Track Record - F1 Chinese Grand Prix 2019

track record FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN CHINESE GRAND PRIX 2019

FORMULA 1 SINGAPORE AIRLINES SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX

The Singapore Grand Prix™ is a truly special race, in a place that’s like nowhere else on earth. It stands out as the only regular night race on the Formula One™ calendar. It also takes place on a floodlit street circuit, where sharp twists and turns are plentiful.

The fact that said street circuit is in the city-state of Singapore - where giant vertical gardens stand alongside huge futuristic skyscrapers - only adds to the allure. In other words, it’s a must-visit for F1™ fans and travel-lovers alike.

DON'T MISS THE UNMISSABLE? BOOK NOW www.gptraveller.co.uk + 44 (0) 114 345 1977

THE TRACK RECORD FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN CHINESE GRAND PRIX 12 - 14 APRIL 2019

Editor Rob Burley Photography James Moy www.jamesmoy.com Editorial Giles Richards (Guardian News & Media Ltd) Contact www.trackrecordmagazine.com/contact Instagram traveller.rob

This publication is unofficial and is not associated in any way with the Formula One group of companies. F1, FORMULA ONE, FORMULA 1, FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, GRAND PRIX and related marks are trade marks of Formula One Licensing B.V.

THE TRACK RECORD

THE GRID Bottas pips Hamilton to pole for Mercedes one-two at Chinese Grand Prix 2 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES

3 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI

4 16 Charles Leclerc FERRARI

5 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING HONDA

6 10 Pierre Gasly RED BULL RACING HONDA

7 3 Daniel Ricciardo RENAULT

8 27 Nico Hulkenberg RENAULT

1 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES

9 20 Kevin Magnussen HAAS FERRARI

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

10 8 Romain Grosjean HAAS FERRARI

11 26 Daniil Kvyat SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA

12 11 Sergio Perez RACING POINT BWT MERCEDES

13 7 Kimi Räikkönen ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI

14 55 Carlos Sainz MCLAREN RENAULT

15 4 Lando Norris MCLAREN RENAULT

16 18 Lance Stroll RACING POINT BWT MERCEDES

17 63 George Russell WILLIAMS MERCEDES

18 88 Robert Kubica WILLIAMS MERCEDES

19 99 Antonio Giovinazzi ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI

20 23 Alexander Albon SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA

gptraveller.co.uk

All weekend in China, Formula One has been celebrating the grand achievement of reaching its 1,000th world championship race. For Lewis Hamilton, who has competed in almost one quarter of those meetings, the race in Shanghai was less about the big picture than the detail, the execution. His judgment in doing so was proved correct with a dominant win that takes him to the world championship lead. What it did share with many of the races that preceded it in the 70 seasons since 1950 however was a single decisive moment.

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

As Hamilton celebrated his 75th win from 232 starts,

Vettel pass.

and Mercedes their third consecutive one-two – the first time a team have opened a season so strongly

There are no alarm bells as yet at the Scuderia and

since the all conquering Williams of 1992 – Ferrari

Vettel still believes their car is fundamentally strong,

were left licking their wounds. With Sebastian Vettel

but they are yet to learn how to manage it.

in third, 13 seconds down on Hamilton and his

Mercedes, too, are still coming to terms with their

Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc in fifth they must

new ride but have carved out what would appear to

yet again consider why they cannot consistently

be an unlikely advantage in the opening meetings.

unlock the pace of their car. Worse still, they threw in

Hamilton now leads Valtteri Bottas by six points but

team orders – never popular with fans and done

is 31 points in front of Vettel.

to no great effect – when Leclerc was ordered to let

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

Hamilton enjoyed a victory that had not looked on

did think that they had the upper hand,” he said.

after he struggled to extract the best from his car

“There are still so many races to go and their car

over the weekend until it really mattered: in

might work better in other places. Definitely with

qualifying, second, and in the race. On Sunday he

three one-twos I think we are a little bit over-

made a lightning getaway as Bottas suffered

delivering but there is still more to come.”

wheelspin on his start-line paint and Hamilton had the lead up the inside into turn one. It was the move

Ferrari had to manage their drivers and a yawning

that mattered and he did not relinquish the lead

gap to Mercedes. They ordered Leclerc to let Vettel

until the flag.

past on lap 11 to the former’s clear disappointment but having done so Vettel could not make any real

He accepted that, including the win he

dent in the Mercedes advantage and appeared to

inherited after Ferrari’s mechanical problem in

struggle, repeatedly locking up.

Bahrain, his team’s dominance had been perhaps against the odds but was confident they still had a

Immediately after the race Leclerc said he would

great deal to offer.

seek an explanation from his team. Ferrari have said they would only favour Vettel in 50-50 situations and

“Through testing, we knew that it was very close, we

adjudged that this case merited the move. But

knew that it was within a couple of tenths, but we

Vettel was surprisingly defensive after the race,

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

initially suggesting he would not discuss the issue because he believed his answers would be misquoted by the press.

“I knew the moment it happened that I would have to face these questions,” he said. “I’m not sure I want to answer because I’m a little bit against the way you – all of you – work, because you take bits out of answers here and there and put it into the wrong light.”

He did go on to state his case, but was unable to explain why he could not catch the leaders. “I felt I was faster in the car, I was asked if I can go faster. I answered that I felt I can,” he said. “I was a bit surprised when I was in free air – not surprised but I was struggling a bit to put the laps together. Once I found a rhythm, I was able to chip away. Obviously the objective was to try and catch Mercedes. At that point the gap was already quite big.”

Mercedes had indeed been able to stretch their legs out front in a race that Hamilton had taken hold of from the moment the lights went out. He has endured some poor starts in the past but has worked on his getaways and it paid off.

Their lead was never really threatened and even when a likely one-stop turned into a two-stopper as Red Bull pulled the trigger for a second stop for Max Verstappen who was fourth, Mercedes executed perfectly. They even managed to stack their cars

gptraveller.co.uk

through their second stop and ultimately maintain their one-two.

It was not the celebratory thriller F1 would have wanted for their 1,000th race but Hamilton and Mercedes will not care. They leave China once more firmly on the front foot with Ferrari yet again having to consider why they could not stay closer to their rivals and whether the numbers on their strategy calls really added up.

Red Bull’s Pierre Gasly was in sixth and took fastest lap, in front of the Renault of Daniel Ricciardo, his first finish this season. Racing Point’s Sergio Pérez was in eighth, Kimi Räikkönen in the Alfa Romeo ninth and an impressively strong 10th for Alexander Albon having started his Toro Rosso from the pitlane.

gptraveller.co.uk

LUXURY MONACO GRAND PRIX YACHT HOSPITALITY Thursday £550 per person Friday £400 per person**

There is no better way to view this demanding street race than from the deck of our 45 metre luxury yacht, moored in a prime Zone 1 berth.

Our yacht packages include outstanding hospitality from the moment guests step on board our luxury Wajer tenders.

• Complimentary bar with premium brand Champagne • Gourmet buffet cuisine throughout the day • Sunday pre race Q&A with F1™ celebrity • Superb views of the world’s most famous street circuit

Saturday £1,000 per person Sunday £2,100 per person Saturday & Sunday £3,100 per person

BOOK NOW

**Half day of hospitality, up to & including lunch

www.gptraveller.co.uk + 44 (0) 114 345 1977

THE TRACK RECORD

gptraveller.co.uk

FIRST 44 Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES

"It’s not been the most straightforward of weekends,

who’s supported me. You can still see it’s very close

but what a fantastic result for the team, everyone’s

between us all. I really have no idea how the next

worked so hard for this. Coming here we didn’t know

races will turn out but I’m super excited for them."

exactly where we would stand with Ferrari, as they’d been so quick in Bahrain. Valtteri has been quick all weekend and did a great job today. To have a 1-2 together is really special for the 1,000th Grand Prix.

The start was where I made the difference and after that it’s history. The strategy has really been on point over these first three races so we need to keep that up. Team LH China have been incredible all weekend, a big thank you to them. They welcomed me from the moment I arrived at the airport, at the hotel every morning and night every single day, and then at the track too. A big thank you to everyone

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

SECOND 77 Valtteri Bottas MERCEDES

"For us as a team it’s really been a perfect start

sport, so unfortunately that detail decided the

to the season; we could not have imagined to

rest of the race. On the positive side, we did

get three 1-2s in a row, so a big thank you to

have a strong race pace here in Shanghai,

everyone for their hard work. We managed to

much better than in Bahrain. I think that we’re

maximise on every single opportunity which is

in a good position, but we need to keep

great to see. For me personally today has been

pushing. This track is very unique in its layout

a bit disappointing as I was on pole, but then

and Baku will hold very different challenges so

lost the race at the start. There’s a white line

it’s going to be interesting again in two weeks."

just outside the starting box and I had some wheelspin when I went over it and lost the position to Lewis. It’s all about details in this

gptraveller.co.uk

THIRD 5 Sebastian Vettel FERRARI

“We are happy we got the podium, but overall we

picture of what we are lacking at the moment, so I

can’t be satisfied because we were too slow today.

think the next few weeks will be important for us, so

We were hoping to be in a much better place and

that we can get on the right road for the coming

be a match for Mercedes, but we were not. Also it

months.”

was a shame we didn’t manage to finish third and fourth, In terms of calls from our pit wall today, the priority always lies within the team and Charles and I are both aware we are driving for the team. We can do our own race but first of all we have to ensure Ferrari is in a position to fight with its rivals. I think we have a good car and we are still not able to unlock its potential completely. We are learning a lot about it and it’s important to do many laps to get a better feeling for it. We are getting an ever clearer

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

FOURTH 33 Max Verstappen RED BULL RACING HONDA

“It was not an easy race but as a Team we did a really good job today. We planned a good strategy to undercut a Ferrari and stay ahead, so we definitely maximised the result to finish fourth ahead of Charles. I had a good battle with Seb when he came out of the pits on colder tyres which was good fun. That was my one shot and I tried but after that you could see that we didn’t quite have the pace to fight him to the end. I was pushing really hard and we can be happy with the team result. We still need a bit more pace to fight Mercedes and Ferrari but we are in a good position and collecting solid points each race.”

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

FIFTH 16 Charles Leclerc FERRARI

“Today’s race wasn’t one of my easiest, since it looks like we didn’t have a good enough pace to fight at the front with our competitors. My start was good, then I think both Seb and myself were struggling with the tyres. We swapped positions and I thought he would have pulled away but he didn’t and this didn’t help my tyres because I had a bit of overheating and I lost some time. On my second set of tyres I hoped I’d be able to go all the way to the end, but unfortunately had to stop again and so lost a place. We will sit down all together in order to understand what could have been done better and I’m sure we will come back stronger at the next race”

gptraveller.co.uk

OWN A PIECE OF F1 HISTORY SHOP ONLINE AT WWW.VICTORYMONDAY.COM

THE TRACK RECORD

SIXTH 10 Pierre Gasly RED BULL RACING HONDA

“I’m happy to score my first fastest lap in F1

with us. Tonight I will make my way to the

today. We saw that we had quite a big margin

factory and spend tomorrow and the day after

behind us in the last few laps, so we decided to

in the sim and we’ll work for the next race.”

go for it and have an extra pit stop which worked. During the race I tried to keep the rhythm, take care of my tyres and improve my feeling with the car. I’m slowly getting more confident, I think we take one step every weekend but of course I would like to take three every time. There is still work for me to do for the next race but the good thing is that I know what I need to improve and what I can do better. We are quite happy to finish in the points and take the extra point for fastest lap

gptraveller.co.uk

SEVENTH 3 Daniel Ricciardo RENAULT

“It’s good to get on the board, finish the race and have my first points with the team. We’ll take the positives from that. It might have looked a simple seventh, but it wasn’t easy. It was a bit of a lonely race, I didn’t have so many battles but I was being pushed hard from the cars behind all the way to the end. It’s a strong result and the best we can ask for; at least for today. We want to push on from this over the next couple of races and keep working from here.”

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

EIGHTH 11 Sergio Perez RACING POINT BWT MERCEDES

“I’m very happy to score four points today. The start was fantastic: I saw a gap, went for it and it paid off. Our race pace was good: we were able to maintain the pace and manage the tyres well. It wasn’t an easy race, though, because I was under pressure from Kimi for most of the second stint, which made it more difficult to look after the tyres and keep up the pace. It was the same with Daniel ahead of me – I think he was working hard to manage his tyres because every time I got close to him he found the pace to pull away again. This was never going to be our strongest track so it’s important to take opportunities such as today and keep scoring points.”

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

NINTH 7 Kimi Räikkönen ALFA ROMEO RACING FERRARI

“The car felt good today. We started from further back on the grid and at least scored some points. In the end I lost the grip on the front tyres. It’s a shame because I was looking after them during the race, but they just got too cold and I slowed down. We will continue working on making improvements and see what we can do in Baku.”

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

TENTH 23 Alexander Albon SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO HONDA

“Firstly, I would like to say a big thank you to

go for it and survive on the hard compound. I

the team for their hard work yesterday. It was

was a bit nervous at the end when Grosjean

looking a bit dark after FP3, but the guys

was almost catching me, but I’m really happy

worked very hard last night to change the

to have pulled that off!”

chassis, so they deserved a good race and I was happy to bring home a point to reward their effort. We had the pace all weekend and I was confident we had a good shot at getting into Q3, although unfortunately we didn’t get the chance due to the repairs. It was a difficult race because we initially had planned a two-stop strategy, but the degradation was higher than most people expected. Since we knew from FP2 we were good on our tyres, we decided to

gptraveller.co.uk

FORMULA 1 ETIHAD AIRWAYS ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX

If the final race of the F1™ season is also one of the most exciting, then it’s no surprise everyone wants a ticket for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix™.

The Abu Dhabi weekend is special for lots more reasons. It’s the only Grand Prix™ staged in twilight, when the cars gleam in the low sun over beautiful Yas Island. Then there’s Yas Island itself – a place devoted to leisure and entertainment, full of fun and thrilling destinations. Not to mention Ferrari World Abu Dhabi!

In other words, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix™ is well worth the trip

BOOK NOW

www.gptraveller.co.uk + 44 (0) 114 345 1977

THE TRACK RECORD

PADDOCK CAM

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

gptraveller.co.uk

THE TRACK RECORD

gptraveller.co.uk

FORMULA 1 GRAND PRIX DE MONACO FULLY INCLUSIVE TRAVEL PACKAGES AVAILABLE NOW

BOOK NOW

GRANDSTAND VIEWING

LUXURY YACHT HOSPITALTY

SHANGRI-LA TERRACE

FAIRMONT HAIRPIN

www.gptraveller.co.uk + 44 (0) 114 345 1977