F1 | Gp Hungary, MINARDI “The real contest is behind Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull”

We are on the eve of the Hungarian Grand Prix, a week after the incredible race at the Hockenheimring.

The weather forecasts are for scattered clouds and afternoon storms on the Saturday while the race will be dry. The heat could present problems, especially for Mercedes which, despite the unlucky weekend we just ended, is still the car to beat and Hamilton and Bottas will be on the prowl for a quick redemption.

The characteristics of the track, slow, tortuous and short, could benefit Red Bull that will try to get even closer to Ferrari’s second pace. The SF90 showed major signs of growth and could use a weekend that is not conditioned by problems or mistakes. In Germany the machine showed that it is competitive both in the high temperatures and in wet conditions on the track, even if it was betrayed by reliability.

The challenge is on above all behind the top three teams with McLaren in great form and taking an important lead on its direct rivals and Toro Rosso that took fifth place, on the strength of the place on the podium by Kvyat and Albon’s sixth place in front of Renault with reliability problems. For TR the fifth place could be its consecration, especially after the major work carried out last season with the Honda engine in favour of Red Bull that today is harvesting the results.

Traditionally the arrival of the summer break lights up the drivers’ market, even if this year I see it as especially “dormant” since the great movements could occur in 2021 on the occasion of the new regulations. Keeping the interest high is Bottas’ future in Mercedes, whose place could be taken by Esteban Ocon, in the prospect of making him grow up beside a champion of the calibre of Hamilton who, approaching the end of his contract could be thinking of a challenge far from Brackley. In the back markers, the knots to be untangled could be in Haas and Racing Point.

Gian Carlo Minardi