2023 F1 Las Vegas GP RACE analysis by Peter Windsor by @Peter Windsor - Post Details
2023 F1 Las Vegas GP RACE analysis by Peter Windsor
Two long straights, a bunch of tight corners and two DRS zones inevitably added up to some very tense racing around the new Las Vegas street circuit. All signs during practice and qualifying were that it would be a close fight between Red Bull and Ferrari - and so it proved. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in the first phase of the race looked to be heading for victory - but then Ferrari kept Charles out on five-lap-old hard Pirellis when the two Red Bulls stopped under Safety Car conditions for new tyres. Charles gained track position - regained the lead - but the downside to that was worsening tyre degradation. Leclerc eventually finished a gallant P2 after a battle with Red Bull's Sergio Perez. For his part, Verstappen was obliged to overcome a five-second penalty for a first-lap skirmish with Leclerc and front wing damage after contact with Mercedes' George Russell. He went on to score a superb victory - the 53rd of his career and one that tied the record of Sebastian Vettel. Red Bull's 19th win of the year also enabled them to break a record set by Mercedes in 2016. Russell finished fourth on the road but, with a penalty due to the Max incident, was eventually classified P8 behind his team-mate, Lewis Hamilton. Alpine's Esteban Ocon and Aston Martin's Lance Stroll finished fourth and fifth - and sixth was Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, who would have started on the front row but for a penalty, effectively, for hitting a loose manhole cover in FP1. Fernando Alonso finished P9 after an erratic race in the other Aston and Oscar Piastri drove well to score the final point - and to take fastest lap - for McLaren-Mercedes. His team-mate, Lando Norris, was meanwhile lucky to survive a high-speed accident on the opening lap after his car bottomed-out on a full load of fuel with the tyres still below optimum operating temperature. Peter Windsor in this video reviews the key elements of the race. Alternative race stats courtesy of Aleš Norskŷ: www.GPfactsandnumbers.com With thanks to Jetcraft, the world's largest buyer and seller of executive jets: https://jetcraft.com And to pitbox.io. Say goodbye to pitlane guesswork and hello to a new era of precision and efficiency. Pitbox.io provides the tools you need to optimize your performance and maximize your chances of victory: https://pitbox.io Alpinestars: https://alpinestars.com Images: Pirelli, Red Bull, Alfa Romeo, Scuderia Ferrari, McLaren, AMG Mercedes and Alpine Music: "What floor?" - Idokay - Slowed and Reverbed Follow Peter on X: @peterdwindsor We support the Race Against Dementia: https://raceagainstdementia.com #standwithukraine Nick: you're always with us
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2023 F1 ABU DHABI GP Race analysis by Peter Windsor
Max Verstappen put his signature to the 2023 season by winning the finale at Abu Dhabi with consummate ease. It was his 19th win of the season and Red Bull-Honda's 21st win from 22 starts. Although Ferrari's Charles Leclerc raced Max hard over the opening lap and finished a clear second, it wasn't enough to clinch P2 in the Constructors' Championship for Maranello. Mercedes secured the runner-up position (and the additional $10m in prize money) by the margin of three points thanks to the P3 of George Russell and the P9 of Lewis Hamilton while Ferrari, the only team other than Red Bull to win in 2023, have the consolation of a little extra wind tunnel test time going into the winter. Sergio Perez was classified P4 in the other Red Bull (after a 5sec penalty had been imposed); McLaren-Mercedes finished P5-P6, ahead of Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso and a hard-charging Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Touri-Honda); Lewis was a disconsolate P9 and Lance Stroll scored the remaining point in the other Aston. Ferrari's Carlos Sainz gambled on a hard-hard Pirelli compound strategy, hoping that a Safety Car intervention might enable a "free" stop for softer tyres, but the race was relatively trouble-free and the Sainz car, its tyres shot, was retired on the final lap after dropping to P15. Alternative race stats courtesy of Aleš Norskŷ: www.GPfactsandnumbers.com With thanks to Jetcraft, the world's largest buyer and seller of executive jets: https://jetcraft.com And to pitbox.io. Say goodbye to pitlane guesswork and hello to a new era of precision and efficiency. Pitbox.io provides the tools you need to optimize your performance and maximize your chances of victory: https://pitbox.io Alpinestars: https://alpinestars.com Images: Pirelli, Red Bull, AMG Mercedes, F2 Series, Alpine and Grand Prix Photo (Peter Nygaard) https://grandprixphoto.com Music: Veaceslav Draganov - The Last Hero Follow Peter on X: @peterdwindsor We support the Race Against Dementia: https://raceagainstdementia.com #standwithukraine Nick: you're always with us
2023 F1 JAPANESE GP RACE Analysis by Peter Windsor
The Singapore GP suddenly seems an age away, for Red Bull and Max Verstappen not only dominated the Japanese GP but also clinched the 2023 FIA Constructors' World Championship at Suzuka with a walkaway win. Starting from the pole, Max led from the first corner and also went on to set a fastest race lap over a second quicker than any recorded by his opposition. With this win - his 13th of the season - Max could now clinch the FIA Drivers' Championship as early as the Sprint race in Qatar in two weeks' time. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished second and third for McLaren-Mercedes, Piastri thereby becoming the sixth Australian to finish in the top three since 1959, and Ferrari and Mercedes fought fiercely over the minor placings, with Charles Leclerc leading Lewis Hamilton, Carlos Sainz and George Russell across the line. In this video Peter Windsor talks through the key elements of the race, focusing particularly on the number of amazing passes engendered by the stunning Suzuka circuit, a test/race track commissioned by Honda and designed by the architect of Zandvoort, John Hugenholtz, in the early-1960s. Significant race stats courtesy of Aleš Norskŷ: www.GPfactsandnumbers.com With thanks to Jetcraft, the world's largest buyer and seller of executive jets: https://jetcraft.com And to pitbox.io. Say goodbye to pitlane guesswork and hello to a new era of precision and efficiency. Pitbox.io provides the tools you need to optimize your performance and maximize your chances of victory: https://pitbox.io Images: Pirelli, Grand Prix Photo (Peter Nygaard), AMG Mercedes, Red Bull, Alpha Tauri, McLaren, Aston Martin and Alpine www.grandprixphoto.com Music: Roie Shpigler - Kumiko Follow Peter on X: @peterdwindsor Special thanks to Cory Pesaturo We support the Race Against Dementia: https://raceagainstdementia.com #standwithukraine Nick: you're always with us
2023 F1 JAPANESE GP Qualifying analysis by Peter Windsor
Max Verstappen and Red Bull bounced back from a difficult Singapore with a peerless pole in Suzuka, Japan. On one of the world's most demanding circuits, and now in perfect harmony with his high-grip, well-balanced Red Bull RB19, Max dipped below the 1min 29sec barrier in the closing seconds of Q3 to seize the pole by nearly half a second. McLaren qualified second and third, with the sensational Australian rookie, Oscar Piastri, beating his more experienced team-mate (Lando Norris); and Ferrari will start fourth and sixth, sandwiching the second Red Bull of Sergio Perez. With his own data analysis of Max's pole lap, together with other significant numbers, Peter Windsor talks us through the day. Watch Peter's detailed description of the Suzuka circuit lap on his recent livestream (from 56:40:15 to 69:51:03) https://youtube.com/live/NFwpLJY5W4U?feature=share With thanks to Jetcraft, the world's largest buyer and seller of executive jets: https://jetcraft.com And to pitbox.io: say goodbye to guesswork and hello to a new era of precision and efficiency. Pitbox.io provides the tools you need to your performance and maximize your chances of victory: https://pitbox.io Images: Pirelli, AMG Mercedes, Alpha Tauri, Scuderia Ferrari and McLaren Music: Roie Shpigler - Kumiko Follow Peter on X: @peterdwindsor Considering a career in F1? Check out the United Motorsports Academy: https://unitedmotorsportsacademy.com We support the Race Against Dementia: https://raceagainstdementia.com #standwithukraine Nick: you're always with us
2023 F1 Belgian GP RACE analysis by Peter Windsor
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2023 F1 Austrian GP race analysis by Peter Windsor
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2023 F1 Monaco GP race analysis by Peter Windsor
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2023 F1 Monaco GP qualifying analysis by Peter Windsor
Red Bull's Max Verstappen achieved the near-impossible in Monaco qualifying when he found over 0.3sec in the final sector to take the pole on his final lap. In this video, Peter Windsor offers a suggestion of where Max created his advantage and, with his own photographs, compares Max's approach to the La Rascasse corner sequence with that of his team-mate, Sergio Perez, and also with that of Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso. Fernando nonetheless qualified on the front row in P2 - and P3, thanks to a three-place grid penalty imposed upon Ferrari's Charles Leclerc for impeding McLaren's Lando Norris (the notice of which was too late for inclusion in this video) now goes to Alpine's very impressive Esteban Ocon. Carlos Sainz and Leclerc start P4-P6 for Ferrari, with Lewis Hamilton lining up P5 in the revamped Mercedes after shunting the car on Saturday morning. With thanks to Jetcraft, the world's largest buyer and seller of executive jets: www.jetcraft.com And Alpinestars: www.alpinestars.com And pitbox.io - the all-in-one motorsport toolkit for race teams. Bring all of your race data together to optimise team operations without relying on spreadsheets or paper Find out more at: https://pitbox.io/team-owners/ Images: Oracle Red Bull Racing, AMG Mercedes, Alpine, McLaren and Peter Windsor Follow Peter on Twitter: @peterdwindsor We support the Race Against Dementia: https://raceagainstdementia.com #STANDWITHUKRAINE Nick: you're with us always