F1 Talk: Mercedes on the brink of record-breaking history at Imola

After a fourteen year hiatus, Formula 1 returns to the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari where Michael Schumacher was the last driver to score a Grand Prix victory in 2006. Now as the most successful driver in terms of race wins, Lewis Hamilton has another opportunity to match Schumacher by winning at Imola.

But this weekend will be less about whether or not Hamilton can score yet another victory, and more about whether Mercedes can seal a record-breaking seventh consecutive constructors championship crown. The Brackley-based outfit has won ten of the twelve Grand Prix’s this year, and so long as they score at least ten points this weekend, they will be champions once again.

After Hamilton showed himself to be the dominant force in F1 last time at Portimao, Mercedes will not be satisfied with just doing what is necessary for the title, but will be gunning for another dominant performance at this shortened Imola weekend.

This weekend marks Alexander Albon’s final chance to do enough to deserve his place in Formula 1. The Thai-British driver currently languishes in eighth place in the championship on 64 points despite being in superior machinery to the likes of Daniel Ricciardo, Sergio Perez, Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris. Talking of Perez, the Mexican seems to be in prime position for the Red Bull drive as he continues to show what he can do in the Racing Point car.

On paper, this track should suit Red Bull with chicanes and short straights. But while the Dutchman has got closer in qualifying recently, he is yet to beat them.

Racing Point are still standing firm in the fight for third in the constructors championship. They are just two points ahead of McLaren with Renault a further four behind. Portimao seemed to be a stronger venue for Racing Point and McLaren than Renault, but you can expect Renault to come back at them this weekend.

Racing Point know that despite the fact they are ahead, it will tough to maintain that throughout the remaining races. After failing to score any points in the last three races, Lance Stroll must start to pull his weight if the team are to defend their constructors position.

McLaren will feel slightly disappointed after Portugal. After running in first and fourth places during the early stages, Carlos Sainz Jr finished sixth and Norris failed to score. The team are just two points behind Racing Point, and with both Norris and Sainz scoring points regularly, they have a good chance to regain that position by the end of the year.

Renault had a bit of a setback at Portimao. The team had their worst weekend in terms of performance since Barcelona in August. After a series of races where they were on the cusp of a podium before achieving it at the Nurburgring, the team finished eighth and ninth. But with Imola being a very different track to Portimao with straight line and braking more important than tire warm-up and graining with the long radius corners around Portugal. Should they be quicker than both Racing Point and McLaren, there is every chance that they could be third in the championship by the end of the weekend.

Ferrari had a better weekend at Portimao as Charles Leclerc finally converted that great qualifying pace into a good race result. The Monegasque was able to overcome the lack of grip on the medium tires to get back to his qualifying position of fourth place. However, with Sebastian Vettel qualifying so badly in comparison to his team-mate, the prancing horse are looking more at Alpha Tauri than they are at the battle for third.

Alpha Tauri have now confirmed that Pierre Gasly will remain with the team for 2021. The Frenchman scored victory at the Italian GP earlier this year and had hoped that a promotion back to Red Bull was on the cards. But he will now stay here for at least one more season. His team-mate is yet to be decided but it is likely that Formula 2 driver and Honda junior Yuki Tsunoda will join Gasly at the team, meaning that Daniil Kvyat’s time in F1 has come to an abrupt end. Alpha Tauri will hope that they can perform in Italy once again as they hope to challenge Ferrari for sixth place.

Alfa Romeo have just confirmed that Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi have signed for the team for 2021 as Alfa Romeo and Sauber have renewed their contract for another year. The team have kept grinding away and have found themselves scoring a few points this year and are primed to finish eighth in the standings with five races to go.

Haas is still to confirm their 2021 lineup despite the fact that most people think that Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher are the likely occupants of those seats. Imola would be the logical place to do it, but it seems that Haas will have us wait a while longer. Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean will hope to perform in what could be their final races in F1.

Williams may come into the weekend having to bat away rumours about Perez taking Russell’s drive, but after it was found that Russell’s trainer tested positive for coronavirus yesterday, there could be a more immediate problem on the horizon. Williams’s official reserve driver Jack Aitken maybe asked to stand in, or could super-sub Nico Hulkenberg be asked to fill in yet again. Williams will hope that they can score at least one point by the year’s end.

As the teams head to magical Imola, it seems that yet more history will be added to this circuit where much F1 history has taken shape before. Mercedes are on the brink of history by becoming the first outfit to claim seven constructors championships on the bounce. Meanwhile, much of the paddock is focused on the intricate politics of the F1 driver market with this weekend being sited as young Alex Albon’s last chance to impress at Red Bull. It has all the ingredients for another classic F1 weekend.