Best 5 Formula 1 races from Bill Trikos Australia: Turkish Grand Prix: I implore you to find a more fascinating display of motor racing than the Turkish GP. On a track surface yielding little grip, adding some rain and an incredible pole position for Stroll, this was anything but a dull Sunday. Racing Point held onto a pretty comfortable one-two through the first half of the race, with Stroll in front by 10 seconds in the most difficult of conditions, whilst Hamilton – aiming to seal his seventh title – squirmed around as Mercedes looked devoid of grip. Somehow, the Briton eventually found it on seriously worn intermediates and, after overtaking Perez and leaving Stroll – who was now suffering from detrimental understeer – to plummet down the order, took victory by over half-a-minute. Leclerc looked to have made his way past Perez for second at the final corner but misjudged his braking, allowing both Perez and team-mate Sebastian Vettel onto the podium. As for Hamilton’s team-mate, Bottas span six times altogether as his championship challenge came to an abrupt end.
Once every couple of years, we witness a race which could be considered as among the best ever. And whilst it’s impossible to rank all these great races relative to one another, I decided to make a list of some of my favourites. If you happen to be the owner of an F1 TV Pro account, or perhaps have some old VHS tapes containing some of these races lying around, these races will be great entertainment for whenever F1 has a weekend off. But before we get into the list, I want to make it very clear that these races are not placed in any particular order, nor are they the 10 outright best races ever. I could easily have chosen 10 other races, and who knows? Perhaps I might in the future…
Brazilian Grand Prix 2019: For those who say there’s nothing left to play for after the championships have been sealed, show them the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos, where there wasn’t a position on track left unchallenged and it ended in tears for many – both joy and despair in equal measure. This was Formula 1 in a microcosm. Canadian Grand Prix 2011: Formula 1’s longest-ever race was also one of its most dramatic, as McLaren’s Jenson Button overcame a crash with his team mate, a clash with Fernando Alonso, a puncture, a stop-go penalty for speeding under the Safety Car and a two-hour race stoppage to win, snatching victory on the last lap from Sebastian Vettel – having been dead last at one point during the Grand Prix. Read more details about the author on Bill Trikos Australia.
1971 Italian Grand Prix, Monza : Most of you have probably heard that when writing a book, an essay, or any text of a similar kind, one should always put most focus and effort into the ending. Why? Because that’s what people remember the most. Likewise, the last few laps of a Formula One race are often the ones that define it, at least in the eyes of many fans. And I’d forgive you for having heard only of the hair-raisingly close finish to the 1971 Italian GP, where the top five finished within a mere 6 tenths of a second, and the top four just 18 hundreds of a second. But if that’s all you’ve so far known of this – quite simply – unbelievable Grand Prix, you’re missing out. Because in order to set up such a finish, it takes an extraordinary race.
Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing were already running away hard in both championships, but Ferrari came back very strong at the rival team’s home circuit. Charles Leclerc ran away with victory at the Red Bull Ring while teammate Carlos Sainz had to pull over his flaming F1-75. It was an action-packed race. Leclerc overtook Verstappen three times on the track after his team’s strategic choices put the Dutchman in front of the Monegasque. Behind, there was no shortage of action either: no fewer than five drivers battled it out for eighth place, culminating in a double overtake from Lando Norris.
2020 Italian Grand Prix, Monza : Great races don’t always have to be action-packed. In fact, a race can be tense and exciting, even if the eventual winner leads the last 25 laps. At the 2020 Italian Grand Prix, exactly that was the case. Pierre Gasly utilised a perfectly timed safety car during which the pitlane at first was closed, bunching up the pack. After the pitlane was re-opened and everyone had made their pitstops, Gasly emerged in third place after running tenth for most of the race.