Sainz crashed out coming thru the last turn. Lost the back end. He went into the wall sideways and tried to drive away but the front wing got caught under the car.

Thanks KK, yeah I watched the highlights once they were posted. Too bad for him, the Fezzes were fast and he'll be disappointed.

Hamilton and Bottas both got through Q2 on mediums and everyone else at the front will be starting on softs tomorrow. That is a volatile mix.

And rain is in the forecast for tomorrow. Looking forward to the race

I'll be on a plane and will miss the race, can't wait for highlights !

Also, just watched post quali press conference, just loved how max shuts down any silverstone question planned even before anyone thinks of asking one !

Bottas: "I'm Sliiiiipping in the rain! And I destroyed some mates race. Lewis is happy again, I'm slipping in the rain."

Yup MB wrecked another good race between the top cars.

Couldn't believe the whining Hamilton was doing late in the race.

Rondou is very happy.

Of course I'm happy. Less emotional than Gasly's win last year, but I'm still happy.

Congrats Esteban!

And some say F1 is dull to watch.

Bottas has got a 5 place grid penalty in the next race for causing the collisions.
If you look at the start again my argument is that you could see this differently.
Bottas got a bad start, Norris went on the inside and threw himself in front of Bottas and may be braked too early? Giving Bottas no time to react. On a wet surface maneuveres like that leaves the margines even smaller.

I watched the Formula 3 earlier today, which was won by a norwegian incidently, and FIA chose to do a running start.
Under simular condition in the Formula 1 race they chose a standing start. Also to be added to the calculation.

Any way, a big congrats to Ocon, and the Alpine team.
Also a big applause to Alonso for making it hard for Hamilton to pass.
Without Alonso`s effort, I believe Hamilton would have won the race.

Wow what a race.

First congrats to Ocon and Alpine for the win. He was strong leading up to the race, and while events had to conspire to hand him the victory, he still took it with both hands and was relentless. A fantastic drive with the focus and pressure squarely on him. Vettel was nipping at his exhaust the entire way but Ocon didn't put a foot wrong and deserves his moment in the sun.

And it wouldn't have been possible had Alonso not got his elbows out defending against Hamilton. Their battle was thrilling and I was on the edge of my seat. That was F1 at its finest. Ironically it was the fact that Hungary is such a lousy race track that we ended up with such thrilling racing. At just about any other track save Monaco perhaps, Hamilton would have quickly gotten by I think.

Vettel was disqualified post-race for not having enough fuel left in his tank to take a sample. There has to be one litre remaining and they only got a few ounces and he was DQ'd as a result, but can appeal. So Hamilton goes second and Max up to 9th, but that gives Hamilton a bigger lead now. We'll see if it stands.

That start. My goodness. Bottas got it all wrong after a terrible start and took out half the top of the order. I just couldn't believe it, as the broadcast view went wide and I watched as first Max then Perez were clobbered boom, boom. Real head in the hands stuff. Max had gotten a great start, not to mentioned Lando, and Bottas just bottled it and ruined all their races. That's two weeks in a row that Merc took their competition out of the race. Nothing malicious in it, but still. Bottas is far too experienced for that. Max did well to at least finish in the points, but with that massive damage on a track with little overtaking he was doomed. Beyond the race, the cost of these repairs is a killer, as we are under a spending cap and that's a few million in damage over the past two races. Money Red Bull cannot now spend on 2022. None of it was intentional on Merc's part, but the damage is still done and it's massively frustrating. Surely the gods will make good on what has transpired over the past two events. Stroll's spearing of Lerlerc was boneheaded, to add to the carnage.

Kimi finished 11th. Haha, see I told you. But that becomes a 10th if Vettel's DQ stands. Both Williams in the points! Both Alpha Tauris too.

Ocon's win was the first for a French driver, with a French car with a French engine since Prost in 1983.

But yeah, another day when I wish I were a neutral. Max has had horrible luck. First his left rear explodes in Baku from the lead. Then Hamilton punts him off the track at Silverstone. Then Bottas takes him out in Hungary. He managed to finish, but still. That leaves Hamilton leading the championship and it feels unwarranted. Here's hoping for better fortune ahead.

So happy for Ocon

Can't wait for next one

But we will have to wait, at least a bit, as we have hit summer break. Next race is Aug 27-29 At Spa. Which I just ran two days ago in my F1 2021 career. Finished seventh, for what it is worth. Had a power issue due to a worn ICE or it could have been better

Some driver market announcements are expected during the break, with Mercedes saying they intend to decide on next year's lineup. That may get the dominoes falling, and we'll see how it all shakes out. Most teams do not want to go in to the winter break with lineup questions, so there is expectation that moves/signings/announcements may be made before the race in Belgium.

I expect that Russell will finally be given his promotion to Merc. If so, that leaves Bottas a free agent and if he intends to continue will surely land somewhere. I speculated Alfa Romeo. As a Red Bull supporter I want to see Gasly come back to take Perez's seat. I like Checo, but he just hasn't performed to the level necessary for Red Bull to take command of this title chase. He's had some bad luck, some of it self-inflicted of course, but I think it's time for Gasly to return and realize his potential. He has taken his demotion well, and his performances warrant a promotion I think. No word from Red Bull either way so we will see.

Is Kimi coming back? Will Haas reset again? Hopefully the picture clears a bit over the next few weeks.

So with half the season in the books it is a good time to take stock. The season started with Merc on fire and Red Bull slowly lost ground as Merc got the results and Perez found his feet. But around the time of Monaco Max got dialed in and ran the table for a while. If not for that failure at Baku he would have won five straight races. The shine has come off over the past few events, none of it his fault, and he and Red Bull suddenly find themselves looking up at Mercedes. The Red Bull has looked the faster car over all types of tracks, and they are well positioned to overcome their rotten recent luck and make a real push for the title.

The midfield battle hasn't been this good in a very long time. Ferrari and McLaren are level on points and this looks to be going down to the wire. Ricciardo has gotten his feet under him, although it took too long, and now the two teams face a cracking battle to the end. Lando has been absolutely fabulous, and so far he is my driver of the year. He had scored in every race until Bottas took him out.

Ferrari have really turned around their terrible 2020 season. Quite remarkable really. The car is vastly improved, especially aerodynamically. They've already scored more points than all of last year. And it should have been more. Some bad luck, and their decision to roll the dice on Leclerc's engine for the Monaco start was a disaster. But still, they are right there fighting for third with a rampant McLaren. This battle, and the one for the title, are making 2021 the best Formula One season in recent memory. Leclerc is a great driver and Sainz has found his feet and this is going to be a storming battle I think.

After Alpine's fantastic week in Hungary they have taken the fifth spot, nine points ahead of Alpha Tauri. That will be a massive boost for the team, and the battle for fifth will be another tight one I think. The junior Red Bull team should be well clear, but Tsunoda has found it difficult to score points and now find themselves in sixth. If Yuki starts scoring consistently I make Alpha Tauri favorites. But that's not a given. I think they have the faster car though and with good driver performances should have enough to pip fifth.

Aston Martin are a bit adrift by themselves in seventh, and losing Vettel's second-place points is a killer (pending appeal). But credit where it is due. I had written Vettel off as past it. He seemed disinterested, and made far too many mistakes. I thought that giving Perez the boot and replacing him with Vettel was a huge mistake. But Vettel has been rejuvenated, and has driven great. Not only that, his approach to setups, debriefs and other team functions has lifted the entire team. I'll swallow my criticism and admit that I got it wrong and fair play to him.

There's a different vibe around Williams these days. New owners, and some points now in the pocket and things are looking up for them. If Russel is promoted could Bottas land here, essentially swapping seats? I could see it. Alfa Romeo have looked pretty good this year. Their results haven't shown, but they are always right there, just outside the points, with Kimi owning 11th at the flag haha. If they can find that little bit extra they could start grabbing some points for themselves. Haas are well clear at the back. Not much to be excited about other than 2022 when everyone gets a chance to start over. I don't expect any drastic improvement, but we just don't know. If I were running the team I would be looking to replace Mazepin, tout suite. I know he comes with a massive cash injection, but if they want to push up the table then Mazepin needs to go in my view.

So we head to Belgium next and a run of three great, classic racing circuits. Spa, then Zandvoort and then Monza, where they will trot out sprint qualifying again. I can't wait for all of these races and especially so Zandy. One of my very favorite tracks and it will be great to see F1 return here, having missed their chance during the pandemic. And then on to Russia, and the last race for the forseeable future at Sochi, with this race moving to St Petersburg next year.

So buckle up boys, we are in for a cracking second half.

"hear hear"

Yep

ESPN ran an article today touching on the driver market heading in to the summer break and next season. Maybe he read my post first? Haha, but some pretty good analysis and I only really disagree about Perez/Gasly, but his point that they might want to keep Gasly around to help Alpha Tauri transition to the new regs does have some merit. And anyway, maybe Perez will be better from here on out. He had better!

https://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/...means-valtteri-bottas-2022-driver-market

Anyway, if I were Horner I'd make the switch at season's end. Put the eggs in the Red Bull basket, because that's the team that can win you a title.

If I were RB I'd still keep Perez, as long as he doesn't end 7th in drivers rankings.

xperience will be super important next year, and he has the right team spirit, and OK performance for a first year in the team.

He could very well end up 3rd by season's end, but it's such a close call that up to 5th is still perfectly acceptable.

6th would be a disappointment, but just not enough to show the door after a first season.

7th, however would be too far.

It's a good point, and I agree that teams will need experience to navigate the technical changes next year, But I don't necessarily agree it needs to be Gasly. There are many experienced drivers without a seat and there's always the possibility of swapping Perez and Gasly. Having experience within the team, and with the current car probably won't mean much with an entirely new race car for 2022. And while I accept that with the changes next year Alpha Tauri could indeed be faster than Red Bull I think it's unlikely and if I were Horner I'd want my best possible pair at the team with the best shot at a world title. And unless things flip that is going to be Red Bull next year, provided of course Mercedes do not do so much damage to Red Bull's cars this year that they cannot afford to field a team next season.

Aston Martin's appeal was rejected for Vettel's fuel violation at Hungary. Evidently the appeal is still ongoing in some way, but their attempt to introduce new evidence was rejected. Not sure what's going on really, but it looks like it will stick, and needs to be resolved to a final decision. Maybe it already is?

I had meant to mention this after the race, but the carnage took my attention away i guess. Max had a 1.8 second stop in Hungary. Once again it took ages for the static time to flash up on the screen and the announcers failed to notice, even though they almost always comment on this. It made little difference after what happened at the first corner, but still a lightning fast stop for the Red Bull team.

And today F1.com put up an article showing the ten fastest stops so far this season. Nine of the ten are Red Bull, and eight of those are for Max.

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/...he-stops-this.MD5rZ32bMcFSbIALGmc60.html

Two weeks until Spa, can't wait. At least footie returned this weekend to keep my mind occupied while we await Formula One's return.

Get the German and Spanish on TV. No English footie.

Sorry to hear that mate. I like those leagues, but the EPL is the best.

Not sure if you have it in Canada (probably not due to a different broadcast rights deal), but I signed up last year for the Peacock streaming service and can watch full replays of all the EPL matches there. US$5/month

https://www.peacocktv.com/

No Peacock here. Get one EPL game broadcast on an American channel each week.. Yes, EPL game are much better as are the talking heads doing the games.

EPL sold out to a streaming service, too expensive.

Yes, we had been talking about that some time ago. Too bad that you've been priced out of the EPL action. Greedy bastages.

2021 Japanese Grand Prix has been cancelled. We'll see if they can plug the hole. It is sandwiched between Turkey and USA. I could see a double header in Austin as a result of this, with one being a sprint qualifier. CotA is a good track and would make a fine substitute.

That was crazy cheap DBond.
I have to pay 62USD a month for the channel that streams EPL here in Norway.
And another 37 USD a monthe for the channel that streams Champions league and Formula 1.

Then you have added content of course, like movies series etc.

I don`t think I can select EPL alone.