Formula One returns from its short summer break this weekend at the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday. Ahead of the race at Spa-Francorchamps, here are some talking points to watch for at the 13th round of the 21-race season.
Hamilton's ominous warning to rivals
Lewis Hamilton dominated the first part of the season, the five-time world champion winning eight of the 12 events so far this year.
The ominous news for the rest of the F1 grid is that traditionally we are now entering the strongest part of the calendar for Hamilton.
Hamilton collected 195 points, with six wins, in the final nine races of 2018. In 2017 he claimed 175 points and five wins, and he has won at least four races after the break every year since 2014.
So, the fact Hamilton comes into the latter half of 2019 after his best ever start to a F1 campaign is bad news for teammate Valtteri Bottas’s hopes of catching him in the title race.
Hamilton is 62 points clear of the Finn and 69 ahead of Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen in third.
If Hamilton repeats his 2018 form he will finish with 445 points, which would smash his own points record of 408 set last year.
The challenge for Bottas, Verstappen and the Ferraris is to somehow slow his momentum, but that will be easier said then done at Spa, a track where Hamilton has three wins.
Albon on trial at Red Bull
The biggest change over the summer was the news that Red Bull had demoted Pierre Gasly to sister team Toro Rosso with Alexander Albon going the other way.
It is a big chance but a challenging one for Albon, who is in his rookie season and has only competed in 12 races. He is effectively on trial to claim the seat permanently for 2020.
What does he have to do to earn the seat full time? Be closer to teammate Verstappen and beat the Ferraris where possible to assist Red Bull in the constructors’ championship will do him no harm.
If he can out-qualify or out-race Verstappen then that would definitely get him the job, but only the most optimistic Albon affiliate would expect that. Verstappen is driving at a high level right now and his pace humiliated poor Gasly.
When Verstappen won in Austria in June, he was a lap ahead of Gasly at the end, and it was the same story in August when the Dutchman was runner-up to Hamilton in Hungary. That was the final straw for Red Bull and led to the switch.
Red Bull will hope Albon is closer on pace to Verstappen and for him to be a factor in races to give the team more strategic options.
A number of times this year both Mercedes and Ferrari have been able to be creative with race tactics as they have had two cars in the mix. Red Bull, due to Gasly often being way back down the road, have not had that and Verstappen has been left isolated.
If Albon can be competitive and can keep Verstappen on his toes then he has a cracking opportunity to stay with the team for 2020.
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Ranked: from Gasly to Vettel and Verstappen - Red Bull's 10 drivers since 2005
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David Coulthard (2005-2008). The Scotsman was Red Bull's big acquisition when the team was first formed. An experienced driver, with 13 wins to his name, he moved from McLaren. Scored the team's first podium when he finished third in Monaco in 2006. Also finished third in Canada in 2008 before he retired from the sport at the end of that season. 7/10. AP Photo -
Christian Klien (2005-2006). Had driven for Jaguar in 2004 and stayed with the team under the Red Bull guise. Shared the car with Vitantonio Liuzzi in 2005, before driving the first 15 races of 2006. But just two points in 2006 saw him dropped with three races to spare. Would reappear three times in 2010 for Hispania Racing Team. 4/10. Getty -
Vitantonio Liuzzi (2005). The Italian scored a point on his F1 and Red Bull debut at the San Marino Grand Prix in 2005 as he finished eighth. But he only drove for the team three more times. Was moved to the newly launched Toro Rosso for 2006 and would go on to drive for Force India and Hispania Racing Team during a career that ran until 2011. 5/10. Getty -
Robert Doornbos (2006). Arguably the forgotten Red Bull driver. Drove in the last three races of 2006 after Klien had been jettisoned from the team. The Dutchman, who had already raced for Minardi in 2005, had a trio of uneventful outings, the 12th place in Brazil proving to be back. 3/10. Getty -
Mark Webber (2007-2013). The Australian had driven for the team when it was Jaguar in 2003 and 2004, and he returned for a seven-year stint in 2007. Would win nine times in that period, as well as taking 13 poles, and was a serious title contender in 2010, missing out at the final race in Abu Dhabi to teammate Sebastian Vettel. 7/10. Getty -
Sebastian Vettel (2009-2014). Red Bull's most successful driver and the one who achieved many of their biggest moments. He took the Austrian marques maiden pole position and victory in China in 2009. He became their first world champion in 2010 when he won the season finale in Abu Dhabi, and he would go on to win four successive titles for the team. Won 39 times in a Red Bull car, and in 2011 broke the record for most poles in one season with 15. Left at the end of 2014 to join Ferrari. 10/10. Getty -
Daniel Ricciardo (2014-2018). Promoted from Toro Rosso to replace Webber. Made an instant impact with the team as he won three times in 2014 and remains the only driver to have outscored Vettel over a full season. Picked up seven victories in total but moved to Renault in a surprise move for 2019 after five years at Red Bull. 8/10. Getty -
Daniil Kvyat (2015-2016). The Russian was moved up from Toro Rosso after just one season in F1 to fill the gap left by Vettel. Rarely convinced, with a best result of second in Hungary in 2015. Clashes with Vettel, now in a Ferrari, in China and Russia early in the 2016 season led to him being dropped by Red Bull and moved back to Toro Rosso. He was without a drive in 2017 and 2018 but rejoined Toro Rosso in 2019 and scored their first podium in 11 years in Germany in July. 4/10. Getty -
Max Verstappen (2016 to now). The Dutchman made an instant impact after joining Red Bull from Toro Rosso midway through the 2016 season. Became F1's youngest ever winner at age of 18 years and 228 days when he won his first race with the team in Spain. Has become one of the biggest superstars in the sport, his win in Germany in July was his seventh. Does not turn 22 until the end of September and already looks a case of when, not if, he becomes a world champion. 9/10. Getty -
Pierre Gasly (2019). Lasted only 12 races before being dropped for Albon. Had impressed at Toro Rosso in 2018, which led to his call-up to replace Ricciardo. Looked utterly devoid of confidence and unable to even get close to matching speed of Verstappen. Was a lap down to the Dutchman when he won in Austria in June. An unconvincing sixth in Hungary, again a lap down on second-placed Verstappen, was the final straw and he now returns to Toro Rosso for the final races of 2019. 3/10. Getty
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Raikkonen’s favouite track
The midfield battle has often been one of the highlights of a grand prix weekend, with little to separate Renault, Toro Rosso, McLaren, Alfa Romeo and Haas at most races.
Alfa Romeo may have the edge at Spa due to the fact that Kimi Raikkonen historically goes well at the venue. The 2007 world champion is a four-time winner at the race, and has finished in the points nine times in 14 attempts.
Given the car at his disposal, the 39 year old will be not expected to fight for a fifth win this weekend. But with eight points finishes from his 12 races this season, he has clearly not lost too much speed despite being the oldest driver on the grid.
A top-six finish is certainly not out of the question for Raikkonen on Sunday.
