The F1 summer break is upon and as drivers jet off to the far flung reaches of the world for a well-deserved relax (unless you’re Lando Norris who apparently just jumps on iRacing), F1 fans are left in cold sweats, wondering how they’ll survive the long four weeks until Spa but who will be going into the break with a smile on their face and who will be looking for the nearest bar with the strongest drinks to drown their sorrows?
Winners
Lewis Hamilton – It’s been a little while since we can really say that Hamilton has been a ‘loser’ in any F1 season, even when he was beaten to the championship title in 2016 by his then team-mate Nico Rosberg, second is hardly a catastrophe. Okay, I don’t have the same mentality as racers so many may disagree but 2019 has been a year of highs and few lows for Hamilton as he sits top of the standings with a 62-point buffer between himself and second-place man Valterri Bottas. The Brit has already amassed eight victories as well as two second-place finishes so far this year, a vast improvement on his performance this time last year when he had five victories, four podiums and one unfortunate DNF. If Hamilton carries on with his amazing form, it won’t be long before he takes his sixth championship victory.
Carlos Sainz – I’d be lying if I said that I was expecting great things after his move to McLaren, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised by Sainz so far this season. Even though he is somewhat mirroring his success from last year with eight top 10 finishes so far, the Spaniard has improved massively with back-to-back fifth-place finishes compared to his double DNF at the start of the season. The partnership between Sainz and Norris seems to have been a breath of fresh air into the Woking based unit as they seem to be looking more like their championship winning selves again.
Lando Norris – Speaking of Carlos Sainz’ orange-clad bestie, Norris has come into the F1 field and truly blown everyone away. He may have just missed the chance the claim the F2 title last year but that has definitely not dampened his spirit as he is currently the highest-ranking rookie on the grid in 10th position. With six top 10 finishes under his belt so far this year, as well as two sixth-place finishes, the Brit is not showing any signs of cooling off.
It’s obvious that McLaren have been the true winners of the season so far. With two exceptional drivers who not only get along on and off track, but consistently deliver wonderful results, the team really won the lottery with their picks. If you compare McLaren’s end of 2018 points to their current 2019 points, you *may* be gobsmacked to realise that they have 20 points more going INTO the summer break than they did at the end of 2018. Incredible? Yes!
Losers.
Daniel Riccardo – The Honey Badger may always be seen as the smiling, joyful guys who’s messing around in the paddock, but he’s had very little to smile about so far this season. After his split from Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, we all hoped that a new team would mean a more positive mindset for him and better results…how wrong were we. Riccardo has only managed four top-10 finishes with sixth being his best finish so far this year compared to his two victories and four top-10s at the same point last year. Not all of Riccardo’s misfortunates have been his own doing but that will be little consolation for the Aussie. Hopefully, the summer break will recharge and reset him and give us another victory for F1’s Cheshire cat.
Sebastian Vettel – The only way you can describe Vettel’s 2019 season so far is woeful. From five wins and three podiums at this point last year to only managing six podiums and fourth in the driver standings this year, it is far from the performance we would be expecting from a four-time world champion. It’s rather sad to see how poorly Vettel is doing this year compared to previous years but the pressure of having an up-and-coming star like Charles Leclerc as a teammate. The German driver almost seems to have lost his edge compared to his previous seasons; his mistakes are becoming more frequent and costly as time ticks on. However, there is still time for Vettel to get his mojo back and return to his once superb form and bring the fight back to Hamilton.
Romain Grosjean – Oh Romain, things seem to go from bad to worse for you. In 2018, Grosjean’s best finish was an impressive fourth place and he was going into the summer break with 21 points but, come 2019, the best he can manage is seventh with only eight points to his name. His clashes with teammate Kevin Magnussen seem to be becoming more frequent and things seem to be getting more and more heated between the HAAS pair with six DNFs so far this year already. At this point, there isn’t much HAAS can do to ease tensions between the pair except maybe move one of them off to pastures new but for now it seems that they just have to ride the wave and hope their results pick up especially for Grosjean who sits 17th in the championship standings with rookies Lando Norris and Alex Albon ahead of him.
It’s not too long before we’re graced with four-wheel action again but with silly season in full swing (let’s not even get into the Albon/Gasly/Red Bull merry-go-round), we’re not going to be bored for the next few weeks.
Into The Kitty Litter 