End of a sequence of 9 victories, the second of all time. End of a sequence of 43 points-scoring races: Verstappen's sensational retirement at the Australian GP paves the way for a stratospheric Sainz who went from the hospital bed to the top step of the podium in just a few days (16).
And after the checkered flag Carlos sings “Smooth Operator” in his helmet, a song about a scoundrel seducer, a charming, cold sly man who fascinates everyone. Like him, in fact, who currently has the eyes of the world on his number 55.
But let's get back to the race: on the fifth lap the unbeatable Red Bull catches fire, returns to the pits and Verstappen retires. The Red Bull hadn't broken in two years. A failure of the right rear brake which infuriates Verstappen and which shows us with extreme clarity what the real current balance is in Formula 1. Yes, because as Max explained immediately “this is still a sport where mechanics count for a lot”.
And so let's analyze this very “mechanics”: the second force on the track is now definitively Ferrari, but “second” for a short time because now the SF-24 is really close to his majesty Red Bull, but only that of Verstappen: the The English team has an extra difficulty given that Perez is unable to do his job, which is to get behind Verstappen. Not a small problem in terms of the constructors' championship given that Red Bull is currently in command with 97 points, followed closely – 93 – by Ferrari.
In any case, despite everything (and we are referring to the fact that today Norris finished third and Piastri fourth) we can say that behind the two Ferraris, the third force on the track is Perez's Red Bull. And the fourth is therefore all McLaren. But, as we were saying, we are talking about a very, very hard-fought third place because Perez – precisely – was unable to stay in front of even the orange cars, reaching the finish line only fifth. We will see.
Then there is Aston Martin, never as fast at the start of the championship as Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren: fifth place in terms of competitiveness is all theirs.
Mercedes? It's definitely gone. On lap 17 Hamilton retired, while Russel crashed into the wall (how scary, he remained in the car with the car half overturned) on the last lap while he was seventh. So, incredibly, the team that has dominated for years is now in the jam of the chasing teams. A quagmire from which it is always very difficult to escape.
#Sainz #Smooth #Operator #FormulaPassion.it
