2019 Brazilian GP: Race pace (Midfield teams)

The image shown above is a vector. You can zoom in as much as you want to see in which lap was each individual time done.

If a driver is not in the chart, it is because he did not finish the race, therefore his pace is not really comparable to the pace of the rest of the drivers.

Analysis

Toro Rosso

A glorious day for Toro Rosso. Pierre Gasly found redemption, and managed to finish in 2nd place after a chaotic race in Brazil. It was a well deserved reward, since Pierre was the fastest midfield driver with an average time of 1:14.168.

Daniil Kvyat wasn’t as successful as his teammate, but he still obtained a 10th spot and a valuable point for Toro Rosso. To put things in perspective, Kvyat’s average lap time of 1:14.683, was almost half a second slower than his teammate’s.

Racing Point

Sergio Pérez got once again more points for Racing Point. Since the summer break, the Mexican has collected points in all but one race. In Brazil, his average lap pace of 1:14.519 was very strong. He, however, didn’t have a lot of straight-line speed, and was unable to fight for more points on Sunday.

Lance Stroll was looking strong until he hit debris by the end of the race. His car got suspension damange, and he was forced to retire from the race.

Renault

Daniel Ricciardo had another strong race at the Interlagos circuit. Danny Ric had the second fastest average pace of midfield drivers, with a mean lap time of 1:14.207. The Aussie got 8 points for Renault, which will be crucial for the French team if they want to retain their position at the Constructor’s Championship.

Nico Hulkenberg had a disappointing race. His race pace just wasn’t there on Sunday morning, simple as that. His mean lap time of 1:14.888 was just faster than both Haas and Williams drivers. With that type of pace, it’s very hard to achieve anything at all during a race weekend.

McLaren

After a crazy race, Carlos Sainz managed to finish in the podium for the first time in his Formula 1 career. While Carlos’ pace wasn’t particularly impressive, his tire management was on point during the race. The Spaniard was the only driver to do a 1-stop strategy on Sunday, and the risky strategy paid off for McLaren.

Lando Norris didn’t have his best race of the season at the Interlagos circuit, but he still managed to finish the race in 8th place. His race pace of 1:14.756 was slower than expected, but sometimes being in the right place at the right time is all that matters.

Alfa Romeo

What a turnaround for Alfa Romeo. With a strong performance by both Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi, the Swiss team has moved closer than ever to Racing Point in the Constructor’s Championship.

Both Kimi and Gio managed to make the 2-stop strategy work, and were the 3rd and 4th fastest midfield drivers on Sunday.

Haas

Haas just can’t get a break. Romain Grosjean was on 7th place with less than 10 laps to go, but the safety car ended his aspirations of a points finish. After the safety car ended, his tires were completely gone, and Romain lost positions rapidly. On the bright side, his race pace of 1:14.889 was much better than what we have seen from the Frenchman on the past few races.

Kevin Magnussen finished in 11th place, very close to taking a valuable point for the American team. His race pace, however, was very disappointing once again, and a points finish would have been perhaps undeserved. Not necessarily his fault though, the car just has no speed.

Williams

Bla bla bla, Williams slow, bla bla bla, missery, bla bla bla.

Final remarks

Great race for Toro Rosso especially. With Pierre’s second place, the Italian team will go to Abu Dhabi looking to dislodge Renault from 5th place in the Constructor’s Championship.

Honorable mention to Antonio Giovinazzi. While both Pierre and Sainz took the spotlight, the young Italian rookie managed a 5th position that will do wonders for his confidence. A fantastic race that must not go unnoticed.

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