Same circuit in Austria, but different results from one week to another. This time, Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) won the RedBull Ring and clinched his first victory of the season. His compatriot Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) and Max Verstappen (RedBull) complete the podium.
The Red Bull Ring offered a less spectacular scenario than last week. In the rain, or on a dry circuit, the Briton simply dominated the first Grand Prix of Styria in history. From the first lap, he left the peloton behind him to never be worried about the 71 laps. The day before, the Briton had signed an impressive pole position on a soggy track, relegating the Dutchman Max Verstappen to more than a second. A reassuring performance after his fourth place at the Austrian Grand Prix.
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Like last week, all the pilots wore an “End Racism” t-shirt, under the impetus of the six-time world champion who carried him the message Black Lives Matter. The pilots knelt down, or lowered their heads, before joining their cars.
Ferrari sinks a little more
With this double, Mercedes proves its domination a little more. The German team is in first place in the manufacturer's classification with 80 points. For its part, Ferrari, fifth in the ranking with 19 points, does not seem able to extricate itself from the nightmare. From the first lap, the two red cars hung on, while Charles Leclerc tried to take the interior on the third corner. His fin destroyed, Sebastian Vettel was forced to give up, quickly joined by his Monegasque teammate.
This clash recalls the dark memory of the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix, in which the two drivers, in the middle of a fight, collided with each other on the 66th lap and both had to give up. “The situation today is very different. This is the kind of accident that, in a departure, can happen, "reassured Mattia Binotto, the boss of Scuderia, at the microphone of Canal +. Barely out of the ring, Charles Leclerc hastened to apologize on Twitter: “I'm sorry, but being sorry is not enough. Seb has nothing to reproach himself for today. "
I am disappointed in myself. I'm sorry but being sorry is not enough. Seb hasn't got any faults today. I've let the team down after them working a whole week to bring the updates early. Too eager to gain those places in the first lap. I will learn from it.
- Charles Leclerc (@Charles_Leclerc) July 12, 2020An equally complicated Sunday for the French. Esteban Ocon could not take advantage of his fifth place on the starting grid. The Norman had to stop halfway because of a "cooling problem" when he was in seventh place. The other Norman on the grid, Pierre Gasly, finished 15th. Romain Grosjean, who left last, goes back to 13th place. The Franco-Swiss started from the pits, sanctioned because his team was forced to work on his car outside the authorized hours.
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Note that the F1 calendar is gaining new dates. A race in Italy on the Mugello circuit has been added for September 13. The Russian Grand Prix in Sochi is set for September 27. The drivers will return to the circuits in Hungary on July 19.
