F1 LIVE: Carlos Sainz win at Silverstone sparked Ferrari camp split, ex-employee claims

The British Grand Prix gave a “perfect demonstration” of what Formula 1 wanted to achieve with its 2022 cars and how much safer the sport has become, according to the general manager Ross Brawn†

The halo head protection system was credited with saving the life of Chinese driver Guanyu Zhou after a massive first lap crash during Sunday’s race at silverstone had close racing and exciting overtaking.

Ferraris Carlos Sainz won the race for his first win in Formula 1.

“What made me happy was the precision the drivers could have with the cars. We saw countless fascinating battles that took several turns, with multiple position changes,” Brawn said in a column on the F1 website.

“We saw that with these new cars drivers could take multiple lines – and that allowed two, three or even four cars to drive almost side by side. The quality of the passes was also high,” he added.

Brawn, a former team principal and technical director, said the drivers were positive about the change and the ability to follow the cars up front without turbulence.

The seven-time world champion led the race after failing to pit on the first lap after the restart and was comfortable on medium tyres.

But when Mercedes brought Hamilton in on lap 33, the Silver Arrows put the Briton on the safer hard compound instead of the faster but less durable soft tires to oversee the remaining 19 laps of the race. However, he returned to the pits due to a late safety car.

Guanyu Zhou’s harrowing crash at the start of Sunday’s British Grand Prix was another win for Jean Todt and the FIA ​​technicians who heeded drivers’ concerns in 2015.

The likes of Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel pushed for mandatory head protection, especially after Justin Wilson’s death in IndyCar that year and Henry Surtees’ sad passage in an F2 race in 2009. Jules Bianchi also lost his battle in July 2015 after his horrific crash at the Japanese Grand Prix nine months earlier.

But there have been no fatalities in Formula 1 in the years since. to be.

While Toto Wolff remarked about the halo in the 2018 build: “If you give me a chainsaw, I’d take it off”, a few months later we saw the first instance of its very authentic functionality amid the propulsive speed and powers of a Formula 1 car.

After the success in 2021 Formula One season the F1 committee approved plans to run F1 sprint format this season in three Grands Prix.

Just like last year, the F1 sprint is a 100 km sprint without mandatory pit stops and drivers full race to the checkered flag. It was introduced last season and the result set the starting grid for the weekend’s main event, the Grand prize on Sunday.

For the 2022 season, the points system has been adjusted, with the top eight drivers scoring points, where previously only the top three finished. It is now also more lucrative as the driver who finishes in P1 gets eight points instead of three last year.

The location of the sprints has also changed. While they took place at Silverstone, Monza and Interlagos last year, the first sprint weekend of the season has already taken place at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola in April – with the second this weekend at the Red Bull Ring and the third will again take place during the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

How does the sprint race work?

Friday’s traditional qualifying session will continue to set the grid for Saturday’s F1 sprint, with the result of the sprint forming the line-up for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Wolff has overseen a period of dominance with Mercedes winning eight consecutive Constructors’ Championships from 2014-2021, but amid new regulations for this season Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have struggled for top results so far in 2022.

The W13 has suffered from porpoises and bouncing in the early stages of this season, but two recent podium finishes for Hamilton in Montreal and Silverstone give cause for optimism as we are midway through the season in Austria this weekend – also the second sprint weekend of the season.

The Red Bull Ring is the home track for Christian Horner’s team and while Wolff believes Mercedes has made progress in recent weeks, he acknowledged that the track at Spielberg has not always been suitable for the Silver Arrows in the past.

“We were back in the game at Silverstone, but that doesn’t mean it will be like that again [in Austria]Wolff said.

Red BullThe memorable Verstappen crashed into the Copse corner on the opening lap of last year’s race after tangling with Hamilton, who won the race despite a 10-second penalty.

But in Sunday’s dramatic Grand Prix at… silverstoneLeclerc and Hamilton battled it out beautifully and fairly through the same corner and seven-time world champion Hamilton couldn’t help but refer to last year when he praised the Monegasque driver.

“Charles did a great job. What a great fight,” Hamilton told Sky F1†

“Very sensible driver and clearly very different from what we experienced last year. In Copse, for example, the two of us went through it without any problems. What a struggle.”

The protesters, from the Just Stop Oil activist group, sat down on the Wellington straight on lap one, with the race red flagged just before the cars reached the group following Guanyu Zhou’s crash seconds earlier at Abbey.

“I think there’s been some talk about it, I think everyone is free to have their own opinion about it,” said four-time world champion Vettel after the race.

“I think these people are not acting out of frustration, but they are desperate, and I have a lot of sympathy for their fears and concerns, which I think anyone who understands the magnitude of the problem that is drifting towards us can understand.

Six people have appeared in court over the invasion of the circuit during the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

Protesters stormed the Wellington Straight, the fastest point on the Northamptonshire circuit, before sitting down on Sunday’s race opening lap.

David Baldwin, 46, of Stonesfield, Witney, Oxfordshire; Emily Brocklebank, 23, of Yeadon, Leeds; Alasdair Gibson, 21, of Aberdeen; Louis McKechnie, 21, from Manchester; Bethany Mogie, 40, of St Albans, Hertfordshire; and Joshua Smith, 28, of Manchester, have all been charged with conspiracy to cause public nuisance.

The Northampton Magistrates’ Court heard Tuesday afternoon that the protesters took to the track in orange tracksuits with the message “Just Stop Oil”.

A group of people protesting global oil consumption took to the Wellington straight on the opening lap of the British Grand Prix, with the race being shown a red flag seconds before the first cars reached the protesters.

Still, Australian driver Ricciardo, speaking to reporters after the race, comically believed the group were supporters of Dutch driver Verstappen because of the color of their t-shirts.

“I saw it out of the corner of my eye. I think they wore orange so I thought they were Max fans,” Ricciardo told Motorsport.com†

Later reminded that orange is also the color of his McLaren team, Ricciardo added: “Or McLaren fans!”

The popular Aussie, who finished 13th at Silverstone as a difficult season continued for the 33-year-old in 2022, also stated that Formula 1 drivers are talented enough to avoid a danger like a group of people on the track, although he admits that the drivers were unaware of the possibility of a protest before the race.

After the drama of Silverstone, Formula 1 heads to Red Bull’s home circuit this weekend for the Austrian Grand Prix at Spielberg at the Red Bull Ring – and the second sprint weekend of the season from July 8-10.

The first practice and qualifying will take place at 12:30pm and 4:00pm (BST) respectively on Friday, with the second practice at 11:30am on Saturday and the sprint race at 3:30pm.

The race on Sunday starts at 2pm (BST).

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