At the 300th race with a Mexican driver on the grid, Raikkonen will equal the record for most starts with a single car number, while Hamilton could become the third driver with a gap of 14 years between their first and last victories. Here are the milestones and records which could be broken at the 2021 French Grand Prix!
THE MILESTONES
The 2021 French Grand Prix will be the 1,042nd World Championship Formula 1 race. It will be the 89th French Grand Prix since the event was first held in 1906 and the 61st French Grand Prix to be held as a round of the World Championship. It will be the 62nd World Championship Formula 1 race held in France, and the seventeenth race held at Circuit Paul Ricard.
This weekend, Kimi Raikkonen will make his 162nd appearance in car number 7. That will see him equal former team-mate Romain Grosjean as the driver to have made the most starts with a single car number. Grosjean made 162 appearances in car number 8 during his career. Read more: Drivers Who Made the Most Starts With a Single Car Number.
The 2021 French Grand Prix will be the 300th Formula 1 race which a Mexican driver has started.
This will be the fourth race to be held on 20th June. It’s the first race to be held on this date since the 2004 United States Grand Prix.
The eighth lap of the 2021 French Grand Prix will be the 1000th racing lap to have taken place at Circuit Paul Ricard.
THE RECORDS TO BREAK
A win for Lewis Hamilton would see him become only the second driver to have won three races at Circuit Paul Ricard. Alain Prost won here four times during his career. If he wins, Hamilton would equal Prost’s record of three consecutive victories at the circuit.
It has now been over fourteen years since Lewis Hamilton’s first F1 victory at the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix. Should he win this weekend, he would be the third driver – after Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen – to have a gap of more than fourteen years between their first and last Grand Prix wins.
Max Verstappen recorded his twelfth Grand Prix win at the Monaco Grand Prix. Another win at the French Grand Prix would see him equal David Coulthard as the driver to have won the second-most races without winning the title. Stirling Moss, who won sixteen Grands Prix in his World Championship career, is the only other driver to have won more races without claiming a title win. Read more: Most F1 Wins Without Winning the Title.
A podium finish for Valtteri Bottas would be his 60th top three result. It would see him equal Nelson Piquet for tenth in the all-time list of most podium finishes in Formula 1.
If a Mercedes-powered car takes pole position at the French Grand Prix, it would be the 213th race at which a Mercedes-powered car has taken pole. That would see them equal Renault as the engine manufacturer with the second-most poles in Formula 1.
Lewis Hamilton will equal Alain Prost’s record tally of pole positions at Circuit Paul Ricard if he takes pole this weekend. Prost took pole three times at this circuit during his career.
Unless Sergio Perez takes pole position at the 2021 French Grand Prix, he will become the first driver to have qualified for 200 Grands Prix without starting from pole.
A win for Renault, Ferrari or Mercedes would see them equal Williams and McLaren as the team to have won the most races at Circuit Paul Ricard. Both Williams and McLaren have three previous wins at the track.
Renault, Williams, Ferrari or Mercedes could equal McLaren’s record tally of three pole positions at Circuit Paul Ricard.
A second place finish for Valtteri Bottas would make him the driver with the equal-most second place finishes at the track. It would be his second, equalling the tally of Francois Cevert, Alain Prost and Nelson Piquet.
A third place finish for Charles Leclerc or Kimi Raikkonen would make them only the second driver, after Alain Prost, to have taken multiple third place finishes at Circuit Paul Ricard.
Fourth place for Daniel Ricciardo or Max Verstappen would see them join Nelson Piquet and Patrick Tambay as the driver with the most fourth place finishes at the circuit.
If he scores seven points, Lewis Hamilton will overtake Alain Prost as the driver to have scored the most points at Circuit Paul Ricard. Max Verstappen can equal Prost’s record if he wins and sets the fastest lap.
Honda can usurp Ford Cosworth as the most successful engine manufacturer in qualifying at this circuit this weekend. A pole for Red Bull or AlphaTauri would mark Honda’s fifth at the track.
A win for Honda power would be the engine manufacturer’s fifth at the track, tying with Ford Cosworth as the most successful engine manufacturer at Circuit Paul Ricard.
Valtteri Bottas or Sebastian Vettel will equal Alain Prost and Nigel Mansell as the driver to have taken the most fastest laps at Circuit Paul Ricard should they set the fastest lap of Sunday’s race.
A first lap retirement for Esteban Ocon or Pierre Gasly would see them become the first driver to record multiple first lap retirements at Circuit Paul Ricard.
