"Russell is the second biggest talent of his generation, after Verstappen"

A new Grand Prix and a new victory for Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen. It wasn't just any victory for the driver of the Austrian team. It was a complete clean sweep for the reigning world champion, which he achieved with a Grand Slam on Sunday. Other racers also impressed with surprising results from various drivers. On the other hand, Lando Norris and Valtteri Bottas completely disappointed at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Worlds apart at Red Bull

Verstappen's dominance in Spain began as early as Friday. He topped the time sheets in both practice sessions and that continued on Saturday. The only blemish the two-time world champion could possibly think of was that he was hindered by Pierre Gasly in Q1, which prevented him from setting the fastest time. Ultimately, Q3 is all that matters and Verstappen dominantly secured a pole position. He carried that form into the race. Verstappen won convincingly, set the fastest lap and led every lap. A Grand Slam can only result in an excellent score, according to former editor-in-chief Christian Moerman.

"Verstappen was untouchable in Barcelona. His Grand Slam was already in the air the entire weekend, and the groundwork was strong with a convincing qualifying performance. In the race, he continued this trend by holding off Carlos Sainz firmly but fairly at the start. He pushed the Spaniard out of DRS range, and from that moment on, he rushed leisurely to the finish line. He effortlessly took three tenths off Sergio Pérez's fastest lap, highlighting how much speed the Dutchman had compared to the rest of the grid. Such a flawless performance with maximum points and pure dominance deserves nothing less than a great score."

On the other side of the garage, there was less to celebrate for Red Bull. Sergio Pérez failed to reach Q3 for the second time in a row and it has become clear that these performances are hurting his chances in the title fight. The Mexican driver seemed uncomfortable in his RB19 throughout the weekend and could only manage the eleventh fastest time on Saturday. The next day, the man from Guadalajara moved up several positions but missed out on a podium. Pérez's performance received mixed reviews, but he still scored a passing grade.

"Although Pérez started eleventh, he had by far the strongest car on the track. He lacked far too much pace in the RB19, which became particularly evident in the closing stages. The Mexican had fought his way back to P4 and had to chase down the Mercedes drivers in the final stint on soft tires, but he couldn't catch up with George Russell. Verstappen showed at the front how much pace the Red Bull had and his teammate Pérez wasn't able to squeeze out the same kind of performance. A podium was the least we could have expected from the man from Guadalajara. What we got was a lackluster performance, marked by limited overtakes due to an alternative strategy, a lack of aggression and a lack of overall speed."

Mercedes with sidepods impresses

As if out of nowhere, Mercedes suddenly emerged. The German team's car has performed well at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for years, and last Sunday, Mercedes, albeit with a reasonable gap to Red Bull, was clearly the second team. The eight-time constructors' champion brought a proper update package to the Monaco Grand Prix and this package was able to be thoroughly tested on the Spanish circuit. Lewis Hamilton and George Russell managed to make good use of this new package on Sunday, after a slightly less than optimal qualifying session.

Russell in particular had a difficult time on Saturday. The Mercedes driver did not get beyond twelfth place, but that didn't bother the driver. On Sunday, he stood on the podium alongside his teammate and Verstappen. "George Russell's performance in the race is particularly impressive because he started behind Sergio Pérez but crossed the finish line ahead of him," says editor-in-chief Mark Hanselman. "He had a very strong opening lap and was consistently fast throughout the rest of the race. In the second half of the race, he barely lost any time on Pérez and even closed in on his teammate Lewis Hamilton. In my opinion, Russell is a class above drivers like Leclerc and Norris and is the second-greatest talent of his generation, right after Verstappen."

Hamilton showcased his ability to extract speed from his W14 throughout the entire weekend in Barcelona. The seven-time world champion rewarded himself with a well-deserved podium finish and he appeared much happier during the weekend in Barcelona. "The 38-year-old Brit can sometimes behave like a drama queen. On Friday, he expressed his fear of not making it to Q3, but after qualifying, he set his sights on victory. Although the win remained out of reach, the speed of the Mercedes was excellent. Hamilton once again proved that when it comes to driving, he is still one of the best. Hamilton often lets his head hang when things don't go as planned, but as soon as he starts to believe, he becomes more and more dangerous."

Zhou and Tsunoda impress in the midfield

There were also several drivers in the midfield who managed to impress. Zhou Guanyu, for example, scored points while his teammate Valtteri Bottas finished nineteenth. "I thought he held his own very well in the midfield and really fought for those points," says editor Shanna Lutgert. "After qualifying outside the top ten, it often doesn't work out well since the midfield teams are so evenly matched and the differences are minimal. Zhou still managed to secure those two points with a car that doesn't always have that capability. I thought it was an impressive performance and it will undoubtedly be a boost for Alfa Romeo."

Yuki Tsunoda also seemed to have a chance at scoring points, but the AlphaTauri driver had to settle for P11 due to a five-second time penalty. The penalty was given to the Japanese driver for pushing Zhou off the track during a defensive move. "He started behind De Vries but maximized his opportunities and had a good race. In my opinion, the penalty was a bit too harsh since Tsunoda and Zhou didn't make contact. Especially in the final stages of the race with worn-out tires, it's not always preventable, so it was clear to me that Tsunoda didn't do it on purpose. The Japanese driver could have scored valuable points here. It's evident that he's on an upward trajectory."

Norris and Bottas the absolute schmucks

This weekend also saw a few drivers disappoint. Lando Norris had a good qualifying but ruined his own race in the first sequence of corners. Valtteri Bottas lacked speed throughout the entire weekend. "I don't know what's going on with the Finn, but I can't recall a good performance," says editor-in-chief Mike van Weert. "He's probably a good mentor for Zhou, but I wonder if Audi is impressed with Bottas' performances. Of course, the strategy wasn't optimal, but it has been a disaster for the multiple race winner for weeks now. Bottas needs to improve at Alfa Romeo; otherwise, his career will end on a low note."