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Did you know that the first competitive motor race was held in France in 1895? The average speed was around 10 mph, or 16 kph. The race went from Paris to Bordeaux, France, and back.
It would be hard to argue that France isn’t one of the meccas of racing. From the famed Le Mans track that holds the 24 Hours of Le Mans race each year, to the track Formula 1 is racing this round in 2021 at the Circuit Paul Ricard in the south of France: Seven different tracks have held Formula 1 races in France since 1950.
France was also where Bruce McLaren (founder of McLaren) won the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 1966, part of the World Sportscar Championship. Bruce McLaren was considered a brilliant driver and a leader who everyone rallied around. In 1970 Bruce was just 33 when he was killed in a testing event for one of McLaren’s Can-Am cars. The team’s current success is a testament to the legacy Bruce left McLaren and the racing world. If you have a leader who believes in what they're doing and sets a foundation for success, their legacy can continue even after they're gone. McLaren is second only to Ferrari in Formula 1 wins with 182 — very inspiring!
After Bruce’s passing, McLaren continued pushing the limits of their Formula 1 cars and drivers. McLaren throughout the years produced winning cars like the M23, which James Hunt drove to a championship in an incredible season in 1976. The movie “Rush” was created about this season. We also must mention the MP4/4, which won 15 of 16 races in 1988 with Ayrton Senna, whom many people consider the best Formula 1 driver of all time, and a mighty teammate in Alain Prost.
When you look at the McLaren drivers from past to present, it’s remarkable to see the talent that has been in the McLaren garage. Names like Prost (4 titles), Mansell (1), Hamilton (6), Fittipaldi (2), Senna (3) and many others show McLaren has had an eye for talented drivers throughout their history.
To say that Alteryx is proud to partner with McLaren Formula 1 Team is probably not a big enough word to understand how Alteryx feels about this partnership. To be a company that pushes itself in every aspect and continues to push its industry forward is something we here at Alteryx strive to emulate in the data science and automation world. We’re glad that McLaren has recognized Alteryx as a partner who can help push them forward and continue McLaren’s winning ways.
More history to be made this week in France!
Grand Prix De France
The Circuit Paul Ricard is a heavily used track for testing. It's a high speed and quick cornering track. Lots of place where overtaking can happen and tyre wear here can be all over the place. Teams will be utilizing all three tyre compounds at this track.
Free Practice Recap
How to read: session#, best lap time, (time behind first place time) number of laps in session, best place finish in session.
Lando Norris #4
FP1 1:34.707s (+1.259s) 21 laps 9th
FP2 1:33.822s (+0.950s) 24 laps 10th
FP3 1:32.336s (+1.036s) 14 laps 6th
Daniel Ricciardo #3
FP1 1:34.644s (+1.196s) 24 laps 6th
FP2 1:34.079s (+1.207s) 24 laps 14th
FP3 1m32.759s (+1.459s) 14 laps 10th
Qualifying Recap
How to Read: session#, fastest lap time, (tyre compound) best place finish in session.
Lando Norris #4
Q1 1m31.733s (Softs) 5th
Q2 1m31.542s (Medium) 7th
Q3 1m31.252s (Softs) 8th
Daniel Ricciardo #3
Q1 1m32.181s (Softs) 11th
Q2 1m31.615s (Mediums) 10th
Q3 1m31.382s (Softs) 10th
Race Recap
It was a Beautiful day in Le Castellet, France for a race. Temperatures on the track were around 10 degrees lower than in qualifying. The temperature change and the wind may have an impact on decisions and how drivers push the cars.
Daniel Ricciardo started the race off really well pushing up several places right off the start with a very chaotic start for all the drivers. As the field settled down, the McLaren teammates sat in 9th and 10th and looked to have really good pace. Daniel Ricciardo early on pushed close to the 8th place car giving the McLaren fans hope that the day was going to have a lot of passing for the McLaren team. Daniel was eventually able to move into 8th using DRS. Then on the same lap Lando Norris was able to pass the same car and move into 9th. As soon as the McLaren’s moved into these positions it seemed they had passed the car slowing them down and then started to hunt down the cars ahead. On lap 15 Daniel raced past the first Ferrari proving McLaren’s pace was better than a lot of the teams. It seemed that McLaren was having a much better time with the tyres than any other team. Lap 17 Daniel pulls into the pits to try the undercut strategy. The strategy worked perfectly pushing Daniel up two positions. McLaren left Lando Norris out on the track much longer than Daniel. McLaren used two different strategies to try and make sure that both cars ended up in great positions. Once Lando pitted much later than most of the field ahead, he started ripping past cars and in one lap passed two cars. The McLaren teammates then came together and Lando passed Daniel on fresher tyres. This put McLaren in 5th and 6th position which were the positions they would end the race in. Really great result for McLaren and a great way to start a back to back to back race month.
| France 2021 Podium | Points | Drivers Championship Points | Points | Constructor Championship Points | Points |
| Max Verstappen | 25 | Max Verstappen | 131 | Red Bull | 215 |
| Lewis Hamilton | 18 | Lewis Hamilton | 119 | Mercedes | 178 |
| Sergio Perez | 15 | Sergio Perez | 84 | McLaren | 110 |
Next Race: Austrian Grand Prix
Date: Sunday, June 27
Track: Red Bull Ring
