However, by Vettel's estimation, he had lost around eight seconds to the chasing Hamilton in doing so.Īnother turning point in the race came on lap 34 when McLaren-Honda's Stoffel Vandoorne turned in on the Williams-Mercedes of Felipe Massa going into the right-handed first corner despite the Brazilian being clearly alongside the Belgian.Ī virtual safety car was brought out briefly during which Mercedes were able to switch from the mandatory medium compound Pirelli tyre to the soft compound whereas Ferrari, which had Vettel out on the soft tyre until then, waited until the race resumed to fit his SF70-H with medium compound tyres on lap 38. Keeping him out for even longer than Hamilton, the Finn kept Vettel behind him for as long as he could before the German sold him a dummy on lap 24 heading into the first corner to finally get past. It still could have counted for nothing as Vettel still had impressive pace but that is where the struggling Bottas - unable to keep up with the leaders - came into play. Mercedes kept Hamilton out for another eight laps in order to give the tyres he would use on his second stop less work to do as compared to Vettel. The race was however, close enough for Mercedes to resort to some quick thinking and cunning use of Valtteri Bottas to give Hamilton the edge over Vettel.Īfter the German leapt past pole-sitter Hamilton at the start, he was able to maintain a gap of around two to 2.5 seconds before the first of his two tyre stops on lap 14. The 66-lap Spanish Grand Prix around the 16-turn, 4.655km Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was the scene of a terrific duel between Hamilton and Vettel in which the Mercedes AMG F1 driver bested the Ferrari man. The two had wheel-to-wheel battles as junior drivers but fast forward to 2017, they are battling for the F1 title with little to separate them either on the timing screens or out on track. The two were marked as stars of the future well before F1, though, when they were rivals in European Formula 3. Malaysia is moved to 17 September and becomes the first of the long-haul 'fly-away' races that bring the season to a close, a position previously held by Singapore.With seven FIA Formula 1 World Championship titles, 99 wins and 200 podiums between them since their F1 debuts in 2007, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton are by far the most prolific drivers of the 'post-Schumacher' era of grand prix racing. The first four races are shuffled, so China follows a week after Australia, replacing Bahrain as the second race. It will start in Australia on 26 March and end in Abu Dhabi on 26 November. The calendar closely echoes this year's record 21-race season. However, it is hard to imagine the race being dropped, especially as new owners Liberty Media have made it clear that one of their priorities is to expand the sport's profile in the Americas. The paddock area, which is cramped by modern standards, is scheduled to be updated at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal. The problems for Canada revolve around the organisers' failure to complete renovation works that they promised as part of their latest contract. It has been listed as the host race for next year, when it is again the Nurburgring's turn, but no deal has yet been completed. Hockenheim refused to host the race in 2015 because it said it could not sustain a grand prix every year on financial grounds. The German race has a contract to alternate between Hockenheim and the Nurburgring.īut the Nurburgring has not held a grand prix since 2013 as a result of financial difficulties. "Interlagos is one of the most fun and great races to watch." Maybe it is just some pressure but maybe it can happen (not go ahead) like what happened in Germany last year. "I know the situation in Brazil is not easy economically. "Brazil is part of this sport and been part of Formula 1 for a long time. "There is a contract in place until 2020, every provision of which will be complied with as it has been for the past 45 years."īut insiders have said to BBC Sport that F1 commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone told FIA bosses on Wednesday that the race would be dropped unless the organisers in Sao Paulo found a significant amount more money.Īt Thursday's Malaysian Grand Prix drivers' news conferences, Brazilian driver Felipe Massa said: "It would be really disappointing to lose the race in Brazil. Brazil is facing financial troubles, Germany's problems come from the financial collapse of the Nurburgring and Canada has to improve its track.īrazilian organisers said they had a deal to 2020 and the race would happen.Ī statement released on Wednesday said: "The Brazilian Grand Prix Organisation took notice, with surprise, of the 2017 F1 calendar which shows the race to be confirmed.
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