British Grand Prix- Talking Points
Ladies and gentlemen, we have a fierce title fight on our hands. Lewis Hamilton may have started the season in rampant form, but Nico Rosberg has wrestled the momentum off him with three wins out of four.
This weekend, F1 returns home to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix in the hope that an exciting race can rid the sport of the moaners for a while.
Here are the talking points.
Rosberg is the man in form
There is no doubt over who is the favourite to win this weekend. The bookies in England may be slightly biased towards Lewis Hamilton, but there is no denying the excellent form of his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg.
The German was outstanding at the Austrian Grand Prix, as he dominated from Friday through to Sunday. It marked the first time that he has beaten Lewis Hamilton convincingly on track, and he will relish the opportunity to back that up with a win in Hamilton’s back yard.
Nico Rosberg & Lewis Hamilton
The Englishman has only won twice at his home race, in 2008 and 2014, while Rosberg emerged victorious in 2013.
Last season, the German was well on his way to a second-straight victory at the famous Silverstone circuit, until a car failure gifted Hamilton the win.
This year he’s gunning for revenge, and is in the form of his life.
Raikkonen should look to Massa for help
In sport, it is said that when you become liked by your peers it is because they no longer see you as a threat. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen may want to block his ears then, as Formula 1 drivers, staff and personnel laud the Iceman from every quarter.
Rumours continue to persist about the Finn’s future, and whether it involves driving a scarlet car in 2016. Raikkonen, who has had a nightmare in the past two races, is fighting for his F1 career.
Kimi Raikkonen
Words of sympathy and encouragement echo around every corner. His team-mate, Sebastian Vettel, is quoted as saying by AUTOSPORT: "I've said many times I'm very happy with Kimi because since day one when I got to know him he's always been very straight, he hasn't changed."
He later added: "I know we have this season left, and I don't know what the contract for next year entails, but it would be nice to have him on the team for next year."
Pull the other one Seb.
Vettel doesn’t want Raikkonen to stay because he’s a top bloke, a nice guy or a right laugh. He wants him to stay because he has the beating of him.
Would Vettel be so kind if the championship table was reversed and it was the 35-year-old who led the German by 48 points? Ask Mark Webber. He’d probably answer rather bluntly.
The words of only one man in the paddock are genuine and worth listening too in regards to Raikkonen’s future. Just a few stops down the garage, an old friend, foe, rival and team-mate is re-building his career after years of Ferrari humiliation.
Felipe Massa
Felipe Massa drove alongside Raikkonen when the Finn won his world championship in 2007, and he was finally put out of his Ferrari misery when the team re-hired Kimi at the end of 2013.
Massa had previously spent four seasons in the shadow of Fernando Alonso. The Brazilian went from being a world championship contender to ‘the other Ferrari driver’ in the space of half a season, and he never recovered. He was beaten so comprehensively, he was pitied
However, Massa continued to survive. He retained hope that one day he would re-assert himself as Alonso’s equal, and on his day he certainly pushed the Spaniard hard. Those days were too infrequent though, and often by mid-season his place was under threat.
Massa’s advice is worth listening too: "He's suffering more with the pressure than other things. Like everybody says, 'the Iceman', he's not really like that,” he told AUTOSPORT.
Felipe Massa, Ferrari F138 at Monaco
"For sure, he can suffer as well with the pressure and he's shown that in some results. So he just needs to relax and do his best, because he's definitely a big talent and can do a lot better than what he's doing."
Massa has been in Raikkonen’s shoes. He has walked down the tunnel of despair, but emerged from the other side with a series of career-saving drives in the second half of each campaign.
His words may only be an insight, but they are of substance. Maybe Raikkonen should visit the Williams garage and find out more. Massa may have the key to Raikkonen’s survival.
Verstappen’s race woes
Max Verstappen driving the STR10
A familiar pattern has emerged this season. Max Verstappen impresses in qualifying, adding to the increased hype surrounding him. And then race day arrives, and he goes backwards.
There are two possible reasons for this. Firstly, the Toro Rosso car seems to lack the race pace necessary for its drivers to compete as well as they do in qualifying, as the likes of Red Bull, Force India and Lotus possess greater race pace.
The other reason is that Verstappen needs to sharpen up. The Dutchman has wowed F1 so far with his array of overtaking skills, but his tyre conservation has been below average and he’s often forced to save fuel too.
In Britain, he looks like a cert to be in the top 10 once again on Saturday, but finishing in the points is far less certain.
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