F1 Features

Saturday at Spa will go down as one of the darkest days in recent motorsport history as the death of Formula 2 racer Anthoine Hubert rocked the community to its very core.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes – 9

- The Spa-Francorchamps paddock returned to action on Sunday in Belgium following the tragic death of Formula 2 driver Anthoine Hubert on Saturday at the age of 22. The planned F2 Sprint Race was cancelled, but the Formula 1, Formula 3 and Porsche Supercup races went ahead as planned.

So cynical has the Formula 1 community become that even as Ferrari ran one-two with a clear straight-line speed advantage over Mercedes nearing the pit stop window in Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix, most were left wondering how it would throw the win away.

- Ferrari swept to a one-two finish in both FP1 and FP2 on Friday at Spa, showing the might of its engine and straight-lined speed advantage over the field. Sebastian Vettel led from Charles Leclerc in FP1 before they swapped for FP2.

- Thursday proved to be a day of announcements as both Mercedes and Renault finalised their line-ups for the 2020 season. Mercedes confirmed Valtteri Bottas would be continuing for next year as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate, prompting Ocon to be snapped up by Renault in place of Nico Hulkenberg.

12 months have passed since Sebastian Vettel last stood on the top step of the Formula 1 podium.

As the Formula 1 grid grows ever-younger and the likes of Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and George Russell – all 21 or younger – taste success, there are growing signs of a generational shift in the sport.

Red Bull has decided to roll the dice on its driver line-up at the mid-way point of the 2019 Formula 1 season by swapping Pierre Gasly and Alexander Albon from the Belgium Grand Prix.

As important and as intricate as the chassis design of a Formula 1 car can be, the most explicit way fans will view them is through their liveries and colour schemes.

“I tell you - the day we get beat by somebody who’s born in 2000 and upwards, we will know it’s time…”

Billy Monger’s story of his harrowing accident and inspiring comeback is one well told over the past two years and will, by his own admission, always shape his life. But it isn’t the story he wants to tell now.

Who have been the stand-out performers in Formula 1 so far this season? We crunch the numbers from our regular driver ratings and see who comes out on top. 1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull - 8.83

In the battle to set off the dominoes in the Formula 1 driver market, few would have expected Red Bull to be the team that made the first move.

The beginning of Formula 1’s summer break traditionally marks the beginning of another important period of the year: driver market silly season.

Off the back of four consecutive thrilling races, there is a sense of disappointment to be breaking up for Formula 1’s annual summer shutdown. 

Race day at the Hungaroring is one of my favourite days of the entire Formula 1 season. It’s got little to do with the circuit (it still needs big renovations) or the fact there’s a race coming later in the day, even one to the superb standard of Sunday’s affair.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes – 9

Victory in Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix “felt like a first” to Lewis Hamilton, such was the five-time world champion’s glee at fighting back from running 20 seconds in arrears with 20 laps to go to win the race in remarkable fashion.

- Lewis Hamilton extended his lead at the top of the Formula 1 drivers’ championship with his eighth victory of the season in Hungary on Sunday.

If you had said following his maiden Formula 1 victory that Max Verstappen would have to wait more than three years for his first pole position, you would probably have been laughed out of the room.

- Max Verstappen claimed the first pole position of his Formula 1 career in qualifying on Saturday in Hungary, edging out Valtteri Bottas by just 0.018 seconds in the final stage of qualifying.

- Lewis Hamilton closed out Friday with the fastest time of the day as rain affected much of the running at the Hungaroring. Hamilton’s top time from FP1 proved to be the fastest of the day as rain in the second session meant Pierre Gasly’s P1 effort was six-tenths of a second down.

- Max Verstappen may have arrived in Hungary on Thursday as Formula 1’s form driver after two wins in the last three races, but the Dutchman was quick to downplay Red Bull’s chances of another victory. “Mercedes have been the most dominant so far this season,” he said.