Mercedes renaissance colors quiet Spanish Grand Prix

This double podium result leapfrogs Mercedes over Aston Martin into second place in the Constructor Standings. But more importantly, it highlights a key Red Bull weakness: that even with every possible technical advantage, Sergio Perez is catchable under the right circumstances.

Perez began the race in eleventh place after a rough qualifying session on Saturday, and on the surface his fight up to fourth place looks impressive. But George Russell, the man who finished ahead of him on the podium, actually started twelfth. Russell was able to pull off the same fight Perez did while out-racing him in the process.

"That was a fun race for us, starting in P12 and coming all the way to P3," Russell said with a grin at the finish line. "Hopefully a sign of things to come for us."

Russell may be right on that one. The start of the 2023 F1 season leaned heavily on "street" tracks like Jeddah, Baku, Miami and Monaco--narrow, slow-cornered circuits that didn't suit the speedy, curve-happy Mercedes. But the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona is a far more traditional circuit, with loops, straights and high-speed corners that help the Mercedes fly. Their strong result here is promising: the next seven events on the calendar all fit the same Spain mold.

While Perez's fourth-place finish was a disappointment for Red Bull, Verstappen's drive was nothing short of perfection. He began the race in pole position and didn't waver once. The Dutch driver achieved a rare F1 "grand slam." He qualified first, won the race, set the fastest lap and stayed on top for every lap he ran.

But it wasn't just Verstappen who raced well. Aston Martin's Lance Stroll finished ahead of his teammate Fernando Alonso for the first time this season. Alfa Romeo's Zhou Guanyu came home in ninth for his second points finish of the year. And Alpha Tauri's Yuki Tsunoda--a driver in a make-or-break career moment--sat pretty in tenth until a harsh penalty sent him tumbling down the standings in the final few laps.

Formula 1 will pack up over the next few days and fly to North America for the Canadian Grand Prix in two weeks. It's the home race of Stroll and one of the most beloved circuits on the F1 calendar.