English Breakfast goes down a treat at Vryheid pub during British F1 GP
The #F1SundaysatElla event offered local Formula 1 fans an opportunity to experience the excitement of the race, which started with a repeat of Saturday’s qualifying, followed by the build up to the race, the main race and then the post race interviews, in the company of like-minded racing enthusiasts.
LOCAL pub owner, Michael Phytides, set the mood for patrons watching last Sunday’s British Formula 1 Grand Prix, by offering an English Breakfast and a Draught Beer special during #F1SundaysatElla.
The #F1SundaysatElla event offered local Formula 1 fans an opportunity to experience the excitement of the race, which started with a repeat of Saturday’s qualifying, followed by the build up to the race, the main race and then the post race interviews, in the company of like-minded racing enthusiasts.
Heavy grey skies over the Silverstone circuit in the heart of the United Kingdom were some cause for concern, but with the track drying out towards the end of qualifying, the imminent threat of a wet race gradually subsided as the drivers lined up on the grid and the green lights went out.
British driver, Lewis Hamilton, who started in pole position, took an early lead over the two Ferrari drivers, Kimi Raikkonen, who started in second and current World Championship leader, Sebastian Vettel, starting from third on the grid.
Hamilton’s teammate, Valtteri Bottas started from ninth after receiving a five place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change on his Silver Arrows Mercedes.
An incident in the first lap saw Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat being given a drive through penalty for causing a collision after crashing into and ending the race of teammate, Carlos Sainz, and resulted in the safety car being deployed.
Up near the front in lap 14, Vettel and Max Verstappen drove a heated battle for third, after a magnificent start for the Dutch driver in the Red Bull saw him steal third place from Vettel at the start. With championship points at stake, Vettel fought relentlessly to regain his position, but Verstappen managed to hang onto his place, despite several massive overtaking attempts from the German driver in the red car behind him.
Almost halfway into the 51 lap race, Red Bull’s popular charismatic Australian driver, Daniel Ricciardo, who started in nineteenth place after car trouble in qualifying, was making his way through the pack like a hot knife through butter and had gained ten places to find himself in ninth place by lap 22, much to the delight of the pub patrons who supported #F1SundaysatElla.
Disappointment set in among the locals at Ella when Fernando Alonso, who was running in thirteenth position after starting from the back of the grid with a ridiculous 30 place grid penalty, was forced to retire in lap 33, after the ‘McLaren Curse’ struck again and Honda’s reliability issues left the Spaniard with yet another DNF brought on by mechanical issues. It is believed that the fuel pump broke, which led to a loss of power and Alonso’s subsequent retirement from the race.
Meanwhile, Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas made his way through the pack from ninth and was fighting Vettel for third place by lap 43, bypassing him and relegating the Ferrari to fourth and closing in on the other struggling Ferrari of Raikkonen in second place by lap 47.
The final two laps of the British GP saw a bit of excitement for the fans, but were disastrous for Ferrari as Raikkonen suffered a devastatingly badly-timed tyre delamination and subsequent puncture, limping back to the pits in the penultimate lap for a quick tyre change, opening the door for fellow Finn, Bottas to fly past him for second place.
Disaster struck for Vettel in the other Ferrari on lap 50 of 51 as sparks began to fly and his front left tyre burst, unravelling at an alarming rate in the last lap, diminishing his championship lead over Hamilton to a single point.
The British Grand Prix came to a dramatic conclusion as the Mercs crossed the finish line with Hamilton in a comfortable first place and Bottas in a well-deserved second.
Raikkonen rejoined the race after his last minute pit stop to take third place ahead of the two Red Bulls of Verstappen in fourth and Ricciardo in fifth. Renault’s Nico Hülkenberg moved into tenth place in the Drivers’ Championship as a result of his impressive drive to sixth place, with the other Ferrari of current championship leader, Sebastian Vettel, hobbling across the finish line into seventh place.
Behind Vettel, Force India’s Esteban Ocon finished in front of teammate, Sergio Perez for eight and ninth respectively, while Felipe Massa took the final points paying position for the Williams team.
“We’d like to just say thank you to the local F1 fans that came out to support #F1SundaysatElla last Sunday,” states pub owner, Michael Phytides. “We’re also glad to announce that #F1Sundays will be a regular feature at Ella for the remainder of the Formula 1 season and we welcome fans of the sport to join us for Sunday races. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for upcoming events.”
Conrad Taljaard, a visitor to Vryheid from Bloemfontein, even managed to watch a few minutes of the Wimbledon final during #F1SundaysatElla, where Roger Federer claimed his eighth Wimbledon title at the age of 35 years and 342 days.
