2018 San Marino GP : Drivers of the Day

The San Marino Grand Prix was a race of mechanical attrition with half the field failing to reach the chequered flag with only one of the 11 crashing into the tyre barriers, but whose performance was top in Tuscany.

5. Max Verstappen

A last-gasp lap in pre-qualifying from Verstappen saved Willows Racing from not making the race by less than 40 thousandths of a second, no doubt thanks to the influence of Jessie B! Despite a spin in the early stages, a longer first stint plus a reliable car brought him back into contention. He spent much of the latter part of the race battling with the GRM of Sergio Perez and in the final laps, overtook the Mexican in an unseen manoeuvre which ended up being significant with the late retirements of Mason Taylor and Daniel Ricciardo as it meant an unexpected points finish for the Willows team.

4. Mason Taylor

Both CBA Racing drivers put in good performances at Mugello for different reasons. Taylor had qualified down in 20th place but appeared to have prioritised a race set-up as he was only a tenth of a second slower in warm-up compared to qualifying. His race performance was more understated than spectacular as he let the race come to him, and his straight line speed was mighty which allowed him to power past Verstappen and Ricciardo on the unfavourable outside line on the main straight and could have finished 7th before suspension problems robbed him of his maiden points.

3. Tomas Gonzalez

In contrast to his teammate, Gonzalez put in a great qualifying lap to qualify 7th and ultimately proved extremely difficult to overtake with the CBA Racing showing some great top speed. He left his first two pitstops later than most which lost him track position, but the Argentine kept in touch thanks to his fresher tyres, and then an excellent final pitstop allowed him to get the jump on Lewis Hamilton for what would be 5th place come the end and CBA’s first points of the season, a promising result considering they’re running an 18 chassis.

2. Kevin Magnussen

After his pole position at Kyalami, FJR chose the opposite route for Mugello with Magnussen qualifying down in 13th but with a favourable set-up for the race. He was caught napping by his teammate at the start of lap 3 but generally, Magnussen played a patient race and was brilliant on the brakes. His third stint was particularly strong as he overtook Ricciardo and Nolan Bryant and found himself 3rd after Sebastian Vettel’s retirement before pacing himself until the end of the race. An 18 chassis on the podium in only the third race of the season could be a significant moment for the rest of the season.

1. Alessandro Farina

Powered on by the passionate Tifosi, Farina was on top form all meeting, topping his group in the pre-qualifying session and qualifying in strong contention for the race win. He made light work of Chuck Bucknum at the start and timed his move into the lead to perfection with a beautiful double overtake on Vettel and Fernando Alonso on lap 5. From then, he was totally faultless as he built on his lead throughout the race and won by nearly 25 seconds from Alonso, and at this early stage of the season, Gojira look very difficult to beat.