2021 Spanish Grand Prix - Catalunya, May 07 - 09

[ringo]

Verstappen made another mistake, albeit a small one. But you don’t win a WDC by making mistakes over and over.

He came in too early, without being called it. This delayed his pits too by around 2 seconds.

And the idea that they could stay out and not cover off Merc’s undercut was just utterly naive - although that was the team’s fault and not Max’s directly.

Good spot. I see people say Redbull did not have the pace, but the car did. Max simply was pressured to wear out his tyres too quickly. We have seen this many times, Rosberg, Vettel, Bottas. Drivers need to open their eyes and not let Hamilton "drive their car from behind" to do what he wants. After the first stop Lewis was playing mind games by gambling on using the pace in his tyres to come right up to Max to keep the pressure on.
He had 5 laps fresher tyres, but he gambled on pushing to come right behind Max to bear down with pressure. Max may have thought for a second he just has to save tyres and respond to Lewis if the W12 came within 2.5s.
When Lewis eventually came with that 2.5 gap, Max was being pushed to overdrive the car.
I think the cars were equal today. We see this from Bottas who was steadily behind Max and not able to make any inroads. As bad as people think Bottas is; he can respectably drive the car to its pace which shows from his podium finishes.
Max was panicking and that's what caused him to dive into the pits. It's also why his pace degraded so rapidly in the end.
I think Max still can learn from the races to better manage the stints. The redbull was not the better car today, but neither was Mercedes. Hamilton was just doing what he always does, and that's modulate his pace, apply pressure, and play mind games with the car he is hunting down.

[Schuttelberg]

I think Max is at the point in his career where he's trying to focus on being a champion, and fast over the season, vs. being fast as blazes and reckless. Some of it is maturity, some of it is watching Lewis and trying to emulate him (Lewis is dialed in with this, as he should at this point in his career. Senna's term "complete racing driver" comes to mind), and some of it might be media pressure.

It's a balancing act, and Max will get there, he just doesn't have that last percent or two that Lewis has, in terms of managing this. Peter Windor's take on how Lewis handles the car vs. Max in today's race was interesting.

That said, if it weren't for Lewis (and same goes for Max), these would be very boring races. They are both far and above clear of anyone else.

What a load of turd!

Hamilton is a living legend and when Damon said recently that he's one of the most talented people to walk earth, he was bang on the money. At least in terms of being a race driver, very few match up. BUT, there's every indication that Max could be making a similar claim 15 years down the road. As far as this season is concerned, Max has actually driven better. The Mercedes has looked like the car to beat on all four Sunday's and Max has more or less maximised his results. If one has to be overly critical, you could say that he should have made a cleaner pass in Bahrain and it would not be unfair to say that Red Bull could have won there. In every race after that, Mercedes has been clearly faster. It's easy to pass such remarks like "Max lacks that little 1% or 2%." Had the safety car not come out in Imola, Max would be leading the world championship. It was a huge huge break for Hamilton to salvage 19 points on a weekend he really shouldn't have had more than 2-4 or even 0. The reason there has been two cracking races in Portugal and Spain is because Max managed to jump Lewis at the start/re-start.

I think Monaco is a great opportunity for Red Bull to win a race because as long as they can put it on pole, a slower race car won't matter barring any SC free pit stops etc.

Overall, Mercedes and Hamilton are firm favourites to win both titles. The constant bickering that Red Bull are faster seems a very desperate attempt to somehow prove that Hamilton is superior to Verstappen even in an inferior car. The facts couldn't be more distorted. It's like saying Ferrari were faster than Mercedes in 2015 just because they were a second a lap faster in Singapore during qualifying! It doesn't work that way. If this championship has to get interesting then Red Bull need to find a couple of tenths, as simple as that and even that might not be enough if Hamilton can be in roaring form for 19 races.

[sosic2121]

Verstappen made another mistake, albeit a small one. But you don’t win a WDC by making mistakes over and over.

He came in too early, without being called it. This delayed his pits too by around 2 seconds.

And the idea that they could stay out and not cover off Merc’s undercut was just utterly naive - although that was the team’s fault and not Max’s directly.

Good spot. I see people say Redbull did not have the pace, but the car did. Max simply was pressured to wear out his tyres too quickly. We have seen this many times, Rosberg, Vettel, Bottas. Drivers need to open their eyes and not let Hamilton "drive their car from behind" to do what he wants. After the first stop Lewis was playing mind games by gambling on using the pace in his tyres to come right up to Max to keep the pressure on.
He had 5 laps fresher tyres, but he gambled on pushing to come right behind Max to bear down with pressure. Max may have thought for a second he just has to save tyres and respond to Lewis if the W12 came within 2.5s.
When Lewis eventually came with that 2.5 gap, Max was being pushed to overdrive the car.
I think the cars were equal today. We see this from Bottas who was steadily behind Max and not able to make any inroads. As bad as people think Bottas is; he can respectably drive the car to its pace which shows from his podium finishes.
Max was panicking and that's what caused him to dive into the pits. It's also why his pace degraded so rapidly in the end.
I think Max still can learn from the races to better manage the stints. The redbull was not the better car today, but neither was Mercedes. Hamilton was just doing what he always does, and that's modulate his pace, apply pressure, and play mind games with the car he is hunting down.

Mercedes was much quicker. Much much quicker.
Hamilton was doing what he always does, drives a quicker car.
You can notice this by looking at any of the 66 laps that we saw today.
Not once was Max was able to open ANY gap on Hamilton despite him being in dirty air.
IF they had similar cars, max would be able to control the gap from P1, Lewis would burn his tires by trying to be so close for so long.

[sosic2121]

What a load of turd!

Hamilton is a living legend and when Damon said recently that he's one of the most talented people to walk earth, he was bang on the money. At least in terms of being a race driver, very few match up. BUT, there's every indication that Max could be making a similar claim 15 years down the road. As far as this season is concerned, Max has actually driven better. The Mercedes has looked like the car to beat on all four Sunday's and Max has more or less maximised his results. If one has to be overly critical, you could say that he should have made a cleaner pass in Bahrain and it would not be unfair to say that Red Bull could have won there. In every race after that, Mercedes has been clearly faster. It's easy to pass such remarks like "Max lacks that little 1% or 2%." Had the safety car not come out in Imola, Max would be leading the world championship. It was a huge huge break for Hamilton to salvage 19 points on a weekend he really shouldn't have had more than 2-4 or even 0. The reason there has been two cracking races in Portugal and Spain is because Max managed to jump Lewis at the start/re-start.

I think Monaco is a great opportunity for Red Bull to win a race because as long as they can put it on pole, a slower race car won't matter barring any SC free pit stops etc.

Overall, Mercedes and Hamilton are firm favourites to win both titles. The constant bickering that Red Bull are faster seems a very desperate attempt to somehow prove that Hamilton is superior to Verstappen even in an inferior car. The facts couldn't be more distorted. It's like saying Ferrari were faster than Mercedes in 2015 just because they were a second a lap faster in Singapore during qualifying! It doesn't work that way. If this championship has to get interesting then Red Bull need to find a couple of tenths, as simple as that and even that might not be enough if Hamilton can be in roaring form for 19 races.

+1

[ringo]

We are not looking at a superior car in the W12. Superior means you drive away into the sunset. That is not happening at all this year. Each car has its strengths and weaknesses.
Max can still win this title if he manages his pace a little better. There are fine margins involved this year.
This first part of the season reminds me of 2017 and 2018 where mercedes and ferrari were fighting.
Hamilton and Vettel both fairly equal, with their cars having various strengths. What kept happening however was the pressure Lewis was able to exert on Sebastian.
He is just rinsing and repeating the same tactics on Max.
I can't wait to see the upcoming races. I think the pressure on Max will increase; and it will become more apparent that this title will be won and lost on nerves.
Redbull need to play a little dirty to get Hamilton flustered and to doubt himself. That's the only way.

[ringo]

Mercedes was much quicker. Much much quicker.
Hamilton was doing what he always does, drives a quicker car.
You can notice this by looking at any of the 66 laps that we saw today.
Not once was Max was able to open ANY gap on Hamilton despite him being in dirty air.
IF they had similar cars, max would be able to control the gap from P1, Lewis would burn his tires by trying to be so close for so long.

You are assuming both drivers have the same ability and experience. That is not the case.
If the Mercedes was much faster, Max would have been dispatched in less than 10 laps from the start. We know this. Hamilton doesn't waste time to overtake.

[Midi]

Verstappen made another mistake, albeit a small one. But you don’t win a WDC by making mistakes over and over.

He came in too early, without being called it. This delayed his pits too by around 2 seconds.

And the idea that they could stay out and not cover off Merc’s undercut was just utterly naive - although that was the team’s fault and not Max’s directly.

Good spot. I see people say Redbull did not have the pace, but the car did. Max simply was pressured to wear out his tyres too quickly. We have seen this many times, Rosberg, Vettel, Bottas. Drivers need to open their eyes and not let Hamilton "drive their car from behind" to do what he wants. After the first stop Lewis was playing mind games by gambling on using the pace in his tyres to come right up to Max to keep the pressure on.
He had 5 laps fresher tyres, but he gambled on pushing to come right behind Max to bear down with pressure. Max may have thought for a second he just has to save tyres and respond to Lewis if the W12 came within 2.5s.
When Lewis eventually came with that 2.5 gap, Max was being pushed to overdrive the car.
I think the cars were equal today. We see this from Bottas who was steadily behind Max and not able to make any inroads. As bad as people think Bottas is; he can respectably drive the car to its pace which shows from his podium finishes.
Max was panicking and that's what caused him to dive into the pits. It's also why his pace degraded so rapidly in the end.
I think Max still can learn from the races to better manage the stints. The redbull was not the better car today, but neither was Mercedes. Hamilton was just doing what he always does, and that's modulate his pace, apply pressure, and play mind games with the car he is hunting down.

Today, Mercedes was clearly faster than RBR. Verstappen didn’t panic nor did he unnecessarily overcook his tires. You can hold on to this narrative all you want but that doesn’t make it true.

Max diving in the pits secured him being in front during the second stint due to the undercut.

If anything the second stint showed how mature Max drove because he let Lewis close up to around 1,5s and then up his pace just enough that lewis could not overtake on the straight with similar aged tires.
Merc going for the successful opposite strategy in my opinion shows they didn’t think Lewis would have passed on equal strategies.

[Scorpaguy]

Today's race again showed what we all know...

1. Merc has the better car
2. Merc makes the better strategy calls
3. Bot continues to prove he is NO WHERE near Ham or Max
4. Checo will do good just to outpace Bot

What this world needs is for Ham and Max to be on the same Team and for Bot and Checo to be on the same team...that would make for loads of great racing.

[Aesop]

We are not looking at a superior car in the W12.

Yes we are. If you can follow the leading car that close for so long and still have more life in your tyres...
Mercedes and Hamilton fooled us all, maybe in Bahrain they still suffered from balance issues but now that they sorted that out the season is over. Sorry for Lewis cause he's obviously a great driver but its never been a level playing field past years and it isnt now. Sky can hype what they want but we wont get to see the dogfight, cause it isnt neccessary for Lewis. So let's enjoy Max' elbows when he's able to use them and root for 22.

[Midi]

Today's race again showed what we all know...

1. Merc has the better car
2. Merc makes the better strategy calls
3. Bot continues to prove he is NO WHERE near Ham or Max
4. Checo will do good just to outpace Bot

What this world needs is for Ham and Max to be on the same Team and for Bot and Checo to be on the same team...that would make for loads of great racing.

Basically, the only major mistake Max has made this season is not being in a Merc

[zeph]

After Barcelona I think it’s fair to say Mercedes is slightly quicker than RBR. It’s not miles ahead like last year, but there’s enough there to make things a little more comfy for Hamilton, and a little more challenging for Verstappen.

That’s not to say Hamilton doesn’t have to work for it, if anything he has impressed me more these four races than all of last season.

[dans79]

I don't know what's more entertaining, the race or the race thread!

[NathanOlder]

We are not looking at a superior car in the W12.

Yes we are. If you can follow the leading car that close for so long and still have more life in your tyres...
Mercedes and Hamilton fooled us all, maybe in Bahrain they still suffered from balance issues but now that they sorted that out the season is over. Sorry for Lewis cause he's obviously a great driver but its never been a level playing field past years and it isnt now. Sky can hype what they want but we wont get to see the dogfight, cause it isnt neccessary for Lewis. So let's enjoy Max' elbows when he's able to use them and root for 22.

F1 is never ever a level playing field.

[NathanOlder]

I don't know what's more entertaining, the race or the race thread!

The race. The race thread is now suggesting the Mercedes is a much much faster car than the RedBull

[dans79]

I don't know what's more entertaining, the race or the race thread!

The race. The race thread is now suggesting the Mercedes is a much much faster car than the RedBull

If it is, it only seems to be in that hands of Lewis. Bottas couldn't get past charles, and then even after he jumped him during the pit stops and had clear air, he didn't make much headway into Max.