2021 F1 Championship Game

unless we're talking about some super niche scenarios... the final lap is really what dictates the fastest lap... basically, it just comes down to who actually has the window to swap out their tires for that last push and nail the time

But isn't that precisely where the brilliance lies? It serves a dual purpose, does it not; it acts as both an incentive for those daring enough to offer fresh predictions and a subtle nudge for participants to get their entries in well ahead of the deadline. In essence, speed itself becomes its own form of reward 😉
. Yet, one must consider the inherent unpredictability of the race, for is it not entirely possible for a driver to clock the fastest lap a good ten laps before the checkered flag even waves?

Hamilton pulls a 15-20 lap gap after telling the crew over the radio, "My tires are absolutely shot!"
Then, just for fun, an insulted teammate like Bottas or Rosberg manages to shave a thousandth off their time in the final lap if they get a fresh set of rubber. 😬
That’s basically been the script for the last seven seasons. Let's see how it plays out this year...

I don't really see the point of chasing an extra point for this.
Honestly, I'd rather bet on whether there's going to be a Safety Car or not...
Or maybe guess how many drivers actually finish the race versus how many just give up mid-way...
This whole thing about which lap the Safety Car comes out feels a bit weird to me.

1. HAM
2. VER
3. PER
4. BOT
5. LEC
6. NOR
7. RIC
8. GAS
9. STR
10. SAI
11. RUS
12. VET
13. ALO
14. TSU
15. RAI
16. GIO
17. LAT

DNF: MSC, MAZ, OCO

Podium: HAM
Fastest Lap: BOT

1. Verstappen
2. Hamilton
3. Perez
4. Bottas
5. Gasly
6. Tsunoda
7. Ricciardo
8. Norris
9. Sainz
10. Alonso
11. Ocon
12. Vettel
13. Raikkonen
14. Giovinazzi
15. Russell
16. Schumacher

NOP Latifi
NOP Leclerc
NOP Mazepin
NOP Stroll

PP Verstappen
FL Verstappen

Austin

1. Max Verstappen
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Valtteri Bottas
4. Sergio Perez
5. Charles Leclerc
6. Pierre Gasly
7. Lando Norris
8. Daniel Ricciardo
9. Sebastian Vettel
10. Lance Stroll
11. Esteban Ocon
12. Fernando Alonso
13. Kimi Räikkönen
14. Antonio Giovinazzi
15. George Russell
16. Nicholas Latifi
17. Mick Schumacher

DNF Mazepin
DNF Tsunoda
DNF Sainz

P1 Bottas
FL Verstappen

1. Hamilton
2. Bottas
3. Perez
4. Leclerc
5. Ricciardo
6. Sainz
7. Alonso
8. Vettel
9. Raikkonen
10. Stroll
11. Ocon
12. Russell
13. Schumacher
14. Giovinazzi
15. Tsunoda
16. Latifi
17. Mazepin

NOP Norris
NOP Verstappen
NOP Gasly

PP Bottas
FL Hamilton

1. Hamilton
2. Bottas
3. Leclerc

4. Perez
5. Sainz
6. Gasly
7. Norris
8. Tsunoda
9. Ricciardo
19. Vettel

11. Kimi
12. Giovinazzi
13. Stroll
14. Russell
15. Latifi
16. Schumacher

Nop: Verstappen, Mazepin, Ocon, Alonso

Pp i Fl Hamilton

1. Hamilton
2. Bottas
3. Verstappen

4. Leclerc
5. Perez
6. Gasly
7. Sainz
8. Norris
9. Riccardo
10. Alonso

11. Stroll
12. Raikkonen
13. Giovinazzi
14. Russell
15. Vettel
16. Latifi
17. Schumacher

DNF: Tsunoda
DNF: Ocon
DNF: Mazepin

PIT: Bottas

LED: Hamilton

1. Hamilton
2. Verstappen
3. Gasly

4. Bottas
5. Perez
6. Ricciardo
7. Leclerc
8. Sainz
9. Norris
10. Vettel
11. Tsunoda
12. Ocon
13. Stroll
14. Raikkonen
15. Russell
16. Giovinazzi
17. Lafiti

NOP Alonso
NOP Schumacher
NOP Mazepin

PP Bottas
FL Gasly

1. Lewis Hamilton
2. Max Verstappen
3. Valtteri Bottas
4. Charles Leclerc
5. Pierre Gasly
6. Sergio Perez
7. Carlos Sainz
8. Lando Norris
9. Daniel Ricciardo
10. Lance Stroll
11. Fernando Alonso
12. Kimi Raikkonen
13. Antonio Giovinazzi
14. Yuki Tsunoda
15. Pierre Gasly
16. George Russell
17. Mick Schumacher
18. Nicholas Latifi

Not Sebastian Vettel
Not Nikita Mazepin

Pit stops and fuel loads for Hamilton

1. Hamilton

2. Verstappen

3. Bottas

4. Perez

5. Norris

6. Leclerc

7. Ricciardo

8. Sainz

9. Stroll

10. Vettel

11. Alonso

12. Raikkonen

13. Giovanazzi

14. Ocon

15. Russell

16. Latifi

Not in points: MS, Mazepin, Tsunoda, Gasly

Podium: Bottas Pole: Hamilton

1. Max
2. Lewis
3. Bottas
4. Perez
5. Leclerc
6. Sainz
7. Norris
8. Gasly
9. Ricciardo
10. Alonso
11. Tsunoda
12. Ocon
13. Kimi
14. Russell
15. Vettel
16. Stroll
17. Latifi

DNF: Schumacher, Mazepin, Giovinazzi

Fastest Lap: Lewis
Leading: Max

1. Hamilton
2. Verstappen
3. Bottas

4. Leclerc
5. Perez
6. Gasly
7. Ricciardo
8. Tsunoda
9. Norris
10. Alonso

11. Stroll
12. Ocon
13. Raikkonen
14. Russell
15. Latifi
16. Schumacher

NOP: Sainz, Vettel, Mazepin, Giovinazzi

PP: Hamilton
FL: Verstappen

1. Ver
2. Ham
3. Per

4. Sai
5. Nor
6. Alo
7. Vet
8. Ric
9. Lec
10. Gas

11. Str
12. Oco
13. Rai
14. MSc
15. Rus
16. Lat

DNF:
Bot
Maz
Tsu
Gio

HAM PP
BOT FL

1. Lewis Hamilton
2. Max Verstappen
3. Valtteri Bottas
4. Sergio Perez
5. Daniel Ricciardo
6. Carlos Sainz
7. Lando Norris
8. Lance Stroll
9. Pierre Gasly
10. Charles Leclerc
11. Esteban Ocon
12. Fernando Alonso
13. Kimi Raikkonen
14. Antonio Giovinazzi
15. George Russell
16. Michael Schumacher
17. Nicholas Latifi
NOP Yuki Tsunoda
NOP Sebastian Vettel
NOP Nikita Mazepin
PP Valtteri Bottas
FL Valtteri Bottas

1. Max Verstappen
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Valtteri Bottas

4. Sergio Perez
5. Charles Leclerc
6. Carlos Sainz
7. Lando Norris
8. Pierre Gasly
9. Daniel Ricciardo
10. Fernando Alonso

11. Yuki Tsunoda
12. Lance Stroll
13. Kimi Räikkönen
14. Esteban Ocon
15. Antonio Giovinazzi
16. George Russell
17. Nicholas Latifi
18. Mick Schumacher

DNF
Nikita Mazepin
Sebastian Vettel

PP: Max Verstappen
FL: Lewis Hamilton

1-Lewis Hamilton......Mercedes
2-Max Verstappen.....Red Bull
3-Valtteri Bottas.......Mercedes

4-Sergio Pérez.........Red Bull
5-Lando Norris.........McLaren
6-Charles Leclerc......Ferrari
7-Daniel Ricciardo.....McLaren
8-Carlos Sainz Jr.......Ferrari
9-Pierre Gasly..........AlphaTauri
10-Lance Stroll........Aston Martin

11-Sebastian Vettel..Aston Martin
12-Fernando Alonso..Alpine
13-Esteban Ocon......Alpine
14-Kimi Räikkönen...Alfa Romeo
15-George Russell....Williams
16-A.Giovinazzi........Alfa Romeo

NOP-Nikita Mazepin...Haas
NOP-Mick Schumacher..Haas
NOP- Yuki Tsunoda.....AlphaTauri
NOP-Nicholas Latifi Williams

PP-Lewis Hamilton...Mercedes
FL-Max Verstappen..Red Bull

briskhound76, you’re running a bit late with that forecast of yours. Was that what you were thinking back during the race in Austin, or are we looking ahead to the next one?

Missed the boat on this one... guess I'll just wait for the next one.