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Breaking Records, Intense Heat, and Other Highlights from the Start of the Formula 1 2023 Season
photo courtesy of Julie Flores
By Julie Flores
In that case, the sport I would recommend to watch is Formula 1. Formula 1 is a motorsport in which different teams compete for a Grand Prix race. This year's season has been programmed to have 23 races. It began on March 3-5 for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sakhir, and it will end the season in Abu Dhabi on November 24-26.
Two recent races were in Qatar and Japan. In Japan, they were racing for the Japanese Grand Prix. Max Verstappen, a part of the Red Bull team, took first place. Sadly, Sergio (Checo) Perez suffered three impacts from his car, causing him to get a penalty that led to him not getting back in the race. In second place was Lando Norris, who is part of McLaren. In third place was Oscar Piastri, also part of McLaren, making it his first podium. Max Verstappen was able to win the Constructors’ Championship for his team. During this race, five racers had to be disqualified. These racers were Logan Sargeant, Sergio (Checo) Perez, Alex Albon, Lance Stroll and Valterri Bottas.
On Sunday, October 8th, the race took place in Qatar for the Qatar Grand Prix. Many racers say that this was an intense race due to the climate in Qatar, and many of the racers weren’t feeling well after. This race has been categorized as one of the hardest races of the season.
Lance Stroll, driver of Aston Martin said he was “passing out”and feeling dizzy.
Esteban Ocon, driver of Alpine, vomited in his helmet during the race.
Alexander Albon also experienced acute heat exposure and had to receive medical attention.
Charles Leclerc says, “This is the toughest race I think for every driver in Formula 1 of our career, for everybody.” After the interview he was ready to pass out.
George Russel said, “I felt close to fainting in that race, I have never experienced anything like it before.”
Logan Sargeant had to retire from the competition due to feeling sick and he said he was suffering from “intense dehydration.”
Oscar Piastri had to pour himself water and lay down after the race.
Max Verstappen also had to sit down.
Valtteri Bottas, a driver for Alfa Romero said, “The feeling is like torture. I would say it was harder than in Singapore.”
Yuki Tsunoda said, “It was crazy. I had to consistently open the visor to breathe, actually.”
This week, on October 22, 2023 there was another race for the United States Grand Prix that took place in Austin Texas. In first place was Max Verstappen, in second place, Lewis Hamiliton, and in third place, Lando Norris. But Hamilton, who was in second, and Leclerc who was in 6th place, got disqualified due to his car’s “skid block” which isn’t in compliance with the rules.
“What is a “skid block”?”
“It’s what helps to ensure the cars don’t run too close to the ground.” (Formula 1 Official Website)
This disqualification came as a surprise for many fans of Hamilton and Leclerec. The results ended with Max Verstappen in first place, Lando Norris in second place and Carlos Sainz in third place.
The next race was taken Sunday, October 29, 2023 at Mexico City racing, for the Mexican Grand Prix. Right at the start of the first race, Checo Perez tried to pass Charles Leclrec, but ended up crashing and getting out in the first race. This was a hard loss, because this race was very important to him, since he was racing in his home country. The results ended with Max Verstappen winning first place, Lewis Hamilton in second place and Charles Leclrec in third place. The player of the day was Lando Norris. He started in 17th place and he ended in 5th place, a very good race for Lando.
On November 5, 2023 the race took place in Brazil for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. In first place was Max Verstappen, in second place, Lando Norris, and in third place it was a very tight race between Checo Perez and Fernando Alonso. But in the last stretch Fernando Alonso won the third place position. This race was very intense and filled with cardiac moments. By 0.05 seconds, Fernando Alonso claimed third place, and right behind him was Checo Perez. It was a bad race for Mercedes since they have had better performance in past races for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, and people favored Mercedes for winning. Very sad for Ferrari fans since Charles Leclrec, during the formation lap, crashed and was in P2 by the sprint race.
“Why am I so unlucky? Why am I so unlucky?” said Charles Leclrec on the radio after he crashed.
Then, another incident occurred in which a red flag came out. Alex Albon from Williams, and Kevin Magnussen from Haas both collided, and a tire flew out, causing for one the wings of Danniel Ricciardo cars to get damaged. But thankfully there wasn’t that much damage, and Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo were forced to pit and then resumed a lap down.
On Saturday, November 18th, the race took place in Las Vegas, Nevada for the Las Vegas Grand Prix. In first place was Max Verstappen, in second place Charles Leclerc and in third place Checo Perez. Sadly for McLaren fans, Lando Norris crashed at lap 4 causing him to hit a wall. They had to take Lando to a medical center to check if he was ok and then was discharged. He was able to race for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Checo was so close to securing second place when Charles Leclerc passed him on the right turn of the last lap.
On November 26th, the last race for the season of Formula 1 took place in Abu Dhabi. Mercedes and Ferrari were battling for who would win second place of the Constructer’s Championship. In first place, F1 World Champion Max Verstappen, in second place Checo Perez but since he had a 5 second penalty he went down the podium to 4th place which led Charles Leclerc to second place and George Russel in third place. The 5 second penalty Checo Perez got was because his car collided with Lando Norris car. Max Verstappen crowned himself F1 World Champion, Checo Perez Sub-Champion and Red Bulls winning the Constructors Championship. What a great season for Red Bulls and in second place of the Constructors Championship was Mercedes by 3 points more than Ferrari.
That will conclude the season of Formula 1 2023 until February 29, 2024 for the next season, beginning in Bahrain Sakhir. If you want to learn more about Formula 1, I would recommend you to watch “Formula 1: Drive to Survive”. It's a documentary about the racers and teams, on and off track. You can find this series on Netflix, and there are currently 5 seasons, each 10 episodes long. Also, recently on Netflix there was a stream called “Netflix Cup”, in which some racers from “Formula 1: Drive to Survive” competed in a golf tournament in Las Vegas.
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