This weekend past we had the Belgium Grand Prix at Spa. It is one of the classic circuits that has produced some classic races. It is also known for its changeable weather; a lot of these classic races have been thanks to the changeable conditions that get thrown up. This weekend’s race, however, was destined to not be one of them.
The rain came down before the race, like it had done for all the other races earlier on Sunday and immediately I knew we were either going to get a delayed start, or they would trundle off behind the safety car before getting a red flag. Sure, enough, I was not wrong, we had a 90-minute delay due to an overly risk adverse Race Director, followed by several laps behind the Safety Car and by the time they went racing the Intermediate Tyres were already struggling and it was not long before we saw dry tyres.
Why Won’t F1 Race in Wet Conditions Anymore?
The above question is not really accurate; however, it does feel like they don’t. For me personally I think it is a combination of several things. Let me explain below.
The Cars.
The reason they gave for the delay was because the amount of spray that would be produced would make racing unsafe. I can understand this however, the spray that the cars produce is not a new thing and it is not going anywhere and these F1 cars are the safest cars we have ever had. The problem is this generation of ground effect cars, make the spray a more exasperated issue because they suck more water off the surface than previous generations of cars. I have long believed these cars are the worst generation of cars we have ever seen in F1. Originally, they were intended to make the racing closer and more competitive, which in the early stages was the case. With the rate of R&D that goes into F1 cars, this is no longer the case, and we hear more often drivers complaining of the dirty air and now it has come to the point where the spray they produce deems them unsafe to drive in the wet.
The Tyres
If I say that this is the worst generation of cars we have seen in F1, then I have to say that the Pirelli Tyres are the worst we have had in F1. It says something when Pirelli produces an “Extreme Wet” tyre and absolutely no one wants to use it. There used to be a rule in F1, whereby if the race started behind the safety car in the wet, the drivers must use the Extreme Wet tyre. That rule has changed now and in Spa everyone chose to run the Intermediate Tyre. Not only does the Extreme Wet not disperse enough water, the compound is too hard and is also therefore too slow. We have seen previously when they have had to use Extreme Wets, they dive into the pits as soon as they can to put on the Intermediate and go immediately 4-5s a lap quicker. Rumor has it that Pirelli have never invested much time and effort into their wet tyres, hence the poor performance. I have long been a critic of Pirelli; I was hoping the sport would move away from them but that did not happen. Tyres are so important to a racing series and these Pirelli tyres are just abysmal. You can’t push them properly, they degrade like no one’s business and as a result most races, the drivers are just trundling about in a time trial to try and make the tyres last. Bring back Bridgestone!
The Drivers
In generations gone by, F1 drivers had this Gladiatorial aurora about them. They drove these super quick cars, that took real strength and skill to muscle around a race circuit for 40 plus laps. Long gone are the days where drivers are physically and mentally done after a race save for the occasional race. Back then F1 cars were too hard for a teenager to drive, now it is not uncommon to see teenagers driving an F1 car and very quickly get up to speed. I feel like some of the drivers today seem to have a fear of driving in the wet, George Russell is a perfect example whenever it rains and you hear team radio or interviews with him, you just get the impression that he wants to do anything but race in the wet. You get outliers like Verstappen, Alonso and Hamilton that always want to go racing but the rest seem to just want to leave it. In my opinion the current crop of F1 drivers is more moddy coddled and less tough than their predecessors.
Final Thoughts
I feel that the fans were once again robbed of a decent race, other former F1 drivers also felt the same and some have even said that the days of getting a classic wet race are long gone. As a result, aside from Lewis Hamilton passing several cars and Piastri taking the lead from Norris, almost nothing happened once they got onto the dry tyres. I would love to know other people’s thoughts on this.
Results
| 1st | Oscar Piastri | 11th | Oliver Bearman |
| 2nd | Lando Norris | 12th | Nico Hulkenberg |
| 3rf | Charles Leclerc | 13th | Yuki Tsunoda |
| 4th | Max Verstappen | 14th | Lance Stroll |
| 5th | George Russell | 15th | Franco Esteban Ocon |
| 6th | Alexander Albon | 16th | Kimi Antonelli |
| 7th | Lewis Hamilton | 17th | Fernando Alonso |
| 8th | Liam Lawson | 18th | Carlos Sainz |
| 9th | Gabriel Bortoleto | 19th | Franco Colapinto |
| 10th | Pierre Gasly | 20th | Isack Hadjar |
Race rating 3/10
Up Next…
Hungary is this weekend, I like the circuit, however it never really produces any great races with overtaking difficult.
The DRS Zone 
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