A Record Equalling Weekend at the 'Ring'

 

"Records are created so that they can be broken." Wise words from arguably the greatest racer in all of F1, Michael Schumacher. And on Sunday his tally of 91 Grand Prix victories was finally equalled by none other than Lewis Hamilton as Formula 1 returned once again to the Nurburgring - host of some of the most incredible racing the world has ever seen. 

Firstly, I would like to apologise for missing my review of the Russian Grand Prix 2 weeks back. Being an avid F1 fan, there's simply no excuse for me not writing about the sport that I love. Having said that, congratulations to Valtteri Bottas on a brilliant drive to bring home a 1-3 for the Mercs with Max Verstappen yet again splitting the two Silver Arrows. 

Fast forward a couple weeks and Sochi's winner failed to complete a race that saw the Hulk return, a surprise podium, and 9 different teams in the points - the first time this has happened since 2010. 

A clean getaway from the grid saw Bottas lead Hamilton from Verstappen and Leclerc as cars once again zoomed around the 'Ring' since 2013 when Vettel reigned supreme. The extremely cold conditions however proved difficult as drivers failed to warm up their tyres enough resulting in everyone missing the first corner. (Quite a funny spectacle if you ask me) Luckily turn 1 provides enough space for drivers to stray wide which meant that no contact was made as the elite of the elite gave each other enough room (something we did not see in Mugello). 

As the grid settled into the race, getting accustomed to the cool conditions, it became apparent that tyre management was going to play somewhat of a role once again. With multiple drivers locking up at turn 1 and flat-spotting their front right's, it became clear that they would have to be careful of graining. Most notably the race leader Valtteri Bottas felt that pain as he locked up and saw his teammate take the lead from him only to retire a few laps later due to a mechanical issue causing loss of power. And he was one of 5 drivers to retire, the others being Norris, Albon, Ocon, and George Russel who unfortunately tangled with Kimi Raikonnen (a very unlikely situation I know) at turn 1. 

Among all of this though, the Honey Badger reigned supreme. Daniel Ricciardo came home to finish 3rd and brought Renault their first podium since their F1 return in 2016. A great achievement for them, but everybody knows the back story to this. If not, here is a crash course. Upon signing with Renault, Danny Ric and Cyril Abiteboul agreed that if the Aussie took a step on the podium, the team principle would have to get a tattoo. While the placement and size of the tattoo were up to the Frenchman, the design of it was in Danny boy's hands and we all wait patiently to see what new body art the Renault chief will be coming with to Portugal. 

Apart from this stunning performance from the Australian, there were multiple drives worthy of great praise. Pierre Gasly finishing 6th for Alpha Tauri, extending their consecutive points finishes to 8. Charles Leclerc coming home in 7th, a far better result for the prancing horses following multiple upgrades to the chassis and front wing. Romain Grosjean crossing the chequered flag in 9th, a first points finish for him this season (even after being hit with gravel at 300 kilometres per hour rendering his index finger essentially paralysed). However, amongst all of this credit has to be given to the one and only Nico Hulkenberg. 6 hours prior to qualifying the German got a call from Force India requesting him to race in place of the sick Lance Stroll. Fortunately, the Hulk was 2 hours away and came to the rescue. Unlike his 2 week stint with the men in Pink at Silverstone, this was even more panic-filled as his only practice was sitting in the seat and playing around with the steering wheel. Unfortunately, he qualified last (and who can blame him). In a dramatic turnaround, however, the Hulk powered through the field to cross the line P8 and win driver of the day (a testament to his incredible driving ability). His outstanding efforts put Force India in prime position at P3 in the constructor's championship as they leapfrogged McLaren. If this isn't proof that the German deserves a seat in Formula 1 then I really don't know what is. 

The Portuguese Grand Prix is just around the corner and the midfield battle is increasingly competitive with only 6 points separating the men in Pink, the McLaren's, and the Frenchman. As we look to racing at a track that F1 has never been to, we hope to see sparks fly and tensions rise as the best drivers in the world take to the race track once again. A huge congratulations to Lewis Hamilton for his incredible achievement. It is not often that records like the one set by the great Michael Schumacher are ever even attainable let alone equalled.