Following an exciting race in Britain, the 2015 season resumes in Hungary. This weekend of racing will unfortunately be overshadowed by the passing of Jules Bianchi while in a coma from an accident in last season’s Japanese Grand Prix. Rumors have been circulating social media regarding what tribute the event organizers have planned in honor of Bianchi. Some seem to believe that a virtual safety car on lap 17 would be ideal, while others feel that one of the many other rumors would better suit him. Although we can’t say for certain what the tribute will be, you can be fair sure that there will be some type of tribute.
As for the race itself, we should be in for a treat. In 2014, the race was held in damp conditions, as it had rained in the hours leading up to the race. Lewis Hamilton proved just how fast the Mercedes car was, coming from the back of the field because of a poor qualifying and early spin and eventually finishing third. Daniel Ricciardo won the race after starting from fourth on the grid. This year’s event is shaping up to be very similar. Weather reports earlier in the weekend had predicted that the race would again be held under wet conditions, but those threats have been removed and it would appear that the race will be dry, as all of the sessions throughout the course of the weekend.
Force India’s Sergio Pérez took a bit of a spill on Friday. During the first free practice session, Pérez went wide past the outside kerb. The rear suspension broke, sending the car into a spin. His car skidded across the track and made contact with the inside barrier. The right-front tyre came off the car and flipped under the car, causing it to flip over on. Pérez was unhurt by the accident. As a precaution, neither of the Force India cars were out on the track for the remainder of Friday. “The accident cut short our morning and we opted to withdraw from the afternoon session as a precaution until we had a clear understanding of the problem,” Force India’s chief operating officer, Otmar Szafnauer, released in a statement to the press.
Lewis Hamilton has dominated every single session of the weekend at the Hungaroring. The circuit is noticeably slower than Silverstone, meaning that there will be less of an emphasis on the fastest engines and more on the setup and handling. With tight and sweeping corners, as well as many changes in elevation, the Hungaroring provides drivers and teams with big technical challenge.
At this point, things have went so perfectly for Mercedes in Hungary that it would be a shock if they were to finish anywhere outside of the top two. Hamilton has this track mastered, consistently lapping faster than Rosberg by near 0.5 seconds. Therefore, Hamilton will more than likely lead the Mercedes team across the line for yet another 1-2 finish.
The surprise this weekend has surely been Red Bull’s sudden boost in performance. Both drivers have managed to remain in the top five at almost every session. Daniel Riccardo leads the Red Bull team at the grid; starting from fourth with his teammate, Daniil Kvyat, starting in seventh. However, no matter how good Red Bull’s current performance looks, they will still have the fast paced Ferraris to battle with. Sebastian Vettel starts from third and Kimi Räikkönen starts from fifth. Ferrari appears to be faster than the Red Bull, so it wouldn’t come as a surprise if Räikkönen was able to drive himself into fourth before the end of the race. Vettel should have third position all to himself, leaving Ricciardo to drift back into the bottom of the top five.
Best of luck to all of the drivers that will be taking part in the race.
