Tuscan Grand Prix

Formula One race

The 2020 Tuscan Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio della Toscana Ferrari 1000 2020) was a Formula One motor race held on 13 September 2020 at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello in Scarperia e San Piero, Tuscany, Italy. The race was the ninth round of the 2020 Formula One World Championship and the first race of the season with spectators.

2020 Tuscan Grand Prix
Race 9 of 17[a] in the 2020 Formula One World Championship
← Previous raceNext race →
Race details
Date 13 September 2020
Official name Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio della Toscana Ferrari 1000 2020
Location Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello
Scarperia e San Piero, Tuscany, Italy
Course Permanent racing facility
Course length 5.245 km (3.259 mi)
Distance 59 laps, 309.497 km (192.312 mi)
Weather Sunny
Attendance 1,500[1]
Pole position
Driver Mercedes
Time 1:15.144
Fastest lap
Driver United Kingdom Lewis Hamilton Mercedes
Time 1:18.833 on lap 58 (lap record)
Podium
First Mercedes
Second Mercedes
Third Red Bull Racing-Honda
Lap leaders

The race was won by Lewis Hamilton of the Mercedes team, with teammate Valtteri Bottas in second; Mercedes scored their third 1–2 finish of the season. Alexander Albon of Red Bull Racing-Honda scored his first podium in Formula One with a third-place finish, becoming the first Thai driver to do so.

The race was the first since the 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix to have two red flags.[2] Due to the two stoppages, the race had three standing starts.

Background change

The race was held as an event celebrating Ferrari's 1000th race in the Formula One World Championship and the safety car used a red livery, instead of its usual silver colour, to mark the occasion.[3] The Mugello Circuit hosted a World Championship Formula One race for the first time. The Ferrari SF1000 sported a special livery: instead of the traditional rosso corsa, the car was painted dark burgundy. Both Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc wore special racing overalls, and both had special helmet designs.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic change

The 2020 championship was heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the originally scheduled Grands Prix were cancelled or postponed, prompting the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile to draft a new calendar. While the previous eight events were held behind closed doors, organizers announced that up to 2,880 spectators would be allowed for the Tuscan Grand Prix.[4]

Entrants change

Ten teams (each representing a different constructor) each entered two drivers. The drivers and teams were the same as those on the season entry list with no additional stand-in drivers for either the race or practice.[5]

Tyres change

Sole Formula One tyre manufacturer Pirelli brought the C1, C2, and C3 compound tyres for teams to use in the race, the three hardest compounds available.[6]

Qualifying change

Qualifying classification change

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Qualifying times Final
grid
Q1 Q2 Q3
1 44   Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:15.778 1:15.309 1:15.144 1
2 77   Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:15.749 1:15.322 1:15.203 2
3 33   Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing-Honda 1:16.335 1:15.471 1:15.509 3
4 23   Alexander Albon Red Bull Racing-Honda 1:16.527 1:15.914 1:15.954 4
5 16   Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:16.698 1:16.324 1:16.270 5
6 11   Sergio Pérez Racing Point-BWT Mercedes 1:16.596 1:16.489 1:16.311 71
7 18   Lance Stroll Racing Point-BWT Mercedes 1:16.701 1:16.271 1:16.356 6
8 3   Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1:16.981 1:16.243 1:16.543 8
9 55   Carlos Sainz Jr. McLaren-Renault 1:16.993 1:16.522 1:17.870 9
10 31   Esteban Ocon Renault 1:16.825 1:16.297 No time 10
11 4   Lando Norris McLaren-Renault 1:16.895 1:16.640 N/A 11
12 26   Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri-Honda 1:16.928 1:16.8542 N/A 12
13 7   Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo Racing-Ferrari 1:17.059 1:16.8542 N/A 13
14 5   Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:17.072 1:16.858 N/A 14
15 8   Romain Grosjean Haas-Ferrari 1:17.069 1:17.254 N/A 15
16 10   Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri-Honda 1:17.125 N/A N/A 16
17 99   Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo Racing-Ferrari 1:17.220 N/A N/A 17
18 63   George Russell Williams-Mercedes 1:17.232 N/A N/A 18
19 6   Nicholas Latifi Williams-Mercedes 1:17.320 N/A N/A 19
20 20   Kevin Magnussen Haas-Ferrari 1:17.348 N/A N/A 20
107% time: 1:21.051
Source:[7][8]

Race change

The race was marked by several incidents. On the first lap at turn 2, Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly, Kimi Räikkönen, and Romain Grosjean collided, resulting in Gasly and Verstappen retiring from the race and Räikkönen having to change his front wing. Verstappen's car was beached in the gravel trap.[10] A separate incident at the same corner involved Carlos Sainz Jr. and Lance Stroll, as Sainz spun round and damaged Sebastian Vettel's front wing. These incidents together brought out the safety car. On lap 6 the safety car pulled in, but an accordion effect led the midfield drivers to accelerate up to racing speed before the leaders did and were forced to brake,[11] triggering a collision involving Sainz, Kevin Magnussen, Antonio Giovinazzi, and Nicholas Latifi. Grosjean blamed the leader, Valtteri Bottas, for causing the accordion effect, and stated "this is the worst thing I've seen ever." All four drivers retired from the race and the red flag was brought out. During the red flag period, Esteban Ocon retired due to a brake failure; George Russell had earlier reported Ocon's brakes being on fire. The second red flag came on lap 45,[12] after Stroll suffered a tyre failure at lap 43 turn 9, and went into the barrier.[13] His Racing Point RP20 caught on fire, making it harder for the marshalls to clear the track.

Lewis Hamilton won the race, his 90th career win. Valtteri Bottas came in second and Alex Albon finished third; his first career podium. By finishing in ninth place, Kimi Räikkönen scored his first points of the season. A poor restart after the second red flag meant George Russell slipped from ninth to 12th and last. He eventually finished 11th leaving him out of the points.[14] Twelve drivers were warned by the FIA for their part in the accident at the restart on lap 6.[15] Writing for the BBC, former GP2 Series champion Jolyon Palmer praised the circuit, saying that it "defied all the [Hermann] Tilke design theories and yet provided a great spectacle in the traditional sense."[10]

Race classification change

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 44   Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 59 2:19:35.060 1 261
2 77   Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 59 +4.880 2 18
3 23   Alexander Albon Red Bull Racing-Honda 59 +8.064 4 15
4 3   Daniel Ricciardo Renault 59 +10.417 8 12
5 11   Sergio Pérez Racing Point-BWT Mercedes 59 +15.650 7 10
6 4   Lando Norris McLaren-Renault 59 +18.883 11 8
7 26   Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri-Honda 59 +21.756 12 6
8 16   Charles Leclerc Ferrari 59 +28.345 5 4
9 7   Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo Racing-Ferrari 59 +29.7702 13 2
10 5   Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 59 +29.983 14 1
11 63   George Russell Williams-Mercedes 59 +32.404 18
12 8   Romain Grosjean Haas-Ferrari 59 +42.036 15
Ret 18   Lance Stroll Racing Point-BWT Mercedes 42 Accident 6
Ret 31   Esteban Ocon Renault 7 Brakes 10
Ret 6   Nicholas Latifi Williams-Mercedes 6 Collision damage 19
Ret 20   Kevin Magnussen Haas-Ferrari 5 Collision 20
Ret 99   Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo Racing-Ferrari 5 Collision 17
Ret 55   Carlos Sainz Jr. McLaren-Renault 5 Collision 9
Ret 33   Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing-Honda 0 Collision 3
Ret 10   Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri-Honda 0 Collision 16
Fastest lap:   Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) – 1:18.833 (lap 58)
Source:[8][16][17]
Notes
  • ^1 – Includes one point for fastest lap.
  • ^2Kimi Räikkönen finished eighth on the track, but received a five-second time penalty for crossing the pit entry line.[16]

Championship standings after the race change

  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

Related pages change

Notes change

  1. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic saw several Grands Prix cancelled or rescheduled. The revised calendar consisted of seventeen races.
  2. Racing Point was deducted 15 points after a protest from Renault was upheld regarding the legality of their car.[19]

References change

  1. Andrea Marotta (13 September 2020). "Gp di Toscana, festa a metà per la Ferrari" (in Italian). Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  2. "Tuscan Grand Prix 2020 race report and highlights: Hamilton beats Bottas to win crazy race at Mugello, as Albon secures maiden podium". www.formula1.com. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  3. "Safety car uses red livery to commemorate Ferrari's 1000th GP". Formula1.com. Formula One. 11 September 2020. Archived from the original on 15 September 2020.
  4. Smith, Luke (30 August 2020). "Tuscan GP at Mugello to be first F1 race to host fans in 2020". Autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 30 August 2020.
  5. "2020 Tuscan Grand Prix – Entry List" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 10 September 2020. Retrieved 10 September 2020.
  6. "2020 Tuscan and Russian Grands Prix - Tyre compound choices". Pirelli. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  7. 7.0 7.1 "Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio della Toscana Ferrari 1000 2020 – Qualifying". Formula1.com. Formula One Administration. 12 September 2020. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  8. 8.0 8.1 "Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio della Toscana Ferrari 1000 2020 – Starting Grid". formula1.com. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  9. "Perez blames pit exit configuration as he's handed grid drop for Raikkonen collision in FP2". Formula1.com. 11 September 2020. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  10. 10.0 10.1 Palmer, Jolyon (15 September 2020). "Jolyon Palmer column: Mugello offers lessons to F1 on sanitised circuits". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  11. "What really happened in Tuscan GP's huge restart crash". The Race. 14 September 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  12. "Hamilton beats Bottas to win crazy Tuscan GP, as Albon secures maiden podium". Formula1.com. 13 September 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  13. "Lewis Hamilton wins chaotic Tuscan Grand Prix to extend world championship lead". The Independent. 13 September 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  14. "The small and unenviable F1 club Russell has joined, for now". The Race. 18 September 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  15. Smith, Luke (13 September 2020). "Twelve F1 drivers given warning over pile-up on Tuscan GP safety car restart". Autosport.com. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  16. 16.0 16.1 "Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio della Toscana Ferrari 1000 2020 – Race Result". Formula1.com. Formula One Administration. 13 September 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  17. "Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio della Toscana Ferrari 1000 2020 – Fastest Laps". formula1.com. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  18. 18.0 18.1 "Tuscany 2020 - Championship". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  19. "Racing Point deducted 15 points and fined heavily as Renault protest into car legality upheld". formula1.com. 7 August 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.