McLaren Mercedes has regained its speed - and its confidence. After Lewis Hamilton won the Hungarian Grand Prix last month the team has come to Valencia in conquer mode, and put its two drivers first and second in qualifying.
It was the way it did this that shows the team is confident - not to mention hinting talk of a first and second in the race even before qualifying. Hamilton went out on soft tires and scored what would be the fastest lap before he went out for a final run on a new set of tires, crossing the start finish line for the last flying lap with just a few seconds to spare. And no one could touch him. No one except Heikki Kovalainen, who should have scored the pole position himself, had he not made a mess of the last corner.
Still, it just shows how the momentum of success reverberates to score more success. And it shows how well the team has worked on the car to improve it. Let’s see if they can hold on through the race. With Spa coming up only one week later, that momentum should also serve there. Interesting last part of the season.
Speaking of confidence, one man who did not look confident was Luca Badoer, qualifying last for Ferrari. How could Ferrari have done this? It’s not Badoer’s age. But how could the team use a driver who has not raced in 10 years AND is 38 years old AND has never scored a point in his life? Yes, yes, retrospectively it’s easier to question. But most people were wondering this in advance.
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