Nithyanandam Ramasamy
The first half of the 2021 Formula 1 season is a mix of agony, ecstasy, glory, return of old guards to form, the new winner and controversies. The rivalry between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen is a box office for the sport, but the first half has given us a lot of talking points and questions. Now let’s get into the data analysis of the first half that panned out!
Qualifying:
The first half has seen 4-pole sitters from 3 teams. Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen has registered 5-pole positions followed by Hamilton, Leclerc and Bottas. Here we have calculated the percentage difference between the top-2 teams and the best of the rest in each qualifying. Austrian GP had the closest battle between the top-2 and the best of the rest, where Lando Norris agonizingly missed out on the pole position by 0.048s.
The Hungarian GP has the highest percentage difference between the top-2 and the best of the rest. The lap time of the best of the rest was 1.411% slower than the pole-sitter Hamilton. There were also two instances where the car from the best of the rest has registered pole positions. Charles Leclerc has registered two stunning pole positions for Scuderia Ferrari in Monaco and Baku. The team from Maranello has come a long way after a torrid 2020 season.
Qualifying Head To Head:
To calculate qualifying head to head, we have considered only the sessions where both drivers set the lap times. Only Nicholas Latifi, Nikita Mazepin and Yuki Tsunoda have failed to out-qualify their teammates in the first half. Yuki is definitely going to be under pressure to perform in the second half of the season. The closest qualifying battle of this year has to be between Alpine and Aston Martin Teammates. Despite leading his teammate in the championship, Carlos Sainz is way behind Leclerc in the qualifying battle. It’s never easy when your teammate is a qualifying maestro!
The Championship battle:
The championship has seen a see-saw battle between Mercedes and Red Bull Racing. The preseason has proven that Red Bull Racing have started the season with a better car. However, Red Bull Racing could only gain the championship lead after the Monaco GP. They were able to maintain the championship lead until the British GP. Mercedes have clawed their way back in the last two races and lead the constructors’ championship by 12 points while heading to the mid-season break.
It’s one man’s loss and another man’s opportunity when it comes to the drivers’ championship. Lewis Hamilton had managed to lead the championship at the Spanish GP by as many as 14-points. That’s the biggest he has led so far this season. But the tables were turned upside down when Mercedes struggled for performance at the Monaco GP as Max Verstappen took the championship lead for the first time. Both drivers had their chances in Baku, where they were unfortunate to miss out on a good weekend.
After the end of the Austrian GP, Verstappen led the championship by as many as 32-points. A dramatic turn of events at the British GP and the first-lap collision at the Hungarian GP means Hamilton clawed his way back to take the championship lead after the Hungarian GP. It was Verstappen’s loss and Hamilton was able to seize the opportunity with his resilience in Silverstone and Hungary. Hamilton did have some luck in Imola and Silverstone, but fortune does favour the brave at the end of the day!
Points share comparison of drivers at a new team:
There are as many as 8-drivers who started the season with a new team. Among them, only Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz have outscored their teammates. With his astute racing skills, Carlos Sainz has managed to better his teammate in the championship standings. On top of it, he has also managed two well-earned podiums to his name. Alonso, after a late resurgence, has closed the gap to Esteban Ocon. The question remains whether these 3-drivers can take up their performance to the next level. The pressure is on Daniel Ricciardo, Sergio Perez and Yuki Tsunoda to perform in the second half of the season. It remains to be seen whether Helmut Marko has enough patience with both Yuki and Perez!
Williams Resurgence:
The Williams resurgence is well and truly on as they have scored double points at the Hungarian GP. It has taken their points tally to 10, which is more than 2018, 2019 and 2020 combined. On top of it, Williams have also had some stunning qualifying performances this season as George Russell mastered the car to put them in Q3. Frank Williams, from his couch, must be happier after watching the resurgence. The work is not done yet but the seeds have been sown for a beautiful future!
What’s next?
The potentially longest second half in F1 beckons as the mid-season break is coming towards an end. The uncertainty over some of the races remains where it could lead us to some nostalgic tracks making a comeback to the sport. The coming months will also answer a few questions regarding the second seat at Mercedes, Red Bull Racing and the future of Williams and Alfa Romeo drivers.
The championship battles have the potential to have more topsy turvy turns before we crown a world champion at the end of this season. The Formula 1 fraternity is waiting for the next instalment in the title showdown between an icon and the supremely talented superstar. The battle of two historic teams for the 3rd place in the championship is also the one to watch out for! This season is shaping up to be a Formula 1 folktale, which will reverberate across generations to come.
