The weather is fantastic! Wimbledon has started and I’m here for the British Grand Prix.
Yes, I am excited. I think we are in for a humdinger of a race. Let’s hope all of Ferrari’s hard work back at the factory produces the results for a close challenge between them and Mercedes.
They will have a completely new ‘aero’ package more in line with what is required at Monza as these are both very high speed tracks. Yes, this is what makes Silverstone exciting, the terrific change in direction at high speed producing sideways forces of over three Gs and the driver’s necks straining to the limit. Real racing at high speed is what separates the men from the boys and yes, these boys are all men – no matter how young.
I have just been to an enthralling Goodwood Festival of Speed where I read one of Ayrton Senna’s great quotes: “Flat out and fearless – racing on the edge.”
That is what Silverstone is all about. Remember the tussles between Mansell and Piquet, Senna and Prost, Schumacher and the rest. There is a deep history of heroic racing here.
Max Verstappen will be out to prove just how talented he is and he is very good. So don’t be surprised if his youthful dare and lightning reactions take him into the top six in qualifying.
Even if it does become Mercedes’s race, there is going to be a huge amount of interest from the opposition with much more pressure on them than usual.
I think that Sebastian Vettel might split Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. Nico even has the chance of his first win in his red blooded prancing horse Ferrari.
Kimi Raikkonen has been the centre of a controversy this week over his future with David Coultard, saying that he has lost his edge.
Kimi, on his day, can be blindingly fast on a quick track. We hope he will use this opportunity to lift himself back up to top form.
It should be a home win for Hamilton. He loves a fast track and he is the darling of the British crowd. This advantage should give him pole position with Rosberg on the back foot. Maybe I’m wrong and Nico can prove a point.
We can expect good performances from the Williams Mercedes team as well as the men at Grove. They will be pulling out all the stops to show what they can do on home turf while drivers Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas are on absolute top form.
I also expect something special from Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz who will be chasing teammate Verstappen very hard.
Lotus from their home base just round the corner at Enstone are brimful of energy and want to make a statement at home.
With talented Frenchman Romain Grosjean and Columbian Pastor Maldonado they can do a great job.
Expect a number of closely fought, high speed, slip-streaming battles between the top 20 drivers of the world as we enter a British heat wave for Silverstone. It should be dry, but with British weather you can always have an unexpected shower to make the race even more exciting.
Join us at Silverstone on Saturday for qualifying at 2pm with the main race on Sunday at the same time for the race of the season. It really will be the best of British.
