With Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) the hometown favorite, being bumped from first to last at the third corner, the collective groan from 340 thousand British spectators was audible. Much Finnish epithets were also heard, amplified by the stewards awarding Kimi Raikkonen a 10 second stop-go penalty for giving Hamilton a helping hand into the shrubbery.
Driver of the day was Hamilton, though Raikkonen’s drive to overcome his penalty was also a sterling effort ending up three seconds behind the Brit.
Some close racing at the top end and bodes well for the next race in Germany on July 22.
The race was half way through the 2018 calendar and already there is jostling for seats with some current drivers just not making the grade. First among these is Grosjean (Haas) – is there any driver left that he hasn’t managed to hit, but on the plus side he can say “sorry” in several languages? Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso) does not deserve an F1 seat, as does Brendan Hartley (in the other Toro Rosso). The Williams pair of Stroll and Sirotkin are a joke (well-heeled jokes) and are a laughing stock. Vandoorne who has been outqualified every meeting by Alonso is another who should look for alternative employment next year, they are short taxi drivers in Brussels I am told. Ericsson (Sauber) is being consistently shown up by the talented novice Leclerc, who only lost out on a top 10 finish after his crew sent him out on three wheels.
Objectively, half the field does not deserve to be there. The teams should start looking at the talented F2 drivers.
Result
1 S Vettel Ferrari
2 L Hamilton Mercedes
3 K Raikkonen Ferrari
4 V Bottas Mercedes
5 D Ricciardo Red Bull
6 N Hulkenberg Renault
7 E Ocon Force India
8 F Alonso McLaren
9 K Magnussen Haas
10 S Perez Force India
DNF
M Verstappen Red Bull – 46 laps
R Grosjean Haas Accident – 37 laps
C Sainz Renault Accident – 37 laps
M Ericsson Sauber Accident – 31 laps
C Leclerc Sauber – loose wheel 18 laps
B Hartley Toro Rosso – Accident
