Event of the Day: French Grand Prix
Our event of the day is the F1 French Grand Prix at the Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet. Lewis Hamilton will hunt for his seventh win of the season while Team Ferrari continue to try and get their season on track. Lewis Hamilton will start in pole position after an excellent qualifying run yesterday. Be sure you don’t miss what is sure to be yet another exciting race. As the F1 season travels to France, Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton still remain in firm control of the championship. Two weeks ago in Canada, Hamilton won his third consecutive race and his fifth of the season. However, his victory at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was not without controversy. With 22 laps remaining, Sebastian Vettel was deemed to have re-joined the track unsafely, forcing Hamilton wide and preventing the Mercedes driver from overtaking. The resulting five-second penalty proved to be the difference between the two men, giving Hamilton the win. Despite this, Canada was an improvement for Team Ferrari. It was the first time that both Sebastian Vettel and teammate Charles Leclerc appeared on the podium this season. It remains to be seen whether this is Ferrari turning the corner after a slow start to the season but If this is the case, they will need to start beating Hamilton to first place.
After seven races, Vettel is 62 points behind Hamilton in the standings and so he and Leclerc need to begin keeping Hamilton away from first and second to close the gap. Every first place finish nets the driver 25 points, while second is worth 18 and third 15. If Vettel, Leclerc and Ferrari want to make a comeback, they need to start securing the top spots. The biggest problem is that Ferrari’s much vaunted car redesign has not paid off. Prior to the start of the season, Ferrari had proudly unveiled a car that they believed could challenge Mercedes. Despite these claims, Hamilton, and his teammate Valtteri Bottas, have beaten them to first place in every race. Even when Ferrari has taken pole position, they have been beaten by the superior driving of Hamilton and Bottas. In yesterday’s qualifying, Lewis Hamilton dominated and took pole position by a three-tenths of a second ahead of Bottas. While Charles Leclerc finished in third, Sebastian Vettel could only manage a seventh place placing. With Hamilton on fine form and his opponents doing everything they can to catch him, this a race that you won’t want to miss.
Honourable mentions around the globe go to the Cricket World Cup where Pakistan face South Africa at Lord’s in London. With four matches left in the round-robin stage of the tournament for Pakistan and just three for South Africa, time is running out for both sides. Pakistan are 1-3 while South Africa are 1-4, making today a must-win for both sides. With so much on the line, this is a match you won’t want to miss. In the Women’s World Cup, France face Brazil at Stade Océane in Le Havre. France cemented their status as a tournament contender with an excellent group stage in which they only allowed the one goal. Meanwhile, Brazil are definitely the underdogs but they boast the talent of World Cup veterans Marta and Cristiane. This is sure to be a must-watch match. In Australian rugby league, the State of Origin series continues with game 2 between Queensland and New South Wales at Optus Stadium in Perth. In the first game, Queensland came back from a half-time deficit to win. Queensland are looking to take back the title after New South Wales won last year. Meanwhile New South Wales will be looking to even the series and go forward to retain the title. This is a match you won’t want to miss. The final of the Queen’s Club Championship takes place at the Queen’s Club in London. Gilles Simon and Feliciano López face off in what is sure to be an exciting final. Be sure you don’t miss it. The European Games continue in Belarus. In the WNBA, the Seattle Storm host the Indiana Fever at the Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle.
Whatever you’re watching, enjoy!
Photos by Formula 1