Conclusions after the Belgian GP: Ferrari is lucky that there are no fans
F1 News
The Belgian Grand Prix was not one for the neutral viewer. There wasn't a battle for the win and it was not very exciting further down the field. These are the four conclusions after the Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.
No fans is a great situation for Ferrari
The 2020 Belgian Grand Prix will be page in the history book which is rarely revisited by Ferrari. The Maranello team finished without points at Spa-Francorchamps and even had to tolerate Kimi Raikkonen in the Alfa Romeo. The situation is going from bad to worse for the team that managed to win convincingly here last year.
However, a scaled-back engine brings the Italian fans to tears and so it is a good thing for Ferrari that those fans cannot be on the track for a while. Those fans can be very impressive and a full crowd at Monza, Mugello or Imola won't be happy to watch Ferrari struggle. Will things get better in Monza? Very doubtful.
Ricciardo is still among the best
Daniel Ricciardo has returned to his old form at Renault. The Australian squeezed everything out of his Renault in qualifying and was also extremely strong on Sunday. The fight in the first lap with Max Verstappen was impressive to watch and made longing for the time when the two fought as teammates for the podium places and victories.
However, Daniel is in a much better mood since moving to McLaren. The lesser days of Renault seem to affect him less and he takes a good day like in Belgium with both hands to show what he can do. Esteban Ocon is certainly not bad in the Renault, but Ricciardo is by far the best in that team and will not be able to wait until he can drive a Mercedes engine in 2021.
F1 can be a very boring sport
Formula 1 is not necessarily boring, because there is plenty to see as a pure fan. The battle between different teams, the innovations on the cars and unique duels between different drivers. The problem, however, is that F1 can actually be very boring. Not everyone enjoys the numbers and new wings but wants to see a battle for victory.
More often, however, you don't get that than in Formula 1. Even in years when the field is closer together, one car is the fastest on a circuit and the drivers of that team are automatically the favourite. That does not make the sport particularly attractive, because the winner can therefore be filled in after qualifying. Especially at a time when one team is the boss.
Where Ferrari and Red Bull Racing were dominant in the past, they took criticism from fans. But now it is Mercedes. The problem, however, is that this dominance has lasted longer than ever before and it doesn't seem to stop for the time being. With the cars that can hardly be provided with updates, the champion of 2021 also seems familiar.
The qualifying mode ban is not going to save the day
The ban on the qualifying mode is expected from the Italian Grand Prix, but will it have its desired effect? The gap between Mercedes and the rest is so big that the ban on a qualifying mode will not make the difference. There will be some shifts in midfield, but not at the front.
After all, one position will soon have to be chosen, and where the race position may now be a bit lower at Mercedes to save things, it will soon be higher because the high peaks are no longer allowed and therefore no longer burden the engine. The Mercedes engine is simply the best and will deliver the best results even without qualifying mode.