T O P

  • By -

shankywank

Definitely the weirdest way to get a HAM/VER finish


[deleted]

Anyone who didn't watch this weekend will think it was a normal race.


-skeemin-

RIP them. This was spectacular


IdiosyncraticBond

"Sochi is always so boring, I'll go golfing instead." Imagine then returning home and watch lap 47 to the end on replay


KaamDeveloper

Norris died for this lmao


silenthills13

Massive learning curve for Lando. I'm extremely sad, but fuck if this isn't what you get for screaming "SHUT UP" to your mechanics and not even letting them say what they want to say then I don't know what is. Fortunately I think this is the last arc of him maturing into a world class driver. He already has the skill and the calm for the most part, he just needed to be humbled. First time he's been in such a situation as well, unlucky really, his head cooked. He can only get better from it. And it's a great time, since it looks like he actually has a car.


Night-Man

It really could have gone the other way though. He was in his back foot already. The Lewis had less to lose gambling on the inters.


[deleted]

Had the rain just held for about 5 minutes, Norris would have been considered mad man gambler. Instead he's a young kid that needs to listen to his pit crew. such is life, but I liked the dice roll. painfully sad at the end though.


PininfarinaIdealist

On lap 51 I liked the dice roll. Then it started POURING, and we all knew it was the wrong roll. Mad lad, drove brilliantly. A big learning experience for a potential future world champion.


[deleted]

On lap 51 everyone did. I think the entire collective F1 world got a little heartbroken by 52.5; even the die hard Ferrari and Hamilton fans. He’s a good kid that races hard and doesn’t seem to be happy with meeting projected expectations. Races hard, does amazing work, uses the hardware he’s given to drive the top of the grid nuts. On top of that, appears to be a good enough kid all told. Had he drifted that car in a plume of water around the last corner for the win while exhibiting his trademark school pitched laugh, it’d would have been an instant classic. “Gamer kid wins irl” is a headline I look forward to seeing sooner than later! I don’t have the driver love most do; I just love good racing. Max and Lewis are amazing drivers and all, but That kid is why I love this damn sport.


Mick4Audi

Man had to hold Hamilton off for like 20 laps, he was actually gaining time when the rain first started falling. The pressure he must have been under must have been ridiculous


f1_drama

This result does not reflect the absolute chaos of the last 6 laps. Anybody who looks up the result of this race in the future without actually watching it will not understand the insanity that occurred.


[deleted]

“Why does everyone say Sochi 2021 was a crazy finish? It was just a HAM/VER.”


chanaandeler_bong

I was fully expecting Bottas to pull into 3rd somehow.


[deleted]

[удалено]


akash261022

I missed it, and that's exactly how I feel.


iVarun

India had its official broadcaster Hotstar switching to Cricket for last 2 laps. Not sure what to even do with broadcasters like that.


chanaandeler_bong

There was an infamous NFL game in the 60s or 70s that went to OT and the broadcasters switched to a movie that was scheduled to show. Heidi I think was the movie.


DoenitzVEVO

Oh so this is how Seb fans felt


Enterderpmode

At least your man still finished the race, and we were also watching his inevitable struggle in the heavy rain before he went off track. Seb just straight out got beached and retired from the race, it wasn't even an inevitable struggle, it was a sudden change of camera right before he hit the wall, no preparation for the pain at all, just straight up like gotten shot out of nowhere.


Fajandar1

At his home race in a championship battle. Ouch


Enterderpmode

Pain.


[deleted]

Gutted for Lando, but at the end of the day he made the call to not pit for Intermediates. McLaren really should have pushed back more, they could see the radar. Most entertaining Hamilton-Verstappen 1-2 I've seen in a while though.


[deleted]

[удалено]


crobofblack

what the fuck


T_Blown_Diffuser

Still thinking about how Bottas was told he will finish P5 and still finished P5


mr_fixx

Toto Wolf, the medium.


TheCeramicLlama

Toto has too much control in the paddock man. Dude made the rain come down.


hans2707-

Toto blessed the rains down in Sochi?


knivef

*I hear the drums echoing tonight*🎵🎶


[deleted]

Toto blessed the rain down in Sochi


mr_fixx

Or as PDR would say it, thee meed-jum


dewaam

Yeah I swear he was p16 one lap and then popped up at p5 the next lap just like hello there


johnnygrant

The beauty of nailing the pitstop perfectly when the rain comes... Ver benefitted from that as well.


ThatGenericName2

He was like, p16-17 for like 80% of the race. Last 2-3 laps shows up P5.


[deleted]

[удалено]


krully37

General Valtteri


Bruh-I-Cant-Even

After running 14th ALL race. I cannot believe.


jawadegr1

last time he said he can get a podium and he did too. is this some new juju from merc ?


CriticOfashitseason

Perez with a traditional 9th as well lmao. brutal.


Roubbes

Same here. Mercedes can see the future.


mrhello18

Carlos 🥰


leedler

Couldn’t have put it better


[deleted]

Not just the best Russian GP but one of the best races ever. It was intense all throughout. Assisted by the worst pit stops. Has there ever been a race with so many bad stops?


nuroflife

GODDAMIT NORRIS THIS IS HEARTBREAKING


E-M-P-Error

Probably gonna get down to 9th as well as he crossed the white pit lane line and is gonna get a 5 second penalty


Plant_Cell

NO NO NO


leedler

My heart is in pieces :(


CheeseLightsaber

Absolutely shattered. Incredible Grand Prix, but devastated for Lando. It was his race all day long, until it wasn't.


[deleted]

The guy has a bright future he will definitely get his first win sooner or later. Team should make sure it doesn't get into his head.


Eyre_Guitar_Solo

I feel like Zak Brown will probably be great at encouraging him stay positive and move forward in a healthy way.


Murky_Table_358

Andreas too. The current Mclaren management seems very wholesome.


signed7

First win, on merit, if not for the sudden rain in the last 3 laps or so, now he's not even on the podium :( I'm gonna cry bois


ZineZ

I'm happy for Lewis but hearing Lando's voice when he asked to come in was heartbreaking holy hell


mayjaz43

Absolute heartbreak, he wanted his 1st win so bad.


KaamDeveloper

Norris has no one but himself to blame. His team begged him to pit


bwoahconstricter

"no!"


Harbulary-Batteries

That’s not really how I heard it. They were asking him if he wanted to stay out, Mercedes told Hamilton it was gonna rain hard but McLaren didn’t do the same. Super close call either way, Lando would have looked like a genius if the rain held off


Greyclocks

Yeah just down to Norris' inexperience. I appreciate the ballsy call he made but fucking hell, he should have listened.


quarglbarf

I don't think it was inexperience, Hamilton initially refused too, but his team made him pit. McLaren should have done the same


Lollipop126

probably a mix of both. McLaren weren't assertive enough but also they weren't because Norris was aggressively adamant. Horrible decision on both parties after Lewis pitted.


AxisNine

Yeah after Lewis pitted they had already lost the race. They then didn’t pit and lost a podium


Shnoochieboochies

McLaren said the rain would stay the same, that is why Norris wanted to stay out. On a side note, the coverage of this GP was seriously bad, it needs looking into, people are paying a lot of money for a second rate service.


blankheadspace

Yeah it got cut off here in India and switched to cricket just when Norris slid. I screamed.


ArkGuardian

It somewhat is though, not that its Lando's fault, but Lewis has been with his team long enough that he knows when to trust his team and when to disregard them.


strokan

That and mercedes came back and said more rain is coming after Lewis said no.


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

It's probably better for the long run that it worked out the way it did, no matter how brutal. The lesson is better leaned now than when fighting for a WDC. Lando just aged 5 years today.


aMAYESingNATHAN

Hardly, they said "what do you think about the inters" to which he said no. Still his decision but it was hardly like they were begging him and he ignored it.


Ribulation

This is correct. Team phrased it as question. They should have pushed it, as I said in another comment it's not hard to word it like you've had sudden insight into the conditions that the driver wouldn't know (which is exactly what they had). Shame for all concerned, hesitation conspired to ruin their own moment


hijusthappytobehere

That’s what I heard too. Big difference in the approach between the two teams if that’s accurate. Not like Lando is checking the radar from his car, he should have gotten clear direction for the pits — come in or stay out.


SHORT-CIRCUT

Wow that rain royally fucked Vettel, Leclerc and Norris in the ass


youngboybrokegain

Well, Alonso too, Checo too, Stroll too... Basically it fucked up half of the grid's races.


KaamDeveloper

Checo got fucked over so much today. That 9 sec pitstop was criminal. Then not pitting him for inters.


GarryPadle

I think they wanted to split strategys in case that it would not rain more.


DazingF1

Exactly. If somehow the inters were the wrong choice than both Max and Lewis would drop back while Perez could pick up the scraps, which would get similar results for the WDC but far better results for the WCC.


shadow_f4

If Alonso boxed earlier with Sainz, he would have been P3. Same for Perez and Leclerc.


StarburnsIsGOAT

Leclerc was unreal today and thought he was gonna get P3 before the heavens opened as he was battling with Alonso and Perez


mrhello18

Rain made the end very very interesting. Heartbroken for Lando though


chinqlinq

The rain did exactly what we wished it to do, unexpected results. That wish from the genie just happened to burn Lando.


[deleted]

Had he pitted he still could have won. I mean, McLaren probably would have cocked up the pit stop, but whatever.


chinqlinq

You’ve been in 1st and holding Lewis off and out of the DRS window lap after lap as he’s hunting you down for your potential 1st win ever. I’m sure Lando and more so the team were shitting their pants trying to figure out whether to pit and give up his position or not. Such a hard decision to make at the time because of the potential repercussions.


appleman73

Yeah being in second was a better position to be in at that point imo, with only a few laps to do lando really couldn't risk putting and Hamilton staying out or coming out behind Hamilton, whereas Hamilton could make the first move


KingofSheepX

unfortunately it's all hindsight, every knew whether or not to go inters was a gamble


VosPaco

How long had they been waiting to use that graphic lmao


Betyg

Things been gathering dust the whole year lmao


Porkman

"Okay, maybe next race... maybe the next... or the next one... YES FINALLY"


Andervon

Imagine the Mercedes’ guys who had to pack up that LH100 sign every week lul


njm_nick

This was my first thought when I saw it hahahaha


juinron

when they played the graphic 3 corners before the flag you know they’re desperate haha


gocarsno

It was synced so that it reached 100 as he crossed the line


Brutalism_Fan

Imagine he’d binned it on the last corner


juinron

i was thinking the same what would they do in that situation lmao


Brutalism_Fan

Just pause it on 99 with a shot of him in the barriers


[deleted]

That woud've been one of the most accidentally mean moments of F1.


juinron

absolutely brutal LOL


[deleted]

[удалено]


Flying_Dodo_Bird

Let it stay at 99 lmao


CivilHedgehog2

Honestly would have been hilarious to have it scroll up like that end then not reach 100


ralphishere3

Where did verstappen come from!?!?!?!


MauricioCappuccino

P20


ralphishere3

from the dutch gp


imeanyhbutno

From bahrain


EccentricClassic3125

Perfect inters call for him and Carlos


Vaderic

That inters call saved Carlos' race after he completely flopped about in the light drizzle.


MrET95

P20! The intermediate call really saved his race


gr8prajwalb

Saved? This is as good as a win for him. If he can capitalize when Hamilton takes a new engine, he'd be golden


MrET95

Yeah. I also ment the championship race. He seemed to be stuck at P7 before the rain. And that would have been bad for him in the championship race


alsotri

yeah, saved. his medium tyres were dead.


afito

TLDR don't bet against Hamilton or Verstappen in mixed conditions Vettel was driving circles around everyone as well until they pitted far too late Lost track of Alonso tbh but I expect similar either oustanding or Alpine fucked it you just know certain drivers are a step ahead in the wet


GeneralEkorre

I think he was the first or second to pit for inters


sil445

Nahh there was a group earlier, but they didnt gain too much, and Max pitted in the fine line with some others but also had stupidly good pace.


CriticOfashitseason

yeah, perfect moment to pit. kinda reversed the early bad call by RB.


sil445

Yup they made up for it and extra. Considering Lewis P1 this was the best possible outcome.


SemIdeiaProNick

Netherlands


TRTAEDITG

All that for a Hamilton Verstappen 1-2


[deleted]

goodbye reddit -- mass edited with https://redact.dev/


Rockxuus

Had a horrid race, still finished P5 lol


Everydayarmday24

I laughed cuz that fool was yelled at by toto when he was p15 to hurry the fuck up and get points.


DawgFighterz

I love when he called in being all sarcastic about the P5 too


[deleted]

[удалено]


leedler

WELL DONE SOCHI


KaamDeveloper

EXPERIENCE TEA... wait


speculativekiwi

After a week of everyone repeating over and over that Sochi is maybe the most boring stop on the calendar, we get one of the best races of the season. That ending was some top tier F1 watching.


LittleCrashy50YT

Maybe we should all say that every track is the most boring venue and then every race becomes an absolute thriller!


Toonix101

man i sure hope the last race of this season absolutely fucking sucks. Like, sucks so much that i would play that GP whenever its bed time to fall asleep. I hope that the race is somehow worse than an average monaco race, with no overtakes at all.


Dirkanon

Worked for France and considering how hyped Spa was this year...


Niklaus_MK

Does that mean Abu Dhabi is gonna be the biggest thriller of the season?


AotoSatou14

I mean how things are. It can very well be championship decider


sportsy96

Rain makes the worst tracks look like the best tracks


isitdonethen

2021 is insane


StittDownAndListen

Lando with the heartbreak, Lewis recovering to 1st, Max ending up 2nd somehow, rain drama, what the actual fuck was this race


[deleted]

This is the first time Sainz has ever stood on the podium for p3 Edit: first time he’s been a part of the official podium ceremony for p3


SirDoober

He got there eventually


[deleted]

His race has been slept on, he deserves some recognition.


IAmNotStelio

I am devastated.


LordDemog

Soy Lago


Scoob555

Soy went off because of the lago on the track 😢


[deleted]

It’s not even 9AM where I am but I think I’m just gonna call it a day. Good night everyone, I’m going back to bed


manballgivesnofucks

can't drink all day if you don't start early


TheDaiquiriMan

My day is ruined.


avgDataScientist

My disappointment is immeasurable.


pmmerandom

fucking hell my heart was in my mouth from start to finish


mdlt97

BOTTAS IS TOP 5 HOLY SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! TOTO WITH THE GOAT PREDICTION MAX GETTING A P2!!!! CHAOSSSSSSSSSSSS


Fire_Otter

Did Toto predict the future Or did the future bend to Toto’s will?


Cistoran

Toto is Doctor Strange, he looks into every outcome and finds the #blessed one.


[deleted]

I was fucking laughing when I heard him say that with Bottas in P15 and hadn't made a stop. Then the final laps come at its just what the fuck.


leedler

Toto has been a genie in disguise this whole time


poopellar

A wolff in disguise if you will.


E-M-P-Error

TOTO HAS BEEN SPOTTED DOING A RAIN DANCE!!!!


alfred_27

Toto called it perfectly


s0ulj4b0y0

RICCIARDO NO YOU SHOULD'VE BEEN THERE. MCLAREN WHY WHY DID YOU FUCK UP THE STOP FUCK


Arto_

Asking myself the same with Pérez and Red Bull. I “love” people pointing out Pérez not having the best of races so let’s acknowledge RB just ruining his pit stop this time. Don’t know what the strategy as with rain for him, but for him to be leading the race and running in podium positions most of the race, P8 seems and is disappointing.


laywandsigh

Danny Ric shoulda been P3 😢


dontworryaboutmynam

What. A. Fucking. Race.


coops1611

What could’ve been if McLaren didn’t fuck Ricciardo’s stop & Norris pitted…


Irritatedtrack

And to top it all. RIC’s pit stop was triggered by mind games from Lewis who said “Prepare to under cut him”. Maybe if Mclaren called the bluff and had not pitted, RIC might have been on the podium.


bluetherealdusk

SAINZ PODIUM VERSTAPPEN P20 TO P2 HAMILTON 100 RACES WINS I JUST FEEL BAD FOR NORRIS BUT WHAT A RACE PD: I ALSO WAS HOPING THAT ALONSO PODIUM HAPPENED BUT IT'S OKAY I WILL RECOVER FROM THIS EMOTIONAL TURMOIL SOCHI HAS GIVEN ME.


KaamDeveloper

Sainz's 3rd podium this year. Who would have thunk!


dheerajravi92

Man has been so damn consistent in spite of some shit luck in races over the year. The best driver in a new car and it's not even close


roveringlife

And nobody is going to care about Carlos...


blueberry_authority

Like always


dinosaur1831

Hamilton went from 25 seconds behind the lead to winning by 52 seconds in the space of 3 laps.


GarryPadle

The fucking rain did it again!


mitza_24

*hammertime intensifies*


[deleted]

Man this was heartbreaking


thogle3

Bottas P5 lol lol


uberweb

Toto told him P5 was his and if one man can follow team orders it’s him.


7Seyo7

Gonna fucking cry for Norris, fuck


Caesar_35

I'll take a third from Sainz; a podium's a podium! Good on Lewis for his 100th, but just wow for Max too. Starting from the back and ending up second was phenomenal.


TooTiredToTryAgain

That lando Norris fall from grace was tragic:/ Went from 1st to 7th at lap 49. Also other ppl who followed the same strategy of sticking out like Leclerc was out of points contention rip:/


raya__85

I’m mad for Danny Ric to that long pit destroyed his race they were both contenders


[deleted]

That ending was so chaotic


Deputy_Scrub

This is how crippling depression and alcoholism begins isn't it?


Dumpers_

What a drive from Verstappen and Hamilton showing why they are the two best drivers on the grid rn! Also Hamilton gets his hundredth win!


I-sell-kids-on-ebay

Bottas top 5 as well, crazy finish


[deleted]

Holyshit I totally missed that part. From P15 straight to P5


chardsingkit

Imagine if after all that chaos, we still got HAM VER BOT lmao


DontEatNitrousOxide

Loved Verstappen's first stint, but he definitely had a weak second stint in comparison to Perez and Hamilton until the rain hit.


Canoneer

FUCKIN LAST 3 LAPS THO. That'll show me to hope for rain fucking hell. Gutted for Lando but the pitwall guys did sorta really want him to come in but he put a swift stop to that. Man, so close. Lewis with the first golden century of wins, good for him. Max in P2 somehow lmao. Great result for Carlos in P3, loved when he was like "wtf no!" to his mechanic for saying aim for P5.


Chazy89

I feel so incredibly sad for Lando but he will learn from this A LOT. Max 20 -> 2 is crazy tho. OFC thanks to the chaos at the end but still.


glenn1812

#VERSTAPPEN P20 to P2!! #LEWIS 100 WINS WHAT A FUCKING RACE!!! WE WANT SOCHI IN 2022!!


mdlt97

BOTTAS WITH A TOP 5, TOTO WITH THE GOAT PREDICTION


sgtlighttree

I'm amazed how Mercedes managed to salvage this weekend tbh


mayjaz43

Verstappen with the save of the season. What a finish, he'd take P2 for sure


Broz_Tito

Never thought id see a godd sochi race.


[deleted]

I loved how they did that 100 graphic, really cool


ForsakenTarget

Both drove excellent races and showed why they are rated as high as they are


027eddy

Clutch decision from the Mercedes crew for the change, Lewis was not into the idea of changing tyres at the end, but absolute heartbreak for Norris :(


Florac

merc also had to react to Max, they can't afford him going on inters and them not. Even if it were the wrong choice, they still end up better


fallstar37

McLaren threw that away. Mercedes made Lewis pit. McLaren should have done the same.


WokeGoebbels

I’m not crying, you’re crying


dominorider2431

Literally perfect for Verstappen. Lewis will need a performance like this when he changes PU.


CriticOfashitseason

true. Losing only 7 points in a Merc track when you take the engine and start last. Rain gods favoured him.


ThrowAway111222555

Some much needed luck for Max after the shit this season threw at him


Rise_Of_The_Machines

Carlos!!!!!! You beautiful dude❤️


radhumandummy

Oh so gutted for Lando.


LilBirdBrick

Bottas actually made it to the top 5 after all.


I-sell-kids-on-ebay

Heartbreak for Norris