Seven races, five wins and a domain much bigger than the numbers show. the walk of Max Verstappen in the season of Formula 1 It cannot be measured only by these statistics, but also forces us to see what he did a week ago under the impossible rain in Monte Carlo and how he resolved the Spanish Grand Prixin which the Dutchman provided a new driving masterclass to stay with the win and all possible points of the weekend, eighth stop of the season.
Thus, the Red Bull driver strengthened his leadership in the World Cup, where he is on an unavoidable path towards the three-time consecutive championship and, in addition, to become among the five most winners in history, since after the victory at the Montemeló circuit, he was just one checkered flag away from equaling the myth Ayrton Senna (41 wins).
In an overwhelming way, Verstappen prevailed ahead of the revived Mercedes of the English Lewis Hamilton y George Russell; and his teammate, the Mexican Sergio Perez. At home, meanwhile, the Spanish Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) and Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) had a nuanced weekend finishing fifth and seventh respectively.
Verstappen, 25, officially presented his candidacy to win a third title in a row, with another exhibition redeemable for his fortieth victory in Formula 1, his fifth of the season and his third at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya; where seven seasons ago he had become the youngest winner in history and in which he had climbed to the top of the podium last year. He also did it with a ‘Grand Slam’ (or ‘Grand Chelem’): Starting from pole position and leading a race from start to finish in which he also set the fastest lap.
Many of the 125.565 fans who, according to official sources, filled the Barcelona circuit this Sunday faced the weekend waiting for the long-awaited ’33’, which would be the next victory for the double world champion Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) and the first podium of the season for the other Spaniard, the man from Madrid Carlos Sainz (Ferrari). But things don’t always go the way you want and on this occasion, Sainz, who started second, could only be fifth; and Alonso, who maintained third place in the World Cup, was barely able to advance one place from the starting lineup, to finish seventh.
That under normal conditions Verstappen was going to win this Sunday even the most clueless in the area knew. The surprise came from the once invincible Mercedes, which dominated the hybrid era with eight constructors’ and seven drivers’ titles in a row. And that, without being where they wanted, they snatched second place in the Constructors’ World Championship from Aston Martin.
Hamilton, whom only the other seven-time world champion, the German Michael Schumacher -still convalescing from the serious ski accident he suffered in 2013-, equals his six victories in Montmeló, climbed the podium for the eleventh time in Barcelona. He finished second, ahead of his teammate Russell, author of the day’s comeback, starting twelfth and finishing third; stealing the spotlight from ‘Checo’, who was the one everyone was betting on to take the biggest leap of the day.
Verstappen devastated and made it clear that, with fifteen races to go, nothing can take him away from his goal of achieving his third title in a row this year; with the very dominant car designed by the brilliant English engineer Adrian Neweyhe guru of aerodynamics, ‘father’ of the ship with which the German Sebastian Vettel He led the other glorious journey of the Austrian team, between 2010 and 2013, with four drivers’ titles and as many for teams.
If you give the best driver of the moment the best possible car, the result is very predictable. After sweeping the Circuit, ‘Mad Max’ -who is wild and also never fails- leads the World Cup with 170 points, 53 more than his Mexican teammate; while Alonso is still third in the contest, with 99.
And Charles Leclerc? The Ferrari driver who had been eliminated on Saturday in Q1, started from the ‘pit lane’ after the ‘Scuderia’ decided to replace “the entire rear part of the car” of the Monegasque -‘poleman’ last year in Barcelona- and could not twist the story.
They all started on soft tyres, with the exception of the Red Bulls, which did so on mediums; and Leclerc, with the hard one. It was a race in which management was going to be key due to the degradation of the tires.
Leclerc finished eleventh and is still behind in the World Cup, 16 of the 58 points that keep Sainz in sixth place in the championship.
The European tour of Formula 1, which the human tragedy derived from the floods prevented from starting in Imola (Italy) and which will resume on the first weekend of July at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg (Styria), venue of the Grand Prix from Austria; It will be briefly interrupted by the Canadian Grand Prix, which will take place in two weekends at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal.
2023-06-04 18:25:51
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