‘Max Verstappen is on his way to a second world titel after his sublime perfomance at Spa. I can’t deny it anymore. He was really so dominant, nobody could even come close to him. Max was really in a world of his own.
I am therefore convinced that he is heading straight for his second title. I don’t see how he can miss out now, unless he gets extremely unlucky or starts making really stupid mistakes. And if he does not win the title, it will be because he lost it himself.
Of course, Verstappen himself is in absolute top form but with the package this weekend Red Bull has given him the key to victory. They were fast on the straights, quick in the corners and managed to limit their tyre wear. I thought it was a masterpiece this weekend, because every other car was either fast in the corners or fast on the straights. Everyone had a piece of the puzzle, but Red Bull was the only team with all the pieces.
Grid penalties
Thanks to all the gridpenalties we had an example of what a reverse grid could be. Sadly the DRS did not add any excitement to the reverse grid: the cars reached the front quickly and easily. It only took 10 to 12 laps for Verstappen to cruise to the front, helped by a driver/car/team combo that was unbeatable. There were no really nice overtakes, nothing aggressive. And the overtaking that did take place was all finished before they entered the braking zones. I thought that was a shame.
I am glad that Spa will be on the calendar for at least another year, although I have never experienced such chaos as this weekend. It is a great circuit to drive, really great. But with today’s cars, it has lost some of its charm. Eau Rouge is not really a corner any more. You take it full throttle, even if you are on cold tyres and coming out of the pit lane with a full tank. It is still extremely dangerous, but it no longer requires real driving skills. The same applies to Blanchimont, you can go all out there too. Part of the appeal has been lost.
Iconic circuits
From an organisational point of view Spa was quite chaotic, like I’ve never experienced before. For example, the exit was closed for an hour and a half, preventing teams and personnel from leaving the track. Apparently there was no communication between the police and the organisation, it does not meet the F1 requirements. Frankly, I understand why the FOM has doubts about Spa. Things like this just have to be well organized everywhere. Look at Zandvoort. It works there, while you would expect problems. And in Paul Ricard it was all well organized this year with only one access road…
Circuits that should be on the calendar because of their iconic status are almost non-existent, apart from Monaco. The old Hockenheim was iconic and it is no more. The Nürburgring is iconic, but we don’t go there anymore. I wouldn’t even call modern Silverstone iconic now that it’s been turned upside down. As an event, it’s been great by all the fans, but not by Silverstone itself. I think any circuit in England these days would be full of fans. Zandvoort is another classic name, but it is a strange circuit, making it difficult to make any predictions. But we all know that the Red Bull will be fast. The Ferrari should be there on the day, because there aren’t any long straights. It is a mix. So it’s really impossible to say what we can expect there.’
