Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – five more things we learned

Sam Hall

Wednesday, April 21, 2021, 4:21 p.m. – Updated: 4:21 p.m.

The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was such a thriller that justice couldn’t be achieved with just one list. Here are five more things learned from the Imola weekend.

When F1 returned to Imola for the second time in so many years, the circuit, weather, and off-track policy provided everything you would expect from the sport and much more.

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The first five things we learned from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix are here, but without hesitation, here is the second chapter.

Aston Martin in dispute

It is evident that changes in aerodynamic regulations over the winter did more damage to the teams with a low rake, Aston Martin and Mercedes, than those with a high rake, Red Bull and AlphaTauri.

Over the weekend in Imola, Aston Martin team boss Otmar Szafnaurer voiced his displeasure with the changes made for safety reasons when Pirelli assumed Pirelli couldn’t build a new tire design in time for the 2021 season – something it could eventually do.

Talks with the FIA ​​seemed to reassure Szafnauer, although this does nothing to improve the pace of the car itself.

Both cars had brake problems before the race and Sebastian Vettel was unable to disrupt the points before the penalty kick. However, Lance Stroll went about his business calmly and finished eighth.

The cost of a crash is higher than ever!

Crash is never something you want to do in F1, but unfortunately it’s inevitable. Imola emphasized that no driver is immune to mistakes, as Lewis Hamilton visited the wall on lap 30 and Max Verstappen survived half a turn behind the safety car.

The budget cap introduced for this year has increased the cost of failure dramatically, and with teams keeping an eye on the upcoming aerodynamic changes in 2022, money is tight on any team.

Mercedes has made it clear that the crash between Valtteri Bottas and George Russell is likely to have an impact on the development of this year’s car and that any recurrence issues would push the damage further into the future.

The team is embroiled in an exciting title fight with Red Bull this year, and it is moments like these that could affect the balance of power.

Both Williams and Alfa Romeo have made significant strides over the winter months, but the pair are still at the bottom of the midfield at best.

Nevertheless, both teams at Imola had the opportunity to register in the points table – Williams for the first time since the 2019 German Grand Prix – but the opportunity was begging.

For Williams, Latifi crashed after two individual errors on lap one, while Russell was involved in a well-documented crash with Valtteri Bottas.

Alfa Romeo is much less fortunate after Kimi Räikkönen’s ninth crossing, but was relegated to 13th place after a penalty of 30 seconds after the race.

These are opportunities no team can afford to escape that could cost millions of dollars by the end of the year.

Haas’ time of pain was confirmed

Haas stepped into the 2021 season knowing it was going to be a difficult season, but few would have predicted how problematic it would be. With two rookie drivers in Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin and all the team’s efforts in 2022, Imola saw the only improvements Haas will bring all year round.

After the opener in Bahrain, Schumacher had said he was “positive” that Haas could challenge other teams and he hoped to get into the second quarter this year. Although Antonio Giovinazzi was only a tenth ahead of Antonio Giovinazzi, who was hindered by Mazepin in preparation for his fast lap, the German was over four tenths ahead of Fernando Alonso in P15.

When the red flag was thrown on lap 33, both Haas drivers were already two laps behind.

When in doubt, this will be a long and extremely difficult year for the Haas team.

Old-school Imola still has a place in F1

Older racetracks like Imola are often reminiscent of wheel-to-wheel actions from years gone by, but the increased cornering speeds and the bloated size of modern machines often mean that the tracks are no longer suitable for Formula 1.

The unexpected trip to Imola last year was fun but the action left a lot to be desired.

However, last weekend it became clear that the historic venue is still capable of creating memorable moments and it only took a few drops of rain.

It’s unlikely that Imola will be on the calendar in the years to come, but the Italian circuit has certainly made audiences want more!