The Red Bull Dutchman dominated a water-battered race at Suzuka. The GP was interrupted after 3 laps and restarted after two hours and finished on lap 29. The penalty to Leclerc for cutting the chicane relegated Charles to third place behind Perez and handed the title to the Dutchman: full points awarded
Giusto Ferronato
09 October
– suzuka (japan)
Max Verstappen is F1 world champion for the second time. A triumph not in question, but a little surprising because it was proclaimed not after the checkered flag of the Japanese GP, but in the prize-giving area, when Max, first at the finish line, Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc were notified of the 5 seconds penalty to the Monegasque Ferrari, who crossed the last chicane and was thus relegated to third place. The race, marred by the rain, ended after 29 of the 53 scheduled laps and the two hours of racing, but awarded full points. And so the Dutchman suddenly found himself thrown onto the world championship throne for the second time, at Honda, for a party full of Red Bull, dominating this season.
two hours of waiting
–
The rain was the real dominator because it was able to prevent the development of a race that was stopped after 5 minutes and only 3 laps and resumed after 2 hours and 10 minutes of interruption, in the hope that the weather and the asphalt would improve. . In vain. In the end, the restart was decided out of respect for the spectacle and the public in the stands, but with the race clock that included only about fifty minutes of running. The entire GP of 53 laps thus ended at 10.03 Italian, 17.03 local, and 29 laps. Enough, however, to give the full points and the title to Verstappen.
the cut of charles
–
From the competitive point of view, not much has been seen (in all senses). The clouds of water behind the cars largely suggested caution to those who followed. Verstappen dominated from pole, bothered by Leclerc only at the first start, which took place as scheduled from standstill at the scheduled time. Max, who did not start very well, was however good at keeping his foot down on the outside of curves 1 and 2 and bent the resistance of the Monegasque Ferrari, who at the next restart with the Safety Car never had the opportunity to attack the rival or try to brush it up. After the second start, Charles progressively pulled away and on lap 18 and after the stop to mount the intermediates, he had already accumulated 12 seconds behind the Dutchman. Leclerc, in a crisis of grip with the tires, in the end had to give second place to Sergio Perez, who pressed him until he made a chicane cut right at the last corner. He came back and finished second, but the race direction sanctioned him and in fact decided the championship as well.
tractor on the track
–
Fourth Esteban Ocon with Alpine, then Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso. Nothing to do for the second Ferrari, that of Carlos Sainz, out by accident (aquaplaning) on the first lap and frighteningly remained halfway inside the track sideways (“I was in God’s hands because I knew that the others were coming at full speed and I didn’t they saw well ”said the Spaniard). A panel hit by the Ferrari driver and finished on the track was also taken in full by Pierre Gasly. Which ended up in the middle of a case, because the Frenchman shouted his anger over the radio for a rescue vehicle that was proceeding along the track when the race direction was neutralized. The FIA has put the driver under investigation, who would not have slowed down enough. The episode, investigated at the end of the race, brought to mind the fatal accident to Jules Bianchi in 2014 right on this track: the Marussia driver ended up against one of these tractors. The case will be deepened, but it is now a fact that with the rain this F1 has become a halved show, difficult to study effective corrective measures that safeguard, harmonize and protect fans in the stands, safety, entertainment, sport and business. In the meantime, however, for today Honda and Max Verstappen celebrate, once again, deservedly, the number 1.
09 October 2022 (change 09 October 2022 | 10:46)
© REPRODUCTION RESERVED