At home, Red Bull clearly beats Ferrari. Max Verstappen wins in the Made in Italy and Emilia Romagna Grand Prix who, between the Sprint and the race, finishes with full points ahead of Sergio Perez and Lando Norris. The Austrian team totally dominated, with Verstappen calmly managing the race without any kind of difficulty. The Dutchman also takes second position in the drivers' standings, always behind Leclerc who remains firmly in the lead.
First fall
For Ferrari it was a totally forgettable race. Leclerc is the only driver of the two to finish in the points, to be exact in sixth position. The mistake cost the Monegasque dearly a few laps from the end at Variante Alta. An excess of enthusiasm and desire to overtake Perez which cost the number sixteen Ferrari third place. Race, the second after Australia, to be forgotten also for Sainz who was forced to retire following the rear-end collision suffered by Ricciardo. Another zero for the Spaniard, in this circumstance, certainly not his fault. A weekend to forget for the Reds, the first of the four so far. Of course it is perhaps the most painful, given that it took place in Imola, but we know the championship is still very long.
Shooting signals
It's still a long way, even for McLaren, who are trying to show signs of total recovery. Norris finishes in third position and gets on the podium after a race, but after a very solid and attentive weekend in general: without making mistakes and above all without overdoing it, but with the right attention which earned him his first podium of the season . On the other hand, Ricciardo's race at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari racetrack should be forgotten who, following contact with Sainz, finished in last position.
Mercedes split in two
On the other hand, it is very complicated to define the Mercedes race. In fact, Backley's team sees an excellent George Russell, once again author of a fantastic race and a great comeback. Started eleventh, the Englishman finished in fourth place in the standings. Obviously, there was no lack of difficulties, such as overtaking Magnussen at the start of the race and the (successful) defense on Bottas to secure fourth place. Inexplicable, seeing this Russell, the thirteenth time of Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time world champion was unable to pass Gasly's AlphaTauri in twelfth. Many attempts but none ever went through. There are undoubtedly many problems with the W13, even Russell knows this, but Hamilton is undoubtedly the most in difficulty.
Positive weekend
The Aston Martin took advantage of the track conditions and the way the race went and finally scored points, both with Vettel finishing in eighth position and with Stroll taking home a point with the tenth box. To separate the two Aston Martins, on which there is still a little work to be done, Magnussen's Haas still firmly in the points, like Bottas who now seems to be a real certainty. The Finn finishes in fifth position with his Alfa Romeo and seems to make the best use of the Ferrari engine and the new bottom mounted on the C42.
This is how our home Grand Prix at Imola ends! Now Formula One is taking a week off, before returning on the weekend of May 6-8 at the new track in Miami!
