We are done and dusted with the Spanish Grand Prix and the story was more or less the same as the other 6 races. Red Bull and Max Verstappen unsurprisingly took the chequered flag to make it the 7th win in a row for Red Bull and Max Verstappen’s 5th win of the season.
Max Verstappen and Red Bull continued their dominance at the Spanish Grand Prix. Max took a comfortable lead as the race started and went on to win the race by over 20 seconds to the car behind. There was no visible challenge for Verstappen at the Spanish Grand Prix.
RACE CLASSIFICATION (LAP 66/66)
A fabulous 40th career win for @Max33Verstappen #SpanishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/k5d79cPOLa
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 4, 2023
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell put in impressive performances to finish 2nd and 3rd respectively. The podium finishes make it Mercedes’s first double podium of the season. Sergio Perez charged through the field to finish in 4th place just a couple of seconds behind George Russell. Carlos Sainz completed the rest of the top 5.
Lights out at the Spanish Grand Prix!
As the 5 lights went out to start the race, Carlos Sainz had a good start, trying to overtake Max Verstappen on the outside of turn 1. But Max closed the gap on the outside forcing Sainz to back out.
Both Mercedes had impressive starts. Lewis Hamilton overtook Lando Norris off the line, Lando tried to fight back but ended up with a damaged front wing. George Russell found himself in 7th place after starting 12th on the grid.
LAP 1/66
Contact between Hamilton and Norris around Turn 2 💥
Norris has to pit immediately for a new front wing #SpanishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/Y5zD8NGNbi
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 4, 2023
Although Hamilton was able to take 3rd place from Lando Norris, he would lose it to Lance Stroll in the Aston Martin in the opening lap. However, he would take the position back a few laps later.
Mercedes start showing their true pace
As soon as Lewis Hamilton overtook Stroll, he started to close the gap to Carlos Sainz. By lap 15, Hamilton was within striking distance of Sainz. This forced Ferrari to pit early for a fresh set of medium tires.
George Russell who was stuck in 7th place after the opening laps, quickly made his way past Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon. After the pit stops of Carlos Sainz and Lance Stroll, Russell found himself in 3rd place only behind his teammate and Max Verstappen.
LAP 11/66
By George! Russell is making rapid progress this afternoon 👏
The Briton started P12. He’s now P5 after getting past Ocon#SpanishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/J7CsyeIB0L
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 4, 2023
The Mercedes decided to stay out on the soft tires for a bit longer as they believed they still had the pace to defend themselves from the Ferrari who were threatening to undercut. Lewis Hamilton would eventually pit on lap 25 for a fresh set of Medium tires. Russell would pit for the same the following lap.
Lap 28/66: YESS LEWIS. He cruises past Sainz at the end of the straight and immediately pulls out a gap. 👏
P2. 💪
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) June 4, 2023
Although Hamilton came out of the pit behind Carlos, he would quickly find the pace to overtake the Spaniard in his home race. George Russell came out of the pits behind Lance Stroll but he would also quickly get past him a couple of laps later.
Russell spots “rain” during the Spanish Grand Prix
With the presence of dark clouds throughout the Grand Prix, George Russell discovers spots of rain in his visor on lap 28. This puzzled a lot of teams in the paddock as none of the other drivers were reporting rain.
LAP 29/66
Christian Horner sticks a hand out to feel for rain 👀
Moments earlier George Russell was reporting drops of rain at Turn 5 😮#SpanishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/7d2eEzmRDG
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 4, 2023
LAP 32/66
Put those brollies away 🌂
George Russell thinks that “rain” is actually sweat on his visor! 😄#SpanishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/PpJPjNGSyv
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 4, 2023
As it turned out, Russell confused his own sweat on the visor for rain. Although there were dark clouds surrounding the track, the rain never came. There was heavy rain somewhere near the track, but the winds did not bring it to disturb the Spanish Grand Prix.
Ferrari does what Ferrari does at the Spanish Grand Prix
Ferrari decided to start both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz on the soft tires. Although the soft tires are meant to last for over 20 laps, Ferrari decided to pit Carlos Sainz early in hopes to undercut Lewis Hamilton who was closing in on the Spaniard. This move made no sense for the commentators as Sainz would be at a disadvantage once Hamilton pits later on.
LAP 35/66
Super pass by Russell on Sainz down the inside at Turn 1! He’s up to P3
No sweat 😉#SpanishGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/HCQ0laZumZ
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 4, 2023
Charles Leclerc’s last pit stop:
Xavi: “Box for hards.”
Charles: “No no, let’s go for soft!”
Xavi: “Copy that.”
Charles: “Box anyway?”
Xavi: “Box. We are going hards.”
Charles was fast on hards in the end, but…
— Ferrari News 🐎 (@FanaticsFerrari) June 4, 2023
What puzzled the commentators, even more, was that Charles Leclerc, who started from the pit lane, also pitted shortly after Carlos for a fresh set of soft tires. This would put both drivers at a disadvantage for the rest of the race. Carlos would go on to finish behind both Red Bulls and Mercedes while Charles would have another pointless race.
Fernando Alonso chooses not to race
During the last few laps of the race, Fernando Alonso would close the gap to his teammate, Lance Stroll. To the fans’ surprise, he would choose not to race and overtake Lance Stroll.
Fernando Alonso telling his race engineer to tell Lance Stroll to not worry about him he will protect him from incoming cars , in his home GP #SpanishGP pic.twitter.com/Z8BYF0MYAF
— ahmed baokbah 🇸🇦🏎✈️ (@ahmed_baokbah) June 4, 2023
Fernando Alonso was a driver who would never miss an opportunity to race and overtake his rivals. Even his own teammates in the past. When Fernando Alonso came on to the radio and said he would not overtake Lance Stroll.
Disappointing race for the home favorites
After a positive result on Saturday, Carlos Sainz once again has a disappointing Sunday. After starting P2 on the grid, Carlos finished P5 due to a couple of strategy errors by Ferrari.
No victory for YOU!!! pic.twitter.com/fPHz4L2txH
— X (@sweeet_swede) June 4, 2023
Fernando Alonso had a disappointing Saturday which saw him start from 8th position on Sunday. This would put him at a disadvantage throughout the race. The Aston Martin’s were nowhere close to the pace of Mercedes this weekend. He would go on to finish P7 right behind Lance Stroll.
What we learned from the 2023 Spanish Grand Prix
The 2023 Spanish Grand Prix was not what fans expected. This year, there were a few adjustments made to the track to make it easier for cars to overtake. The last 4 turns were converted into just 2 turns to make it easier for the cars to follow each other. This change would prove to be very effective. The 2023 Spanish Grand would see plenty of overtakes on Sunday. Formula 1, Formula 2, and Formula 3 had over 100 overtakes in Barcelona this year.
Mercedes introduced their new upgrades last weekend in Monaco. Monaco is not exactly the best track to test new upgrades due to its unique layout. This weekend, we saw Mercedes show its true pace with the new upgrades. Both cars went on to perform at their best to achieve their first double podium of the season.
Soaking it all in. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/PUpYK0Rpht
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) June 4, 2023
Max Verstappen and Red Bull increase their lead in the Championship titles. Max Verstappen never lost the lead in the Championship after the Spanish Grand Prix in 2022. It looks likely that we will witness the same this season as well. It looked like Max Verstappen was playing the F1 game in easy mode.
A great drive from both drivers!!
Result 🏁 Max P1! 🏆, HAM, RUS, Checo P4 👏, SAI, STR, ALO, OCO, ZHO, GAS. #F1 #SpanishGP pic.twitter.com/N2UTl8Q7YP
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) June 4, 2023
After the Spanish Grand Prix, Max Verstappen is leading the WDC by 53 points. Red Bull is leading the WCC by 134 points. Mercedes’s performance at the Spanish Grand Prix would see them jump to 2nd place ahead of Aston Martin in the WCC
Your Driver of the Day for the Spanish Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton! 🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/eJTw1YZGtu
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 4, 2023
After a 1-week break, we will be heading to the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. We have seen many wet races at the circuit in the past. This is where Lewis Hamilton achieved his first victory in Formula 1 in 2007. Can Hamilton win again in Canada to put an end to Red Bull’s winning streak, or will Max Verstappen and Red Bull prevail once again? We will find out at the 2023 Canadian Grand Prix.
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