Tag: Silverstone

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Flashback Friday

Flashback Friday: 2002 British Grand Prix

For this week’s Flashback Friday, we take a look back at the 2002 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, where the history of the Formula One World Championship all began.

During the qualifying for the 11th race of the season, Juan Pablo Montoya took pole position for Williams, closely followed by Rubens Barrichello and the Schumacher brothers – Michael and Ralf. Minardi driver, Alex Yoong, was unable to qualify due to failing to set a lap time in the 107% time.

Image Credit: Motorsport Images

Leaving 21 drivers on the starting grid, during the formation lap Barrichello stalled and was pushed to the back of the grid before lights out. As the lights went out for the 52nd British Grand Prix, Allan McNish took an unforgiving path onto the white line because of a clutch failure, spinning him off the track. Montoya held the lead from the Schumacher brothers for a while, however, Michael was gaining precious time on him.

Image Credit: Motorsport Images

As this was going on, Kimi Raikkonen was putting pressure on Ralf Schumacher, who was in 3rd. Behind the front of the pack, we saw Barrichello go from P21 to P13 and still pushing for more. The battle between Ralf Schumacher and Raikkonen gained more tension as the other McLaren driver, David Coulthard, joined in the battle for 3rd place.

By lap six, Barrichello gained positions back up to 8th, with Raikkonen securing 3rd. As the rain started to fall over Silverstone, the drivers came into the pits. The first driver in was Felipe Massa, followed shortly by Montoya.

Nine laps in, the Aussie, Mark Webber, spun off the track due to clutch failure. Michael Schumacher and both Williams drivers all decided to pit on lap 13. Teams using the Bridgestone tires had an advantage of having intermediates, whereas teams using Michelin tyres were forced to change to wets. Jenson Button and Raikkonen were battling for 6th. The McLaren’s move on the Renault was successful, resulting in Raikkonen moving up a place. Raikkonen pushed his way past Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli, putting himself in 4th. As the track started to clear up, Ralf Schumacher took his second pitstop, insisting on keeping all wets on.  Both McLaren’s were sent into the pits to change back onto slicks.

Image Credit: Motorsport Images

However, in typical British form, the rain got heavier causing many problems for the teams. By lap 20, Toyota driver, Mika Saló, and Arrows driver, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, both suffered an early retirement due to engine and transmission problems. Eddie Irvine spun off the track on lap 23. The Brazilian driver, Enrique Bernoldi, faced problems with the driveshaft, resulting in the 6th retirement of the race. Just before the half way point in the race, Trulli faced electrical issues. Raikkonen (on lap 44) and Sato (on lap 50) both retired due to engine failure. 

At the chequered flag, Michael Schumacher took his 7th victory of the season with a 14.5-second lead, ahead of Barrichello. Barrichello had a 17-second lead over the last podium sitter, Montoya. The lapped cars finished the race as follows: Jacques Villeneuve, Olivier Panis, Nick Heidfeld, Giancarlo Fischella, Ralf Schumacher, Massa, Coulthard and Pedro de la Rosa. Teammates Villeneuve and Panis brought back the first points of the season for BAR-Honda.

Image Credit: Motorsport Images

Written by Chloe.

Featured Image Credit: Motorsport Images

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Flashback Friday

Flashback Friday: Where it all began!

Silverstone circuit, United Kingdom, 13th May 1950, the first World Championship Grand Prix was held, lighting the fire in the hearts of racing fans. Drivers took to the track to create history with a thrilling first championship race and it set Formula 1 on the path for the future.

Source: Salracing.com

It was estimated that up to 120,000 spectators lined the track on race day! The most important of which was King George VI, who attended the race with daughters Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret. 1950 remains the only time a reigning monarch has attended a British motor race.

Source: F1.com

As well as the race being attended by royalty, the entry list had a distinctly aristocratic feel. Among the 21 drivers that took part were Prince Birabongse Bhanudej Bhanubandh (better known as Prince Bira) a notable racer and member of the Thai royal family. There was also Baron Emmanuel ‘Toulo’ de Graffenried, a Swiss driver who’d won the 1949 edition of the British Grand Prix in the pre-world championship era. 

Alfa Romeo’s 158 may have been 13 years old by the time of the first world championship race, but the 1.5-litre supercharged machine was still the car to beat. The Italian manufacturer had managed to sign three of the era’s biggest names: Guiseppe ‘Nino’ Farina, Luigi Fagioli and Juan Manuel Fangio, affectionately known as the ‘Three Fs’. The trio duly qualified their scarlet cars in the top three grid slots, with British driver Reg Parnell a second down the road in fourth in the final Alfa Romeo entry. 

Source: Goodwood.com

In the race Farina, Fagioli and Fangio ran away from the rest of the field. The line-up was made up of a mixture of ageing Maserati’s, ERAs, Talbots, and Altas. After 70 laps and nearly two and a quarter hours of racing, Farina triumphed, leading fellow Italian Fagioli across the line by 2.6s. However, it was Parnell and not Fangio who completed Alfa’s clean sweep of the podium places after the Argentine had been forced into retirement with a broken oil pipe!

One of the biggest differences of the 1950 race was the average age of the drivers! For the very first World Championship race, it was a much more mature 39 that was the average age. Three of the 21 drivers at Silverstone were in their fifties (pre-war aces Luigi Fagioli, 51, Louis Chiron, 50, and Philippe Etancelin, 53), while five more were aged forty or over, including race winner Giuseppe Farina (43). The youngest of field, was British racer Geoffrey Crossley, who at 29 was still 12 years older than Max Verstappen during his World Championship debut!

Written by Cesca.

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F1 2022 Season

Great Britain 2022 – Sainz is Supreme in Silverstone

Race weekend review

The iconic British GP in Silverstone has always been one of entertainment; from winning the race with only three wheels to a heavy crash at Copse. This weekend was no different.

Many stars filled the paddock once again, from YouTube, Hollywood and football— everyone wanted to know, who would it be this year? Sir Lewis? Looking for a record breaking victory? Or Max Verstappen? Aiming to keep his mighty championship hunt going.

Practice

The weather conditions made it tricky to assume anything all weekend. FP1 saw rain, and lots of it, so there was minimal running on the track. At a later stage, it began to dry out and certain drivers changed for slick tyres.

Valterri Bottas, Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz ended the session as the top three, while Lance Stroll ended up on the gravel with only a few seconds to spare, ending the session early.

Source: TFS

No more rain for FP2 meant that drivers could finally go out on track to get the data they needed. Some teams were collecting data from new upgrades —Williams and Aston Martin being two of them.

Carlos Sainz finished the session on top, followed by Hamilton and Norris. Championship rivals Verstappen and Leclerc were P4 and P5 respectively.

Source: TFS

Red Bull came back on a charge in FP3, displaying their recent domination in full effect. Verstappen took P1 and Perez P2, ahead of the Ferrari of Leclerc and both Mercedes, who had been showing great pace throughout the weekend.

Qualifying

Some rain fell just before the session began so everyone was on intermediate tyres, ready to go as soon as the lights turned green.

Verstappen, who was ahead for the majority of the session, set a time that would keep him ahead of Leclerc. Surprisingly, the heavily upgraded Williams was the one eliminated in Q1, Albon not happy about the strategy the team used in the session. Both Haas and Aston Martin lost both of their drivers in the first round of qualifying.

Eliminated in Q1: Albon, Magnussen, Vettel, Schumacher, Stroll

Even more rain came down as we edged further into the session, causing all sorts of problems for drivers who didn’t get an early lap in.

A still struggling Ricciardo didn’t set a time fast enough to help him escape elimination, along with Ocon too who was in P15. AlphaTauri lost both drivers but considering it had been a difficult weekend for them, it seemed like it would be just fine.

For the first time ever, Latifi had made it to the top 10 shootout in Q3.

Eliminated in Q2: Gasly, Bottas, Tsunoda, Ricciardo, Ocon

While out in Q3, in the midst of setting a flying lap time like he had been doing, Verstappen spun coming out of Stowe but his composure allowed him to keep control and managed that 360 degree turn beautifully.

It looked like Verstappen had it in the bag, with Hamilton and Leclerc behind him but just as the clock hit zero, Sainz set a stunning lap time to put him first for Ferrari— A Leclerc spin would solidify a first pole position for the Spaniard as the Monegasque and Dutch ended the laps they were on.

Source: FIA.com

It was a first for Sainz, finally a pole sitter in Formula 1. He would start alongside Verstappen and in front of his teammate Leclerc.

Top 10: Sainz, Verstappen, Leclerc, Perez, Hamilton, Norris, Alonso, Russell, Zhou and Latifi

Source: news.postuszero.com

Race Report

Silverstone 2022 was without a doubt one of the most memorable races so far this season. We saw a returning star on the podium as well as a new race winner, and plenty of action inbetween.

After taking pole position on Saturday, Carlos Sainz was able to take his first win in Formula One, a monumental moment which will not be forgotten. However, another incident in the series of Ferrari’s issues meant that teammate Charles Leclerc was only able to finish in fourth, on a day when he should have been able to achieve much more.

Source: Clive Mason via Getty images

It was a good day for Red Bull in comparison, with Mexican Sergio Perez finishing in second place, despite an early tussle with Charles Leclerc. However, teammate and championship leader Max Verstappen was only able to finish in seventh place after sustaining damage from debris on track. Despite this, the team lost minimal points in the championship battle.

Returning to the podium was home hero Lewis Hamilton in third place, much to the delight of the Mercedes team. However, George Russell’s home race was ended just as it began following a heavy and serious crash with Zhou Guanyu which resulted in a lengthy red flag.

Source: Lewis Hamilton via Instagram

This was only the start of Alfa Romeo’s issues on Sunday – Zhou’s crash left the Chinese driver in the medical centre and unable to capitalise on what could have been an excellent race for him, whereas Valtteri Bottas retired from the race due to a gearbox issue.

It was an equally disappointing day for the Alpha Tauri team, with Pierre Gasly having to retire from the race following contact between the two teammates, and Yuki Tsunoda only able to finish in fourteenth, despite avoiding severe damage at the first race start.

It was a much better afternoon for the McLaren team, with Lando Norris finishing in sixth place at his home race in front of an adoring crowd. However, it was another struggle of a race for Daniel Ricciardo, with the Australian driver only able to finish the race in thirteenth place.

An excellent start to the race for Nicholas Latifi saw him battling the faster cars on the grid in the Williams, eventually finishing in twelfth place. The team was, although, unable to test the new upgrades they had brought along as Alex Albon was another victim of the first lap contacts, resulting in a DNF and hospital trip for the Thai/British driver. We hope for a speedy recovery, Alex!

An excellent weekend for Haas saw both drivers finish in the points for the first time in a long time – after an excellent on track battle with Max Verstappen, Mick Schumacher was able to finish in eighth place, the highest of his career, with Kevin Magnussen in tenth place.

Source: Mick Schumacher via Instagram

Join us this weekend to follow the Austrian GP in Spielberg to see who comes out on top! Catch everything on The Fastest Sector social media!

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F1 2022 Season

Hamilton, Russell, Norris, and Silverstone: A Full English

The British Grand Prix is a staple in the F1 calendar, especially at the historic Silverstone Circuit.

This year was extra special as it featured 3 British drivers in top teams capable of competing for a podium or for some even a win.

Russell and Hamilton being the only all British driver pairing on the grid with Mercedes went into the weekend hoping to continue the momentum created from an electrifying weekend in Montreal, while Norris looked to bring McLaren back to the top of the grid with the current “Big Three”.

The weekend started off well for Hamilton finishing P2 in FP1while Russell and Norris struggled running only a combined 6 laps and neither recording a time.

FP2 saw Hamilton continue his successes from earlier in the morning and finishing in P2 yet again, Norris found his stride to end Friday running in P3 while Russell would settle for a respectable P8.

Saturday is where the big show truly begins, and with all 3 drivers finishing FP3 in the top 10 it looked promising for the home crowd for qualifying.

Quali saw all three Brits make it to Q3 despite the tricky conditions, but a mistake by Russell in the closing stages saw him finish quali in only P8 while Hamilton and Norris qualified in P5 and P6 respectively with less than a tenth separating them.

Sunday is where the points are scored though, and all three were in a prime position to score some especially with more controlled conditions.

When the five lights went off, we saw a tale of three races for each driver. Hamilton got off the line brilliantly, jumping Alonso and Leclerc for 3rd, Norris got a decent start and was able to pass Alonso and battle Perez until an incident that leads me to the final British driver.

Russell got off the line incredibly poorly, falling back on Latifi and Zhou before clipping the wheel of Gasly and spinning off into Zhou sending Zhou into the gravel and catch fence upside down and suffering a puncture himself before stopping the car and getting out to assist in recovering Zhou.

Despite Russell’s belief that he could get the car back to the pits under its own power, the Marshalls opted to tow it back meaning an end to his race and an end to his incredible streak of P5 or better performances this season in devastating fashion.

The rest of the race would see Norris put up a brilliant effort to finish P6 throughout all the chaos and pandemonium.

For Hamilton, the race was one of highs and lows, but mostly highs. A slow pitstop would mean he would lose out on the lead and even a podium in some eyes, but there is a reason he is seen as one of the greatest to ever do it, he just finds a way.

A late safety car would allow Hamilton to pit for new softs with very little to lose. The restart would allow Lewis to have an excellent look at the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc who was running on much older hard tires, but with the raw pace of the Ferrari what would normally be a routine drs overtake would lead to some of the most brilliant racing we have seen in a very long time with the GOAT taking on the driver of tomorrow for a much-desired podium place. After about 7 laps of pure racing, Hamilton would get DRS and complete the move with enough time to pull away earning him a P3 in his home race to the delight of the amazing British fans.

Hope you enjoyed this piece about our lovely British drivers- make sure you show some love and tell us about your favourite moments of the drivers in the comment section.

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Flashback Friday

Flashback Friday: 2000 British GP

The Fastest Sector is back with Flashback Friday, here’s the need-to-know with a brief article about the British Grand Prix.

The 2000 British GP at the iconic Silverstone Circuit saw round four of the 50th season in Formula One.

The weekend saw an interesting qualifying grid with Rubens Barrichello taking pole while his Ferrari teammate the great Michael Schumacher only qualified fifth. The shock of qualifying was Heinz-Harold Frentzen qualifying second in his Jordan Honda only 0.003 seconds off pole with the two McLarens of Coulthard and Hakkinen occupying the second row.

The race started with Frentzen and Barrichello getting off evenly while Schumacher fell from fifth to eighth falling behind the BAR of Villeneuve and both Williams’.

Barrichello would hold the lead for 30 laps before Coulthard would pull of a move around Stowe. Coulthard would pit on the end of lap 32 granting the Brazilian the lead back as he would stay out an extra two laps. When Barrichello pitted, Schumacher took the lead of the race until lap 38 when he pitted himself.

After the first set of stops, a spin caused by a gearbox malfunction would see the end of Barrichello’s race and Frentzen would take the lead with the McLaren of Coulthard closing in on the German.

As Frentzen pulled into the pits for his second stop Coulthard would take the lead again where he would stay until the checkered flag waved on lap 60 despite some late race gearbox issues.

Coulthard’s win snapped a three-race win streak for Schumacher who would finish 3rd behind both McLarens and ahead of his brother Ralf.

The 2000 British GP gave some spice to an otherwise uncompetitive championship and added to the list of classics held at the iconic Silverstone circuit.

Source: via IMDb

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