Red Bull will no longer be as dominant as it once was but in the hands of Max Verstappen however, it remains a devastating tool, allowing the Dutchman to win for the third time in a row Spanish GP at Montmelò, achieving the seventh success in ten races in 2024 and the 61st of his career.
Verstappen wins the Spanish GP with a small advantage over Norris, Hamilton third. Ferrari fifth and sixth
INSIGHTS
However, after Canada, the match ended in another disappointment Ferrarinever in contention for the podium and now almost reduced to fourth place, having to settle for fifth place for Charles Leclerc and sixth for Carlos Sainz.
With a lot of controversy between the two drivers.
Leclerc against Sainz, what happened
At the end, the two drivers did not hide their nervousness, with the Monegasque blaming his colleague for overtaking him in the first laps, which he defined as «a maneuver that was neither fair nor correct. We’ll talk about it in the team.”
Then the reply: «I can’t stay behind all my life», Sainz says to Leclerc, who accused him of damaging him with an overtaking in the first laps of the Spanish GP. «For me it was a very clear situation – explained the Spaniard – we had a new soft and Mercedes had used it, so we had to attack and I did exactly that. I had the opportunity to attack and it’s not like I can wait to stay behind all my life. I don’t know what Charles is complaining about, what he’s worried about,” he concluded. For Vasseur, “the contact between our riders was very light and I don’t think it cost us anything.”
The race contested by the Reds was distant, in space, time and manner, from that of the world championship leader, and also of Norris.
Leclerc’s words
«Sainz’s maneuver at that moment was not correct and right. We knew we had to save the tire and I did it, but he didn’t and he passed me at the end of the straight. That’s how it happened, but it was a risk that shouldn’t have been taken.” In short, Charles Leclerc didn’t like his teammate’s maneuver in the first laps of the Spanish GP, «a fight that made us lose a position – continued the Monegasque -, also because it damaged my wing. I understand that the race was important for him, but that’s not how it goes. We’ll talk about it in the team.” In general, he concluded, the problem at Montmelò «was the pace, we should look at this aspect».
The race
Surprised at the start by George Russell, Verstappen took the lead in three laps, first overtaking the McLaren driver, who had started in pole position, and then the Briton from Mercedes. The excellent strategy of the Red Bull wall for the stops then kept Verstappen safe from surprises, keeping Norris at a safe distance and also Hamilton, who achieved his 198th career podium with a race where he revised his class. Russell took home a good fourth place, with Leclerc unsuccessfully trying to undermine him at the end. There was no comeback for Ferrari after uninspiring qualifying, and Montmelò thus confirmed that instead of being the challengers for Red Bull, the Reds are currently struggling to keep up with the pace of the McLarens and also the Mercedes , clearly growing.
The Ferrari
“In general – Leclerc’s words – the problem this weekend was the pace, we should look at this aspect”. The Monegasque has been overtaken in the world rankings by Norris, now second behind Verstappen, while McLaren is closing in on Ferrari in the constructors’ ranking too. The race was managed very well by the Dutchman and his wall, which did not happen for Norris, who was kept out for a long time after Verstappen’s first pit stop, who thus managed to keep the pace best suited to him.
«We weren’t the fastest on the track, but we were perfect in everything, congratulations to everyone», said the winner on the team radio, who then explained: «This race was certainly sweaty, but I think that, in essence, it was was decided from the start – said the Dutchman -. I took the lead after overtaking Russell and managed to create a sort of buffer, a small gap over my rivals.” With 219 points in the standings, the Red Bull driver is already looking to the next race, next Sunday in Austria, to keep an increasingly dangerous Norris (150 points) at bay, while Leclerc (148 points) will have to fight not to lose ground again .
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
1970-01-01 00:00:00
#life
