The 2018 season of the Formula One World Championship has been one of the most entertaining in recent memory. The Mercedes car piloted by Lewis Hamilton has not been as unassailable as the last few years, thanks to Ferrari producing an equally competent package and the Silver Arrows suffering from reliability issues in some races. Add to the mix a few spirited performances from Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo, and the championship is poised for a gripping second half when the summer break ends with the Belgian Grand Prix later this month.
Ferrari's Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen walks down the paddock prior to the race of the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring circuit in Mogyorod near Budapest, Hungary, on July 29, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / ANDREJ ISAKOVIC
Up top, it has been old rivals Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel fighting for the lead, with the points tally swinging precariously a few times before Hamilton put in some great drives and built a 24-point lead over Vettel, thanks in part to the latter’s non-finish at his home race in Hockenheim, which Hamilton won. Lower down the order, Kimi Raikkonen has turned in strong and consistent performances for a solid third spot, ahead of Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas and the two Red Bulls. In the midfield, Renault, Haas, McLaren and Force India are all locked in a tight battle for points below the big three.
Silly season
The real narrative that is emerging at this point in the season is the driver line-up for next year, with contracts being renewed and negotiated. Both Hamilton and Vettel have signed on for multi-year extensions at Mercedes and Ferrari respectively, and Bottas has also been confirmed opposite Hamilton. Kimi Raikkonen’s future is still unsure, as Ferrari CEO Sergio Marchionne was reportedly keen to replace the ageing Finn with young Sauber driver Charles Leclerc, a part of Ferrari’s driver programme. However, Marchionne’s passing away in July may cause the scarlet team to keep the experienced and consistent Raikkonen, who has also proven to have a great working relationship with Vettel over the years.
(FILES) In this file photo taken on July 01, 2018 Red Bull�s Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo smiles as he arrives prior to the Austrian Formula One Grand Prix in Spielberg, central Austria. Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo is joining Renault from next season after quitting Red Bull, the team said in a statement on August 3, 2018. The French Formula One team's announcement followed shortly after Red Bull announced that their 29-year-old grand prix-winning driver was leaving the team. / AFP PHOTO / Andrej ISAKOVIC
The big shake-up on the grid was caused by Daniel Ricciardo, who announced recently that he would be leaving the strong Red Bull team for a seat at Renault, who have traditionally been a mid-field outfit. Red Bull have had some reliability issues this year, and will be switching to Honda engines next year, after trying them in sister team Toro Rosso with some success. It is unclear if Honda’s lacklustre form as a manufacturer since their return to F1 with McLaren a few years ago, is one of the reasons for Ricciardo’s move, but it has caused interest to rise in the vacant Red Bull seat.
McLaren's Spanish driver Fernando Alonso is pictured prior to the race of the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring circuit in Mogyorod near Budapest, Hungary, on July 29, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / ANDREJ ISAKOVIC
The primary candidate is Spaniard Carlos Sainz Jr, a Red Bull driver programme product currently on loan to Renault, who will be displaced by Ricciardo when he joins the team. Sainz is being linked to a move to the main Red Bull team, though current Toro Rosso driver Pierre Gasly could be promoted instead to gel better with Verstappen, which could see Sainz consider options like McLaren, Haas or Force India. McLaren would like to keep Fernando Alonso, but the double world champion is jaded with his time languishing in uncompetitive cars and trying to break the door down at Red Bull and Ferrari for a seat, while Force India, which Williams driver Lance Stroll’s father has now invested in, may give a seat to the young Canadian driver, as both current drivers Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon also evaluate their options.
Back on track
These machinations could well shape how the next season will play out, possibly promoting new faces to the podium, as young drivers get better cars. For now, the action will be back on track, where the old guard Alonso and Raikkonen will be out to show their teams and the competition what they are capable of, while youngsters like Leclerc and Sainz do the same to get into competitive cars at an early stage in their careers, to give them a shot at the Championship.
All this and more, when the red lights go out in the beautiful wooded hills of Belgium on August 26.
