The Circuit de Catalunya, located near the bustling, cosmopolitan city of Barcelona, has played host to a lot of motorsport down the years. The circuit opened in 1991, and for several years played host to pre-season testing, meaning drivers and teams would become very familiar with the track. With a combination of high-speed straights, along with mid and high-speed corners, the track is ideally suited to helping teams understand various elements of their cars. In more recent years, Bahrain has become the destination for pre-season testing, but the Circuit de Catalunya remains a track where teams can get a good read on the strengths and weaknesses of their cars.

66 laps around this track will invoke a fair few different approaches. In 2016, Max Verstappen famously took his first win here, exploiting the strong aerodynamic qualities of his Red Bull to keep clear of the faster Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel. Conversely, Kimi Raikkonen kept ahead of the the second Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo, taking advantage of his Ferrari’s more power engine on the straights. Consequently, the setup around here can impact where the car feels at its best.

Two men who hoped their cars would feel good throughout a lap were Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. The two Spaniards hoped to impress on home soil, and Sainz certainly provided some food for thought in qualifying. He would qualify second on the grid, but in a surprise twist, and for the second consecutive occasion, Verstappen would not take pole. That honour went – for the second race in a row – to McLaren, only this time to Lando Norris. Verstappen could only manage third, ahead of teammate Sergio Perez, and the second Ferrari of Charles Leclerc.

Early, dry conditions saw Norris pull away from Sainz and Leclerc, but as is his want, Verstappen would slip by the Ferraris in short order, and bear down upon the Englishman. It would not be long before the two would trade places, as they grappled for control of the race.

To Norris’ credit, he was not content to let Verstappen disappear down the road. The pair dropped the Ferraris quite quickly, whilst Sainz fell behind his teammate and came under pressure from Perez.

Could Norris maintain his performance, and keep Verstappen on his toes? Well, the race would soon change with the advent of rain, changing the strategies for everyone, and for Norris, this… took the race away from him. In the damp conditions, Verstappen made his inters work well, and he would soon start to pull away. Norris could not light up his tyres to the same degree, and the McLaren simply was not as potent as the Red Bull in the rain.

Whilst Norris could not keep pace with Verstappen, a well-earned second place is a sign of an upward trajectory for McLaren, who as a team have started to look capable of threatening the Ferraris. They are not quite there yet, but they continue to get better, weekend after weekend.

One team that remain in a shocking state are Mercedes. For several laps, Lewis Hamilton was caught behind the Meerkats, and George Russell struggled as well, though Russell would claim a solitary point for the Silver Arrows, in yet another forgettable weekend. Racing Bull continue to stretch their advantage over Mercedes in the constructor’s championship, as do Aston Martin.

So, what do the standings look like after 10 rounds?

Verstappen now enjoys a 51 point lead over Leclerc, who may yet be looking over his shoulder at Norris, who moved above Sainz to take third in the driver’s standings. Consistency from Perez has brought him closer to Sainz as well.

In the constructor’s standings, Red Bull have increased their lead over Ferrari to 23 points.

Can Ferrari bounce back? Will McLaren continue to enjoy their resurgent form? What of Mercedes, will we see them show signs of life? Find out next time.

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