Who has the most overtakes in F1 in 2021? Vettel and Alonso in contention for new Overtake Award

After F1 announced the new Overtake Award in collaboration with crypto.com on August 25, it sparked off a discussion about who would bag the honor: Fernando Alonso or Sebastian Vettel.

Following the US GP in Austin, Texas, the two former champions are separated by a mere two overtakes, as Vettel leads the count with 102 in total this season while Alonso has 100 passes to his name.

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A new award to reward overtaking in F1

The Overtake Award was announced after the rain-soaked Belgian Grand Prix and is designed to reward drivers with the most on-track overtakes at the end of the season.

The new Overtake Award. Image courtesy F1.com

To encourage wheel-to-wheel racing, F1 posts a graphic after each race showcasing the driver with the most overtakes. Overtakes are also celebrated on social media with posts.

Ben Pincus, F1's Director of Commercial Partnerships said:

"The Crypto.com Overtake Award gives us the chance to celebrate drivers’ instincts to make bold and strategic moves which reflects the qualities needed when dealing in cryptocurrency."

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Overtakes Galore at US GP

Overtake leaderboard following the US GP.

As teams exceed their allocation of three power units per car, a 20-place grid penalty is applied. Most drivers tend to take these penalties at some point, as the grueling 20+ race season usually demands more than just three power units. Consequently, each race features drivers from the back of the grid, with lots of overtakes.

With Alonso, Vettel and George Russell all taking engine penalties at the US GP and starting from the back of the grid, we saw plenty of on-track action. Vettel and Alonso were already leading the field, but with both driving from the back to finish inside the points, they left Austin with just two overtakes separating them.

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Fans excited for new competition between former F1 champions

Vettel and Alonso have won a combined total of six championships, and F1 fans are excited to see the old rivals duking it out for the Overtake Award as we head into the last five races of the 2021 season.

In an interview with bild.de, Sebastian Vettel was asked whether the overhauls were fun:

“Yes. But whether you count them now or not...Ideally, you won't overtake anyone all year round and win every race. "

He followed up by saying:

Of course it's fun to overtake and it's not always easy. When it succeeds, it feels good. You also whip yourself in the car."

After a week's hiatus following the US GP, F1 will head south of the border for the Mexico GP. While the titanic battle between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton for the drivers' championship will dominate the headlines, fans of overtaking will be keeping their eyes on Vettel and Alonso.