A blitzing pole position from Lewis Hamilton (half a second quicker than his team mate!), and then a poor start, and the race was over... Rosberg took the lead, and that was it! Maybe we should rewind the film, and notice that in the 1970 Italian Grand Prix in Monza, the lead changed 28 times during the race; this year, not once. The Temple of Speed has become the Temple of Procession. The modified regulations for 2017 promise more of the same: wider tyres, less straight-line speed, more downforce and cornering speed, later breaking, and even less passing... In other words, the opposite of what should be done. But the Powers That Be are all happy, because the cars will be faster and lap times will be improved! What a wonderful world...

The contrast between an exhilarated Lewis Hamilton and a dejected Daniel Ricciardo on the Monaco podium was striking. The amiable and ever smiling Aussie was feeling robbed, cheated and let down by his team, and there was no way he was going to be silent about it. Monaco... the race where anything can happen, and does happen. In this case, a team that was unable to have tires ready for its leading drivers’s pitstop! But on the other side of the fence, there was hamilton, ecstatic, overjoyed, and there was a reason for that: he should have won last year’s Monaco Grand Prix, when he was easily leading the race and Mercedes miscalculated a pitstop, effectively handing over the victory to Rosberg on a plate. Monaco, the karmic casino...

Max Verstappen has all the stars aligned. Such amazing success does not happen by chance, but is the result of a combination of events. This is not to take away anything from Max’s stupendous victory, which he owes primarily to his exceptional mental state and ability to remain objectively focused at all times: the kid has nerves of titanium. Add loads of raw talent and flawless coaching since he was a child, and you have the recipe for continued success. But in Barcelona, two events propelled young Verstappen to victory: a winning tire strategy (two stops versus three for his team mate Ricciardo), and of course the first lap pandemonium when the two Mercedes drivers took each other out. Yes, the stars are aligned for Max, and a star is born.