Former Formula 1 driver Derek Warwick has explained how he and his fellow race stewards came to the decision that Nico Rosberg hadn’t intentionally made an error to stop team-mate Lewis Hamilton taking pole.
Despite claims Rosberg had purposefully ran off the circuit to bring out yellow flags – an incident interesting enough to warrant an investigation – Warwick is certain it was an honest mistake and that, after reviewing the various data, he made the right decision to take no action.
“We had all Mercedes’s data, including Lewis’s data to overlay on Nico’s. We had the FIA data. We had onboard shots, overhead shots, circuit shots. We had throttle traces, braking traces, everything we needed to make, hopefully, the right decision,” he told The Daily Mail.
“It was not black and white. It took a long time. We wanted to be sure and thorough. The driver is a massive component in what we end up deciding. So Nico was in the stewards’ room for a long time with the team manager [Ron Meadows]. I wouldn’t say I interrogated him; I interviewed him. I made sure I asked him all the right questions.
“I have been around a long time and seen people try to pull the wool over my eyes. Did I have doubts in my mind, of course I did. But he gave me the answers I needed. I know there are conspiracy theories but you will not find a more honest driver in grand prix racing than Nico. He said himself that he made a mistake, came in too fast, braked too late and locked up his rear tyres.”
The incident has caused a rift at Mercedes between Rosberg and Hamilton, with the latter still believing it was done on purpose.
