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Stella: McLaren only fourth force
Lando Norris finished P3 in the sprint and P4 yesterday, but McLaren team principal Andrea Stella makes it clear: “We have no illusions about where we stand. We were the fourth fastest car on the track and benefited from the misfortune of others.”
Of course, they are “satisfied” with P4, but actually did not have the pace for it, says Stella, who emphasizes: “The most important insight from this weekend is that we need to improve the car’s performance.”
“We have some significant upgrades planned for Hungary, and until then the entire team must continue to work hard both at the track and in the factory and make the most of every opportunity,” says Stella.
Read more Formula 1 Live Ticker: Is Reliability Costing Mercedes the Title?
Alonso: Overtakes are worthless
The Spaniard is still not a fan of the current Formula 1. About the race in Silverstone he says: “Drivers overtake in the middle of the straight with more battery power.”
“So neither driver input nor driving skill is required to overtake a car in front,” says the two-time world champion.
“You don’t have to brake later than another, you don’t have to overtake on the outside, you don’t have to take risks,” says Alonso.
“You just press a button, and you overtake, provided you have a better power unit than the car in front,” he says.
Or in other words: Such overtakes are worthless to him.
Wolff on finish: Would have been more important in 2021 …
The race ended yesterday behind the safety car. “Well, I would have preferred if that had happened in 2021,” says Toto Wolff referring to the controversial 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi.
“It would have been more important then,” says Wolff, who emphasizes: “It’s good that the rules were followed. Sometimes that doesn’t lead to the most exciting finale.”
“From a spectacle point of view, everyone would certainly have liked to see Lewis on soft tires against us and maybe in a duel with Leclerc. But it’s a sport,” stresses the Mercedes team principal.
“The show follows the sport and not the other way around. Therefore, it’s good that the FIA made this decision,” says Wolff.
Montoya demands rule change
The penalty against Kimi Antonelli yesterday is causing discussions. While it was correct according to the regulations, Juan Pablo Montoya says on F1 TV: “If you exceed track limits and lose time because you go too far outside, that should actually not be counted as exceeding track limits.”
The expert emphasizes: “There should be a rule that says: If you leave the track and thereby gain an advantage, it should be counted as exceeding track limits. However, if the car has a problem and you get penalties because of that, that should actually not be a penalty.”
Currently, the regulations do not make a distinction. Due to the five-second penalty, Antonelli fell out of the points yesterday.
Red Bull: Spa will probably be difficult too
Red Bull could not fight for the win in Silverstone. And Laurent Mekies fears that the picture will be similar again at the next race in Spa.
He explains: “On tracks where energy is particularly limited, we seem to struggle more compared to the competition.”
And Spa falls into this track category alongside Silverstone. “That doesn’t mean we give up,” Mekies emphasizes and explains that they will still fight.
“But it is true that it will probably be quite similar in character [to Silverstone],” says the team principal. Hopefully it will get better in Hungary then.
Read more Formula 1 Live Ticker: Is reliability costing Mercedes the title?
Racing Bulls close in on Alpine
The team of the hour (at least in the midfield) is currently the Racing Bulls. In Silverstone, they brought both cars into the points for the fourth race in a row yesterday. In the championship, they have thus closed to within one point of Alpine in the fight for P5.
“Another almost perfect weekend for us,” says team principal Alan Permane and explains: “The strategy was exactly right, the pace was excellent, and we put ourselves in a position to make the best of the opportunities during the race.”
So through all the chaos, the team from Faenza finished P6 and P7. The racing team is thus heading for the best championship result in its history.
Because they have never gone beyond P6 in the world championship since Red Bull took over the team in the 2006 season. Now P5 is within reach.
Williams: No progress
Williams draws a sobering conclusion after the weekend. “Although we improved the car’s performance this weekend and took a small step forward, others are making much bigger leaps than us,” admits James Vowles.
Williams brought a new front wing to the car in Silverstone but still had no chance of points. “We need to take a closer look at that – and find out if we really got the performance we expected,” says the team principal.
Carlos Sainz also admits: “This weekend was much harder than we expected and hoped. We need to focus on what is wrong with the car and also analyze why the upgrade did not bring the expected performance. So this is a wake-up call for us.”
The ratings are here!
Also this weekend, we as the editorial team and our expert Marc Surer have rated the drivers again for their performance. What came out of it, you can find out now in our photo gallery.
Here you can also give your own ratings.
Read more Formula 1 Live Ticker: Is Reliability Costing Mercedes the Title?
Silverstone: Driver ratings by Marc Surer and the editorial team
