England: Flashback 2018 and Winner Predictions

2018 Overview: Surprise Victory for Sebastian Vettel

Winner five times on his home turf, Lewis Hamilton was clearly the favorite throughout the weekend. Unfortunately for Mercedes and the Brit, Ferrari was also present, and it was Sebastian Vettel who started from the second position alongside his great rival. Off to a very poor start, the poleman was overtaken by the German and his garage neighbor at the first corner. Battling with Räikkönen approaching the third corner, the Finn locked his right front wheel and sent driver number 44 into a spin.

Now last from the first lap, the hometown child was forced to make a thrilling comeback. Fortunately for him, by the 11th lap, he had overtaken all the mid-pack drivers with an impressive number of passes. But he wasn’t the only one needing to perform such maneuvers. Following his contact with Hamilton, Räikkönen had to wait 10 seconds in the pits before they could change his tires. He quickly passed Leclerc’s Sauber and Hülkenberg’s Renault to find himself 6th, right behind Daniel Ricciardo.

On the 32nd lap, Lewis Hamilton’s race was surely saved by Marcus Ericsson. Indeed, the Swede suffered a major crash at Abbey due to his DRS not closing. An impressive accident that brought out the Safety Car. Unlike Mercedes’ strategists, Ferrari’s decided to pit their drivers. A decision that proved to be beneficial later in the race. While Bottas and his teammate were still on worn tires, Vettel and Räikkönen were able to attack as they pleased in the final laps.

The safety car went back in on lap 37, releasing the drivers. Under pressure from the Scuderia driver, Bottas was only delaying the inevitable, and it was clear that the Finn was struggling with his car. A little further back, Räikkönen and Verstappen were putting on a great show for the audience. The Dutchman managed to keep the Ferrari behind him until lap 43. Vettel, aware that he was faster than the Mercedes ahead of him, made a spectacular dive at turn 6. An unstoppable maneuver that gave the German driver the lead of the race and the eventual victory. Only two seconds behind, Hamilton surely must have been biting his nails at the finish.

Sebastian Vettel had just claimed his fourth victory of the season and held an 8-point lead over Lewis Hamilton.

The Editorial Team’s Predictions

Having become a key event every Grand Prix weekend, the Motors Inside editorial team offers its speculations on the pole-sitter and the race winner. Hamilton is the strong favorite for the win, but Leclerc is mentioned as a podium contender and even for the victory. Valtteri Bottas should finish among the top three. Never tipped as a winner, Vettel could, however, be the one to take pole position.