Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff believes Max Verstappen would have taken pole position for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix by a comfortable margin had it not been for a mistake on his final attempt.
Will Wood's articles on RaceFans

Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly contributes to Formula One race weekend and pre-season test coverage, and also has the enviable job of reviewing the official Formula One game and other motor sport titles to the test.
Cooler Imola conditions make it easier to balance ‘knife-edge’ W12 – Hamilton
2021 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix
Posted onLewis Hamilton says his Mercedes W12 is “more on a knife edge than previous years” but the cooler Imola conditions have made it easier to drive.
Verstappen rues ‘s*** lap’ after missing out on a front-row start
2021 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix
Posted onMax Verstappen described his final attempt in qualifying for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix as ‘messy’ as he was out-qualified by team mate Sergio Perez.
“That’s a surprise!”: Hamilton beats Perez and Verstappen to Imola pole
2021 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix qualifying
Posted onLewis Hamilton took pole position for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix as Sergio Perez beat Red Bull team mate Max Verstappen to the front row.
Verstappen quickest ahead of Norris in final Emilia-Romagna practice
2021 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix third practice
Posted onMax Verstappen topped the final practice session for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, denying Mercedes a clean sweep of fastest practice times.
F1 2021 to launch in July – but three new tracks won’t arrive until later
Gaming
Posted onImola, Algarve and Jeddah will be missing from F1 2021 when the game arrives for major and next-generation platforms in July.
Hamilton denies Verstappen as Red Bull push Mercedes to the limit
2021 Bahrain Grand Prix review
Posted onIt took the combined effort of Lewis Hamilton’s peerless racecraft and sharp Mercedes strategy to deny Max Verstppen’s rapid Red Bull victory in Bahrain.
Giving up track position was key factor in defeat to Mercedes – Verstappen
2021 Bahrain Grand Prix
Posted onMax Verstappen believes giving up “super important” track position to Mercedes was the crucial factor in Red Bull’s Bahrain Grand Prix defeat.
Tsunoda says passing Alonso in his first F1 race was an “emotional” moment
2021 Bahrain Grand Prix
Posted onYuki Tsunoda says passing Fernando Alonso during his F1 debut was an ’emotional’ moment after watching the two-time champion race at Fuji as a child.
Verstappen preferred to take a penalty than allow Hamilton through into lead
2021 Bahrain Grand Prix
Posted onMax Verstappen told his Red Bull team they should have let him take a penalty for passing Lewis Hamilton with all four wheels off the track.
Mazepin “very angry with myself” after crashing out of first race on lap one
2021 Bahrain Grand Prix
Posted onNikita Mazepin says he is “very angry with myself” after spinning out of his grand prix debut just two corners into the first lap.
Ferrari have “taken a really quite impressive step”, say rivals
2021 Bahrain Grand Prix
Posted onFerrari’s much-improved performance in qualifying ahead of the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix has caught the attention of rival teams.
Williams’s 2021 performance at the mercy of the wind – Russell
2021 F1 Season
Posted onGeorge Russell says Williams’s success in 2021 could come down to which way the wind is blowing after his single day of pre-season testing.
AlphaTauri in stronger position at start of season than last year – Gasly
RaceFans Round-up
Posted onIn the round-up: Gasly feeling good ahead of opening races • Vettel curtailed by loss of boost pressure • IndyCar scripted TV series planned
Second-fastest Tsunoda stunned by F1 grip levels
2021 F1 Season
Posted onYuki Tsunoda says he has never experienced anything like the levels of grip offered by F1’s softest tyre compound after recording the second-fastest time in testing.
Perez: It’ll take me five races to get the best out of Red Bull
2021 F1 Season
Posted onSergio Perez believes that Red Bull’s RB16B has ‘very good potential’ but says it will take a handful of race weekends for him to get fully up to speed with it.
Ferrari ‘no longer at a disadvantage’ on the straights – Binotto
2021 F1 season
Posted onFerrari team principal Mattia Binotto believes the team will no longer be hamstrung by the performance of their power unit in 2021.
Improved rear stability puts Leclerc “at ease” with new Ferrari
2021 F1 season
Posted onCharles Leclerc says Ferrari’s new SF21 offers improved rear stability over its predecessor and he already feels “at ease” with Marenello’s new car.
Motorsport community pays tribute to Murray Walker
RaceFans Round-up
Posted onIn the RaceFans Round-up: Motorsport community pays tribute to Murray Walker • Tsunoda “getting more confident” in AlphaTauri • Engine cover failure cost us little time – Perez
Mick Schumacher wanted ‘MSC’ as his timing screen abbreviation: “It’s an emotional bond”
2021 F1 Season
Posted onMick Schumacher said he wanted his timing screen name abbreviation to be ‘MSC’ out of an “emotional bond” to his father Michael Schumacher.