Formula One

F1 – Gp Silverstone: THE POINT…by Gian Carlo Minardi

Another amazing week-end for Ferrari, even if Red Bull’s car was the best on track. The Spaniard of Ferrari team scored important points and I think he did his best in qualifying. In fact he was the leader throughout the race and his standing is getting more and more interesting.  

With his second place, he has taken great advantage over Vettel and Hamilton, who were considered as the two most favourite drivers at the beginning of the season. But, at this point of the season Webber’s position is getting more and more dangerous. With a second win, the Australian driver  is the third pretender to the title. Once again the win is not as obvious as expected  after qualifying results.

The Ferrari knows that much work still has to be done and, just before the sabbatical month, the team will have to play two other important races as the German and the Hungarian ones. Then, an incredible tour-de-force will begin. For this reason it’s extremely important to maintain a leadership and score points. With the English race, the team from Maranello has obtained his second position in the standing, thanks also to Felipe Massa’s performance who marked his best placing of the season.

In my opinion Lotus is a team we should keep an eye on, because they have again demonstrated they can rely on a competitive car. Unfortunately, once again they’ve missed a chance to put into practice their potential. The team has heavily paid Grosjean’ mistakes, while Raikkonen’s return on track is really positive, even if he need to regain the enamel. They’re so reliable and stable on lap time. If they work to improve strategy, they’ll soon score a win.

I can hardly explain the difficult condition of McLaren team.  At the beginning of the season they were among the favourites, while Button is always in the lowest positions and Hamilton can hardly score points. With a view to the race in Hockenheim, the team is expected to take a great step forward. Maybe they’ve picked out the car’s weakness. Time after time they’ve lost important points and, at this point of the season, they can only rely on Hamilton . Talking about Mercedes, both Schumacher and Rosberg have obtained the maximum. Unfortunately, they still suffer an excessive tyres consumption on track, while they get by in qualifying.

Just few words about the accident in which Maldonado and Perez were involved. The driver from Venezuela often has been among the first on track and, even this time he was just next to succeed. The lack of experience and impetuosity will be heavily paid. What a pity for Williams who definitely deserves more.