Nithyanandam Ramasamy
Round 7 in France has showcased humdinger of a race. The race started from fairly a straightforward one to a dramatic conclusion. This was Formula 1 in a nutshell. It had overtakes, on-track battles and bold strategical calls. The race turned out to be a spectacular one even without a Safety Car appearance and rains. That’s what the doctor ordered. Let’s delve into what the data say about the epic race at the French GP.
The Opening Lap:
There were 12 overtakes in the first lap. Lance Stroll and Kimi Raikkonen gained more positions as both drivers made up 3 positions each. Lance Stroll is becoming a maestro of the opening lap overtakes this year. He never looked back after gaining 3 positions in the first lap. The opening lap set a tone for his top 10 finish in the race. AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda gained 2 positions starting from the pit lane. Mick Schumacher, who started from 15th on the grid, had a tough first lap as he lost 4 positions.
How Max Verstappen undercut Lewis Hamilton?
Lewis Hamilton comfortably led Max Verstappen before the first round of pit stops. A lap delayed pit stop for Lewis Hamilton means he rejoined beside Max Verstappen as the pace Max Verstappen carried was enough to move ahead of Lewis Hamilton. So how did the 2.741s gap before Max Verstappen’s pit stop was evaporated within a lap?
Max Verstappen was called in by the Red Bull Racing crew for a pit stop on lap 18 in response to Valtteri Bottas’ undercut ploy. It has not only helped him to keep a place ahead of Valtteri Bottas but also helped him to move ahead of Lewis Hamilton at end of the first round of pit stops. Mercedes would have been gutted that they haven’t called Lewis Hamilton in on lap 18. The race could have been completely different if they have done that.
In-Lap and Out-Lap:
The gap to Lewis Hamilton while Max Verstappen entered the pits was 2.741s. Max Verstappen has gained 0.585s in in-lap to Lewis Hamilton’s. Lewis Hamilton has gained 0.16s in the pit stop. Mercedes have surely done a great job there. Max Verstappen’s out-lap played a prominent role in his undercut as his out-lap 1:39.966s was the fastest among all. Valtteri Bottas posted the second-best out-lap, which was still 0.239s off the benchmark set by Max Verstappen.
Astonishingly, Max Verstappen’s out-lap was 1.907s faster than Lewis Hamiton’s, which was inconsequential because Lewis Hamilton was passed during the start of the lap. But it explains how Max Verstappen made the most out of his fresh rubber.
The out-lap of Max Verstappen has not only played a role here, but the time spent in the pit lane from both drivers tells a fascinating story of finer margins. Despite gaining 0.16s during the pit stop, Lewis Hamilton has lost 0.46s in the pit lane. We may wonder why is that? That could be mainly due to throttle usage, pit lane limiter, brakes, etc. How crucial was that 0.46s for Max Verstappen’s undercut? As I said finer margins.
Speed Trap:
Red Bull Racing have amassed the straight-line speed as the maximum speed trap posted by Max Verstappen was 16.3 KM/H faster than Lewis Hamilton. Lewis Hamilton has posted the slowest speed trap of all 20 drivers. Surely, Mercedes were running higher downforce in France? It was palpable when Max Verstappen gained 0.3s on straights alone to Mercedes during the qualifying session. Also, Lewis Hamilton looked puzzled in his post-qualifying interview when he said “I’m not sure if we’re down on power or drag”.
How did Max Verstappen pass Lewis Hamilton in the second stint?
Red Bull Racing have used Mercedes’ blueprint to win the race. In the other words, we can say Red Bull Racing did a Mercedes. Mercedes threw a boomerang in Hungary and Barcelona, and boomerang made its way back to Mercedes only at the 2021 French GP. It was an inspiring and bold move from Red Bull Racing to opt for a two stopper for Max Verstappen on lap 32.
It worked beautifully for them as Max Verstappen was able to catch Lewis Hamilton on lap 52 and pass him on the same lap. From lap 33 to the finish, Max Verstappen has gained 0.906s per lap to Lewis Hamilton while posting the fastest lap of the race on lap 35. In that period without considering the out-lap, Lewis Hamilton was able to match Max Verstappen for only two laps. One of them came when Max Verstappen passed Valtteri Bottas. Red Bull Racing have taken a risk and Max Verstappen has delivered it. Mercedes must be disappointed that they were on the receiving end in France. One who lives by the sword dies by the sword.
The last 15 laps:
Drivers made up only 8 positions in the last 15 laps. Like the first lap, Lance Stroll has ended the race with more overtakes in the last 15 laps as it led him to finish on points. And How could we forget those two overtakes from Max Verstappen on the Mercedes duo? The biggest losers in the last 15 laps were Yuki Tsunoda, Carlos Sainz and Valtteri Bottas, where they lost 2 positions each. The straightforward race start has ended dramatically, which means France can deliver cliffhangers.
