Zandvoort,
04
September
2021
|
17:24
Europe/Amsterdam

2021 Dutch Grand Prix – Saturday

POSSIBLE RACE STRATEGIES

The 72-lap Dutch Grand Prix is quite a step into the unknown for everyone, but on paper a two-stopper and one-stopper seem quite closely matched – although this obviously depends on a number of different variables such as track temperature as well as tyre degradation.
In practice, the teams will always gravitate towards a one-stopper as the default option if they can: especially as the tight and twisty confines of Zandvoort seem to make it quite hard to overtake. The optimal one-stop strategy consists of an opening stint on either the P Zero Yellow medium C2 or the P Zero Red soft C3, followed by a longer final stint on the P Zero White hard C1. Soft to medium seems a bit marginal, considering the expected wear and degradation rates.
However, there are a few question marks that could bring a two-stopper into play as well: especially if it’s hot or if degradation is higher than expected on the soft tyre in particular.
The number of stoppages seen so far also suggest that a safety car period or even a red flag could be possible during the race, which would alter the complexion of the planned strategy entirely.

FOCUS ON

  • Red Bull’s Max Verstappen became the first Dutchman to claim pole for the Dutch Grand Prix, completing his fastest lap on the P Zero Red soft C3 tyres at the very end of the Q3 session. Verstappen was also fastest in free practice this morning, ahead of both Mercedes as he was in qualifying, again on the soft tyres.
  • All the drivers used the soft from start to finish of the qualifying session, with the exception of both Mercedes drivers, who ran the P Zero Yellow medium C2 tyres to set their best times in Q1 (having one less set of soft tyres after FP3). Consequently all the top 10 on the grid will start on the soft tyre tomorrow.
  • The Q2 session was interrupted by two red flags, which brought it to a premature end, for two separate incidents involving both Williams drivers, causing a delay of about half an hour.
  • Conditions were warm and dry throughout qualifying, with 23 degrees ambient and 34 degrees on track halfway through the session. However, there was some wind that affected the aerodynamics and gave the drivers an extra challenge.

FORMULA 3 – RACE 1

Prema’s Arthur Leclerc, the younger brother of Ferrari star Charles, won the opening Formula 3 race on Saturday morning, with all the drivers using the P Zero White hard compound. Leclerc made a fantastic getaway to take the lead at the exit of the first corner, which he defended to the end of the 24-lap race, winning by less than a second. There was a safety car with seven laps to go, with a number of drivers including Prema’s championship leader Dennis Hauger taking advantage of the re-start to make up more places. Carlin’s Ido Cohen finished 12th, and so started Race 2 from pole position.

MARIO ISOLA – HEAD OF F1 AND CAR RACING

It was a bit of a stop-start qualifying session, in keeping with what we have seen during most of the sessions here so far, with two red flags in Q2 and a few surprises throughout. There was plenty of track evolution seen in qualifying, with the fastest times coming right at the end of each session – so this had a clear impact on the qualifying strategy, with teams trying to set their times as late as possible. In terms of race strategy, everything is still somewhat open, with both a two-stopper and one-stopper possible. However, the teams will want to focus on a one-stopper if they can, which is achievable using either the medium or the soft tyre to start, followed by a final stint on the hard. Without a lot of prior information to fall back on, there’s also scope for drivers to gamble on doing something different – which might just pay off.

FREE PRACTICE 3 – TOP 3 TIMES
DRIVER TIME COMPOUND
Verstappen 1m09.623s SOFT C3 NEW
Bottas 1m10.179s SOFT C3 NEW
Hamilton 1m10.417s SOFT C3 NEW
QUALIFYING TOP 10
DRIVER TIME COMPOUND
Verstappen 1m08.885s SOFT C3 NEW
Hamilton 1m08.923s SOFT C3 NEW
Bottas 1m09.222s SOFT C3 NEW
Gasly 1m09.478s SOFT C3 NEW
Leclerc 1m09.527s SOFT C3 NEW
Sainz 1m09.537s SOFT C3 NEW
Giovinazzi 1m09.590s SOFT C3 NEW
Ocon 1m09.933s SOFT C3 NEW
Alonso 1m09.956s SOFT C3 NEW
Ricciardo 1m10.166s SOFT C3 NEW
BEST TIME BY COMPOUND SO FAR
COMPOUND DRIVER TIME
HARD C1 Verstappen 1m12.755s
MEDIUM C2 Hamilton 1m10.114s
SOFT C3 Verstappen 1m08.885s