Parc Ferme: Rain clouds with sunny spells

Verstappen shared the podium with Fernando Alonso and Pierre Gasly, completing the circle of F1 happiness at the end of a dramatic rain-affected race. However, like the Dutch weather, while there were other patches of sun on the grid, there were also a lot of black clouds!

First up has to be McLaren, and between the two pilots, Lando Norris must be the most disappointed. Driving backwards from second on the grid at the start to finish seventh was not a good look. Alonso outdrove him when the heavens suddenly opened on Lap 1. After that, he never really seemed to have the confidence of the car or was it the other way around?

Either way, McLaren seemed to have mastered the art of qualifying, but it is still ‘work-in-progress’ for the race, especially when it gets complicated. The Dutch Grand Prix should have yielded better results; instead, it allowed Alpine to close the gap in the 2023 F1 Constructors' Championship.

Talking of Alpine, the wet weather seemed to agree with them and if it hadn’t been for an unlucky pit call for Esteban Ocon, right tyre - wrong lap, the team from Enstone would have punished McLaren further for their errant ways. The rain neutralized the power disadvantage they normally carry, allowing them to demonstrate they have quite a tidy chassis.

Gasly, in particular, was on fire out driving a five-second penalty and surviving a very rude shove by Verstappen. The incident happened on the treacherous exit of the banked Turn 3. Strangely, this was not investigated but should have been. Cutting someone's lunch when you’re in front is one thing. Knocking them onto the grass in close proximity to the barrier because you’re not quite far enough ahead, that’s something else.

I guess the Stewards decided that awarding Verstappen a five or even ten-second penalty would have had zero impact on the Dutchman’s race result. However, despite all of this, Gasly kept it together to take a fortuitous but well-deserved third.

A fourth that should have been a third of course, but a luckless Perez seemed to have his own personal storm raging above his head. For every opportunity the Gods gave him, he seemed to counter them by making a compensating error – speeding and crashing in the pits, to name but a few! As usual, Helmut Marko came from the shoulder saying, “he was lucky even to finish”. These days The good doctor always seems to be gushing about Max while putting Checo under the “seats not safe“ blow torch.

Christian Horner then walked it all back afterwards, something of a regular occurrence these days. Yes, Perez might not be living his best racing driver life at the moment. However, I would remind Dr. Marko that he signed him in the first place! There is one silver lining though for the beleaguered Mexican. The main threat to his seat is now nursing a broken hand and out for the next couple of races, if not longer…

If it was coming up rainbows for Alonso, then it was a heavy downpour for Lance Stroll. Whilst we often comment on the disparity in performance between Verstappen and Checo, the greatest difference must be between Alonso and the young Canadian. The Spaniard was sublime, showcasing just how far experience and racecraft can carry you in modern-day F1. He drove through the field like a ballerina, to Max’s bowling ball through Skittles, and Lance's multiple pit stops.

Alonso joked about putting a move on Max at the late restart, but in all honesty, that was not going to happen. Alonso is a professional with an eye for the long game. Both he and Aston Martin need the points, especially if he wants to nail second place in the Driver’s Championship this year. As for where Lance finished in all this, well I’m not sure, and probably neither is the Team. Did he even turn up?

One man's low is normally another man's high, and F1 is no exception. Daniel Ricciardo's ingenuous exit from the Dutch Grand Prix meant an instant boost for reserve driver Liam Lawson. Qualifying last was not unexpected. However, the young Kiwi did what many experienced drivers, including his own teammate, couldn’t do in the race — keeping his head when all around him were losing theirs!

Bringing it home in thirteenth place in such challenging circumstances was an achievement that did not go unnoticed in the paddock. However, one sunny day does not a summer make, especially in the Netherlands. A recent occupier of the same seat had a strong debut in his first outing and then nothing. As for Ricciardo, I’d be updating my LinkedIn profile while recuperating in the hospital. If Lawson continues to progress, he could be out for more than two races!