The F1 summer break came to an end this week and there’s lots of Formula One news to unpack. F1 has announced a new award, an iconic corner will be renamed, Fernando Alonso’s 2022 plans have been confirmed, calendar changes may be coming, controversy at the Belgian Grand Prix, and so much more.
Formula One has announced a new Overtaking Award presented by Crypto.com, a cryptocurrency company that has been an increasingly present sponsor in F1. The award will join the DHL Fastest Lap award and will reward drivers who make the most overtakes over the course of the season. The campaign will also come with new graphics on the race broadcasts to keep fans aware of potential overtaking opportunities. As of the Belgian Grand Prix, Sebastian Vettel is leading the award with 77 overtakes this season, followed by Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz.
Mick Schumacher, the son of the legendary Michael Schumacher, ran a tribute helmet in the Belgian Grand Prix. The helmet matches the design ran by his father when he made his Formula One debut with Jordan at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix 30 years ago. Michael qualified in P7 and was running P5 on the opening lap of the race, but his debut was cut short by a clutch issue on the first lap. However, it was enough to get him a permanent drive with Benetton for the rest of the season and the rest is history.
Netflix has released the first trailer for Schumacher, a documentary that will explore Michael Schumacher’s life and success in Formula One. The film was announced back in July and is set to be released on September 15.
Netflix has also confirmed that the Drive to Survive docuseries has been renewed for a fourth season. The show, which premiered in 2019, gives fans unprecedented access to what goes on in Formula One behind the scenes. The show has been successful, especially in attracting popularity to F1 from the American market.
The organizers of the Miami Grand Prix, which is set to debut in 2022, have announced a new management lineup featuring some people very experienced in F1 race management and development. Richard Cregan has been appointed as CEO of the event, having been involved having helped to bring both Abu Dhabi and Russia to F1. Mark Boyd has been appointed as VP of operations, having previously been involved with the races in Abu Dhabi and Vietnam. Ashley Davies has also been involved with races in Abu Dhabi and Australian and will be the new VP of strategy for the Miami GP. Andy Beaven will be the venue’s sporting director, having also worked for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Fernando Alonso will stay with Alpine for 2022, having been given a 1 year contract extension. The Spaniard returned to F1 with Alpine this season after a two-year absence. He has finished consistently in the points this season, earning points in 8 of the past 12 races, although he is four points behind his teammate in the World Drivers’ Championship. The team feel that Alonso’s expertise will be beneficial in aiding them with the 2022 regulations.
On the topic of driver contracts, Red Bull has extended Sergio Perez’s to 2022. The Mexican joined the team this season, after losing his seat to Sebastian Vettel on Aston Martin (then Racing Point).
Nikita Mazepin was given a new chassis ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix. The chassis has been a point of contention with Mazepin and Haas, with the Russian driver claiming that his chassis was heavier than his teammate’s. Haas team principal Guenther Steiner doesn’t believe that the new chassis will make a difference, saying the new one will behave “very similar”.
With 11 races still remaining in the season, the majority of teams are now on their final allocated engines, meaning they could be facing penalties later in the season. Teams are only allowed to use three power units in a season. Taking more will result in grid penalties. All drivers fitted their final engines ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, except for Haas and Alfa Romeo.
Honda has confirmed that both Red Bull drivers have lost an engine from their pool due to damage in recent incidents. Max Verstappen’s power unit was damaged beyond repair in his opening lap collision with championship rival Lewis Hamilton. Sergio Perez lost a power unit due to damage from his involvement in an opening lap crash at the Hungarian Grand Prix. It looks likely that both drivers will face grid penalties later in the season.
The final corner of the Monza Circuit will be renamed to the “Curva Alboreto” to honour the late Michele Alboreto. The decision to rename the Parabolica was a unanimous one taken by the Automobile Club d’Italia. Michele Alboreto was an Italian driver who raced with a number of teams in F1 from 1981 to 1994, most notably with Tyrrell and Ferrari. He achieved 5 wins and 23 podiums out of 215 entries in Formula One, moving sports car racing after retiring from F1. He was killed while testing an Audi R8 LMP car at EuroSpeedway Lausitz in preparation for the 2001 Le Mans 24 Hours. This year marks 20 years since his death. The renaming ceremony will be held on the Saturday of the Italian Grand Prix.
What was looking like it would be a record breaking 23 race season has been officially cut down to 22 races, but additional races may still be dropped as the season progresses. F1 has reportedly been in talks with the organizers of the United States Grand Prix about hosting a back-to-back race weekend, but that has not yet been confirmed. The fate of the Turkish Grand Prix, having already been moved from June to October 10, is still uncertain. Turkey is one of the 62 countries listed on the UK’s red list for travel restrictions, as is Brazil. Travelling to these countries will mean that team members will need to be quarantined for 10 days upon return to the UK. If Turkey drops from the calendar, a replacement race may be held at the Mugello Circuit, which hosted the Tuscan Grand Prix last season.
It appears that Qatar may be gearing up to host a race to replace the cancelled Australian Grand Prix on the 2021 calendar later in the year. The cancellation of the race in Melbourne has left a hole in the calendar on November 21 between the Brazilian Grand Prix and debut Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, creating a month long gap in the closing stages of the season. The slot on the schedule previously reserved by Australia remains vacant while the sport searches for a replacement venue. That may be the Losail International Circuit in Qatar.
The race weekend started off damp around the iconic Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, but conditions quickly dried for the first free practice session of the weekend. Valtteri Bottas was fastest in FP1 ahead of Max Verstappen, while Lewis Hamilton set a fastest time only worthy of P18. The session was largely dry, with some rain falling in the closing stages of the session.
The track dried out in time for Friday afternoon’s practice session. Max Verstappen topped FP2 ahead of both Mercedes drivers, but he ended the session prematurely after spinning his Red Bull into a barrier. Just over 0.1 seconds separated the top 3 drivers.
Weather conditions worsened for the final practice session of the weekend, making intermediate tyres a necessity for the drivers. Verstappen topped FP3 once again, setting a fastest time nearly a second quicker than his teammate in P2. Lewis Hamilton was close behind Perez by the end of the session.
Qualifying conditions were also wet on Saturday afternoon, with the session being delayed due to poor weather. Lando Norris performed well in Q1 and Q2, topping both sessions. The weather worsened for the final qualifying session. Norris and Sebastian Vettel were the first two out on the track to explore the conditions. Norris crashed heavily at Eau Rouge, delaying the session and ending his chances of a pole position. The session resumed with not much time left. Lewis Hamilton set the pace, but was quickly beaten by the shocker of the session, George Russell. Verstappen ended the session with pole position.
The weather conditions didn’t improve for Sunday’s race. Sergio Perez aquaplaned at the bus stop chicane on his out lap from the pit lane to the grid, forfeiting his P7 starting position and presumably ending his day early. Extremely poor weather conditions saw the race start delayed. After about 25 minutes, the cars ventured out on the track for some laps behind the safety car, but the race was red flagged. During the delay, Red Bull was able to repair Red Bull’s car and were told that they would be able to start the race from the pit lane, but it was a moot point, as the race never really started. The FIA waited as long as possible to try and get a race, but the conditions never improved. In a controversial move, the cars cruised around for two laps behind the safety car 3 hours and 20 minutes after the scheduled race start time. These two laps meant that the minimum distance to score half points was met rather than outright abandoning the event.
The points awarded have decreased Lewis Hamilton’s championship lead to just 3 points, while George Russell was able to celebrate his first ever “finish” atop the podium. Max Verstappen was confirmed as the winner of the “race”, earning 12.5 points.
Click here to read the full race report.
Next up on the F1 calendar is the Dutch Grand Prix. The event was scheduled to make a return to the F1 calendar after a 35 year absence, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The race will be held this weekend at the Circuit Zandvoort.
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