Race debrief the emilia romagna gp in 5 key moments

1 Max’s virtual insanity

It’s not uncommon for NASCAR drivers to participate in two races in one weekend (or the occasional post-race punch-up). It’s also been known for racers to cross disciplines and start the Indianapolis 500 in the afternoon and jump on a jet to compete in the Coca-Cola 600 later in the day. But it’s rare indeed for F1 drivers to submit to what might be viewed as “distractions” – unless, of course, they’re at the top of their game in their primary job.

When Max Verstappen crossed the finish line to win the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix with McLaren’s Lando Norris in his wheeltracks, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner congratulated Max for his second triumph of the weekend. The previous evening – and on race day morning – Verstappen was at the wheel of his simulator rig, sharing the driving duties with his three Team Redline team-mates, to win the virtual Nürburgring 24 Hours.

While this might seem a peculiar and potentially focus-sapping endeavour during a GP weekend, it demonstrates how much Verstappen loves racing. And the fact that he was allowed to do it indicates how much power he holds within the organisation. Beyond leisure pursuits, though, the use of a simulator was central to Red Bull’s victory at Imola.

During Friday practice, the world champion wasn’t happy with the balance of his RB20. A couple of times he ran off the road and, at Acque Minerali in particular, he couldn’t get the nose of his Red Bull to turn-in. Le Mans winner and former Toro Rosso driver Sébastien Buemi – who shares simulator duties for the team with Formula E chum Jake Dennis – was called in to the Milton Keynes factory on Friday night and pulled an all-nighter in the sophisticated on-site rig. This is no PlayStation. Eleven hours later the required setup changes were fed back to the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari and, with less downforce on the car, Max was able to sneak pole – thanks in part to a tow down to Tamburello from Nico Hülkenberg’s Haas.

But the team had opted against doing a long run on hard tyres on Friday as it focused on curing the balance problems, so it lacked crucial data on their characteristics. As a result Max didn’t ‘introduce’ his new tyres with the requisite care and, i