Formula 1 2025 Round 7 Emilia Romagna (Imola) Race Review (Final)
◆Emilia Romagna (Imola) Track Map
◆Final
Immediately after the start at Turn 1, Verstappen, who started second, passed pole-sitter Piastri to take the lead. He defended this position to the end, securing his second win of the season.
Since there are no records for the Top Gap of each driver in the following laps, it is calculated based on the relationship with those in front and behind.
* Lap 33-51 #87 Bearman
* Lap 43-46 #30 Lawson
* Lap 45-46 #5 Hadjar
* Lap 45 #43 Colapinto
◆Verstappen vs McLaren
I have divided the race into four parts.
Until Piastri's first pit stop (12)
From 12 until VSC deployment
From VSC restart until SC deployment
From SC restart until the end
▼First Stint (Until Piastri's first pit stop (12))
After taking the lead at Turn 1, Verstappen pushed ahead smoothly. He must be comfortable in clean air.
Meanwhile, Piastri was caught in Verstappen's dirty air, and by the time he pitted on lap 12,
Norris started from 4th, but struggled to get past Russell, causing the gap to Verstappen to widen.
▼Second Stint (From 12 until VSC deployment)
Norris moved up to second place following Piastri's pit stop. Although he was over 10 seconds behind, he was unable to close the gap significantly by lap 28.
Piastri dropped to 12th after his pit stop on lap 13, but recovered to 4th by the time Norris pitted on lap 28.
[A] Verstappen vs Norris
I set the cutoff at lap 11, when Norris passed Russell, and calculated the averages for the first and second halves. In the first half, he was held up by Russell, creating a gap in the average, but in the second half, he was running at almost the same pace.
▼Piastri in the second stint
I have created a table showing Piastri's recovery status after dropping to 12th place during his pit out on lap 13. The drivers he passed on each lap are listed below the table.
The average for this segment, despite being on new tires, is 0.1 seconds slower per lap than Verstappen.
▼ VSC in the second stint
Norris makes a pit stop on lap 28, but the gap to Verstappen on the previous lap 27 was,
Norris: 9.773
Piastri: 32.544
Norris's pit stop was unfortunate. Conversely, Verstappen's pit stop was fortunate as it occurred during the VSC.
Piastri also made his second pit stop at this time. The time gaps between the cars after the VSC ended are as follows:
Norris: 19.487
Piastri: 33.067
Piastri's time gap is about the same, but Norris ended up losing nearly 10 seconds.
▼ Third stint (from VSC end to SC deployment)
The time gaps between Verstappen and each driver on lap 45, just before the SC came out, are as follows:
Norris: 18.480
Piastri: 32.366
Compared to after the VSC ended, the gap closed by about a second, with almost no change.
It shows that Red Bull has a race pace comparable to McLaren.
▼ Fourth stint (from SC end to the end)
Since it is after the SC ended, naturally there is almost no time gap.
What is fortunate for Verstappen is that the person running in second place is Piastri, who did not change tires.
This might have been unfortunate for Norris (although he suggested via team radio that he wanted them to swap).
[B] Piastri vs Norris
As you can see from the lap time progression, he was blocked by Piastri, and his lap times were significantly behind Verstappen's.
At the restart, the gap was only 1 second, but immediately after passing Piastri, it was 4.080 seconds. However, he could not increase his pace after that and the gap widened (Verstappen recorded the fastest lap in this stint).
▼ Reasons for Verstappen's victory
Taking 1st place at the first corner immediately after the start (positional advantage)
Matching the Red Bull car to the track characteristics (race pace advantage)
Timing of VSC and SC deployment (tire change advantage)
Red Bull's tire strategy (tire change advantage)
▼ Reasons for McLaren's defeat
Piastri at the first corner immediately after the start
→ If he had crashed, Norris would have wonNorris's starting grid (4th position)
→ It took 10 laps to pass Russell. This caused the gap to Verstappen to widen to over 10 seconds.Piastri's first tire change timing
→ Red Bull was monitoring Piastri's progress while also considering a one-stop strategy.
→ If the goal was to rattle Verstappen by splitting the strategies of the two McLarens, then it was a good idea (though it failed this time).Piastri's tire preservation status
→ If Piastri had had tires available to change during the SC, they might have been able to challenge Verstappen with both cars.Team orders after the SC restart-
→ They should have let Norris, who had fresh tires, go ahead.
▼ Instructions to Tsunoda
On lap 18, he received an instruction: 'Piastri, who is battling Verstappen, is coming from behind, so hold him up.' However, he wobbled at Turn 17, failed to get good traction at Turn 18, and was passed at Turn 2.
Piastri's way of passing was brilliant, just like Verstappen, cutting sharply into Turn 2. Since he couldn't hold him up at all, it appeared he was of no use. The team must have been quite disappointed.
◆ Midfield Group
The two Ferraris that failed to reach Q3 finished in the top positions.
Russell, who started from 3rd, could not establish a pace and allowed the two Ferraris and Albon to get ahead.
I think changing tires early in the race was a failure in the end (due to the VSC and SC coming out)..
▼ Hamilton
In contrast to qualifying, his race pace was very good. His tire changes were also well-timed with the VSC and SC.
Also, due to a mistake by Albon, he was able to pass him easily, and he also easily passed Leclerc, who was on old tires.
Perhaps this was a redemption for his failure in qualifying in front of the Tifosi.
He only passed four people on track: Antonelli, Hadjar, Albon, and Leclerc. Even so, he moved up 8 positions from 12th to 4th.
▼ Albon
Albon and Williams were running in 3rd at one point and even dreamed of a podium finish.
After the SC in the final stages, it became a battle with the two Ferraris.
Considering that his tire history was older than Leclerc's, I think a 4th place finish might have been possible if he had been a bit more cautious.
▼ Leclerc
Although he was eliminated in Q3, he showed good race pace by finishing 6th.
I think changing tires early in the race was a mistake. When the SC came out, he had no tires left to change. Because of that, he was passed by Hamilton.
Also, following an announcement that his battle with Albon at Turn 2 on lap 60 was 'under investigation,' Ferrari instructed Leclerc to return the position to Albon. Leclerc complied, but in the end, it was a 'no further action' decision, making it an unnecessary position change
(perhaps it was 'no further action' precisely because he gave the position back).
▼ Russell
He secured 3rd in qualifying, but could not create a good pace in the race and gradually fell back. Mercedes' competitiveness in this race seemed lower than that of Ferrari and Williams.
However, I think holding off Sainz in the final stages was a meritorious achievement.
▼ Sainz
Changing tires early in the race had repercussions until the end.
It is regrettable that he could not pass Russell in the final stages.
Like Albon, perhaps he lacked the competitiveness to make the pass.
◆ Third Group
The three drivers battling for 10th place were Tsunoda, Hülkenberg, and Alonso. Tsunoda and Hülkenberg were the two who successfully completed a one-stop strategy.
In fact, the only three drivers Tsunoda passed on track were Stroll, Alonso, and Hülkenberg.
▼ Factors in Tsunoda's 10th place finish
[Skill]
- Completed a one-stop strategy
- Passed Hülkenberg
- Held off Alonso in the final stages
[Luck]
- VSC triggered during tire change timing
- Antonelli's retirement
- Time gap to Hülkenberg erased by the SC
▼ Tsunoda and Alonso
I have tabulated Alonso's charge after he changed tires during the SC from lap 46. After Alonso passed Hülkenberg on lap 59, he was chasing him the whole time, but he managed to hold him off. Given the different tire histories, this was quite difficult, making it a meritorious achievement.
◆ Race Results
I have summarized the position changes across four arbitrarily divided stints in a table.
◆ Difference between VSC and SC
Ocon and Antonelli stopped their cars on the grass on the left side after turning through Turn 7 (Tosa) due to retirement. Ocon stopped on lap 29, and at that time, a VSC was deployed, lasting for 3 laps.
However, when Antonelli stopped in a similar location on lap 46, an SC was deployed, lasting for 8 laps. Despite the vehicles stopping in the same place, why? I would like to share an article that explains the difference between VSC and SC.
The answer seems to be that there was no place to recover the vehicles.