driver from Monte Carlo in for a pit stop. Sainz’s win however made me very happy as I have always highlighted and believed in his potential.

On the Safety Car front, I honestly found the decision “trivial” if not unnecessary. Ocon’s car was at a very visible point on the track and they could have chosen the yellow flag. Certainly Alpine’s French driver was not exempt from blame since from the start of their career drivers are taught that in the case of problems they must park the car without hindering the race. He had plenty of time to choose a safer place.

Apart from these episodes, Silverstone gave us back a competitive Mercedes was able to fight with Ferrari and Red Bull. Sainz, Leclerc, Perez and Hamilton gave us a wonderful tussle marked by fast laps. Lewis Hamilton made the most of his W13, Too bad for the accident that excluded George Russell who had not fault.

Excellent work on the part of Red Bull’s people on the wall, with a perfect strategy that allowed Sergio Perez to finish in second place. Without problems the RB18 is a cut above the rest. Excellent work by Fernando Alonso as well, the protagonist of a good first half of the championship. Once again he showed all his worth, especially on a wet track.

Gian Carlo Minardi