Nithyanandam Ramasamy
Where do I start? I am still immersed in the events that unfolded in Brazil last weekend. The Sao Paulo GP was one of the dramatic weekends in Formula 1. It was defined by Lewis Hamilton’s masterclass. He portrayed grit and determination to overcome 25 places grid penalty to win the Sao Paulo GP. He’s passed absolutely everyone to register his 101st Formula 1 victory and close the gap to Max Verstappen in the championship. Talk about resilience! Now let’s analyse how his race weekend went by.
Sprint Qualifying:
Lewis Hamilton’s weekend started brightly as he set the fastest lap on Friday’s qualifying session. However, the drama was just getting started when the session got over. Hamilton’s DRS rear wing gap was found to be 0.02mm more than the maximum gap allowed. So he was eventually disqualified, and it forced him to start the sprint qualifying from the back of the grid.
The event that unfolded after his disqualification will be resonated in Formula 1 history. Michael Jordan’s infamous ‘I took it personally’ quote comes to my mind when I think of how Hamilton reacted to the disqualification. In the first lap of the sprint qualifying itself, he passed 5 drivers. Stroll, Latifi, Russell, Mick and Mazepin were his prey in the very first lap of the sprint qualifying. Overall, Hamilton managed to pass 15 cars in 24 laps of the sprint qualifying. It’s like playing an F1 game with an AI set-up of 0%. No disrespects to any driver, but the level Hamilton displayed was staggering.
The Race:
A 5 place grid penalty for the race means Hamilton started Sunday’s race in 10th place. The race start was also important for his recovery. He’s managed to overtake 4 cars in the very first lap of the race. It’s quite unbelievable that he’s managed to overtake 9 cars in the first laps of the sprint qualifying and the main race. Has he just sent it during the grid start?
He dispatched the Ferrari duo on lap-3. Then Mercedes have decided to swap Valtteri Bottas and Hamilton on lap-5. It was Sergio Perez, who was standing between Hamilton and Max Verstappen, with 66-laps remaining. Hamilton had a mini-battle with Perez and passed him on lap-19 as he set his eyes on Max Verstappen. The chase went on until the end of the second round of pit stops.
The incident in lap-48 between Verstappen and Hamilton will be debated as Mercedes have requested the right for review, which might potentially incur a penalty for Verstappen. Finally, Hamilton managed to overtake Verstappen on lap-59 to the cheers from the jubilant Brazilian crowd.
Hamilton did an unthinkable in Brazil. We may say he’s got a great car and a new PU that helped him to drive at a rapid pace on straights. But, at the end of the day, it was the driver who made it possible. He was up against the odds before the start of the sprint qualifying. With his grit and resilience, the man from Stevenage made the impossible possible. A great car needs a great driver to work wonders. Hamilton is not leaving this championship battle without a fight as we head to the middle east for the final 3 races of the 2021 Formula 1 season.
