Tag Archives: Craig’s Column

Formula 1’s 2020 calendar was supposed to be its most diverse, its longest and most extensive – travelling to an all-new street circuit at Hanoi, as well as a revamped tight and twisty Zandvoort – a circuit with plenty of F1 heritage. Due to the unforeseen circumstances that have affected the globe, those events are set to not happen in 2020.

The ongoing global situation has sent the 2020 Formula 1 calendar into anarchy. What was originally supposed to be a 22-round calendar has been severely affected due to the catastrophe that has affected the lives of almost everybody on this planet.

The motorsport community is desperate to see some track action. It’s like a drug. For drivers, teams, spectators and everybody involved, this red flag-like situation has been difficult to digest for many. The question has been “when will we go racing again?” ever since the middle of March. That feels like an eternity ago for some.

It is possible to have too much of a good thing. With the lack of real-world motorsport taking place at the moment due to the ongoing global pandemic, the likes of sim racing, Esports and drivers who had previously never owned a sim rig taking to Twitch and broadcasting their exploits as ‘influencers’ have become the content to enjoy.

Lap six of the Italian Grand Prix, at Monza, with the ultra-passionate Tifosi watching and expecting glory for their scarlet red Ferraris. Sebastian Vettel, running fourth, performed what can only be described as one of his most ridiculous mistakes in his 200+ Formula 1 starts – spinning off on his own and returning to the track at such an angle that he collides with Lance Stroll’s Racing Point and ruins both their races.

What is the first characteristic that springs to mind when you think of a Formula 1 car? Is it fast? Is it nimble? Is it loud? Pretty? Brutal? Any of these would be common answers, but ‘heavy’, ‘chunky’, ‘clunky’ or ‘fat’ probably would not be. Even now, as the weight of F1 cars has increased over time – steadily or rapidly depending on the era – it would not be the first thing most would associate with the 20 cars that race around 22 tracks around the world.

After securing his sixth world championship crown, it is impossible to argue that Lewis Hamilton does not deserve to be regarded among Formula 1’s greatest. From the moment he began his grand prix career in 2007 – which featured daring passes from the off – it seemed likely that he would be a man who could secure many titles.

The 2019 Formula 1 season has featured intrigue from the off. Many driver changes, brought on predominantly following Daniel Ricciardo’s shock switch to Renault, has added an extra bit of spice to this year’s story. One team, in particular, has had a dynamic that has been fascinating to watch, with starlet Charles Leclerc replacing the compliant Kimi Raikkonen to partner four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel. It hasn’t transcended into all-out war, yet, but the ebb and flow of the intra-team rivalry has major narrative in itself.

Qualifying is one of those aspects of grand prix racing that has been tinkered with countless times ever since the first major tweaks were introduced in the 1990s to make it more interesting for television viewers. What we have now is almost unquestionably the best format in history, which can provide shocks right up until the finish. However, Formula 1 bosses want to toy with the idea of scrapping qualifying as we know it altogether and replacing it with qualifying races.

It appears difficult to pinpoint any one thing from the Formula 1 German Grand Prix last weekend that stands out from the rest in terms of its significance. Max Verstappen’s overdue wet-weather victory, an unwell Lewis Hamilton making not one – but two – major errors in an important race for Mercedes as it celebrated 125 years in motorsport, Valtteri …