Vote for your 2021 Spanish Grand Prix Driver of the Weekend

65 comments on “Vote for your 2021 Spanish Grand Prix Driver of the Weekend”

1. 

   Super Nashwan (@squeakywheel)
   9th May 2021, 20:34

   Well 100% for Lewis. That’s says it all!
2. 

   BlueChris (@bluechris)
   9th May 2021, 20:37

   To me it seems Lecleec overdrives Ferrari in both days without a mistake so i vote for him.
   1. 

      BlueChris (@bluechris)
      9th May 2021, 20:38

      Typo: Leclerc
      1. 

         Mauro (@)
         10th May 2021, 4:11

         Agreed, but the survey is being fair.
         Lecrerc drove a perfect race with the equipment he had. His car is way inferior to a RedBull and he finished ahead of Perez.
         Now, Hamilton brilliance today started at the beginning. Hr lost the 1st place at the start and let’s be truthful, he magically avoided the collision with Verstappen. It was clear that RedBull had the fastest car, but a Mercedes move, a la Ross Brawn/Michael Schummacher caught RebBull with pants dow. Today Hamilton made the difference. With new tyres, if Hamilton delivered 20 qualifying laps, he’ll win. You need to have a driver who you can rely on.
         1. 

            Mayrton
            10th May 2021, 9:09

            Have you seen the Spanish GP of 2021? Seems you maybe have watched a previous one or you dont know how to analyze pace of cars
   2. 

      Srdjan Mandic (@srga91)
      9th May 2021, 21:40

      @bluechris
      I don’t think Leclerc outdrove his Ferrari, it was definitely a lot quicker than the rest of the midfield today. Sainz could also easily follow Ricciardo, despite being in the turbulent air of the McLaren for the whole final stint and he even set personal best sector times following him. He was just missing a little bit of straight line speed to overtake the McLaren.
      Still, you don’t expect a Ferrari keeping a Mercedes behind for more than 20 laps. Charles did a very good job this weekend, including a great pass around the outside of T3 at the start on Bottas.
      1. 

         Esploratore (@esploratore)
         10th May 2021, 2:50

         Yes, ferrari seemed quicker than mclaren in both quali and race and leclerc is definitely a contender for dotw.
3. 

   Rodber
   9th May 2021, 20:39

   Max is, perhaps, the obvious candidate. He did everything right, but what he can’t do is beat a faster car. It’s a fact of life.
   1. 

      Learon (@learon)
      9th May 2021, 21:05

      He can beat a Mercedes driven by Bottas easily. So the issue for him is not breating a faster car but beating a faster and smarter driver. That is why Max is not the obvious choice.
      1. 

         melanos
         10th May 2021, 2:18

         Well, because Bottas is a total tool. Any decent driver would be 2nd at least without breaking a sweat with the Merc.
         1. 

            kpcart
            10th May 2021, 4:11

            that is such an ignorant comment. Bottas is a very fast driver, but you might not have noticed yet, Red Bull has a car that matches Mercedes for pace.
            1. 

               Horacio
               10th May 2021, 8:08

               I agree with @kpcart here. In another page there are comments about how the Mazepin criticisms are already out of hand, in a very boring trend, and to me same applies to Bottas, a driver with more than 50 podiums but for some he seems to be a sad bum who drags a car around.
            2. 

               Mayrton
               10th May 2021, 9:12

               Total nonsense. We’ve all seen Russell in that car. Bottas is on the bad side of mediocracy at best
   2. 

      Tom
      9th May 2021, 21:30

      If it’s a fact that he can’t beat a faster car then how did he finish 2nd in front of the a Mercedes?
      1. 

         Rodber
         9th May 2021, 21:34

         A second rate driver can drive the fastest car slower than his team mate. Simple.
         1. 

            Learon (@learon)
            9th May 2021, 22:15

            If he’s driving the fastest car, how come he finished 3rd?
         2. 

            Steve (@scbriml)
            9th May 2021, 23:39

            So what your saying is, the driver makes a difference. I see, that explains a lot.
            1. 

               LEMAYIAN (@lems)
               10th May 2021, 6:25

               If the driver doesn’t make the difference, Perez will be on par with Max. Suits this logic.
   3. 

      RP (@slotopen)
      9th May 2021, 23:32

      I think the best argument for Verstappen might be that he nearly did beat a faster car. If Perez had stayed in Hamilton’s pit window it would have been a very interesting finish. I think the Mercedes probably was too fast to hold back, but he sure made it look possible.

      I’m a little surprised right now. At least one third of the vote is in at 92 votes, and Hamilton is at 60%. He was good, but not 60% good.
      1. 

         mystic one (@mysticus)
         10th May 2021, 1:12

         Perez was in front of Ham last time around, so ham called for blue flags for the slower driver :)
      2. 

         ColdFly (@)
         10th May 2021, 9:17

         I’m a little surprised right now. At least one third of the vote is in at 92 votes, and Hamilton is at 60%. He was good, but not 60% good.

         The problem, or nicety, of these polls it that it doesn’t show who was best or second best, and by how much the difference was, @slotopen.
         If we all agree that Ham was just a tad better than VER then HAM will get 100%.
         But if half of us believe HAM was a million times better, and the other half thinks it was the car and VER only just outperformed him, then it could well be a 50/50 split.
   4. 

      Mayrton
      10th May 2021, 7:54

      I agree. For two reasons: first Max outdrives that car incredibly, just look at his current and past team mates that cant hold a candle next to him. Secondly because he makes our lives just bearable amidst all this Mercedes dominance. Lewis is good, but I doubt he can handle Max when both have the same material
      1. 

         Ftwihc
         10th May 2021, 8:42

         Its always lewis is not good, lewis not better than max in similar machines, lewis has won, but not driver of day because mercedes is good, this in a season where red bull is a good car, where max is charging like a matador at starts of races, in danger of taking both drivers out. Max is going to get so desperare if this early, 2021 trend continues and crash into hamilton, maybe injuring someone.
         The max or any driver challenging hamilton supporters will probably irrationaly question and blame hamilton with inane and inept excuses.
         All this begs the question why is it difficult to factually accept hamilton is good, has been, good etc etc. Its the ugliness of hamiltons detractors arguments that leaves a sour after.
4. 

   David BR (@david-br)
   9th May 2021, 20:54

   Tempted to vote Hamilton, yet again, but voted for Leclerc, totally consistent (and Lewis gave away the start, again).
   1. 

      Steve (@scbriml)
      9th May 2021, 23:41

      With such a long run to T1, it’s hard not to give the car behind a good tow.
      1. 

         Ber101 (@cplchanb)
         10th May 2021, 5:31

         the racing line is on the inside as mentioned in the interviews. There is much more rubber compared to the otuside
         1. 

            bosyber (@bosyber)
            10th May 2021, 13:19

            Well @cplchanb, that’s something that this time, at least on the 2nd grid slot wasn’t so super clear. But I do agree Verstappen had a great start.
      2. 

         David BR (@david-br)
         10th May 2021, 17:59

         @scbriml I am being ultra-picky. Hamilton’s start was fine but Verstappen’s was too, helped by the rubber and the tow. Even so Hamilton did have a chance to move right and block him, though it would have been tight. Ross Brawn also analyzed it well: in that 50-50 situation, Verstappen was always going to be more aggressive as he knew that slotting in second, he wasn’t likely to pass Lewis. On the other hand, Lewis undoubtedly thought he could get past Verstappen during the race anyhow, so it’s not worth risking a collision. That’s the current race dynamics and maths anyhow. Could and probably should change over the season.
5. 

   Jere (@jerejj)
   9th May 2021, 21:06

   DOTW: HAM
   DOTD: LEC
6. 

   Sham (@sham)
   9th May 2021, 21:06

   Mazepin. Obviously.
7. 

   trib4udi (@trib4udi)
   9th May 2021, 21:09

   Lec, Ham and Ver all were stars.

   It would have been a boring race if Ver didn’t bully his way past Lewis at the start. Lewis would have driven away in the distance. Same with Lec on Bottas. This put a dent in the Merc tactics for a bit.
   1. 

      kpcart
      10th May 2021, 4:15

      you will never know if Lewis would have driven into the distance. Verstappen used better tactics for first pit stop, at that point everyone thought Verstappen was on for an easy win. I think Hamilton’s strategy came back to him luckily. this race was all about strategy and 2 very fast drivers, with Hamilton the wily old dog still too fast for everyone.
      1. 

         MacLeod (@macleod)
         10th May 2021, 8:54

         I really think Lewis would drive off in the distance if you see Lewis stay around 1 second without any difficult at all. That tells us there overspeed is fast enoughto keep behind a red bull.

         On the Yellows Mercedes were flying…

         I think we can say Max, Lewis, Lecleric and i think Daniel!
   2. 

      JL (@j-l)
      10th May 2021, 5:25

      @trib4udi This is the correct take. Would have been a borefest with Lewis leading after lap 1. Both him and Max had great weekends, but the result is down to car/strategy, not the drivers.
      1. 

         Mayrton
         10th May 2021, 7:59

         100% agreed. The drivers were mere passengers this GP. So looking fwd to a shaking up of the regulations. This formula has ran its course. It is not working anymore. Frankly the Mercedes dominance is getting ridiculous. If I hadnt already been a fan before this era, I would have definitely switched off by now and go watch another sport. If this continues I would propose to make the cars remote controlled, rather than wasting space on drivers.
         1. 

            bosyber (@bosyber)
            10th May 2021, 13:25

            What a tiresome narrative there, and repeatedly so on this page. Since it doesn’t include any excellence (like the Merc. advantage, much as it has been over the last years, certainly does) I think it’s pretty out of place here really.
8. 

   roadrunner (@roadrunner)
   9th May 2021, 21:10

   Leclerc, Hamilton, Verstappen stood out. Verstappen did probably all he could, except for achieving pole. Nice move at the start. Whenever you brake I gonna brake later.

   Hamilton is just relentless. He is very quick but what impresses me most are
   his understanding of how a race unfolds, his tyre management skills and his consistency to deliver lap after lap weekend after weekend.

   In the end I gave it to Leclerc. He’s been threatening to win DOTW all season and today he deserves it for his pass on Bottas and absolutely dominating the midfield today, plus racing a Mercedes and beating a Redbull.
   1. 

      Mayrton
      10th May 2021, 8:02

      Nice one!
9. 

   Srdjan Mandic (@srga91)
   9th May 2021, 21:32

   It’s Leclerc for me. Put his car on the 2nd row on his 2nd run in Q3, despite the track getting a little slower. Overtook Bottas around the outside into T3 at the start and kept him behind for the whole first stint. He would’ve also made a 1-stop-strategy work (his 2nd stop was just a precaution), which was far from easy today.
   Lewis, Max and Ricciardo did great too.
10. 

    Tom
    9th May 2021, 21:38

    One of the many reasons Hamilton impressed me this weekend was his maturity. He’s evolved so much as a driver. I think the Hamilton of 2010-2015 would have kept his foot in and had a crash with Verstappen. I think he’d also question the pit decision and probably moan about it a bit which would take him out of the zone. Today there was no complaints, no panic, just flat out relentless racing. It’s clear the Mercedes had an advantage on the mediums, but on a track where overtaking is extremely hard Mercedes and Hamilton really needed to force Redbulls hand. I personally think they played it brilliantly. The longer first stint was somewhat of a double bluff. It cost them time but sold RedBull a dummy. Excellent strategy, excellent pace from Hamilton and 100 poles. He usually has to be special to get DOTW votes and this weekend he was.
11. 

    F1 frog (@f1frog)
    9th May 2021, 22:00

    Charles Leclerc drove a perfect qualifying and race. It has to be him.
12. 

    Christopher Rehn (@chrischrill)
    9th May 2021, 22:31

    Definitely a two-horse race for me, Lewis or Leclerc. In the end, I put Leclerc. He had a pit stop in hand over the entire midfield, and finished ahead of Perez as well. Dominant.

    Both he and Lewis are 10/10 for me this weekend.
13. 

    Raynaud (@)
    9th May 2021, 22:31

    Voted for Max. Did a good job in qualifying and knew that it could only be won there because race pace is just a tad to slow compared to mercedes. Don’t understand why mercedes keeps bottas, he is just to slow when it matters and ruins a 2nd place at the start. Nico never had that issue, also kept Lewis more honest.

    Lewis and Leclerc good second and third.
    1. 

       Esploratore (@esploratore)
       10th May 2021, 2:54

       They keep him cause they don’t need a stronger 2nd driver, you see they constantly get more points in the constructors?
    2. 

       Mayrton
       10th May 2021, 9:18

       Bottas worked just fine, but Max is simply getting too good by now to maintain Bottas. Max can almost compensate the lack the RB car has vs the Mercedes. Luckily for Mercedes Perez cant, otherwise they’d to move Bottas in season. Toto is worried, but I think they’ll still manage 2021. Lewis is one of the greats and the car is still superior. If it hadn’t been for Verstappen they would win all races, for sure.
       1. 

          DonSalsa
          10th May 2021, 22:37

          If it weren’t for Lewis, Max would have won all races!
          If you believe Max is magic with his car, then Lewis is doing exactly the same, if not more.
          Max is beating the other Merc so it isn’t car, is it? Otherwise Bottas should be beating Max ‘easily’.
          Whatever the car (fast or slow), you still need a good driver to extract the maximum potential from it. A mediocre driver in a fast car doesn’t get the result the car is capable of, cue Perez and Bottas.
14. 

    Asanator (@asanator)
    9th May 2021, 23:37

    ChuckLe!!
15. 

    slowmo (@slowmo)
    9th May 2021, 23:43

    Hamilton for driving at a relentless pace the entire grand prix and taking pole position in a car that was probably slower on one lap pace
    1. 

       Esploratore (@esploratore)
       10th May 2021, 2:55

       You see though? It’s a bit hard to say the car was slower in qualifying, the average between bottas and hamilton’s qualifying best times was around 60 thousandths of a second slower than hamilton did, and if that happened verstappen would’ve been 20 thousandths ahead, BUT there’s perez as well in the team, who did nothing, so how do we know what was a good time for merc and a good time for red bull?
       1. 

          slowmo (@slowmo)
          10th May 2021, 16:11

          @esploratore well the fact that the Red Bull went over a second faster in race trim on the same soft tyres as Bottas suggests the Red Bull had plenty of one lap pace. At the start of the race too Verstappen immediately pulled a big gap over Hamilton before the pace dropped. All evidence in practice and throughout qualifying and indeed outright performance in the race suggests that the performance was close if not weighted in Red Bull’s favour over a single lap. Just my opinion though, you’re entitled to think otherwise.

          Bottas is a good enough qualifier usually that had the lap been bad I would have also expected him to beat Hamilton so that suggests Hamilton’s lap was decent. Likewise Verstappen didn’t complain about his lap much suggesting he was fairly happy. Perez ruined his and several others Q3 sessions by dragging gravel across the track so is not comparable.
16. 

    Jockey Ewing
    9th May 2021, 23:45

    Great pace by Lewis, that is for sure. Especially after the 2nd pitstop. His tyres seem to be bulletproof.
    Red Bull would need some braver or more clever strats sometimes. It was intersting to read that Verstappen pitted before he was called. Probably he wanted to time the undercut by himself. I don’t blame him for it, but I do believe that today’s realtime generated strategies are beyond imo likely almost every human participant’s perception. They are working out so often if a bit of advantage is there to support those strategies, these strategies and hints are killing off so much action nowadays. So I don’t blame one of the current best drivers doing so, but I think doing so nowadays is strange.
    It is quite interesting to see that seemingly yet was the one Mercedes who came up with better looking strats than RB at this season (although Perez yet was not able to really join the battle).
    1. 

       Jockey Ewing
       9th May 2021, 23:48

       And of course as he was ahead, it is technically not an undercut. And as overcut is so rare nowadays, there is technically no overcut as well :)
       But at the end of the race I asked myself: Was it the rebirth of the two stop strategy?
17. 

    Jay Menon (@jaymenon10)
    10th May 2021, 1:04

    Got to be Lewis.

    The race strategy was executed to perfection.
    1. 

       mystic one (@mysticus)
       10th May 2021, 1:15

       He didnt ask this time for miracle :) he simply asked how many seconds he needs to hammer
18. 

    Todfod (@todfod)
    10th May 2021, 4:09

    Difficult one.. Lewis, Max and Charles were all outstanding. Max did the best he could with the 2nd fastest car on the grid.. Lewis maximized his quali and made the most of his race strategy to take the win. Leclerc maximised both his quali and his race pace to finish comfortably ahead of any other midfield driver… And ahead of a Red bull driver as well. He also jumped Bottas and was running in P3 for a small part of the race.

    Had to give it to Leclerc this weekend.
19. 

    Esploratore (@esploratore)
    10th May 2021, 5:19

    So indeed, verstappen, hamilton and leclerc are the stand outs, but hamilton was imo over-voted, just because he had the better car, which allowed him to go for that risky strategy? Disagree, so obviously picked verstappen, who didn’t make any mistake, while hamilton lost the lead at first.
    1. 

       JL (@j-l)
       10th May 2021, 5:31

       Completely agree, did the same thing.
    2. 

       DeanR
       10th May 2021, 7:38

       Have you EVER given Lewis DOTW? Serious question.
       1. 

          MacLeod (@macleod)
          10th May 2021, 8:55

          Portugal I did… But i do vote for Lewis often i think 6 times last season.
20. 

    AJ (@asleepatthewheel)
    10th May 2021, 6:20

    Went with Leclerc. Both he and Hamilton were outstanding. But to drag that Ferrari to P4 in qualifying, overtake Bottas and keep him behind for a chunk of the race, and then finish miles ahead of Perez and the midfield deserves recognition. Add to that, Lewis will be in contention almost every weekend, he’ll have his share of DOTWs.
    1. 

       f12007v (@f1fan-2000)
       10th May 2021, 10:00

       idk why everyone thinks leclerc ‘dragged’ his car to 4th cus ferrari do have the 3rd fastest car here. people still think wer in 2020
21. 

    LEMAYIAN (@lems)
    10th May 2021, 6:29

    Mazepin got some votes, at least there are people who believe he’s good than most of the other drivers!
22. 

    F1oSaurus (@)
    10th May 2021, 8:00

    Impressed with Hamilton, Leclerc and Ricciardo.

    Hamilton’s drive was a master class again. Executing that strategy to perfection. Taking the win when Verstappen looked to have it in the bag. Getting the pole when Verstappen looked to have it in the bag in FP3 and Q2. Only mistake he made was to leave the gap for Verstappen to bully in after the start. Hamilton really should cover off those banzai dives before they happen.

    Leclerc kept a Mercedes behind for a good number of laps while Ricciardo kept a Red Bull behind almost the whole race.
    1. 

       Mayrton
       10th May 2021, 9:27

       At no point during this weekend we could have said that Verstappen had it in the bag. I was surprised he managed 2nd since Newey failed us all again (8 years straight now, but hey the rest of the field does even worse) but then again it was against Bottas…
23. 

    montreal95 (@montreal95)
    10th May 2021, 18:07

    Leclerc easily for me. He’s the only one who was perfect all weekend. Lewis will win this unfortunately but although he was great, he was not perfect as he made a bad start. Neither was Max or any other driver apart from Leclerc

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