Are Wet F1 Races Actually Good or Just Overhyped?

In Formula 1, as soon as there is even the sniff of rain in the air, we as fans go into a wild frenzy

In the ever-changing world of F1, this extra layer of drama is something we just can’t resist. But how good are wet races actually when we stop and think about them? That’s the topic of today’s article. But you probably guessed that already if you read the title.

We all remember Canada 2011 as one of the best Grand Prix to ever happen in the history of Formula 1. If you’re somehow not aware of why this is, stop reading this right now and go and find the highlights on YouTube and watch them.

It’s alright, this article will still be here waiting for you when you get back. Caught up now?

Image: Red Bull

Good. As I was saying, this was simply a phenomenal Grand Prix – and a large part of that was due to the mixed wet conditions that plagued the race from start to finish and led to the last lap drama that saw Jenson Button snatch the lead and the win from Sebastian Vettel.

It was delicious. It’s often the Grand Prix we’re reminded of as soon as the weather begins to turn towards rain ever since.

But when looking back over the last few seasons of F1, have any of the wet races been able to live up to this God-like standard? Or have they all been box-office style flops?

At the time of writing, the Imola Grand Prix was the last wet race we had in Formula 1. Despite it being Red Bull’s first 1-2 finish since 2016, the race itself was pretty lacklustre overall.

The wet conditions didn’t really add much to it and were it not for Leclerc’s mistake towards the end of the race, would possibly have been even more forgettable for general fans. It was fine but unless you were a Red Bull fan, it was nothing to write home about.

Prior to this was the Russian Grand Prix in 2020 where last-minute rain stole Lando Norris’ debut win away from him with Lewis Hamilton claiming it instead as his 100th Career Win. Whilst the poetry to that is lovely in an equally heart-warming and heart-breaking way, can you remember anything else from that race that makes it really memorable?

Image: Mercedes

No, me neither.

The same can be said for Spa which in itself wasn’t a race as much as the FIA and Stewards would like us to believe it was.

Were it not for George Russell’s podium for Williams due to his stonking Qualifying performance the previous day, we’d have all probably been in a lot more of an uproar. At least the actual W Series race was excellent and the rain was a big factor there.

But I’m not going to defecate on wet races entirely. Hungary 2021 had wet conditions at the start which ultimately led to Bottas bowling, Hamilton being the only car to line up for the race re-start on the grid and Esteban Ocon winning his first Grand Prix.

The race was a flurry of spicy gorgeous madness that saw Mick Schumacher battle Max Verstappen in his dud of a Haas and Fernando Alonso give Sergio Perez a run for his money as Minister of Defence as he held off Hamilton. It might not have been Canada 2011, but it was a great tribute act.

Imola 2021 was also wet and proved to be an entertaining race as Verstappen and Hamilton battled each other hard for the win. It saw *that* incident between Bottas and Russell as well as Lando proving his love for Italy once again by getting onto the podium. It was a pretty good Grand Prix.

Turkey 2020 was also a decent wet race which somehow saw Lance Stroll starting from Pole Position and ended with Hamilton claiming his record-equalling seventh World Championship. But as for what happened in the middle of those two events, not a lot comes to mind again.

Interestingly, the last two times Formula 1 went to Hockenheim though, both had rain (2019 considerably more so than 2018) and both produced excellent Grand Prix as a result. 2019 saw Verstappen, Vettel and Kvyat on the Podium after the rest of the grid treated the race like F1’s version of Suicide Squad with drivers continuously crashing out of the race left, right and centre.

Image: Mercedes

2018 saw Hamilton win the race from 14th place (helped by team orders given to Bottas who finished in second) with Kimi in third after Vettel dramatically crashed out with less than a quarter of the race to go.

Both were standout races from their respective seasons and is perhaps a hint to Formula 1 that instead of going to races that where the racing isn’t actually all that good *cough* Miami *cough* they should refocus on the proper race venues and ensure that Germany gets a place back on the F1 calendar full time.

Bernie Ecclestone was probably onto something when he floated the idea of making the F1 tracks deliberately wet to spice up races but as much as I love the mental image of him with a massive fireman’s hose standing next to the track cackling with glee, the chances of it being a good race are still down to the cars and drivers themselves.

If Vettel had kept it on track in 2018, that race would have been his and he would have essentially been in the first place from start to finish, making the race that bit less enjoyable.

But does that mean then that races are more fun to watch if more drivers crash out? Is that how a good race is measured? It shouldn’t be. Sure, Ocon was helped by Bottas bowling last year in Budapest but he still had to keep Four-Time World Champion Sebastian Vettel at bay for the majority of the race and the pair did do a decent amount of duelling. Alonso’s battle with Hamilton also kept the race interesting and didn’t need either one of them to be taken out for the race for it to be even more fun.

The fact that we got such close wheel to wheel action for as long as we did is why it was so good.

Which brings us to 2022 and the new regulations. The cars are designed to be able to follow each other closer to enable more overtaking. Rain therefore should make things more challenging in this regard and get drivers to test their limits on track for the sake of moving up a place and scoring more points.

Image: Red Bull

But we as fans, we want to ultimately see them do this without crashing. It’s better to have a close race where all the cars finish than a Suicide Squad sequel that sees barely any cars finish.

So, what’s the verdict then on Wet F1 Races? Are they the answer to keeping F1 exciting or are they just a nice marketing tool to attract new fans? The fact that they’re not the norm is definitely a good thing, or they would lose their value somewhat.

That being said, they don’t automatically make a Grand Prix interesting, e.g., Imola 2022, Turkey 2020, etc.

At the end of the day, rain can give a Grand Prix that extra bit of something special to take it from being a good race to a great race.

That’s how we got Canada 2011. But we as fans need to remember that just because it rains, that doesn’t mean it’s going to be better.

Author: Thiemo Albers-Daly