Monday, 12 June 2017

CANADIAN GRAND PRIX - LEWIS HAMILTON AND MERCEDES CONJURED UP A WINNING DOUBLE!






A Massive Congratulation to Lewis Hamilton and Valterri Bottas and their Mercedes Team, for having continued with their successes during the qualifying session of the CGP, to arriving at the Checkered Flag in P.1 and P.2 formation.

Congratulations, also, to Daniel Ricciardo and his Red Bull Team, for making it to P.3. Thereby assuaging some of the great disappointment experienced by the intrepid Max Verstappen, due to him having prematurely ending his race.  

When he encountered engine problems, after having a spectacular start, which saw him overtaking some cars within metres of the start of the race.  

Although not without doing some damage to Seb Vettel's front wing, which compromised Vettel's race. This was just one of several things which was to emboldened  Vettel to hammering his way through the field towards the end of the race.  

Overtake the squabbling Perez and Econ, as they lingered behind Riccardo, without being able to overtake him, before Vettel, dramatically, bounced them, sending them hither and thither.

In order to build on and maximise their advantage from the foundation which they had established in Saturday's qualifying sessions, Lewis, Valtteri and Mercedes needed a very good start to the race. 

Which they duly accomplished, even with Max Verstappen's rocket like dash from 5th place on the grid to second, within the very first seconds of the start of the race. 

None of which prevented Hamilton from staying ahead of the pack, or  Bottas from holding onto his P.3 position.  

Although Sebastian Vettel had to concede his second place to Verstappen. 

Probably somewhat paradoxically, it would be Vettel who would have to drive his car like a rocket, towards the end of the race, to overtake Perez and Econ, and place himself at P.4 position. 



Thereby reducing the number of points he would have conceded to Hamilton, had he finished behind Econ.

As Formula 1 races go, the Canadian Grand Prix was somewhat of a 'walk in the park' for Hamilton and Bottas. 

Notwithstanding the triggering of the Safety Car and the Virtual Safety Car, due to several incidents. 

These involved Carlos Sainz and Filipe Massa colliding and and having their race ended in lap one. Followed by Max Verstappen's race coming to an end during lap 11, when his car gave up the ghost.

There was a lot f disappointment for many drivers, including Fernando Alonso, whose race came to an end in the penultimate lap, when his car, also, gave up the ghost. 

Kimi Raikkonen, initially, had the opportunity to take advantage of Vettel's problems in the race, and progressed to the front of the pack. However, as fate would have it, his car's reliability, or lack of it, betrayed him, and he could only make it to P.7 at the end.

With Vettel's race problems, it might have been expected that Hamilton would have been able to reduce his Championship points deficit by more than the 12 points he is now, behind Vettel. 

It could be said that, on balance, fate had not been as hard on Vettel as it had initially appeared.



And, after a very eventful race, with some exhilarating racing by many of the drivers, including Vettel and Verstappen, we now look to the next race. In Baku, with, like om Monte Carlo, its Grand Prix circuit 'of iron.' 

Where overtaking and moments of lapses in concentration or misjudgement, can easily put an end to ones race.  And does so with greater consequence than would be the case with the more 'racing friendly circuits.' 

That be as it may, if Hamilton, Bottas and Mercedes are to keep marching on toward the 2017 championship.  

Then they will need to deliver as good, if not even better individual and collective performances than they have done this week, and achieve the same kind of results.







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