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Published by Rob Watts on 29 July, 2019
SILVERSTONE, UNITED KINGDOM – JULY 14: Pierre Gasly, Red Bull Racing RB15, leads Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB15, and Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF90 during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
We’ve now officially passed the halfway point in the 2019 Formula 1 season and after being treated to a scintillating German Grand Prix, F1 has once again proved that when it’s good, it’s VERY GOOD.
Despite appearing to be on the backfoot during pre-season testing, it’s so far turned out to be another exceptionally strong campaign for the prolific Mercedes team, securing nine Grand Prix wins already, including each of the first eight races this season.
Ferrari’s struggles
Ferrari has had its moments, and arguably could – and should – have won both the Bahrain and Canadian Grands Prix, but it’s so far been a winless start to new team principal Mattia Binotto’s reign and the pressure is already mounting on team leader Sebastien Vettel to get off the mark soon.
The only team to have beaten Mercedes to the top step so far is Red Bull, who in doing so gave Honda its first F1 win since the early nineties. Max Verstappen’s commanding victories at the Austrian and German rounds have been amongst the highlights of the season so far, and it’s surely only a matter of time before he finds himself challenging for a first world drivers’ crown.
MELBOURNE GRAND PRIX CIRCUIT, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 17: Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes AMG W10, 1st position, arrives in Parc Ferme during the Australian GP at Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit on March 17, 2019 in Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, Australia. (Photo by Zak Mauger / LAT Images)
Bottas off to a flyer
Despite Lewis Hamilton securing a sixth successive pole at Albert Park, it was Valtteri Bottas who surprisingly got the Silver Arrows off to a flyer Down Under, sparking talk of a new-and-improved ‘Bottas 2.0’ set to challenge his illustrious team-mate for this year’s drivers’ title.
While Bottas started the year well and won again in Baku, he’s struggled so far to keep pace with team-mate Hamilton who appears to have found another gear as the European season gathered pace.
He now appears favourite to secure a sixth World Drivers’ Championship which would edge him closer to Michael Schumacher’s outright record of seven.
After picking up a fortuitous win in Bahrain following Charles Leclerc’s late-race technical trouble, Hamilton followed that up with victory in China at F1’s 1000th race, before pulling clear at the top with four wins on the bounce between the Spanish and French Grands Prix.
Record-breaker
A record-breaking sixth British Grand Prix win was the icing on the cake in front of his adoring home crowd at Silverstone, and despite failing to score at the weekend in Germany, Hamilton heads into this weekend’s Hungarian round with a sizeable 41 point lead.
With Ferrari yet to win, much of the focus has been on whether four-time champion Vettel’s position as the Scuderia’s number one could be under threat with the emergence of young talent Leclerc.
Both have shown flashes of brilliance thus far, but each has had to account for a handful of costly errors with Vettel, in particular, coming under the spotlight for blunders such as his unforced spin in Bahrain and a clumsy collision with Verstappen at Silverstone.
With Ferrari looking most likely to be in a fight with Red Bull for the runner-up spot this year rather than competing with Mercedes for either championship, Red Bull’s not-so-secret weapon has more than justified his growing reputation so far with a string of standout drives.
Matured Max
Still only 21-years-old, Verstappen appears to be developing into a more mature and rounded individual and his two race wins aside, he’s shown remarkable consistency as the only driver to have finished in the top five at every race this year.
On the other side of the garage, however, new team-mate Pierre Gasly has so far had a wretched start to his Red Bull career and has scored less than a third of the Dutchman’s points, leading to speculation that this could be his first and last season with the Milton Keynes squad.
With 11 races down and 10 to go, there’s a lot more to play for in the second half of the season and several key storylines that we’re eager to see unfold.
Mercedes will be looking over its shoulders to see whether Ferrari or Red Bull emerge as its main challenger with tracks such as Singapore and Mexico proving tricky for the reigning champion team in recent years.
SILVERSTONE, UNITED KINGDOM – JULY 14: Nico Hulkenberg, Renault R.S. 19, leads Alexander Albon, Toro Rosso STR14, and Carlos Sainz Jr., McLaren MCL34 during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. (Photo by Andy Hone / LAT Images)
Congested midfield
Further down the grid, McLaren’s resurgence appears to be in full flow as they lead a tight and congested midfield pack. Rookie Lando Norris and former Red Bull-backed driver Carlos Sainz have already earned contract renewals for 2020 thanks to a string of eye-catching drives.
Daniel Ricciardo’s start to life at Renault hasn’t gone as smoothly as he’d hoped, while team-mate Nico Hulkenberg is still searching for a first-ever F1 podium following his costly blunder at the weekend.
After becoming a father for the first time on Saturday, Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat sent a clear message to former employers Red Bull with his stunning Hockenheim podium drive and with Gasly’s future in doubt, he could be one of the surprise keys to this year’s driver transfer market.
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Had somewhere a little more exotic in mind? We’ve got you covered.
Why not take a trip to the iconic Suzuka circuit in Japan or tackle the Americas doubleheader with back-to-back weekends in vibrant Mexico City and the lively city of Austin, Texas.
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