© Vladimir RysSeason So Far: Part 5Looking back at our trips to Russia, Turkey and the USA.
HeadingintoRussiatheChampionshipbattlewasinfullforceandfollowingtheItalianGrandPrix,whichinvolvedacollisionbetweenMaxandMercedes’LewisHamilton,theDrivers’Championshiphadafivepointsdifference.
Max was leading the way on 226.5 points, with Hamilton on 221.5. However, following the Monza incident the stewards decided Max was at fault, and gave him a three-place grid penalty for the Russian Grand Prix. So, all eyes were firmly on Formula One heading to Sochi…
- Circuit: Sochi Autodrom
- Max: P2
- Checo: P9
After Checo took a fourth PU at Zandvoort, in Russia it was Max’s turn to take the hit, a wise choice given that Sochi has rarely been kind to the Team, and also in light of the three-place gird penalty Max was set to take following the incident with Hamilton in Italy.
Max Going Full Send At Sochi Autodrom© Vladimir Rys
Starting from the back of the grid, Max’s race should have been all about damage limitation, but when late rain threatened to upset the order it turned out to be a case of maximising opportunity.
Prior to the late rain Max had managed to haul his way up to seventh place, with title rival Lewis Hamilton in second behind long-time race leader Lando Norris of McLaren. But when the heavens opened, Max made the snap decision to pit for inters and as those who had stuck with softs began to spin off or slow dramatically, Max surged through the pack, eventually finishing in second place as Norris spun off and Hamilton claimed his 100th win.
“Wow, we will definitely take that result! To come from last to second is very good and when I woke up this morning I definitely didn't expect this result,” Max said afterwards. “To finish where we did with the penalty we had, we didn't lose as many points as we could have so as a Team we did a really good job. It was a crucial call to change to the inters, it was really slippery on track and we made a great decision with the timing and took the right lap to pit.”
Grandstand Finish At Sochi© Vladimir Rys
For Checo, though, the rain came at just the wrong time. The Mexican had climbed from eighth on the grid to fourth and with a podium finish in the offing Checo gambled on staying on slicks. It proved to be the wrong choice and as he struggled for grip on the increasingly greasy track, he slipped to ninth place at the flag.
“I decided to take the risk in staying out on the slicks instead of pitting for inters,” he said. “In hindsight the slick wasn't the right tyre and ultimately the timing of the rain in the race meant some people got lucky today and others didn't. We were on for a great result with a podium through pure merit and we managed to come through the field to third but sometimes this is how racing is.”
Max’s stunning rise from last place to second meant that he left Sochi trailing Hamilton by just two points, while the team was 33 points behind Mercedes in the Constructors’ standings.
- Circuit: Istanbul Park
- Max: P2
- Checo: P3
The Turkish Grand Prix took place on the date originally scheduled for the Japanese Grand Prix, which had to be cancelled due to the pandemic. And so, to mark what should have been Honda’s final home race of its current spell in F1, the Team rocked a special white livery inspired by the Japanese manufacturer’s legendary Honda RA 272 car. And The Bulls gave Honda another great result to celebrate with a double podium finish.
On Saturday Hamilton grabbed pole position, but took a 10-place penalty for taking another PU. That left Max second on the grid behind the other Mercedes of Valterri Bottas. And when the Finn held his advantage at the start, Max was left with a largely solitary march to second place. And with Hamilton finishing fifth Max left Istanbul in charge of the Driver’s standings once more, six points ahead of Hamilton.
Checo, meanwhile, claimed his first podium finish since the French Grand Prix with a battling drive to third place that included an epic battle to keep Lewis Hamilton at bay.
On lap 42, Checo was forced wide at the final corner in a furious tussle with the Mercedes driver, he stayed calm and held his line to push past again at the start of the following lap and hold his position. And when Hamilton pitted late and dropped back to fifth place, the Mexican was able to close in and pass Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in the final laps to claim an excellent 13th career podium finish.
“As a team, to finish second and third here was a great result,” said Max. “We maximised the result today and it's good to be leading the Drivers' Championship again. We'll keep pushing and we'll see in the coming races how competitive we will be.”
Let The Double Celebrations Begin© Vladimir Rys
Round17:UnitedStatesGrandPrix
- Circuit: Circuit of The Americas
- Max: P1
- Checo: P3
Going to the US for the first time since 2019, there was every expectation that Max’s championship would come under severe pressure in Austin, especially as Mercedes had taken five wins from the six hybrid era US GPs held in Texas. Max had other ideas.
After chasing set-up through Friday, the overnight work reaped rewards on Saturday as Max finished third in FP3, second in Q1 and then topped the order when it mattered, in Q2 and Q3.
However, despite securing pole he was beaten to the punch at the start by Hamilton, who claimed the lead in after making a better getaway from the front row.
Time For Lights Out At COTA© Vladimir Rys
Max bided his time, however, and using a powerful undercut retook the lead on lap 14. He employed the same tactic as the second pit window opened but Hamilton went long and armed with much fresher tyres in the final stint Hamilton began to rapidly close on the Red Bull driver in the final laps.
Max had done a superb job of preserving life in his ageing tyres, however, and though Hamilton closed to within 1.2s of the Red Bull, Max was always able to break DRS and keep the Mercedes driver at bay to eventually claim his eighth win of the season and extend his championship lead to 12 points.
The Team’s joy was doubled by Checo. The Mexican’s drinks bottle failed on his way to the grid, but despite the punishing conditions he delivered a heroic drive to rise from P6 on the grid to third at the flag. Sergio’s fourth podium of the year (as Bottas finished sixth) helped to close the Constructors’ Championship gap to Mercedes to 23 points.
“The pressure was on for the whole race,” said Max afterwards. “The last two laps were definitely difficult on the tyres, there wasn't much grip left. But, then with two laps to go, I had the Haas in front of me and I was able to benefit from the DRS, so we managed to hang on in the end. We definitely gave it our all today as a Team and it was great to have Checo up there with me on the podium.”
Team Celebration At COTA© Vladimir Rys
