Russia – Race: Rosberg goes it alone, Vettel disillusioned

The sun was out at the Sochi autodrome. In a charming setting, right in the middle of the Olympic Park, the 22 drivers on the grid were preparing to tackle for the third time a very unique asphalt, with very little tire degradation but also very little grip. A one-stop strategy was the favored option by Pirelli for all the competitors.

In pole position, Nico Rosberg once again experienced a fortune opposite to that of his direct title contenders: Sebastian Vettel, who had to change his gearbox, would start only from the 7th position, while Lewis Hamilton, suffering, as in the last race, from an engine failure in qualifying, would start from 10th place. The Englishman was starting with his first engine of the season, in Melbourne, with Mercedes having flown in parts via private jet in an emergency to ensure the car also benefited from the latest upgrades. The comebacks of the two unfortunate drivers from the previous day would be one of the attractions of the race. The Williams team also caught attention: on a track that suited them better, Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa occupied 2nd and 4th places on the grid, their best result of the season. Kimi Räikkönen, in 3rd, also hoped to outsmart Nico Rosberg at the end of a very spectacular first straight.

Before putting on their suits, on this first of May, each of the drivers remembered the tragedy of Imola. Senna, but also Ratzenberger, were in everyone’s thoughts.

Remembering the greatest on this May 1st 2016. 22 years. You will be my inspiration today, as you have always been. pic.twitter.com/OwJw1073Bq

— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) 1 mai 2016

2:03 PM, the start was given! Nico Rosberg managed to keep his position. Kimi Räikkönen, meanwhile, moved into second place. The Williams team, in 3rd and 4th, had a just decent start.

Behind, the clashes were much more intense. The first lap was particularly eventful and chaotic. Starting 7th, Sebastian Vettel found himself in the middle of the pack, and what was bound to happen happened: his Ferrari was hit by Daniil Kvyat (as in the previous Grand Prix!), and the German already ended his race in the wall! The Russian won’t be going on vacation with Vettel… The Ferrari suddenly slowed down at turn 3 (the long left curve) after Perez’s puncture; the collision was then inevitable, but the German managed to get going again… before being hit a second time by a floundering Kvyat! Once again, Vettel surrendered in the first laps, worsening his position in the drivers’ championship. Furious, he threw his steering wheel out of his cockpit.

Vettel analyses @Dany_Kvyat incident…

Not once but TWO times, Sebastian 😡#RussianGP 🇷🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/WtBUwRyUNP

— Formula 1 (@F1) 1 mai 2016

The retirement was significant, and he wasn’t the only one: Nico Hülkenberg and Rio Haryanto were among the victims of the first lap. Sergio Perez and the two Red Bulls also had to return to the pits after getting damaged. Two teams, Force India and Red Bull, had therefore immediately compromised their races. Most of the unfortunate drivers heading to the pits then opted for medium tires in order to last until the end of the Grand Prix!

All his misadventures particularly benefitted Hamilton, already in 5th place, Max Verstappen, Fernando Alonso, Romain Grosjean, and the two Renaults, which, against all odds, were in the top 10 at the end of the first lap. The safety car naturally entered the track.

On the restart, Kimi Räikkönen had somewhat faltered and was threatened by Valtteri Bottas. The Williams driver took the opportunity to overtake the Scuderia driver, who had apparently struggled to get his tires up to temperature. Lewis Hamilton also overtook Felipe Massa to move back into 4th place. Nico Rosberg, of course, had a clear path to extend his lead.

On medium tires, Daniil Kvyat, having been involved in an incident on the first lap, slid at every corner and was struggling so much that he had trouble holding off the challenges from the last in qualifying, Marcus Ericsson. As a result of his reckless driving in the first lap, Daniil Kvyat also had to serve a ten-second penalty. Daniel Ricciardo was also only 16th with the same medium tires, which meant Williams had a clear path to catch the Austrian team in the constructors’ standings.

Lewis Hamilton continued his comeback. Taking advantage of a slight mistake from the Finn, the Englishman passed effortlessly on the inside to get back on the provisional podium, with Valtteri Bottas in his sights. The Mercedes was truly the fastest car on the grid…

LAP 8/53: Kimi is passed by a Silver Arrow… Lewis Hamilton is up to P3 in Sochi and in the mood #RussianGP 🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/AxTgzhJq5e

— Formula 1 (@F1) 1 mai 2016

On the 10th lap, the top 10 was as follows: Rosberg, Bottas, Hamilton, Räikkönen, Massa, Verstappen, Alonso, Grosjean, Magnussen, Palmer.

Blocked behind a strong Valtteri Bottas in his Williams, Lewis Hamilton saw the gap with Nico Rosberg increase lap after lap. The Englishman had worn out his tires too much behind the Williams and had to slow down somewhat, to the point of being threatened by Kimi Räikkönen. The Ferrari, which was better at preserving its tires, showed a race pace at least equal to Lewis Hamilton’s and far superior to Felipe Massa’s.

On the 17th lap, Williams took the lead and called Bottas into the pits. The Grove team has evidently decided to work on their strategy after their mishaps at the beginning of the season… An undercut by Hamilton or Räikkönen would have condemned their chances of retaining second place anyway. Mercedes covered Bottas’s strategy by stopping Hamilton on the following lap, while Kimi Räikkönen continued on his way. At the end of the straight, Valtteri Bottas managed to retain second place just in time: a good strategic choice by Williams… and good news for Nico Rosberg, still alone in the lead. The only one of the infernal trio not to have stopped, Kimi Räikkönen also benefited from the battle between Bottas and Hamilton.

The Mercedes was, however, faster than the Williams. On the 19th lap, the Englishman finally managed to overtake the white single-seater. However, he had lost time to Nico Rosberg, who was now almost untouchable, and to Kimi Räikkönen, who was even faster on worn super-softs than Hamilton on new softs. The Finn was doing the job with Ferrari but, without being entirely outpaced by Lewis Hamilton, did not have the pace to catch the Silver Arrow.

Meanwhile, in the pit straight, Sebastian Vettel revisited his incident with Daniil Kvyat and paid a visit to Christian Horner on the Red Bull pit wall to tell him all the good things he thought of the Russian driver.

Penny for your thoughts?

Vettel has word with Horner on @redbullracing pit wall #RussianGP 🇷🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/AHn517YnN6

— Formula 1 (@F1) 1 mai 2016

Now that Lewis Hamilton had a clear field, Ferrari called Kimi Räikkönen into the pit. The Finn, who almost stalled, came out between Hamilton and Bottas but would have slightly less worn tires for the end of the race.

Unflappable leader, Nico Rosberg continued with a normal strategy. On the 22nd lap, he was calmly called back to the Mercedes pits to put on soft tires and continue his solo run. The only one among the front-runners not to have pitted, Max Verstappen showed up in second place. Fernando Alonso and Romain Grosjean were also delivering performances beyond expectations.

Within the pack, Sergio Perez held an unexpected sixth place but had stopped on the first lap to switch to soft tires and would likely face difficulties at the end of the race. In the shadow once again of his teammate, Carlos Sainz was further penalized with a ten-second penalty for forcing another driver to exceed the track limits. In 8th position, Ericsson still had to stop, while Kevin Magnussen, in 11th, was driving his Renault on soft tires in the wake of Daniel Ricciardo, 10th, who was slowed by uncomfortable medium tires.

At the 30th lap, the top 10 was as follows: Rosberg, Hamilton, Räikkönen, Bottas, Massa, Perez, Verstappen, Alonso, Ericsson, Ricciardo.

All the drivers had stopped at least once in the pits. Williams, who had shown their progress in strategy with the early stop of Valtteri Bottas, demonstrated to the paddock that their work in the pits had also paid off.

.@MercedesAMGF1 may be leading the way on the track but @WilliamsRacing are setting the pace in the pits #RussianGP pic.twitter.com/Reb45KbNA0

— Formula 1 (@F1) 1 mai 2016

Sign of his ordeal, Daniil Kvyat, the “torpedo” according to Sebastian Vettel, was having great difficulties overtaking the modest Manor of Pascal Wehrlein on medium tires. Daniel Ricciardo was also struggling against Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean. The Renault and the Haas, after some somewhat dangerous maneuvers, managed to overtake an Australian in trouble with his medium tires. Daniel Ricciardo then returned to the pits to put on soft tires. The bet to finish on medium tires had not held: not because of tire wear, but due to its performance.

At the front of the race, Nico Rosberg maintained a lead of about twelve seconds. However, Lewis Hamilton demonstrated his pace by setting several fastest laps in a row. The German, dealing with traffic, even saw his lead shrink to 8 seconds. He still retained a comfortable margin, although under normal conditions, Lewis Hamilton probably would have had every chance to claim victory.

On lap 34, the 2015 Ferrari V6 engine, which was supposed to be particularly reliable, betrayed Max Verstappen. The Dutchman, who was holding a solid 6th place, had to pull his Toro Rosso to the side. But no one in the paddock would forget that he should have scored significant points this Sunday. Carlos Sainz, 10th but with a ten-second penalty to add to his time at the end of the race, had little hope of doing as well. This retirement allowed Fernando Alonso to climb to 6th place.

LAP 35/53: Yellow flags 🔶🔶 as engine problems end Verstappen’s race #RussianGP 🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/4z8S99wz7H

— Formula 1 (@F1) 1 mai 2016

At the front of the race, Lewis Hamilton managed the traffic much better and gained several tenths per lap on Nico Rosberg. However, the German, after passing several backmarkers, regained some ground. At the same time, Mercedes warned Hamilton of a water pressure problem, so much so that the Englishman, decidedly unlucky, had to slow his pace as a precaution and likely relinquish his hopes of victory.

On the 40th lap, the top 10 was as follows: Rosberg, Hamilton, Räikkönen, Bottas, Massa, Alonso, Magnussen, Grosjean, Perez, Sainz. Behind the Toro Rosso, Jenson Button was virtually in the points given Carlos Sainz’s penalty. The battle for 7th place also looked tight, from Magnussen to Button. The only one of the pack to have made two stops, Sergio Perez seemed to be in the best position.

Alerted about his water pressure issues, Lewis Hamilton slowed down to the point of seeing Kimi Räikkönen gain a few tenths on him per lap. However, with ten laps to go, the Englishman maintained the same number of seconds ahead of the Ferrari. The Mercedes pit then informed him that the technical problem was now stabilized. Lewis Hamilton could pick up the pace again, but he had lost all hope of catching Nico Rosberg, and likely all motivation.

Five laps before the finish, Felipe Massa, who was struggling with his tires, was called to the pits to switch to super-softs. However, with more than a forty-second lead over the 6th-placed Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa had absolutely nothing to worry about and was able to enjoy a few laps at high speed for fun.

LAP 48/53: Massa slips some new shoes on his Williams 👟 #RussianGP 🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/UTE6rWrdcz

— Formula 1 (@F1) 1 mai 2016

Without being threatened, Nico Rosberg thus manages to win his 7th consecutive race, and the fourth this season! His start to the season is truly perfect, but Lewis Hamilton showed that he could also be fast in the race – even if Rosberg took the fastest lap on the penultimate lap. We will have to wait to see a true head-to-head battle in the race – perhaps in Barcelona in two weeks.

Kevin Magnussen, like Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button, scored their first points, while Romain Grosjean brought his Haas into the top 10 despite pressure from Sergio Perez. The incidents in the first lap benefited all these drivers. In contrast, Ferrari, with Vettel’s premature retirement, still had only one car finishing the race. The Scuderia’s pure performance is not in question, but the results are inconsistent.

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION (end of race) #RussianGP 🇷🇺 pic.twitter.com/MnURi7zhqW

— Formula 1 (@F1) 1 mai 2016