2017 Great Britain Thoughts
THE BIG PICTURE: Halfway through the season and the championship is down to one point. However, it sure seems like Mercedes is the Mercedes of the past three years and others can no longer keep up.
TRACK: Though we don't believe it will happen, it will be a shame if F1 does indeed leave Silverstone for London.
EVENT: Too bad every grand prix can't be a Silverstone (or a Monza).
QUALIFYING: Hamilton impeded another driver and got pole, it didn't matter what Alonso did as he was starting last, and Ricciardo got the worse time but did not start last.
START: Verstappen jumps Vettel, then Vettel gets it back, then Verstappen returns the favor. Meanwhile, Toro Rosso does the unforgivable and Hamilton sails away.
RACE: Back to a 2016 race. But, behind the leader, that Verstappen-Vettel battle was awe inspiring. And the Vettel-Bottas battle was pretty darn good, too.
HAMILTON: An inspired Lewis and his home grand prix is as unbeatable of a combination you will find in sports.
BOTTAS: Did exactly what Mercedes expected of him after the grid penalty.
RAIKKONEN: Getting a flat tire two laps from the end...
VETTEL: ...is better than getting a flat tire one lap from the end.
FERRARI: Ever since the FIA directive came out clarifying mixing oil in your fuel, the Prancing Horse has not been prancing.
VERSTAPPEN: Max got reliability and luck, and he was back to his old aggressive self.
RICCIARDO: A brilliant drive from last row to fifth.
HULKENBERG: A great drive by Nico, which he needed.
PALMER: Jolyon may not deserve to keep his ride. But for crying out loud Renault, at least give him a car for a fighting chance to prove himself.
OCON: Beat his teammate...
PEREZ: ...but at least they didn't collide.
MALLYA: Hey Vijay, the one race you can attend. That whole passport being seized situation is kind of a bummer...
MASSA: Salvaged a point for Williams.
WILLIAMS: Just how much does Jacques Villeneuve piss off people with his mouth? Even Williams bans him from their garage ... and he won the last world championship for them!
HAAS: A missed opportunity with Toro Rosso out of the points early. In fact, Renault has now closed up on your heels.
KVYAT: The Torpedo strikes again.
SAINZ: Trading red for yellow?
TORO ROSSO: Good luck dealing with that kerfuffle.
ALONSO: "No power." The trademark saying for Fernando's season.
SAUBER: They finally have a team manager. An experienced person as well. Wonder what autonomy Frederic Vasseur demanded before he took the job.
F1 LIVE: Once again, proof Liberty Media is moving ahead with their promises to make Formula 1 accessible to the fans. And everyone went along with it. Well, except one person...
WORD OF THE WEEKEND: Absent.
STAT OF THE WEEKEND: 100,000 -- The estimated number of fans who showed up for F1 Live and well over that for the race itself.
HISTORICAL STAT OF THE WEEKEND: Hamilton equaled Jim Clark for many British GP records. Five British GP poles. Five British GP victories. Four consecutive British GP wins. Clark took his wins in 1962-65 (all in a Lotus-Climax) and 1967 (Lotus-Ford). Clark won his at three different venues -- once at Aintree (1962) and Brands Hatch (1964) and three times at Silverstone.
QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND: We normally don't agree with what Jacques Villeneuve says. Well, we never do. But, he did nail it with his criticism of Daniil Kvyat with advice every race driver has to accept in his career, but apparently Kvyat never has: "If you keep pointing the finger, then you never learn. You should always blame yourself, even when it's not -- that's the only way you can make yourself better."
QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND RUNNERUP: Fernando Alonso explaining on Saturday what he needs to win the race, "I need 25 pit stops for the others."
SCHEDULE: With Mercedes apparently back to dominating form and a Hungaroring that never has possessed passing abilities, it could be a boring race. The most interesting thing to look forward to is how well will Red Bull do on a tight, twisty circuit.
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