Welcome to Wednesday’s edition of the RaceFans round-up.
Comment of the day
How significant a role did Overtake Mode play in the battles for position at the Canadian Grand Prix?
The rubberbanding effect was very noticeable. At first Verstappen couldn’t shake Hamilton until Lewis made an unseen mistake. When tyre strategies reversed and a sudden VSC appeared, the balance shifted and Ferrari enjoyed the advantage. Once Hamilton escaped Verstappen’s immediate pressure (I won’t call it a clean overtake), Verstappen seemed to receive a sudden boost from the system that let him stay close to Hamilton. Both Verstappen and Hamilton gained ground on each other when the other driver’s battery appeared to be depleted.
A similar pattern emerged with the Mercedes pair. There have been too many errors at heavy braking zones for several races now. Is the aero reattaching unpredictably? Is the energy harvesting delivering less than expected so there’s less engine braking? It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what’s happening.
Senor Sjon
Social media and links
Norris pays a visit to Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Racer)
“I don’t want to say no. I certainly want to try things outside of Formula 1. I’m a racing fan. I love Formula 1 more than anything, but at the same time, I love everything. I love bikes, I love rally, I love IndyCar, I love just all racing in general. So, whether it is the Indy 500 or just IndyCar in general, I know that Indy 500 is the one, and obviously it’s part of the Triple Crown for McLaren as well, so I won Monaco, which is, you know, part one done.”
‘500’ purse soars to new record, increases by more than 50 percent (IndyCar)
The Indianapolis 500 purse record was broken again for the 110th running, with first-time winner Felix Rosenqvist of Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian earning a record-high $4.34 million from a total purse of $30,906,400.
Hamilton (Instagram)
“I could not be more proud of my brother Nicolas Hamilton. Seeing the passion and emotion on his face as he stood on his first podium was such a beautiful moment. For us both to be on podiums on the same day was a major moment. I called him the second the race ended. Motorsport is not built to be inclusive. There is little to no access for people with disabilities, and no support systems to level the playing field. This is something so many take for granted. Despite that, despite the barriers and the people who told him it wasn’t possible, he never stopped. He fought. He adapted. He proved them wrong. While he will always be my kid brother, I am profoundly proud of the leader, the athlete, and the man he has become. He inspires me just as much as he inspires everyone watching his journey. No matter how hard it has been he has never given up. What he’s achieved is massive and I’m so happy for him. Love you bro, keep going.”
At Snetterton last weekend Hamilton finished 17th, 16th and 16th across the three BTCC races, scoring one point and winning the Jack Sears Trophy, awarded to the top-scoring driver of the weekend who began the season without a podium and had not previously won the trophy. He is the third different winner of the trophy this season, leaving only one other driver who could claim it for the remainder of the year.
Brawn teams up with Pramac MotoGP team as strategic advisor (Reuters)
“Motorsport has always been about people, teamwork and continuous improvement, and I look forward to supporting (principal) Paolo (Campinoti) and the team and contributing where my experience may be useful,” he said.
Helmet worn by Canadian F1 great Gilles Villeneuve sells for record US$1.25m (CBC)
Darren Jack, president and CEO of Hall of Fame Collection, said his company brokered the sale for the world-record price, exceeding the previous mark set last year by Ayrton Senna’s 1992 Belgian Grand Prix helmet.
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Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Graigchq!
On this day in motorsport
- 20 years ago Michael Schumacher was stripped of pole at Monaco and sent to the back of the grid after stewards ruled he deliberately stopped his Ferrari at Rascasse to impede rivals
- Born today in 2003: Future Williams Formula 1 driver Franco Colapinto
- 20 years ago Lewis Hamilton dominated the GP2 round in Monaco and took the lead of the championship
- Born today in 1942: Piers Courage, who finished second twice for Brabham in 1969 and was killed in a crash at Zandvoort the following year while driving a De Tomaso entered by Frank Williams
- Born today in 1961: Pierre-Henri Raphanel, who qualified for one of his 17 F1 appearances, in a Coloni at Monaco in 1989
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