Hamilton and Alonso at Silverstone. Click to enlarge.

Formula 1 came home this week, with the British GP taking place at Silverstone.

Qualifying

Not much to report on qualifying this time- although the extremely wet conditions did bring some strange results and at one point a red flag. The foremost of the strange results was Button not making it through even Q1, qualifying in 18th. Hamilton, though, did better getting an 8th place grid position. Still not very good for Mclaren though.

Alonso led the pack, but his time was only a fraction of a second better than Webber‘s, with both drivers putting in great laps. Schumacher continued his recent form with a 3rd place lap time. Vettel could only manage 4th, just in front of Massa- a seasons best for the Brazilian in 5th.

After penalties for gearbox changes Kobayashi and Hulkenburg were both put back five places, as was Vergne for his activities in Valencia.

Grid positions (after penalties):

  1. Alonso
  2. Webber
  3. Schumacher
  4. Vettel
  5. Massa
  6. Raikkonen
  7. Maldonado
  8. Hamilton

    Schumacher showed why he’s known as a wet-weather master by qualifying 3rd. Click to enlarge.

  9. Grosjean
  10. Di Resta
  11. Rosberg
  12. Ricciardo
  13. Senna
  14. Hulkenburg
  15. Perez
  16. Button
  17. Kobayashi
  18. Petrov
  19. Kovalainen
  20. Glock
  21. de la Rosa
  22. Karthikeyan
  23. Vergne
  24. Pic

The race

Despite weather reports on the Saturday that meant organisers even went to the extent to tell fans not to attend the GP, the race did stay dry the whole time. Not as much action as Valencia this time, but still a good race to continue the wonder season.

It was Webber that eventually took the win, with Alonso leading most of the race but not quite getting to the end with his tyres intact. Webber drove very well and managed his tyres to mean he was able to take what was in the end a comfortable victory. Alonso came 2nd, also comfortable and again showing why he’s leading the championship and regarded as probably the best driver on the grid at the moment. Webber meanwhile continues to impress despite his age- out qualifying and racing Vettel is not to be taken lightly. If both drivers continue like this it’ll be them fighting it out for the championship come November.

Vettel meanwhile finished off the podium with a 3rd place finish- another good weekend for Red Bull who are definitely the most consistent team overall. Massa is still trying to prove me and many others wrong in saying that he is not good enough for Ferrari, and this weekend did well by getting a 4th place.

Mclaren showed poor form again, however. Despite it being a home GP for the Woking boys, it was a poor showing. Hamilton’s strategy didn’t pay off, and despite leading the race at one point (albeit only from pit-stop circumstances) eventually finished where he qualified in 8th. Button did well to gain 6 places, but a 10th and 8th place for Mclaren is not a good result by any stretch. With driver transfer speculation rife at the moment, could we see Hamilton leave Mclaren for Red Bull or Ferrari if their form does not pick up?

The only other piece of news is that of Pastor Maldonado- once again he was in a collision, this time with Perez. Despite this one seeming like a racing incident, the amount of crashes he’s got in over the years suggests he’s not the most careful or calm driver. This is precisely the reason why I and many others don’t like him. What’s more, Sergio Perez, in an interview mid-race after his retirement, suggested he’s not the drivers’ favourite person either- Perez claimed Maldonado “does not respect other drivers” and when asked if other drivers felt that way, he replied “yes.”

Race results:

  1. Webber
  2. Alonso
  3. Vettel
  4. Massa
  5. Raikkonen
  6. Grosjean
  7. Schumacher
  8. Hamilton

    Perez and Maldonado had a crash that was deemed racing incident, but still raised questions about Maldonado’s record. Click to enlarge.

  9. Senna
  10. Button
  11. Kobayashi
  12. Hulkenburg
  13. Ricciardo
  14. Vergne
  15. Rosberg
  16. Maldonado (lapped)
  17. Kovalainen (lapped)
  18. Glock (lapped)
  19. Pic (lapped)
  20. de la Rosa (lapped)
  21. Karthikeyan (lapped)
  22. Perez (retired, 11 laps)
  23. Di Resta (retired, 2 laps)
  24. Petrov (retired, 0 laps)

Overall the race was as always a good one. Whilst collisions were sparse unlike last race, the overtaking was good and frequent, and Webber’s win means the season is ever more tight in championship points.

The last few races have shown the field is widening once again. The midfield is becoming larger, with teams like Mercedes and Lotus falling behind the likes of Mclaren, Ferrari and Red Bull. Despite this, anything is still possible- the Lotus and Mercedes still look very capable of winning races, as do teams like Sauber and Williams if all factors go their way.

Further up the field, the big 3 of Mclaren, Ferrari and Red Bull aren’t so simple either. Red Bull are looking stronger and stronger and I’d tip Vettel to win the German GP next week now, despite not having the luxury of practice or qualifying times. Ferrari are closest to them- Alonso looks like his majestic driving isn’t just going to bring him good results for the car, but a load of podium finishes with a much better motor. Mclaren, however, are falling behind. Button seems to have lost his mojo and Hamilton can’t do much with a car that just looks to have lost competitiveness with the other 2 teams.

Next time, it’s the German GP at Hockenheim.