Formula 1 Aramco Gran Premio De España 2021 Preview

The fourth round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship sees the sport travel to Spain for the Catalunya Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton won last year’s Spanish Grand Prix, leading every lap of the race which saw him finish 24 seconds ahead of Max Verstappen in the Red Bull, as well as 45 seconds clear of Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas. The Stevenage born drivers dominance of the GP meant that he lapped everyone behind the podium places.

Last year’s race was more or less a foregone conclusion from the opening lap onwards, as Verstappen who qualified in third place managed to sweep past Bottas into the first corner, whilst the Finn lost third to Lance Stroll off the line, before eventually regaining it on lap 6 with a comfortable pass down the pit straight, courtesy of the drag reduction system, better known as DRS.

Following last week’s qualifying in Portugal, we are yet to see a driver sit on pole twice, as Verstappen took pole position at Bahrain, whilst Hamilton and Bottas took it at Imola and Portimao, so dare we ask if Sergio Perez will make it four races from four with different pole sitters in the other Red Bull?

This track has proven to be a favourite of Lewis Hamilton’s as he is just one win away from equalling Schumacher’s record of six victories in Spain. Catalunya was also notably the venue of Max Verstappen’s first win in the sport in what was ironically his first race with the Red Bull team, having transferred being transferred in for Daniil Kvyat, with the Russian being demoted to Torro Rosso (now Alphatauri).

Due to Hamilton’s record at this track, as well as the Brits dominance last time out in Portugal, where he managed to fight back against Verstappen and Bottas to finish 29 seconds ahead of the Red Bull man, he is arguably the favourite to qualify on pole, however, do not rule Verstappen out of the running, as the Austrian constructor’s car struggled throughout the GP, which was evident in qualifying as the Dutchman finished nearly four-tenths of a second shy of Bottas on pole.

Prediction: Pole Position: Hamilton – 6/5. 2. Verstappen – 11/10. 3. Bottas – 9/2. 4. Perez – 10/1.

In the driver’s standings, there are just eight points to separate Hamilton and Verstappen and as far, the seven-time World Champion has been pushed to his limits in each race by the Dutchman.

In Bahrain, Verstappen came within track limits away from beating the Brit, before beating him in Imola and even had the chance to make life difficult last weekend, as the Dutchman made a crucial mistake on lap 10 when on the tail of race leader Bottas that allowed Hamilton to make an easy pass down the pit straight. Had Verstappen got past Hamilton’s teammate then there might’ve been a different outcome, however, those questions will remain unanswered.

No pole-sitter has won a race so far this season and for that reason, Verstappen’s price of 11/8 looks like it could be a canny move to make. Hamilton is priced at 1/1, which is no surprise considering the latter stages of the Portuguese GP looked very much like what we had become accustomed to throughout the 2020 season.

Lando Norris has arguably been the best performer so far this season in the McLaren, having finished fourth, third and fifth in the first three races, seeing the 21-year-old sit third in the drivers’ standings.

Daniel Ricciardo is currently seventh in the overall standings, following seventh, sixth and ninth place finishes in his opening three races with his new team. The Australian looked more at home with his new car on the weekend as the race went on, having recovered from 16th on the grid to a ninth placed finish, showcasing the reasons behind why so many teams were in for him. The 31-year-old will know that he will have to have a much-improved qualifying session, which could ultimately see both him and his teammate challenge for the top six.

Bottas has often shown that he has the pace this season to get race wins, however, it is the Finns inconsistency throughout weekends which often lets him down, as he has statistically got the greatest driver of all time in Hamilton as his teammate, which means that he always has to drive to his limits for a race win.

The 31-year-old qualified on pole last time out and even set the fastest lap of the race, but was forced to walk away with a third-placed finish which he will be disappointed with, as he knows that opportunities to beat his teammate are a rare occasion. Bottas was let down by his pit crew in Bahrain and generally struggled for pace at Imola prior to his retirement from the GP, so will be desperate to put in a strong display this weekend.

The former Wiliams driver managed to get the fastest lap of the race last time out in Portugal and also did so in Spain last season, seeing him priced at 9/2 to do so again, whilst he is priced at 7/1 to win the race itself.

Red Bull’s Perez is yet to get a podium with his new team, as he was hampered with technical issues in Bahrain, which forced him to start from the pitlane before clawing his way up to fifth place.

The Mexican’s performance at Imola disappointed many, as his qualifying performance was impressive, earning himself second place on the grid. He was overtaken by Verstappen on the line as his teammate steamed into a first lap lead. Following the hectic start of the race, a category of errors then saw the former Racing Point man slide down to an 11th place finish.

Perez managed to get the bare minimum of what is expected from a Red Bull driver this season, of fourth place last time out, even if he did do it the hard way, having lost a place to Norris at the start, before re-taking his place later on in the GP.

The 31-year-old will be desperate to show form alike that he did last season where he finished fifth, as he pushes for his first podium finish with Red Bull. The Guadalajara born driver is priced at 13/8 to finish in the top three.

Race Prediction: 1. Verstappen – 11/8. 2. Hamilton – 1/1. 3. Bottas – 7/1. 4. Perez – 10/1.