What we learnt from the Canadian Grand Prix
Last weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix showed that you can never take anything for granted in Formula One.
It was only a few races ago the two Red Bull drivers of Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel were co-leading the drivers’ world championship, with the team top of the constructors’ as well.
Now, after Lewis Hamilton’s win in Canada on Sunday, with his teammate Jenson Button in second, the momentum has moved from Red Bull and seems to be fully with the McLaren team after consecutive one-two finishes.
Before the Turkish Grand Prix, Red Bull were the dominant force, with Webber winning in Spain and Monaco and many believed they were going to run away with both titles. However, the Red Bull charge came to a halt when they collided during the race, throwing the chance of a one-two finish and another race win, and the failure to capitalise on their dominance by opening up a healthy lead.
For the first time in 2010 Red Bull were beaten to pole position in Canada by Hamilton, and during the race, they hardly featured, with Vettel finishing fourth and Vettel fifth.
The wheels seem to have come off the Red Bull wagon at the moment since the incident in Turkey, but team principal Christian Horner is adamant his team will bounce back. “It seems to be a disadvantage to lead the drivers' championship. But I'm not surprised at how the championship has flipped around. It's the most exciting we've had for some time, and we're not even halfway through yet. There's a long way to go,” said Horner.
Although they struggled to challenge for the race win, Horner was still pleased to pick up points. "I'm encouraged by the fact that on a track we knew would suit the McLarens, with them achieving an optimum result, we finished fourth [Vettel] and fifth [Webber] to limit the damage. We performed better and were more competitive with the McLarens than I expected, gaining some very valuable points.”
Horner was questioned over the decision to let his drivers race one another at Turkey, but he believes teammates should compete against each other. “Others haven't made the most of their opportunities either, be it with wheel nuts [Mercedes' Michael Schumacher] or bungs (seals for containers) left in their car [Button]. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but we are where we are at the moment. It's still very tight, and these things tend to equal themselves out. Neither driver was given any instruction to change position. There are no team orders within Red Bull Racing, other than that the drivers should race each other with respect,” said Horner.
Hamilton is now top of the drivers’ standings after a difficult start to the season. Button, the reigning world champion, is only three points adrift. Both drivers have two wins each this season, with Hamilton winning back to back races, starting at Turkey.
The 2008 world champion is keen to open up a gap at the top and not make the same mistakes as Red Bull. “If I am able to keep my head and stay focused, as this is where you really have to knuckle and grind, to brush it down to the bone, then this is where you can make a difference. You can see how close it is, and I am sure if you are able to get a fair enough gap you might be able to maintain that for the rest of the year. That has got to be the target," he said.
Button has a world championship crown to defend, and when many predicted he wouldn’t have a chance of doing so this year, he is very much in contention. “We're eight races in and there are just three points between us, so it's looking fantastic.” said the 30-year-old. “To have won the world championship last year, to have moved teams, and now be racing alongside Lewis and fighting for the championship again, is a great feeling for me. I've had a good season so far, but there's more to come,” said Button.
Ferrari made an improvement after their woeful showing in Turkey. Fernando Alonso felt he could have won the race, and his podium finish signified they are back on the pace. For the next grand prix in Valencia, Ferrari will have major updates coming to their car, which could give them an extra 0.7 seconds. Alonso - fourth in the standings, 15 points behind - is optimistic about these new developments coming. “We will have major updates on the F10 which I hope will allow us to up our performance level.”
The double world champion dismissed claims these updates are a desperate attempt from the Scuderia to get back on track. “It’s not a last-ditch effort for Ferrari, which I heard some people saying. I don't see how they can say that given that we have not even reached the halfway point of the season and that after Valencia there will still be 10 grands prix to go.”
The Canadian Grand Prix showed the power shifting from Red Bull to McLaren, and Ferrari slowly coming back into the championship hunt.
With only six points separating the top three drivers (Hamilton 109, Button 106, Webber 103), the rest of the season promises to be one a close one.
Tags: