125 Days since the planned start of the long awaited F1 season is happening in Austria at the Red Bull Ring.
The race should be exciting and is the first race with no spectators allowed within the track.
Our three passionate Formula 1 writers gave their preview is and predictions on all of the participants, prior to the big race, as well as the overall season:
Alfa Romeo:
Alfa Romeo has always been a lower level team, and this season looks to not be any different as Kimi and Giovinazzi will struggle.
I expect Kimi to score some points throughout the season through his sheer determination and skill as a Veteran driver, but it won’t amount to anything with them being at the bottom of both the constructors and drivers championship.
This will also be because of Ferrari’s lackluster new engine after the FIA investigation which clearly can’t keep up with the grid.
Alpha Tauri:
Alpha Tauri will be in the same position as last year because they are the little brother team to Red Bull and will be treated as such.
Gasly will continue to shine in this car, but Kvyat will likely still be a back marker and be gone at the end of the season for the next Red Bull rising star.
They will score points and maybe a podium if we see another German Gp/ Brazilian Gp like last year, but currently they will be a solid mid field team.
Haas:
Haas will continue to struggle as they have the same Ferrari power unit which looks to be nowhere near the pace and the fact is that they are not a factory team; meaning they don’t have the systems in place to create their own parts.
Haas will continue its downward spiral until they eventually sell their team, as it looks team owner Gene Haas will.
Mercedes:
If there were any team to predict easily, it would be this one as Mercedes will continue to be the power house it has been for the past 6 years.
The only foreseeable hope for good racing at the top will be between Bottas and Hamilton, as Bottas has apparently put a lot of off season training in.
This could be another version of the 2016 championship between the two drivers and will put on an amazing spectacle within the top team.
Scuderia Ferrari:
Ferrari’s car during preseason testing was looking slower then there previous model.
Last season, Ferrari was called out and investigated by the FIA due to complaints of display of a power advantage.
During qualifying the Ferrari underperformed and Sebastian Vettel didn’t hit the expected mark for qualifying.
I believe Ferrari will struggle on race day and they will be lucky if both cars finish in the top 5.
Red Bull Racing:
Red Bull has dominated this track for the past 2 years, winning with a Honda Motor for the first time in 13 years in 2019.
Over the 125 day break, Max Verstappen their number 1 driver, has spent zero days in the Red Bull Racing simulator.
But besides that, they have been looking really good in qualifying, acquiring 3rd and 5th place with McLaren in between.
Overall, I believe Red Bull will be finishing the race on the podium.
Racing Point:
Racing Point’s car for 2020 is a similar copy of the Mercedes 2019 W10 EQ. But despite that, both drivers made it in to Q3 with Sergio Perez matching the same time to the thousand of a second.
I believe they will have a great time on race day and maybe hit the top 5.
Williams:
Known as the leaders of the back, Williams will look to honestly just get points on the board.
Totaling 1 singular point in 2019, Williams will look to move closer to Renault and Haas as backbone of the mid field.
McLaren:
As the winner of the midfield in 2019 totaling 145 points, McLaren will look to compete for podiums with their Ferrari 2021 driver (Carlos Seinz), and their young upcoming star Lando Norris.
Their main goal should be to acquire enough points to stay competitive up top, while still leading the mid field.
Renault:
Renault is in an interesting situation.
Driver Daniel Riccardo will be leaving the team after this year and they have a new driver Esteban Ocon, who had a year absence in Formula 1.
That said, Renault should be in good shape with a decent car to be competitive in the mid field; and should be able to bring home some points on at least a biweekly appearance.
