Verstappen steals the show as title fight goes to the wire

2016 Brazilian Grand Prix review

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All weekend long Red Bull were desperate for the rain. But when it finally came, they blew their shot.

In the run-up to the Brazilian Grand Prix debate had centred on Mercedes chief Toto Wolff’s telephone call to Max Verstappen’s father, recommending he did not do anything rash which might inadvertently swing the championship.

Rightly, the Red Bull drivers rejected the suggestion they should keep their noses out of the fight at the front now any more than they did 19 races ago. But as it turned out the team’s eagerness to take the fight to Mercedes worked against them in the end.

There was probably one person more disappointed about that than either Red Bull driver: Lewis Hamilton.

Rain stops play – twice

It was a busy day for Bernd Maylander
The crowd grew restless as attempts to run the Brazilian Grand Prix were thwarted by unending rain. First the start was put back by ten minutes, then the race began behind the Safety Car.

Soon after the green flag fell Marcus Ericsson made heavy contact with the barrier. He and seven others had changed to intermediate tyres, expecting the track conditions to improve. They didn’t, and at turn 14 he aquaplaned into a barrier, coming to a rest in the pit lane entrance.

Still the drivers headed for the pits including both Red Bulls. Critically, Daniel Ricciardo swung in moments after race control declared the pit lane entrance was closed so Ericsson’s car could be recovered safely. Ricciardo therefore copped a five-second penalty.

Despite worsening conditions the race resumed again but this time the inevitable happened immediately. Third-placed Kimi Raikkonen aquaplaned as he reached the grid and bounced off the barriers on either side of the track. Mercifully the oncoming field missed him, though an unsighted Esteban Ocon passed by far too close for comfort. The red flags flew.

The rules limit races to a four-hour window once they have started. With the possibility the race might not even reach three-quarter distance, and therefore award only half points with the consequent ramifications for the championship, there was an obvious pressure to get the race running.

However when the field was sent back out behind the Safety Car it quickly transpired the conditions hadn’t improved enough. The race was red-flagged again.

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Verstappen attacks Rosberg

Verstappen didn’t exactly stay out of the title fight
For what was effectively part two of the race the entire field was instructed to switch back to full wet weather tyres. Hamilton’s near six-second lead over title rival Nico Rosberg had been wiped out by the stoppage, but the second Mercedes had its mirrors full of Red Bull. And its driver, Verstappen, was evidently not dwelling on the advice of Toto Wolff.

Verstappen spied extra grip at the outside of turn three. When the race resumed on lap 32, he used it to drive around the outside of the Mercedes, just as he had done at Silverstone. Hamilton, monitoring the race video the video walls around the track, must’ve enjoyed that one.

However he did not like the idea of Verstappen giving him the same kind of treatment. Once the Red Bull got his lead down to a second Hamilton put his foot down and edged clear again.

Verstappen tried to follow him, but on lap 38 his car skidded violently at turn 14. This looked like a one-way trip to the barriers but with staggering reflexes he restored his RB12 to the direction of travel. Rosberg appeared alongside him in the braking zone for turn one but Verstappen calmly held his position. But the drama had restored Hamilton’s six-second margin.

For Hamilton, the possibility of Verstappen beating Rosberg to second and maybe even Ricciardo edging his team mate off the podium was a result he craved. That would mean he could go to Abu Dhabi certain that a race victory would seal the championship.

But as in the last two races Red Bull’s challenge to Rosberg was undone. And this time they had only themselves to blame.

Red Bull slip up

Massa crashed out of his last home race
Ricciardo, boxed in behind Perez, was the first of the pair to switch to intermediates – he also got his penalty out of the way. Verstappen pitted on lap 42, restoring Rosberg to second place.

Both were immediately able to lap at or under Hamilton’s pace until they hit traffic. Ricciardo breezed past Ocon but then found himself stuck behind the other Force India. And Verstappen was about to get stuck into Sainz when the race appeared to swing in their favour.

Felipe Massa’s final home race hadn’t gone well. The Williams remains allergic to wet conditions and he’s been penalised for overtaking Esteban Gutierrez during a Safety Car period. Seeking an advantage he’d returned to the intermediate tyres, but after 15 laps of wear plus fresh rainfall their traction was diminishing. On lap 48 he emulated Ericsson’s departure from the race.

The good news for Red Bull was the pit lane was closed again, meaning Mercedes couldn’t take advantage of what otherwise would have been a chance to put fresh tyres on. If the conditions improved, Red Bull’s intermediate tyres could swing the race their way.

But the conditions did not improve. After deliberations on the radio Red Bull opted to switch back to full wets. This meant when the race resumed for the final time both Red Bulls were out of the points: Ricciardo 12th and Verstappen 16th.

What followed was the most captivating piece of driving we’ve seen all year, from a driver now almost universally recognised as a champion-in-waiting.

Verstappen tears up the field

Verstappen passed Ricciardo on his way through the field
A slip-up by Fernando Alonso at the exit of Juncao handed Verstappen his first place. But he made the rest up with stunning improvisational driving. Granted, he had more downforce and fresher tyres than almost anyone else out there, but his team mate was similarly well-equipped and did not make as much progress.

While Ricciardo pondered how to pass Kvyat, Verstappen pounced on the outside of Mergulho – seldom a spot for overtaking. He easily dispensed with the likes of Kvyat, Ocon and Felipe Nasr (who was driving a superb race for Sauber).

But what was most impressive about Verstappen’s rise was the speed with which he dispatched the likes of Vettel. The Ferrari driver was left grumbling after his latest encounter with his Red Bull successor, having been left to plough the grass at Juncao.

Onwards Verstappen pressed, passing Sainz and Perez with equally little hesitation. That put him into third, and on the penultimate laps he tore two-and-a-half seconds out of second-placed Rosberg. But the Mercedes was 11 seconds up the road, and Verstappen evidently concluded that even this was too much for him to find in one lap, and backed off on the final tour.

Hamilton’s last chance

Hamilton finally won in Brazil
When the chequered flag fell we heard something we’ve not experienced much this year: Hamilton erupting in joy at a race victory. The strain of the championship and the demands of the conditions certainly made this a triumph to savour. But perhaps what mattered most was the fact he has finally won in his hero’s homeland.

However Rosberg’s second place means he is still the championship favourite. His first world championship is assured if he finished on the podium in the final race – something he’s already done 15 times this year.

Verstappen was followed home by a train of drivers he’d bested: Perez, Vettel, Sainz (a fine sixth), Hulkenberg and a frustrated Ricciardo who’d been struggling with his visor fogging up.

Ninth place for Nasr brought relief for Sauber, who scored their first points in the 20th race of the year. Crucially, it moves them ahead of Manor to tenth place in the constructors’ championship – a potentially lucrative outcome. Rubbing salt in Manor’s wounds, Alonso denied Ocon his first point by passing the rookie two lap from home.

Hamilton has done everything required of him in the last three races to narrow Rosberg’s championship lead. But his team mate just keeps collecting those second places.

Now he must win the final race with his team mate no higher than fourth to retain his crown. Perhaps the time has come to take matters into his own hands.

In two weeks’ time, one of these two will be champion

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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85 comments on “Verstappen steals the show as title fight goes to the wire”

  1. An incredible show of talent today. Bravo to all the drivers! It surely isn’t easy to get 2 red flags and stay “in the zone” as they say, then coming back and deliver such an spectacle!

    Way to go F1! All races should be this wet!

    1. Agreed great job by all the drivers. A very intense wet weather race indeed. Also congrats to LH.

    2. william martin
      14th November 2016, 5:04

      Verstappin future world champion get some more talent like him in massa going hopefully button making room for more fresh young blood

      1. You should try some punctuation sometime.

    3. Care to comment, Mr Villeneuve?

  2. Meh!! He did push Vettel off track at the end. Plus that Red Bull has the most downforce and less power which is ideal for wet conditions. In addition that fresher wet weather tyres then RIC. I think Perez does a lot more with less. Too bad that Force India could not let him eat 4th place.

    1. Vettel also pushed him a little wide at turn 4 in the very same lap, but Verstappen yielded and didn’t go to the kerb or the run off. Vettel should’ve done the same, the position was lost.

      Verstappen ran an incredible race, right from the beginning. He was outstanding today.

      1. Vettel perspective. Max pushed Vet off and left no space. If you look at how Max was able to overtake Perez a lap later, it’s obvious he could have given Vettel the space, but chose not to – dangerous driving.

        Neutral perspective. Racing incident.

        Max perspective. I was going to get that position anyway. I didn’t gain.

      2. Vettel had 42 lap tires, and was pushed off clearly. Don´t´s excuse max in this.

    2. well you whine just as much as Vettel, if you did your homework you would know Ricciardo pitted 2 laps earlier than Max, you call that much fresher?

    3. Didn’t Vettel do the same to Alonso? Anyway, both looked as hard but okay racing.

      1. ….and yet more hair splitting to come, no doubt…….! All the best drivers have days when
        their skills are greater than all the rest of the field and the conditions suit their car perfectly.
        Hamilton, Alonzo, Button, Raikonnen, Vettel, have all had days when everything went perfectly
        for them as regards weather, car set-up, track incidents, timing of pit-stops…….etcetera.
        Yesterday, to cap all the brilliant things he’s already done this season, Verstappen’s car was set up perfectly, his tyres were the right ones, most other drivers were experiencing various difficulties
        which Verstappen simply did not have. All you need to add to that then, is Verstappen’s predatory
        instincts and he will simply devour the opposition. And so he produced one of the best spectacles
        F1 has seen in a very long time. I don’t know what more you can ask of the guy !

    4. Go watch some other sport, will you?

  3. “stunning improvisational driving”- indeed.
    Different lines and so much speed, very very nice.

    1. I am a big fan. It was text book wet driving, drive the non racing line, because it doesn’t have slippery rubber on it. Don’t these other drivers read the text book? Poor stuff from them. Max gave a driving clinic.

      1. Driving off line gets you better traction, correct but…
        There is one problem with leaving the driving line: if there is too much water, the car aquaplanes.
        If you drive in a car with lots of downforce on the rear, and enough bottom clearance, you have a big advantage over those with mediocre downforce, lower ride height in the back.

        1. If its that easy then why didnt RIC do it?

  4. I wish he had stayed on his Full Wets…. could have probably kept his 2nd place, making the title fight even more interesting for HAM & ROS. I am truly amazed he came back to 3rd. Goes to show fresher Wets are superior… everyone else he was battling already had 2x the distance on their wets.

    1. Oh? And Ricciardo? He switched back to full wets 2 laps before Verstappen and was crushed!
      And the rest had or could have changed the tires during the second red flag so they were not that old. If you can’t admit that his driving was outstanding and the key factor in this race, you should switch to some other sport.

    2. lol that’s why RIC finished 3rd or 4th? nah on tires 2 laps fresher he only finished 8th

    3. Hamilton and Verstappen where the fastes drivers on track all throughout the whole race…. Verstappen doing his overtakes was just a bonus for the audiance…he could have settled p2 or fight for p1

  5. Fantastic drives up and down the grid. Hamilton, Perez to mention two, but young Verstappen, wow that wasnt just good. it was Senna good. There I have said it. Those last fifteen laps were just incredible.

    1. Vettel went from p18 to p5 with some fantastic moves and almost 50 lap tires.

  6. People comparing it to Senna’s wet weather race is a JOKE cause Senna got some of those results with inferior cars which the Red Bull is not. He did beat RIC on newer tyres I’ll give him that.

    1. Senna would have won this race pretty easy. Hamilton was faster than Verstapen.

      1. @ Nigel and @ Miane:
        Come on guys, you should give credit where credit is due.
        You sound like Staler and Waldorf.

        Your much hailed (he deserves it!) Lewis hasn’t seen spray of water all race except for the safetycar periods. Strange huh that he was fast?

      2. ColdFly F1 (@)
        14th November 2016, 6:35

        Senna had to wait days for similar comments by anonymous critical observers; first writing in and then hoping the newspapers would print them ;-)

        1. Yes it took Senna a long time to get credit/praise. Here comes an arrogant kid who is given possibly the second best car on the grid and they think it’s the second coming of Jim Clark or Fangio. Meanwhile drivers like Perez go unnoticed but hey that’s life.

          1. Why is he arrogant?
            Giving your favorite driver some wet driving lessons perhaps?

      3. Mercedes the most dominant car in history driven by Hamilton a wet master would be easily overtaken by Senna (that has a crappy strategy changing back and forth from inters to full wet)??? Sure mate keep on dreaming. Max was very much like Senna that race. One of the most exciting races ive seen.

    2. It was great drive, not flawless, but great indeed.

  7. Yes…1 Lap older hahahahaha im so sorry for you

  8. The way I see it, Verstappen could have challenged Hamilton had Red Bull not screwed up on strategy. He does not come across as a guy content with finishing second, and a head to head with Lewis was a mouthwatering proposition early in the race once Max had passed Rosberg.
    A Verstappen win would have been gravy for Rosberg, and a disaster for Lewis. The only thing that can derail Nico now is a mechanical failure with the car, even a puncture like Hulkenberg experienced would potentially do the trick. Personally I would hate this to happen, but Verstappen is certain the play some kind of role into who wins the title and who doesn’t in two weeks.

  9. Please. Max still wouldn’t have had a sniff at Hamilton had his team not screwed up the strategy. If it wasn’t for the safety cars max wouldn’t have even had the chance to get past Rosberg and Hamilton would have been a further 30secs up the road from Rosberg without the SC. Max did drive brilliantly once he had the freshest tires of all the cars in front of him, by no means it was an easy feat overtaking so many cars on track.

  10. I can’t believe people are writing off Max’s drive to tyres or the car. His racecraft was impeccable, passing drivers on the inside, on the outside, under braking, under acceleration. It was absolutely breath-taking.

    These are conditions where drivers are typically feathering the throttle, aero performance has little to do with it due to falling rain constantly disrupting the airflow, meanwhile Max was planting his foot when other drivers dare not to.

    If anything it speaks to the Red Bulls setup mechanically, but even that’s a stretch. It was a simply a great drive and anyone who can’t see that is either blind, or looking the other way.

    1. Actually, big-rake cars lose less downforce in extreme wet conditions, and have the advantage of less chance on aquaplaning. Having more downforce than others also helps getting the tire temps up. And guess what: the weak point of Pirelli tires is that they’ve got a small optimal operating window.

      1. And all of that can be summed up by a better mechanical setup… Which I mentioned. It’s still a ridiculous stretch to write his performance off on the car.

      2. That is not the case with the full wets. You could easily do the full race distance on the wets. And during the second red flag all cars were fitted with a fresh set of wet tires. But as you could have seen, some drivers went back in to pick up their old set of full wets.

        And about the rake: the other teams had the chance before the race to adjust their cars for the rainy circumstances. Usually the parc ferme rules prevent any adjustments between qualifying and the race. But yesterday the teams were made an exception.

        1. Really? I haven’t heard that teams were given a parc ferme exception?

        2. Vince, ride height settings are probably limited by spring, damper and geometry ranges.
          It doesn”t take anything away of the way Max performed, but it explains why others couldn’t do the same

    2. @Tristan

      It’s the old ‘selective perception flaw’ when someone else does well: overestimating outside factors,luck etc./underating personal contribution. When things go wrong we tend to overestimate the personal contribution and under estimate outside factors. Ofcourse, when all this concerns oursevlves, the flaw works the excact opposite way ;-)

  11. Fans are so starved of a really good race.
    RBR is not at the bottom of the list though.
    Fresh wets had a huge advantage for Max.
    I expected him to pass all the cars including Hamilton.

    Nothing beats Senna’s Toleman drive in Monoca for those who have seen that race.
    And the race was stopped as an excuse for Prost to take the win.

    1. Except had the race not been stopped, Bellof would have probably won. He was catching Senna almost as fast as Senna was catching Prost.

  12. ColdFly F1 (@)
    14th November 2016, 6:25

    Verstappen tears up the field

    Massa tears up the stadium! FTFY

  13. Seems some are only focussing on the last 15 laps… the last 15 laps where just an encore, Verstappen gave up his P2 just to take a gamble for P1. To beat a Mercedes.. and especially Hamilton in a Mercedes is sheer impossible, Mercedes straight line speed is second to none…also in the rain.

    Max caught Nico cause Nico slipped up, not cause the RBR had more potential speed, Max taking Nico was a drivers efford.
    Same goes for both Ferrari’s, a car that is known to be good in the wet with expierenced drivers who both can be considered as true rain masters. Max simply though them how…. only Hamilton could match Verstappen this race.

    Hamilton in free air with a Mercedes car, the very best car, who didn’t need to overtake anyone at all. It doesn’t take anything away from Hamilton who was just flawless…keeps us guessing what Verstappen would have been capable off

    1. this year Ferrari is anything, but good in the rain…

      1. I am afraid that it is not only the rain conditions, where the Ferrari ain’t good….

    2. When Max passed Vettel he had 9 lap old tires, while the german had 42 lap old tires… in equal conditions i doubt he´d make the pass.

  14. Legend in the making! Keeping F1 alive.

  15. Max today was simply outstanding. Wish it had of been a standing start.

  16. No thanks at all to Channel 4 for borderline unwatchable coverage. 30 minutes of chat at the beginning for the 99% of viewers that just wanted to watch a race that had already happened, constant breaks etc made (what was probably a very entertaining race) a complete bore. Is it any wonder that people are switching off because when a decent race comes along, it’s shown at 10:30pm with such awful coverage?

    1. I was wondering, as quali highlights were at 8pm the night before the race highlights should’ve been at 9pm right? Did they bump it for that programme Humans they seem to have invested a lot in? I’d rather they put it somewhere else (More4 perhaps?) at the time it should be…

    2. Completely agree on the coverage – atrocious. Should have left more time after the race to interview more drivers.

      Race itself. Pretty exciting once it finally got started, very fearless driving from Max – although one does question tyre degradation differences against other cars. Question, what’s the point of having the safety car laps? -> just to make sure you reach (75%) race distance or satisfy sponsors?. If it’s unsafe and you need a safety car to start and lead for multiple laps, then don’t start the race until you deem it safe.

  17. Did you notice how Verstappen was checking out the track during safety car periods? Testing inside and outside, compared his acceleration and braking to the car in front of him. While all others were controlling the brake and tyre temperatures this young lad was “gathering intel”.
    So what I don’t understand is how come he was the only one doing this? All drivers are professionals and one would expect such cleverness from the more experienced guys on the grid.
    Sorry if I missed another driver doing this in the same way like Max did but probably no one else did it.

    And even then he touched a white line which could have cost him dearly :)

    1. Good point…I observed the same after the first SC when he made that move on Rosberg. I wonder the same why others didn’t tried the same. Perhaps it’s a hallmark of a legendary driver!

      1. He was also clearing the overtaking spot on the inside 😀

    2. He was also the only one,. almost crashing with SC on track, and overtook Rosberg without penalty…

  18. I would like to see Hamilton taking on Max in a Mercedes. This year Mercedes is unbeatable. It would be nice to see them going head to head in the same car. Maybe next year other teams can be (even) more be competitive. Sigh.. why do germans always make the fastest and most reliable cars. Was there ever a Volkswagen F1 car? That would be fun.
    Nevertheless.. thanks to Verstappen F1 just got interesting again.

    1. The Mercedes F1 car is entirely made in England by mainly UK technicians. (And even the name isn’t german, it’s spanish… ;) )

  19. Last time I apologized to the author for having suggested his bias toward Hamilton, but we got here another evidence:

    “For Hamilton, the possibility of Verstappen beating Rosberg to second and maybe even Ricciardo edging his team mate off the podium was a result he craved. That would mean he could go to Abu Dhabi certain that a race victory would seal the championship.”

    That is definitely bending reality, cause if Red Bull didn’t miss strategy, Verstappen would have won the race, hurting Lewis’ title chances more than helping them!

    It’s incredible how Lewis’ supporters live in a fairy world! Why don’t you write that if the end of the world comes Lewis will be champion cause destruction will affect only Rosberg? That’s becoming ridiculous…

    1. frk, I’m quite the Verstappen fan but I’m not sure he would ever have been able to catch Hamilton. Remember he tried it after passing Rosberg, came within 1.5 seconds, then nearly span, then tailed off.
      Not going to inters would have meant staying on the same tyres, and as he couldn’t catch Hamilton during the first part of the race, why would it be a certainty he would have done so in the second part of the race?

      Besides that, there is no bias here as you imply: the author simply is talking from Hamilton’s perspective. Of course, FOR HAMILTON, that idea was something he would have liked very much.

    2. That is definitely bending reality, cause if Red Bull didn’t miss strategy, Verstappen would have won the race, hurting Lewis’ title chances more than helping them!

      Really? Verstappen was running in second earlier in the race after passing Rosberg and made no impression on Hamilton. To say then that he was guaranteed the win is frankly ridiculous. Not that I expect anything less from you frk as this tinfoil hat nonsense is all you’ve posted for the last month.

      1. Thanks for following my comments with such care, instead, I don’t remember anything notable written by you, sorry.

        1. Given the things you post it comes as no surprise to me that you have a questionable memory too

  20. Just stunned by the remarks made on tyre management at RBR. The freshness of the raintyres isn’t really the cause VES flew by. They hardly loose rubber in such a wet track and all these rounds behind the safety car. It was a disadvantage for VES and RIC to have cold tyres on such a cool track. Is the aerodynamics? A bit but not to much as the rain was too heavy for that.

    VES just drove Senna good. Before the red flags and after the red flags. He could beat Hamilton. VES had the fastest lap there while in traffic.

  21. Verstappen certainly earned his ‘transcendent, career-defining wet weather performance’ badge that all the greats seem to have.

    To think, he might have spent the whole season faffing around in a Torro Rosso…

    1. Yes but not even one Podium with Toro Rosso. So there’s that.

      1. Podium in a Toro Rosso? as far as i’m aware, only Vettel did it in the history of the team, and in far different circumstances. Back then, you didn’t have such a overwhelmingly faster and reliable car in front like Mercedes is today. Also VES only did a bit more than a season with them while STR was being powered by the 2015 Renault engine and this season by last-years Ferrari engine. Hardly a car to get a podium in, as Carlos Sainz proved (i rate Sainz very highly).

        1. Also the Toro Rosso from Max was much worse than Vettels who had a decent PU and Adrian Newey chassis.

      2. Verstappen – Nigel 9-0

  22. Pirelli says that the advantage of newer tires wasn’t that big.
    http://www.gpupdate.net/en/f1-news/346954/pirelli-gives-credit-to-magical-verstappen/

    1. Even reduced to almost zero influence, there was almost no tyre degradation on all of the full wets (from all drivers) said Pirelli.

  23. Hamilton set his fastest lap when being chased by verstappen.hamilton was supreme yesterday Hamilton increase his advantage from 1.2 to more than 6 second s to verstappen quite easily.verstappen ‘s spin also a factor ,he drove a supreme race yesterday but the fastest man was Hamilton.

    1. Nope, fastest lap was from VES;

      1. Hamilton set his fastest lap

        Please read peoples comments properly before replying ;)

  24. Great story telling and awesome rendition, @keithcollantine!

    This is not the first time Max has embarrassed Nico on a wet track, and Mercedes must really feel ashamed at how Nico was humbled. And for all those who have been claiming “there isn’t much” between Nico and Lewis, you had your proof today. What is clear is that Lewis and Max are cut out of a very different cloth from ALL the other drivers, and i mean all – including Vettel, Fernando and Kimi.

    I wish i could see them in the same car. It would be the most exciting, and perhaps the most volatile pairing ever in the history of F1.

    1. I agree! That would be something to see them race with the same car! Both great drivers. Looking forward to 2017. I hope the differences between Mercedes and RBR are smaller.

  25. One of the great drives from Max…

    Can I add another wet race that most have forgotten or never knew about, Jim Clark at Spa 1963. Started 8th on the grid, passed all those in front and pulled out 4m 54 s on the entire field, lapping everybody except second place Bruce McLaren. This on a circuit that regularly killed drivers in the day.

  26. Drive of the season by VES. Debatable if he would’ve caught HAM, but i’m guessing not. ROS had a “moment” on track and elected to drive extra conservatively, PER didn’t really give him any grief the only cars on track prepared to have a go were the Redbulls. Although VET was doing ok, until VES got hold of him.

    Can’t see ROS screwing up this opportunity, i fully expect him to be crowned in Abu Dhabi.

  27. I will be the first to admit that I am not a Verstappen fan but boy what a show he put on in Brazil …. that drive was awesome …. if he keeps putting on shows like that he may convert me

  28. For goodness sake… Verstappen swipping the field only happened because he had tyres 20 laps fresher than anyone else!

    The only decent overtake maneouver he did was on Raikkonen in “first” lap, with a superior car and cold Ferrari tyres. He couldn’t even overtake Rosberg when he had the chance.

    1. He couldn’t even overtake Rosberg when he had the chance.

      Err Verstappen did overtake Rosberg

    2. Pirelli made a statement; it was Verstappen magic not our tyres

  29. Why make a comment about a race you clearly haven’t watched? His overtake on Rosberg was the highlight of the race for me.

  30. Has anyone else noticed that the race was also run entirely without DRS.

    And it didn’t matter?

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