Netherlands: pre-qualifying 2021

There was no post-race ramble last time on the account of the fact that there was no race.

Raikkonen has said this is his final season. A shame, but he’s had quite a lot of races and it’s not unusual for people to move on. Fans will be saddened as he’s probably the most popular driver. He’s also not partaking in the race or qualifying due to a OVID-19 test failure so he’ll be replaced by Robert Kubica.

In first practice, Hamilton was fastest, a tenth ahead of Verstappen and the very competitive Sainz and Leclerc (both within a tenth and a half of the Briton). Bottas, Alonso, and Ocon followed, then came Giovinazzi, Stroll, and Gasly.

Second practice saw red flags aplenty, but it was a Ferrari 1-2 at the sharp end with Leclerc leading the way. I’m going to have to check the Monaco timings, but this might be genuine competitiveness from the reds. Ocon was a close third, followed by Bottas, Verstappen, Alonso, Gasly, Norris, Giovinazzi, and Vettel.

At this stage, Ferrari look to be punching above their weight, with Alpine possibly also heading for an above average result.

The now traditional red flag in third practice was caused by Sainz going into the wall. Verstappen was fastest, half a second better than Bottas with Hamilton two-tenths further back. Perez was a tenth off the Briton. Alonso and Norris followed close behind, then came Stroll and Vettel, with Leclerc and Gasly rounding out the top 10.

No penalty for Verstappen overtaking under red flags in second practice (sensible, he was on a hot lap and passed a slow car).

Bottas might be value for pole based on final practice. He’s 7.5, which is borderline but I’m not inclined to back it as I think he’s only possibly front row rather than on pole.

Qualifying is at 2pm UK time.

 

Morris Dancer

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