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Finn end of the wedge

FEATURE BY MAX NOBLE
23/04/2015

All in all a refreshing race weekend, where generally, driving, racing, was centre stage the majority of the time.

So, taking it from the top...

In a previous article I suggested that Lewis could only beat himself this year, mainly via losing the battle in his own mind. Judging by his performance this weekend Lewis is very much a man supporting himself and keeping top class focus. The only entertainment area where he let the fans down was his minimal number of utterings about Nico. He was focus. He was strength. He was The Man. Job done, game over. If Lewis maintains this approach this is going to be a season of racing for second the likes of which we have not seen since Michael's power days.

Ah Kimi! Lovely drive, sound bites over the radio, the drama of an offset strategy. It's not too late to become Finland's answer to Nigel Mansell after all! What does the Finn end of the wedge mean at this point in the season? That man's man Maurizio has put his contract signing pen back in his top draw and locked it for now. He is keen, in his own words, to ensure "...the driver does not fall asleep". So no wedge shaped pillows that's for sure. Kimi, for all his (old) quiet approach, is quite a passion driven guy. No passion tends to equal no go for Kimi. Cleary Maurizio understands this. Kimi's very dry "If you're happy with second it's all over" on the podium, might well have been more of a reference to his contract for next year, rather than a personal indifference to finally getting back on the dias.

So the Kimi story has plenty of legs going into the next phase of the season. Even more delightfully he appears to have fogged Vettel's mind (more on that in a paragraph or two...) as well. So if he does not fall asleep he could have a stellar season, and a contract for next year. Or he could have a manly slap on the back from Maurizio as he propels him out the door, to welcome... whom...?

Funny how Nico can drive such a strong race to third. It was one of those days where the little sprinkles of luck he needed to finish second, or challenge for first, simply did not appear. Now he has three weeks to play mind games with himself and see where that lands him in Spain. Do Mercedes really have a brake problem brewing, or was it a one-off due to going extreme on one setting or another, as it was a night race? Cannot wait to find out.

Valtteri drove to a deserved fourth place. After looking like getting an attack of the wobbles, Williams have steadied the ship, and can just mix it with the Ferraris. Not ideal, but they are solidly in the mix as we glide back into Europe.

Seems like that finger was pointing everywhere except Sebastian's own chest this weekend. He need look no further than the reflection in his visor to see where the ownership lay for his woes. Was he sandbagging last year to trigger performance clauses, or do the current generation cars not suit his style so well... or was he simply having a minor blip in performance this weekend? Much like the delights of seeing Lewis and Nico joust on and off track, this teammate battle is set for a fascinating run over the European Summer. Like Lewis I believe Vettel can out-think himself at times, and I wonder if that was all it was this weekend.

Not sure if anyone has started a #Smilingnowmate? Hash tag, but I'm sure Daniel is finding it tough going this season. Made the line in a fighting sixth, and the engine promptly blew. Colin Chapman always viewed the perfect racing machine as one that precisely lasted the distance. So in days of yore this would not have been an issue. With the four engines per year limit, this is now very much set to be an issue. Expect Christian to start expressing extreme views on the engine rules and Renault's performance any day now. Oh wait a minute... (more on the engine rules another day).

Romain was back at the front of the midfield. Perez finding a tidy turn of speed to be next in line, beating his teammate in robust style.

Kvyat is having a mixed season. Almost like a different driver turning up each race. Still not sure how he is going to shape-up over a season. At least he drove past Massa on track for ninth, so that was no bad thing for him.

Not a very good outing for Massa in general. His team mate up fourth, while he grabbed the last of the points on the table. This only leaves Felipe one point clear of Valtteri in the driver standings. Expect some great tussles between these two over the next few races.

Then my current Zen warrior hero first of the non-scorers and still be stoic and sanguine about it all. Is Fernando at peace with this under-performance? Is this a PR mask and he "does a Christian" behind closed doors? Does he look at his contracted dollar rate and let it all glide by with indifference? Simply too soon to say. If Jenson suddenly finds pace and buries him race after race, or the cars are still breaking like this in ten races time, will we will discover the height of the mountains Alonso has scaled seeking his personal Zen mastery. Me? I think he has belief in Honda and McLaren to solve the issues as they claim. He has no reason not to believe them at this stage. It will only come apart if they fail to deliver to the (not shared with us) time frames for delivering race-winning performance.

Then we get into the heart of the current mid-field. Nasr, Hulkenberg, Ericsson and Maldonado all performing around where we expect with some good fights around the field as the race progressed. Nasr is beating Ericsson neatly. The Hulk appears to have lost out a little recently to Perez, but still holds a mighty one point lead over the season so far. Has Perez found pace and maturity, or has the Hulk lost skills? Too soon to say. Another great teammate battle here.

Poor old Pastor. Out-pointed, out-gunned, out-driven, out not-crashed by Grosjean. Romain is showing the Louts has pace and can go the distance this year. Let's hope Pastor plugs into this before too long. The team is leaving points on the table for others to grab in the mid-field battles. If this continues it will be the first decisive teammate victory of the season to Romain. Let's see where this is at after Monaco.

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READERS COMMENTS

 

1. Posted by Roope, 06/05/2015 7:11

"Please do not underestimate Kimi. Hi is the best. He knows exactly how the car needs to be. When that's the case he is unbeatable. Maurizio knows this so he is urging the team to further improve the balance of the car. Sebastian is a good team mate, but once the car is as Kimi expects, he is unbeatable. "

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2. Posted by FormulaMcGruff, 26/04/2015 23:53

"Great analysis Max!!
Cant wait to see what unfolds in spain- FormulaMcGruff"

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