Yesterday's British Grand Prix was a case of missed opportunities and some bad judgement calls. The race was a three horse race with Hamilton out in front followed by Bottas giving the Mercedes pair a large enough cushion to third placed Verstappen.
Tyres are going to play a major role in the various races this season as the double headers to make them different they are changing the tyre compounds. Next weeks race at the same track will be slightly softer so teams will have to change their car setups accordingly as though it is a different track. This will ensure that the race is not a forgone conclusion before it has even started.
About 10 laps out from the finish Hamilton complained about blistering on his front left tyre as did Bottas a few laps later. Verstappen had fresher tyres so he had no issues and was catching Bottas who had a 10 second buffer over the Dutchmen at the time. What happened next should have excited the Red Bull team but somehow they bottled it.
Bottas front right delaminated and disintegrated as the tyre broke up. We have seen this a couple of times before at this track as who can forget both the Ferrari's pushing their luck a few seasons ago. Both of them had to retire due to delamination trying to get an extra lap or two out of something that had already gone.
Bottas dropped down the field making Verstappen a guaranteed second with only 3 laps to go. The Red Bull should have left him out there as he had no problem with his tyres and one just never knows. They decided to bring him in and put fresh tyres so he could at least get the fastest lap and score an extra bonus point.
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Hamilton was extremely lucky it blew where it did as he could have not even finished.
On the last lap of the race Hamilton's tyre also blew within 6 corners before the finish line. Verstappen was just too far back having pitted to set up the fastest lap of the race which he managed on the final lap. Chasing one point would normally seem like a good idea but the chance to win was in their grasp if they had just stayed out.In the end there was just 5.8 seconds difference at the finishing line.
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Limping over the line. Red Bull are normally very good with their strategies yet they messed up today.
One can argue either way as Verstappens point haul was more than they would have expected under normal circumstances. Taking a gamble though should always be part of a winning mentality as one just never knows. The chances of Hamilton having a blowout on the last lap if Verstappen was putting pressure would have been far higher than just pitting to score one extra point.
Next weeks race will surely be all about the tyres and how many stops you make as it is guaranteed to be a two stop race. I would suggest it could be a 3 stop race if the tyres are going to drop off quicker than this week. Hamilton is known to be a driver who gets more out of his tyre life than any other driver so teams will have to think about having a few different strategies next week. Unfortunately Red Bull's second driver in Alex Albon hasn't done very well so team tactics haven't been able to be played out.
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Verstappen has a chance again next week to narrow the gap and hopefully the team doesn't blow any opportunity.
The driver I felt sorry for most was Nico Hulkenberg who after flying in to cover for Perez in the Racing point car due to Covid didn't even start. The mechanics couldn't get the engine to turn over and I have never heard of a car just not starting. What about the spare car which is normally carried to races? He would possibly have been a top 4 today and at least next week his car troubles should be fixed.
