Nithyanandam Ramasamy
Formula 1 returned to Monaco after 2 years for round 5 of the 2021 season. The race was not a box office as the qualifiers where 4 drivers from 3 teams were eying for the coveted pole position. It’s a typical Sunday afternoon at Monaco, with Max Verstappen winning a fairly straightforward race. Let’s move away from the obvious, and see what the data says about the opening lap and the overcut of Sebastian Vettel and Sergio Perez.
Race Start:
The first lap of the race had seen only 6 places gained/lost. On top of it, none of the top 10 starters had made any moves in the first lap. Comparatively, the first lap of the 2019 Monaco GP had witnessed only 7 moves. It’s a usual first lap in Monaco. Fernando Alonso was the biggest gainer with 2 places gained, and Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo were the biggest losers with 2 places lost. Daniel Ricciardo’s weekend had gone from bad to worse in the first lap itself. Let’s not forget Mick Schumacher, who made a stunning move on his teammate Nikita Mazepin at the slowest corner in F1 ‘Grand Hotel Hairpin’.
A stats before we head to the Aston Martin.
So how did the race end?
The last 30 laps of the race had 0 overtakes. The only move during that period was made when Yuki Tsunoda lost a couple of places during his pit stop.
The beauty of Overcut:
Is Sebastian Vettel back?
After a struggle in the first 4 rounds, Sebastian Vettel had a great weekend as he scored his first point for Aston Martin by finishing in 5th place. Aston Martin and Sebastian Vettel portrayed the beauty of overcutting at Monaco. Sebastian Vettel is not a stranger to overcuts at Monaco. How can we forget his overcut on his teammate Kimi Raikkonen at the 2017 Monaco GP?
Okay, Let’s get into how Sebastian Vettel overcut not one, but 2 cars?
Sebastian Vettel tucked in behind Pierre Gasly and Lewis Hamilton until the first round of the pit stops. On lap 29, Lewis Hamilton made his first routine pit stop as he tried to undercut Pierre Gasly. In the very next lap, Pierre Gasly made his pit stop. As Pierre Gasly and Lewis Hamilton struggled with cold tyres, Sebastian Vettel had gone on to lap at 1:16.03s in the lap before his pit stop. Sebastian Vettel rejoined beside Pierre Gasly, as they head wheel to wheel at Beau Rivage when a wild Lance Stroll appeared. Jokes aside! Sebastian Vettel, on cold tyres, managed to defend his position against Pierre Gasly and held on to his 5th place until the chequered flag.
Their lap times from lap 25 to 31, excluding the in-lap, reveals Sebastian Vettel’s lap was 1.055s faster than Lewis Hamilton and 1.244s faster than Pierre Gasly. The impact of cold tyres after the pit stop and a couple of quick laps from Sebastian Vettel before pitting made a massive difference. Moreover, Sebastian Vettel’s in-lap was 0.239s faster than Lewis Hamiton and 0.777s faster than Pierre Gasly. How crucial was it to rejoin exactly beside Pierre Gasly? Aston Martin and Sebastian Vettel masterclass in a nutshell!
When these 3 drivers were fighting for 5th place, Sergio Perez overcut all of them and finished the race in brilliant 4th position.
Sergio Perez masterclass:
Sergio Perez was one of the last soft tyre starters to pit for a routine tyre change. Who is better than Sergio Perez when it comes to tyre management? He rejoined a sec ahead of Sebastian Vettel after his pit stop in lap 35. He was faster than Pierre Gasly, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel from lap 25 to 35, excluding in-lap. On top of it, he was lapping 0.7s faster than the race leader Max Verstappen at the same period. His last 3 laps before the in-lap were 1:14.552s, 1:14.67s and 1:15.062s. On average, he was lapping at 1:14.761s, which was crucial for him and Red Bull Racing to stay ahead of Sebastian Vettel.
Has Mercedes missed a trick?
Lewis Hamilton hasn’t had one of the race-winning cars at Monaco. However, Mercedes had a chance to maximize his performance to finish as high as possible, which they failed by trying an audacious undercut in a track that is friendly to overcut. A rare strategical mishap from Mercedes! Red Bull Racing have made their move to lead the championship. It’s time for Mercedes to make their next move in Baku. It’s your move, Mercedes. Show us what have you got!
