The qualifying sessions were pretty boring until we get to Q3.
In Q3, Charles spins off and hits the wall, while Lewis pulls off a blinder on his final lap to secure P2. Russell starts from pole, and Lewis has a chance to overtake him at the start.
Lewis fails to overtake Russell at the start. 😅 Apparently, Mercedes has improved their start procedure, and both cars get away well.
The Barcelona circuit tends to destroy your tires, making the undercut incredibly effective.
Hamilton pits first, followed immediately by Russell to prevent Ferrari from gaining an undercut advantage.
On lap 29, Hamilton pits again, switches to medium tires, and what an out-lap he delivers! Russell stays out and loses his advantage. Now, the difference made by the fresh tires starts to show.
What a race Lewis is having on the mediums! He closes the gap to Russell by 2 seconds per lap, lap after lap.
Russell and Antonelli pit, while Lewis stays out and extends his lead.
Alonso retires and stays on track! A Virtual Safety Car at just the right moment for Lewis, he pits and switches to hard tires without losing position.
Antonelli retires. Engine issues.
Lewis wins for Ferrari! His first victory in red.
Everything went perfectly for Ferrari, well, almost everything, except for Charles, who retired just a few laps before the end.
Russell is probably in total despair. Until now, he only had to worry about Antonelli; now he’s got Lewis to deal with too.
Ferrari is set to bring their engine upgrade to Austria, the next race. If everything goes well, they’ll have an even more competitive car to fight Mercedes. Hopium!
Also worth mentioning: Hadjar had a race full of overtakes, great to see him keeping things exciting!
