Spanish Grand Prix – Race: Mercedes strategy wins for Lewis Hamilton

Far from yesterday’s summer heat, it was clouds that bathed the Barcelona circuit. Yet the start was very intense for the leaders as Max Verstappen delayed his braking as much as possible at the end of the straight to take the inside line of Lewis Hamilton. The Briton was forced to hit the brakes and concede to his Dutch rival.

At Mercedes, this first phase of the race was clearly not favorable because Charles Leclerc showed great opportunism and managed to overtake Valtteri Bottas on the outside in the long right of turn 3. The Finn was then unable to threaten the Monegasque.

A funny stop at Alfa Romeo

An opportunity arose on the tenth lap when Yuki Tsunoda’s AlphaTauri stopped at the exit of turn 11, prompting the safety car to intervene. However, ultimately, the order remained the same, with Max Verstappen managing to not give any opportunity to his rival. Only Antonio Giovinazzi and the two Williams had chosen to pit, while the rest of the pack preferred to maintain their positions on track, crucial on this circuit that is so difficult for overtaking. It is worth noting that the stop for the Alfa Romeo driver was chaotic as the team realized at the last moment that his left front, although new, was deflated!

The pit stop ballet started as early as the 22nd lap. But most importantly, it was Valtteri Bottas who was the first of the leaders to take this option, on lap 24, which allowed him to successfully undercut Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari. In the following lap, it was Max Verstappen who dived into the pit lane. But while Red Bull achieved the best pit stop of the year in Bahrain, they missed the mark on the Dutchman’s stop, which lasted 4.2 seconds.

Lewis Hamilton then chose to extend his stint by four laps but found himself falling behind as he was hampered in his progress by Nikita Mazepin’s failure to respect the blue flags, causing Toto Wolff to intervene with the FIA.

In the wake, a splendid game of chess unfolded between the two leading drivers. Lewis Hamilton was tucked in the Red Bull’s slipstream for many laps but was not able to launch an attack due to Max Verstappen’s top speed.

The strategic move by Mercedes

Mercedes then attempted a strategic move by making a second pit stop for Lewis Hamilton on the 43rd lap. Red Bull was then forced to try to reach the finish line without making another pit stop. With 23 laps to go, there was a 23-second gap between the two drivers.

Note that Sergio Perez finally found an opening on Daniel Ricciardo’s McLaren on the 46th lap. The McLaren driver then made a fresh tire change, as did Carlos Sainz, who was closing in on his two rivals.

In his fantastic comeback, Lewis Hamilton was only slowed down by… Valtteri Bottas, who did not move aside in front of his teammate despite insistent radio messages from the pit wall. The Finn then made a second pit stop, twelve laps from the finish, which allowed him to catch up with Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari.

With just eight laps to go, Lewis Hamilton was able to catch up to Max Verstappen, who remained defenseless against the pace set by the Mercedes! In order to avoid taking any risks, the Dutchman then also went back through the pit lane, which at least allowed him to set the fastest lap of the race and earn the accompanying point. All that was left to do was to calmly cross the finish line, for Sir Lewis’ 98th victory.

Behind, the intense battle between the two French drivers as Pierre Gasly came back close to Esteban Ocon’s exhaust pipes but it is the Alpine driver who finished ninth. The AlphaTauri driver may regret not positioning himself well on the grid, which earned him a five-second penalty during his first pit stop.

The ranking at the finish of the Spanish Grand Prix 2021