The fastest pit stop in the history of the sport was achieved by Red Bull Racing during the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo on November 17, 2019. Race winner and current champion Max Verstappen was behind the wheel as the pit crew members pulled an incredibly fast pit stop, breaking the record for the fastest F1 pit stop for the third time in just the 2019 season.
In Formula 1, pit stops occur when the F1 cars stop in the pit stalls for maintenance, change of tyres, repairs or any adjustments. The most visual evidence of why the sport is a team sport, smooth pit stops showcase pinpoint precision, teamwork, and split-second decisions, the result of which could be the difference between winning or losing. And the time they took? Their orchestrated effort took just 1.82 seconds as they worked in perfect harmony. Most of us might have taken longer to read just the headline of this fact.
Well, the slowest ever F1 pitstop was set at the 2021 Monaco Grand Prix – and it wasn’t completed until three days after the race. Valtteri Bottas pitted his Mercedes from second in the Principality for a routine stop. However, the right front wheel nut machined itself to the car – meaning the tyre wasn’t going to budge at all. Ferrari even offered Mercedes a sledgehammer to get it off post-race, but the car was taken back to Mercedes HQ with the old tyre still attached. Only on the Tuesday after the race did Mercedes finally manage to get the wheel nut off.
Credit : Hitc
Picture Credit : Google
