07/05/2020 - 9:38
- Clarín.com
- sports
The wait is over. Formula 1 finally started its season, following cancellations due to the coronavirus pandemic. It will be a year with the youngest grid of drivers in history and with the chance that the Englishman Lewis Hamilton will equal the seven titles of the German Michael Schumacher. But this 2020 debut was spectacular, because the Finn Valtteri Bottas won from end to end a test that had dropouts, touches, penalties to Hamilton and Sergio Pérez, and a surprise podium , with Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris.
Hamilton received bad news shortly before the start, because he was penalized with three positions on the understanding that he had not slowed down during the yellow flags displayed in a sector during classification 3 on Saturday. In this way, Hamilton started from fifth on the grid.
With the new order on the grid, Bottas was followed by Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Alex Albon and Hamilton. After a quiet start for the Finn, there was a fight between those behind and in the third lap the world champion was able to beat Norris. Then it would happen to Albon, so that Mercedes is with the "1-2"
On lap 14, the Grand Prix was in great shock, because none other than Verstappen had to leave with his Red Bull with a general failure. It happens in the house of the company that owns the team. A bolt from the blue.
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The abandonments of Daniel Ricciardo (Renault) and Lance Stroll (Racing Point) also followed immediately. Then Kevin Magnussen (Haas) wanted not to be passed by Esteban Ocon and kept going. He also stayed outside. And a few laps later, Sebastian Vettel stopped late and Carlos Sainz locked him up well to force him to spin.
The unusual happened later, when Kimi Raikkonen's Alfa Romeo lost the right front tire in the heat of a straight line and passed close to Vettel. The Finn abandoned, of course. The safety car matched everything and Albon wanted to pass Hamilton and touched him to lose positions.
The sports commissioners considered that the Englishman had responsibility and penalized him with 5 seconds, so his place in the final classification was complicated. And soon Sergio Pérez was sanctioned for another incident.
Hamilton finished second on the track, behind Bottas, but by the 5 second penalty he was overtaken by Leclerc and Norris, who sparked madness in McLaren's box.