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Mercedes scored a double victory at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola, securing its seventh consecutive world design title.
Although the drivers were unable to complete a single lap at Imola on Friday, a single free practice on Saturday proved to be sufficient to prepare, and the role was not substantially overturned in the time trial, with the two Mercedes drivers able to battle for the top position. output. In the end, Valtteri Bottas was less than a tenth ahead of Lewis Hamilton. In the thirteenth race of the season, held behind closed doors, Bottas got off to a good start, holding the lead, while Max Verstappen (Red Bull), who started in third place, overtook Hamilton. As it turned out later, the floorplate of Bottas’s car was damaged, however, the leading trio of drivers gradually increased their lead. On the eighth lap, Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri) was forced to abandon the race from fifth place due to a technical error, then, earlier than expected, the wheel changes started already on the tenth lap. Verstappen was the first to stand out in round 19, and later Bottas did the same to prevent the Dutch from getting ahead. Hamilton, on the other hand, stayed out for much longer and only reached lap 30. Then, due to the elimination of Esteban Ocon (Renault), a virtual safety car restriction went into effect for a short time, which which ensured Hamilton could return to first place after his wheel change. Due to his car injury, Bottas made more and more mistakes and was overtaken by Verstappen on lap 43. But the Dutchman was eliminated on lap 51 due to a blowout, so the safety car was sent in front of the field. The excitement remained: shortly afterwards, George Russell (Williams), still in the safety car phase, crashed into the wall and Lance Stroll (Racing Point) hit one of his mechanics while changing wheels. After the safety car rolled off the track, Hamilton increased his lead again and eventually earned the bonus point for the fastest lap.
“It was a very exhausting race, you can hit the track here at a tremendous pace. I am very grateful to be a part of these successes. It’s not easy to deliver that kind of performance week after week, it requires everyone’s precise work. We are seven times world champions, it is quite incredible, I will also tell my grandchildren “
Said Hamilton, who a week ago beat the record of the legendary seven-time World Cup winner Michael Schumacher of Germany with 91 racing victories. It was the 35-year-old British driver’s ninth victory this year and his 93rd career victory, further increasing his overall lead.
“The start was very good, then there was a debris at the exit of the seven-lap turn, I tried not to cross it with the wheels, but unfortunately the car was still damaged, which was difficult enough to drive afterwards. I tried very hard to prevent Max from overtaking, I drove across the border and unfortunately made a mistake. “
Said Bottas, who finished second due to the elimination of Verstappen.
So Mercedes scored another double win, and at Imola, the German stable defended its world title among the constructors for the sixth time, regardless of the result of the last four races. Previously, no constructor has won seven world titles in a row. “I’m not that worried about the numbers, but we can be very proud of that,” said Toto Wolff, Mercedes team boss. Due to the elimination of Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo (Renault) “fell” in third place, the Australian driver was able to get on the podium for the second time in the colors of the French stable.
“It was a strange race. I advanced to fourth place after the start, I thought it was the best result in this race for the three drivers ahead. I don’t know what happened to Verstappen, but that’s why I can be here on the podium. It’s huge that he has achieved two podiums in such a short time “
Ricciardo evaluated.
Danyiil Kvjat (AlphaTauri) came in fourth, followed by Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) and Sergio Pérez (Racing Point). McLaren and Alfa Romeo duo Carlos Sainz Jr., Lando Norris, Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi shared additional scoring spots, respectively. The season will continue in two weeks with the Turkish Grand Prix.
Final result, the position of the World Cup points competitions
Grand Prix of Emilia Romagna, Imola (63 laps, 309,267 km, points):
1. Lewis Hamilton (British, Mercedes) 1:28: 32,430 hours 2. Valtteri Bottas (Finnish, Mercedes) 5,783 seconds behind 3. Daniel Ricciardo (Australian, Renault) 14,320 seconds h. 4. Danyiil Kvjat (Russian, Alpha Tauri) 15,141 sec h. 5. Charles Leclerc (Monaco, Ferrari) 19,111 sec h. 6. Sergio Pérez (Mexican, Racing Point) 19,652 sec h. 7. Carlos Sainz Jr. (Spanish, McLaren) 20,230 sec h. 8. Lando Norris (British, McLaren) 21,131 sec. 9. Kimi Räikkönen (Finnish, Alfa Romeo) 22,224 sec h. 10. Antonio Giovinazzi (Italian, Alfa Romeo) 26,398 sec h. Fastest lap: Hamilton, 1: 15.484 minutes (lap 63) pole position: Bottas
World Cup ranking after 12 races (5 more left):
competitors:
1. Hamilton 282 points 2. Bottas 197 3. Max Verstappen (Netherlands, Red Bull) 162 4. Ricciardo 95 5. Leclerc 85 6. Pérez 82 7. Norris 69 8. Sainz 65 9. Alexander Albon (Thailand, Red Bull) 64 10. Pierre Gasly (French, Alpha Tauri) 63 11. Lance Stroll (Canadian, Racing Point) 57 12. Esteban Ocon (French, Renault) 40 13. Kvjat 26 14. Sebastian Vettel (German, Ferrari) 18 15. Nico Hülkenberg (German, Racing Point) 10 17. Räikkönen 4 Giovinazzi 4 19. Romain Grosjean (French, Haas) 2 20. Kevin Magnussen (Danish, Haas) 1
equipment:
1. Mercedes 479 points – and already world champion
2. Red Bull 226 3. Renault 135 4. Racing Point 134 McLaren 134 6. Ferrari 103 7. Alpha Tauri 89 8. Alfa Romeo 8 9. Haas 3
