I know what happened, I saw everything over the last two hours of racing, yet my mind struggles to comprehend everything I have just seen. It feels like a dream, yet it can’t be because you wouldn’t be able to dream something that good. With a track that promised to be a snooze fest, the 2021 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was absolutely anything but.
With about forty or so minutes to the start of the race, the gods and goddesses of motorsport parted the heavens and gifted Formula 1 fans with the great equalizer; Rainfall. As half the track became a slick ice rink, the other half remained dry as the desert in Bahrain leaving teams to scramble new strategies and drivers to change their underwear in anticipation. You could sense that anticipation even through a TV screen; it was anyone’s game.
Before we even got to lights out, we had drama. Both Aston Martins seemingly fell apart prior to formation lap as Stroll’s brakes caught fire and Vettel had a break line who decided it no longer wanted to participate in the race. This would result in Vettel starting out of the pit lane and later receiving a major stop/go penalty for lacking tires five minutes before the race. The formation lap wasn’t helpful for Leclerc who spun out and had to race to maintain his starting position. Thankfully for the tifosi he was able to recover to P4 before the safety car line.
We knew the run to turn 1 was going to be tight, but this was enough to make me squirm in my seat. Hamilton gets away clean and is immediately flanked by Perez and Verstappen who both got great starts. Perez backed out while Verstappen and Hamilton jockeyed for position into turn 1 resulting in Lewis running onto the yellow curbs and snagging some front wing damage.
It wasn’t long before we got the safety car we were all waiting for, as Latifi didn’t wait for end of lap one to put his car into the wall after a little contact with Mazepin (who somehow stayed in the entire race without spinning). This would lead to a six lap safety car and Mick Schumacher decided he was going to emulate Roman Grosjean by giving the wall a kiss with his Haas while attempting to warm the tires. Luckily for Mick, the only thing missing was his front wing as he was forced to suffer two laps without a nose due to his debris closing the pit lane. It should be noted that happened and Shumacher still beat Mazepin. HA!
After the restart we got to see a nice skirmish between Sainz, Gasly, Stroll, and Norris for the midfield fight. Norris and Sainz would make it through as Gasly tumbled to the rear of the grid with full Wet tires. It wasn’t long before Norris put his teammate in his sights and Mclaren was forced to use team orders as Ricciardo still seems to be getting his feet underneath him. Somewhere around here Perez got slapped with a stop/go penalty for overtaking during the safety car. He would lose traction through a turn, get passed by two cars and proceed to overtake them as if it was a formation lap. Seemed like an amateur move from Redbull and I’m not sure why his pit crew didn’t tell him to stop.
From then on it was the wait for slick tires and who would blink first as the track began to dry out. It would be Verstappen and Redbull who would blink first and pit onto the medium tires. Hamilton would follow suit a lap later but a slow right tire replacement would see Hamilton return the lead to Verstappen. with the race leaders on slicks, it was anyon’s guess as to what the outcome would be. Then it happened. Passing a lapped George Russel, the world watched as Hamilton slid across the gravel and into the barrier. Seconds felt like hours as it looked like the reigning champion wouldn’t be able to get out of this one. Somehow, he found reverse and in a questionable move, backed onto the track and resumed racing, albeit a full lap down. A gift however, was right around the corner.
An absolute gem was to follow in the form of two other Mercedes drivers taking each other out of the race, as Russell found a slick spot and broadsided the lapped Merced of Valteri Bottas causing terminal damage to both vehicles. We were treated to a rare sight in the form of angry George Russel who stormed over to the crippled Mercedes with a few words in mind. Valteri retained his “man of many words” personality by lifting a finger and telling Russell exactly how he felt about the incident.
The first red flag of the 2021 season would make itself known and eventually prove to be what Hamilton needed to stay in the contention for a podium. As all lapped cars were given the chance to get even, the champ found himself in the incredibly unfamiliar position of P9. I personally was really hoping for a standing start, as it would’ve been interesting to see Verstappen, Leclerc, and Norris in the top three go toe to toe. Race officials however decided on a rolling restart and as the safety car pulled away Verstappen would take off into the distance.
While we know Lewis is good because he always wins, we forget just how good he really is. We were treated to a rare sight of watching the champ utterly maul his way through the field, give no quarter, and take zero prisoners. One, by one he out maneuvered the midfield until he found himself struggling behind the Ferraris in P4 and P5. I was praying he wouldn’t be able to do it but of course, Hamilton would eventually get both cars and slot back into podium position with Norris in his sights. Norris however, wouldn’t be taken easily and kept his soft tires alive enough to hold off Lewis until the final three laps of the race. By that point Verstappen was long gone, but Mercedes and especially Lewis showed, they might be down but they’re never out.
Top Three:
- Verstappen
- Hamilton
- Norris
Other Mentions:
Ferrari looked fantastic taking P4 and P5 at the end of the day. Sainz should especially be proud as he struggled throughout the day and yet still found himself in the top five. Out of the 2020 silly season fallout, it looks as if Sainz has adapted the quickest while Ricciardo is getting bested by his teammate. To be quite honest I don’t think we’re going to see the Norris/Ricciardo bromance we all expected as Norris is definitely out to establish Mclaren as his team and no one elses.
I’ve always wished I could see Alonso and Vettel battling it out on track, and thankfully this year I can, except I didn’t expect it to be at the rear of the grid. Both former world champions look to be struggling already to their younger teammates who are finishing leagues ahead of them. Matters were made worse when Vettel retired the car around the end of the grand prix. It doesn’t look great for either of these two legends and time will tell if they’ll be around much longer.
I said it last week, if there was a great race at Imola I’ll believe the hype of this season. Well, I think we have our answer. With a little help of mother nature backed by displays across the board of pure talent, grit, and determination. We are truly going to be in for something special this season as Lewis desperately holds onto a one point lead in the championship.