Sebastian Vettel crashed out of the lead as Lewis Hamilton won from 14th on the grid. Just a normal day in Formula 1 then. Motorsport Week presents its conclusions from the German Grand Prix.
Sachs appeal
To quote a recently rejuvenated football related song, it was nearly complete, it was nearly so sweet. Sebastian Vettel had been on course for his first Hockenheim victory in a Formula 1 car, having followed up a sublime pole position lap with an archetypal Vettel start: nail the procedure and storm away at pace. Vettel’s ability to open up a substantial advantage within the first 60 seconds of the race has been his calling card, a brilliant yet underrated display of racecraft. Ferrari’s subsequent tactic of serving third-placed Kimi Raikkonen early was logical yet keeping the Finn ahead of the later-stopping Vettel once they cycled through was baffling. Vettel’s frustration began to seep through on the radio, the dirty air was not favourable for his tyres, and eventually Ferrari came to its sense and undertook a swap, though not before Raikkonen starkly spelt out to the world what was going on. Once ahead Vettel’s position was not directly under threat, though the rain, and Hamilton on fresh tyres, remained a potential foil. Vettel kept up strong pace, braked for the Sachskurve. And then…
It was only the smallest of errors, but it had the largest of consequences. He pushed it a little too much, a few metres too far, the rear axle locked, and off he went. Max Verstappen had made a similar error at the hairpin, but used the run-off to escape; Raikkonen slithered wide at Turn 8, but lived to tell another tale. Even Hamilton went slightly too deep on one lap. Vettel’s misfortune was to make his error at one of the few corners with gravel, and at the one where the run-off is so limited that escaping – given his trajectory – is a near-impossibility. He was the only driver to crash. The only driver whose race came to an end when the showers turned the tarmac greasy. It was a cruel, cruel turn of events, and one with huge ramifications in the Drivers’ Championship, as he retired for the first time since last year’s Japanese Grand Prix. Few could recall the last time a race leader went off into the barriers of their own accord. An understandably devastated Vettel bashed his steering wheel in a mixture of anger and despair, and skulked across the gravel, kicking a few of the stones, as he pondered what might have been. It also continued a bizarre trend of drivers encountering misfortune at their home Grands Prix this summer: Charles Leclerc’s brake failure in Monaco, Lance Stroll’s lap one exit in Canada, Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly colliding at the start in France – at which Romain Grosjean was penalised – with Lewis Hamilton spun in Britain. You’d say that Stoffel Vandoorne should watch out in Belgium but given his wretched season an early exit might be a blessing in disguise.
The positive for Vettel – and one he was keen to flag up – was the overall pace of the SF71-H. It is a very fast car – now most likely the fastest on the grid. An eight-point lead, that could have grown to around 20, is now a 17-point deficit, but there’s enough races and likely twists and turns to mean he stands every chance of recapturing the advantage. Last year these moments were acutely punished by the consistency of Hamilton and Mercedes – but this season the battle is more open.
Ten per cent luck, 20 per cent skill…
The sight of Lewis Hamilton desperately pushing his stricken Mercedes W09 after qualifying was one for the ages, his determination at getting the car back to the pit lane misguided but admirable. Hamilton vowed not to give up, though from his grid slot fifth was the most likely position, first surely an impossibility. And yet. His recovery to the top step of the podium was the perfect combination of ability and fortune. In dropping out of qualifying early he was able to run with the Ultrasofts when the rain came down – aiding his cause – having worked his way through the midfield order as expected, the pace disparity making any battle a mere walkover. Hamilton’s pace during the drizzly phase was outstanding as Vettel’s 23-second advantage was whittled down to 14, bringing him almost onto the rear of the squabbling Raikkonen and Bottas. What came next was a dollop of luck. Verstappen erroneously stopped for Intermediates. Fourth. Vettel crashed. Third. Bottas pitted. Second. Raikkonen pitted. First. Somewhat ironically, in a year where several races have been won by split-second strategy calls, Mercedes’ indecision on the pit wall – and Hamilton’s late decision to stay out amid that confusion – was a key influence in the race being won, as he inherited a lead rather than emerging in third. In the circumstances a reprimand for that grassy excursion was a fitting punishment though in future Grands Prix the precise regulation should be firmly outlined. It is easy to envisage how some teams could be unhappy at the stewards’ acceptance of mitigating circumstances, while the length of time taken to clarify the results of a thrilling Grand Prix – over a driver going across a bit of grass – was comical. Going from fourth to first was luck, but initially staying there required skill. Hamilton’s tyres were not as up to temperature as Bottas’ fresher Ultrasofts, leaving him vulnerable at the restart. Hamilton hugged the inside line into the hairpin, ensured he had sufficient traction to deny Bottas on corner exit, and consequently preserved the ideal approach for Turn 8, the Silver Arrows battling as they approached the imposing Mercedes Tribune. Understandably, Mercedes called off the fight, a disappointment for spectators but a logical plan of action considering their recent results, Vettel’s earlier prang, and the fact they were running 1-2 at their home Grand Prix, with all the major board members present. Only eight Grands Prix in Formula 1’s near-1000 race history have been won from lower on the grid than 14th – the last a decade ago – and the turnaround in fortunes over a 24-hour period could not have been more stark. The sight of Hamilton at the front of the podium, arms outstretched, clutching the trophy, while being battered by rain, could well be the season’s defining image.
Could Kimi have won?
It was perhaps a classic Raikkonen event. Not quite good enough in qualifying, a bit of fortune, a bit of misfortune, and a podium position, his 28th in a row without making it onto the top step. Raikkonen had been unlucky to lose out to Bottas behind the lapped traffic when the drizzle fell, but recaptured the position – now for the lead – when his compatriot ducked into the pits behind the Safety Car. Raikkonen relinquished first for third and a fresh set of rubber, but could he have gambled on the Softs that he had been using since lap 14? “It’s always easy to say afterwards but honestly we don’t know what would happen if we stay out,” said the typically philosophical Raikkonen. “I’m 100 per cent sure that the Ultras worked better plus I had very used tyres at that point already but I can’t give an answer if it would have been just fine [to stay out] or a complete disaster, so that’s always an unknown and you try to weigh up the differences and hope that the new tyres will give you some grip to come back. I don’t think anybody would have an answer what the end result if we stayed out or not. Who knows. That’s how it goes.”
The wait goes on
For Bottas this marked the 11th straight event without a win, and at five of those he has finished as runner-up. Bottas did little wrong during the course of the event but once again the cards did not fall in his favour. Bottas relinquished track position for the advantage of fresh tyres, and but for the confusion that resulted in Hamilton’s aborted stop he would have been the one leading away at the restart. Having been unable to unseat Hamilton, he took the call to hold position with consummate professionalism and acted with dignity in the aftermath – showing signs of the character that has earned him a contract extension for 2019 and perhaps beyond. His win will come. Surely.
The other German
Nico Hulkenberg bagged his best finish since linking with Renault – and did so on home territory, the non-Vettel representative managing to stay out of trouble. Hulkenberg was one of the standout drivers when the tricky conditions struck, as so often he is, and had enough in hand to quickly discard the Intermediate tyres after a handful of laps. Haas once again had an opportunity slip through its fingers; fifth and seventh was on the cards but pitting for Inters behind the Safety Car compromised both drivers. Romain Grosjean magnificently fought from the foot of the top 10 to sixth, a reminder of his talent on a weekend where his future was again questioned, but Kevin Magnussen was unable to replicate such pace, finishing outside the points in a race where he ran fifth in the opening laps. Force India’s predicament is still on the rocks but Perez and Ocon provided a reminder of the team’s quality. Perez capitalised on a brilliant first lap to pocket seventh, in spite of his Turn 8 spin, while Ocon kept his nose clean to collect eighth, having earlier looked a very long shot for points. The chaotic events also enabled Marcus Ericsson and Brendon Hartley to pick up points, a well-deserved achievement for both, whose recent improvements have been masked either by errors, mechanical failures or car limitations.
Balletic reminders
Charles Leclerc impressed on Saturday, notionally topping FP3 before making Q3 for the third time in four Grands Prix. But in the race it was a more fraught affair – he was on the fringes of points when the decision was made to stop for Intermediates. Once back on slicks he spun 360 through Turn 1 (perfectly executed, a 6.0 from the judges) before traipsing through the football field-sized Turn 3 grass. Two mistakes and the wrong call. For all of his undoubted talent and brilliance through 2018, it was a reminder that he is still a rookie and errors will happen. With illness-enforced changes at Ferrari and parent company FCA it remains to be seen whether Leclerc is quite so the hot favourite for the 2019 Ferrari seat compared to a few weeks previously.
Stawful
A McLaren finished 20th in FP1, 20th in FP2, 20th in Q1, trundled around at the back, and finished a marooned 13th, ahead only of the tyre gamblers. Hockenheim was, quite frankly, an abject weekend for Stoffel Vandoorne. As he asserted himself, he has not forgotten how to drive. The driver whose pace was so devastating in junior formula is surely there – and would surely be demonstrated in a different environment. Vandoorne’s form pre-Silverstone was hardly world-beating but something went wrong that weekend and McLaren has yet to identify the problem. His MCL33 suffered a loss of downforce, leaving the balance off-kilter, and even hard work overnight Friday into Saturday – breaking the curfew – did not address the problem. There is something wrong (Fernando Alonso was one of the first to point out Vandoorne’s car problem and urged a fix) and a repair cannot come soon enough for a team that has scored just eight points in six Grands Prix. Its hopes of fourth, a position it held early on, are surely gone, while it is rapidly losing sight of the scrap for fifth between Force India and Haas.