by Jeddah promised speed and the race weekend did not disappoint, providing plenty of chaos on and off the track for fans to get into. As Melbourne looms on the horizon, we take a look at pivotal moments of the race in Jeddah and what they mean for the upcoming one in Australia.
How Things Unfolded
Sergio Perez captured the win, though Max Verstappen made up places to complete the Red Bull 1-2. Fernando Alonso clinched his 100th podium, landing more pressure on Mercedes and Ferrari, who took fourth to seventh place, respectively.
Alpine continued their solid start to the season with Esteban Ocon edging out Pierre Gasly to grab eight and ninth. Haas landed their first points after Kevin Magnussen won the battle against Yuki Tsunoda in the latter stages of the race.
Trouble Stirring for Red Bull
On the face of things, Red Bull have almost scored full marks so far in the season, except for the single point of fastest lap in Bahrain. However, the weekend was far from perfect, and make no mistake, the intra-team fight is truly underway.
Reliability issues reared their head for Red Bull in qualifying, as retirement forced Max Verstappen to start fifteenth on the grid. He soared from 15th to 2nd place with the aid of a safety car that was invoked by Lance Stroll’s retirement for Aston Martin.
From then on, Sergio Perez was undoubtedly checking his mirrors more frequently. As the team tried to control the pace, supposedly to ensure the 1-2, Sergio Perez swiftly retorted whether Verstappen was being asked to do the same pace. The Mexican was visibly unhappy to learn that he lost the point for fastest lap during his post-race interview, something his team seemingly forgot to mention.
Christian Horner is adamant that the drivers will not compromise the team’s success for their gain. However, if the Bulls continue to outclass their rivals in this way, you may need to buckle your seat as we may shortly be having a Hamilton-Rosberg type fight on our hands.
Keeping Feet on The Ground
Aston Martin’s Mike Krack cut the picture of a very levelheaded figure as the team continues to get the better of giants Mercedes and Ferrari, though had a DNF for Stroll.
On the other hand, Toto Wolff has conceded that drastic changes are underway for the silver arrows following the evident gap in pace to their rivals, suggesting that the “team at Brackley is flat-out”.
Wolff spoke highly of the no-blame culture within the team during the off-season on the Beyond The Grid podcast. One thing is for sure, it is being put to the test away behind the walls of the Brackley plant. Between the development of the car and Hamilton’s contract expiration towards the end of the season, the team will be desperate to get the right upgrades onto the track as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, though Frederick Vasseur is no stranger to Formula 1, the sheer scale of the noise surrounding Ferrari still takes some getting used to. The team principal has urged for calm, but drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz aired their disappointment at the race pace. Upon signing for the Scuderia, the two drivers surely did not have P6 and P7 on their minds for the future. The two have put up with a lot of issues in their spell with the team and patience may start to run out very soon.
On the other hand, McLaren are undoubtedly unhappy with their start to the season, having gone from battling for 3rd constructors to struggling to get out from the back of the grid. Technical Director James Key has already paid the price, amid the news that a complete restructure of the design office is afoot.
Tsunoda And Magnussen’s Epic Battle
Frustration for Yuki Tsunoda and Alpha Tauri was compounded this week, after the team narrowly lost out on the points again, this time at the hands of Haas’ driver Kevin Magnussen.
Tsunoda fully capitalized on the safety car, which allowed him to make up several places and get himself into the points. Though Alpine made short work of the Alpha Tauri to relegate it to 10th place, the Japanese driver will have been desperate to hold on to the last point.
However, Kevin Magnussen rolled up to spoil the party late in the race. The Dane was patient in his approach and then was flat out to make the overtake with the added help of DRS. As noted in a previous post, the experienced driver line-up at Haas may be crucial to their success in the constructors’ championship this season.
The first race provided a sign that Haas may be stronger this year and the second race has proven this true. It is still early days, and it seems that Alpine lead the middle pack, but there is currently little to separate the rest. Car developments may shift things drastically, but it will depend on the performance back at the factory.
Setting Sights on Australia
Until teams fit the upgrades, it will be interesting to see who capitalises next weekend in Australia. As lamented by Hamilton following the race at Jeddah, strategy and car set-up will always be crucial.
It will be a strange sight this year to be racing down under without the smiling figure of Daniel Ricciardo on the grid, as the Australian takes a year away from the racetrack to reset himself. However, it is likely that we will see him pop by on Red Bull duty whilst aiding the development of the car at Red Bull behind the scenes.
If what we have seen so far is a good predictor of what is to come, then the fight between the Red Bulls will get even hotter. Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso will do his best to keep spoiling the party for Ferrari and Mercedes, and perhaps even attempt to split the Red Bulls.
Alpine will not want to get too comfortable, as McLaren will want to get this weekend right in a bid to get their first points, as will Alpha Tauri. On the other hand, Williams, Alfa Romeo and Haas will do their best to keep shutting them out.
Photo Credit: Stanleeyy Ho
