Sky F1's Martin Brundle hails F1's new superstar after Rosberg and Hamiton pay the ultimate price for their first-lap aggression
Thursday 19 May 2016 11:13, UK
Formula 1 has a new energy and excitement and finally some very good news.
We can dispatch the doubters to go and bore somebody else now. Every race this season has been well worth watching and none more so than Barcelona. What a Grand Prix.
We were already buzzing after qualifying with some sensationally fast laps delivered under the most intense pressure. Lewis Hamilton's pace after his first lap lock-up. Daniel Ricciardo's rapid response after new team-mate Max Verstappen threatened to outqualify him.
A qualifying session which didn't need fake rule changes, unreliability or changeable weather to make it exciting.
Ferrari had shown great practice race-pace but were humbled on Saturday afternoon by Mercedes and a resurgent Red Bull. Even though it was yet another Mercedes front row lock-out somehow the anticipation was very high. Lewis couldn't afford not to win, the old Nico Rosberg could afford to finish second, but the new Nico clearly doesn't think like that anymore.
Rosberg had the marginally better start and with a slipstream from his team-mate he effortlessly went around the outside of Hamilton in turn one. It all looked surprisingly easy.
This and another aspect would ensure contact a few hundred metres later. Lewis must have been properly shocked to be second as he also noticed his team-mate slowing and his rear red light flashing signalling Rosberg's car was charging its batteries in a very unusual place
In a nutshell Rosberg had selected a wrong setting at the start, and then as he correctly deselected the start map he automatically and incorrectly defaulted to the safety car engine mapping. This meant he was missing the 160bhp battery power and so Hamilton, also more on the grippy racing line, caught him at over 17kph or 11mph faster as Rosberg corrected his fault on the steering wheel. I'm told this incorrect setting would not have affected his speed down to turn one.
Hamilton instantly realised he could put his steady first corner right, and instinctively felt there was more space to the right and went that way for the inside line into turn four. A momentarily distracted Rosberg went to cover him off just a little too late. Hamilton was far enough alongside to have earned the right to some space but frankly the pair of them were being equally too aggressive way off the racing line on lap one.
The stewards called it right as a racing incident, it was an amalgamation of circumstances which ended up with Hamilton on the grass and then wiping them both out.
We could argue all day as to who was in the wrong, and in most of the available footage or still images there are any number of shots or angles which you can seize to support your case either way. After the race Hamilton was, interestingly, more apologetic and Rosberg more belligerent.
Mercedes have to be happy to have this problem to sort out rather than an unhappy and underperforming No 2 driver. Put two of the best and hardest racing drivers in a championship winning car and it's inevitable. Two selfishly ambitious individuals in a team environment guarantees trouble.
Mercedes explain Rosberg-Hamilton crash
I nervously said in commentary that we had been waiting ages to see what a full race without Mercedes would look like, and thankfully we weren't disappointed with the answer.
It was a proper head to head between Red Bull and Ferrari. There were some key moments such as when Verstappen regained his place from Vettel around the outside of turn three in the opening lap. And Carlos Sainz getting ahead of the Ferraris in his Toro Rosso at the start.
Then Ferrari and Red Bull both split strategies for their two drivers. I can't help thinking that both teams felt they were majoring on Ricciardo v Vettel, and when the Bulls left Verstappen on a two-stopper with an initially implausible 32 laps to complete on one set of tyres, Ferrari left Raikkonen out to cover him.
But of course it didn't turn out that way. It left Ricciardo having to overtake three cars for a chance of victory, and along with Vettel his pace wasn't really consistent with the tyre advantage especially given traffic.
Ricciardo had a serious and impressive run at Seb into turn one which didn't quite come off and his game plan was rather blown after that, although eventually he would have a puncture anyway.
Meanwhile, up front the teenager Verstappen was using the clear air and his head to equally good effect. He worked out that every time Raikkonen got close into turn one using slipstream, full power and DRS the Ferrari would then spend a lap charging its batteries in preparation for another try.
So on the alternate laps Verstappen would protect his tyres in anticipation of the next onslaught. Such a calm maturity, it simply doesn't seem possible at 18. Max said it was with about five laps to go when he realised he could win as Kimi had run out of grip and ideas and fell back slightly.
It was such a pleasure to watch the post-race celebrations with genuine respect for the new young King from all quarters.
Understandably Danny Ric was miffed that his strategy took him out of the lead and he couldn't even be at least on the podium to observe his team mate getting the glory.
With the slow corners of Monaco and a healthy engine upgrade from Canada and beyond, Red Bull are back in business. Other strong performances came from Carlos Sainz and a recovering Felipe Massa, who finished eighth after starting the race 18th on the grid.
The rules now state that a driver must be 18 to qualify for a Superlicence but surely given this level of performance so young that may have to be revised when inevitably an even younger star appears.
I said to proud dad Jos Verstappen after the race, make the most of it because in a few years time his son may be accused of ruining F1 because he's always winning like Michael Schumacher.
But on Sunday he was our new beginning.
