Lewis Hamilton ‘gave it arseholes’ in honour of Niki Lauda as Mercedes’ unbeaten start to 2019 continued. Motorsport Week presents its talking points from the Monaco Grand Prix.
If this is average…
“I definitely feel that it’s been quite an average performance from myself, maybe above average but generally quite average for the first six races. In terms of extracting the true performance from the car, I feel like I’ve struggled a little bit in these six races.” Who spoke those words? Not Sebastian Vettel. Not either of the Red Bull drivers. None of the midfielders either. The correct answer, as you may have guessed, is Lewis Hamilton. Perhaps there is an element of mind games involved in such a statement, considering he has won four from six, 137 points from a possible 156, and is on an extraordinary streak of success that means Michael Schumacher’s once mighty records now look eminently beatable. But there is also a modicum of truth in Hamilton’s comments. He has struggled to hook up the W10 in qualifying in comparison to both his own high watermarks and the laps achieved by team-mate Valtteri Bottas; only an extraordinary last Q3 lap (while Bottas hit out-lap traffic) brought him pole to the tune of just 0.086s. Hamilton’s jubilant post-qualifying celebrations spoke volumes as to the nature of the post-FP3 turnaround, and his subsequent race performance in the tyre-limited circumstances was a masterpiece, even if Monaco’s narrow streets meant the threat from behind was minimal. Hamilton’s win came off the back of a challenging week for Mercedes in the wake of Niki Lauda’s passing, and the eloquence with which Hamilton spoke about Lauda post-qualifying emphasised the role the Austrian played both in his career and in Mercedes’ rise as a formidable title-winning machine. Hamilton usually kicks up a gear mid-season once his understanding of a car grows and he finds a peak performance that his rivals cannot reach. This is already his best start to a Formula 1 season. In 2017 he had 104 points. In 2018 he had 110. He’s currently on 137. Surely now only Bottas stands between him and a sixth crown. Considering that, and Mercedes’ current car advantage, just how many wins might he take in 2019? The best driver in the best team with the best car makes for a devastatingly potent combination.
Ferrari blunder, all asunder
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What’s larger by now? An Argos catalogue or the book of Ferrari blunders? Its misjudgement in Q1 was on a cataclysmic scale. Historically the track rapidly ramps up in qualifying in Monaco given the low-energy nature of the circuit, meaning tyres last several laps, while drivers also gain in confidence as the session progresses. It should also have been alerted to the fact that one driver needing to improve was its own – Sebastian Vettel – thus adding into the equation another car that could relegate Charles Leclerc. It happened. The timing screens were studied with a look of disbelief. 16. C. Leclerc. A justifiably furious Leclerc was struggling to process the situation when he arrived at the press pen and while Mattia Binotto nobly held an unscheduled press conference to explain Ferrari’s reasonings it did not escape the fact that it was a colossal blunder. The Racing Points and Williams were guaranteed Q1 victims. A Ferrari should not have been the other. It did not go unnoticed that Ferrari’s howler came 24 hours after a rather enlightening and informative strategy presentation was given to journalists during an unusual debrief on Friday which lasted around 45 minutes (more on that on Motorsport Week later this week). Suffice to say ‘Q1 exit’ was not part of the presentation. Leclerc was rapid in FP3 and while it’s all conjecture, perhaps he could have challenged Verstappen, or even have been in the position to threaten Hamilton, considering how the race unfolded. We’ll never know. As it was, he drove angry, and the clash with Nico Hulkenberg was inevitable. A bit of patience may have been warranted, particularly at the manner in which he completely wrecked the SF90’s floor in his eagerness to return to the pits. It was an immature display from Leclerc, who must be careful not to squander the general goodwill that he has already earned across his brief Formula 1 career. Vettel, at least, salvaged second, when he would have been fourth without the pit drama, but it was another subdued overall display from the four-time champion, who crashed in FP3 and had two major wall brushes in qualifying. Ferrari’s season is drifting and it has to react soon to avoid any hangover for 2020.
Sweet Carlos Sainz
When you think of Monaco masters then Carlos Sainz Jr.’s name may not spring to mind but the 24-year-old has scored points on each of his five visits to the Principality, and was once again outstanding for McLaren. Sainz Jr. extracted the maximum from the MCL34 in qualifying – whose relative weaknesses in slow/medium-speed corners meant it was not ideally suited to the circuit – with his lap all the more impressive considering he missed all bar a few minutes of FP1 when the Energy Store opted not to talk to the Energy Recovery System inside his car. Sainz Jr.’s start was superb as he swatted aside one Toro Rosso before passing the other around Massenet, a move he described as the best of his career. McLaren sagely applied tactics to in effect use Lando Norris as a rolling roadblock after third-row starters Daniel Ricciardo and Kevin Magnussen had made early stops behind the Safety Car. Such was the pace differential that Sainz Jr. was able to build a gap over the Renault and Haas driver while also combatting the undercut adopted by Daniil Kvyat. It netted Sainz Jr. an outstanding sixth position and means that he is now Formula 1’s lead midfielder – those disastrous opening trio of events, results-wise, are now a long-forgotten memory. Norris also deserves credit for his role in the result on a weekend in which he lacked pace. It was a mature approach to think of the team game over personal wants. McLaren now holds a healthy 13-point buffer in the battle for fourth.
A fortunate escape
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The footage and images of the close-call between Sergio Perez and a couple of marshals was horrifying. Both the marshals and Perez reacted in perfect fashion to avoid a potentially awful collision and fortune was certainly on the side of all three. Perez was visibly shocked post-race by the close call. The decision, too, during the Formula 2 race to retrieve a car parked at the Nouvelle Chicane under double waved yellows was also a little dangerous. Monaco’s marshals are superb – perhaps the best of the season – but in those two incidents they were playing with danger.
Press Conference fun
Maybe it was the fact that most drivers were at home but there was a joviality to the main Press Conferences rarely seen. On Saturday Valtteri Bottas was more interested in the ice hockey match between Finland and Russia and interrupted proceedings to pose his question. “Yes, sorry, Valtteri Bottas from Mercedes… what’s the score?” The following day Sebastian Vettel took a cheeky dig at Lewis Hamilton’s terrible memory, commenting: “How many races do you remember? If you have a poor memory? [As it means] Every race is the greatest race then! If you don’t remember the other ones!” Hamilton struck back when Vettel, who had briefly forgotten the new name for Force India (a paddock regularity this) was mid-way through a typically rambling answer, the reigning champion cut in and yelled “phone call!” There was also a follow-up on the ice hockey the next day, prompting this exchange:
LH: I definitely won’t play hockey with him [Bottas]!
VB: [You’re welcome] to join because I’ve eight Finnish friends at my apartment. They’ve probably been drinking for three days now.
SV: I heard the fire brigade before we came in, they showed that your apartment…
LH: I probably wouldn’t make the next race if I go and drink with all the Finnish guys.
SV: I hope Finland wins, because then maybe they don’t let you into Canada!
Hamilton was in such an uplifted mood that he was giggling like a child as he walked through the press room (such is Monaco’s layout that the drivers need to do this to return to the paddock) and playfully waved at a couple of female journalists. But they were so engrossed in their own work that the five-time champion laughed at being ignored as he sauntered down the stairs and towards the awaiting fans. “Oh, was his waving at us?!” enquired one a few seconds later. “Well,” replied the adjacent male journalist in his late 40s. “It certainly wasn’t aimed at me.”
Danke Niki
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Throughout the weekend everyone reflected on the passing of Niki Lauda in their own way. Mercedes, with whom Lauda worked since 2012, led the tributes, with the W10 sporting a red halo, a ‘Danke Niki’ logo, while one of the many stars on its engine cover was turned red, which will stay this way forever. All team members wore black armbands. Lewis Hamilton – along with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel – both sported tribute helmets, leading to a 1-2 of sorts for the late three-time champion. McLaren placed Lauda’s 1984 Austrian Grand Prix victor’s trophy, along with his helmet, on a plinth outside of its Brand Centre. Several drivers made tweaks to their helmets, or added stickers, and they all donned red caps emblazoned with ‘NIKI’ on the parade lap, starting grid, with some opting to wear them post-race as well. Lauda probably would have thought all the tributes excessive and unnecessary, but the best way to say thank you was by delivering a tense grand prix that wasn’t decided until the end. They gave it arseholes no doubt.
2020 updates
There were more mutterings about Formula 1’s 2020 calendar through the course of the weekend, with confirmation having come since the Spanish Grand Prix that Zandvoort will join the roster next year, taking an early May date. It will ostensibly replace Barcelona on the schedule but the date remains TBC in case Liberty Media reaches a deal with the Catalan venue. That would allow Vietnam to take place on the third weekend of April, followed by Zandvoort in early May, with Barcelona squeezed in before Monaco. The ‘ABC’ of Australia/Bahrain/China to begin the season will remain. Vietnam’s arrival means Azerbaijan is set to run back-to-back with Canada, as it did in 2016, meaning a litany of European events will need to be squeezed in to late June and July. Germany’s future is the most perilous – it is pinning its hopes on a Mick Schumacher surge but that is probably too optimistic at this stage – while Britain and Italy are at various stages of reaching a renewal. Sergio Perez cast further doubt on Mexico’s future but considering the wealth of some private individuals involved it would be remiss, at this early stage, to consider the jaunt to Central America as off for 2020. If anything an extension now seems likely. It is too soon for Rio de Janeiro to be ready for 2020, if a contract is ever signed, with Interlagos holding a deal for next year, even if it is Liberty Media’s least favourite and least lucrative flyaway owing to Bernie hangovers. This would result in a 21-event calendar, or perhaps 22 if a miracle is unearthed in Spain. Miami remains in the pipeline for the future at the alternative venue near the Hard Rock Stadium while a return to South Africa, ostensibly at the recently upgraded Kyalami, has moved a step closer in the wake of Cyril Ramaphosa being sworn in as President.
Formula 2’s huge mistake
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The Formula 2 Feature Race is rarely a straightforward affair and so it proved once again in 2019. Somewhat ironically it was Mick Schumacher who caused the mess at Rascasse and Race Control quickly suspended the race with 20 of the 41 laps completed. Schumacher, at that stage, was the lead driver who had made the mandatory pit stop, for he was attempting to pass the yet-to-stop Tatiana Calderon, whose stricken BWT Arden-run car blocked the track. Everyone running behind Schumacher – which included title leader Nicholas Latifi and several other contenders in the form of Louis Deletraz, Anthoine Hubert and Ralph Boschung – were stuck, while eventually the yet-to-stop leaders circled around and caught them. Everyone trundled into the pit lane but rather than allow everyone ninth and below to circle around and re-join the train, drivers in positions 1-8 were wheeled to the front of the queue, in the process putting a lap on the field. It therefore hugely profitable for those at the front, hugely damaging for those ninth and below, while general confusion reigned, with several drivers racing while unsure of their exact position. It was deemed that “Article 42.3 of the 2019 FIA F2 Sporting Regulations specifies the manner in which the restart order is to be re-established at the restart. That process was not executed in that those cars originally in pit lane ahead of the leader as well as lapped cars were not allowed to transit the course and join the restart order at the rear. While this procedure negatively impacted the remainder of the race by putting significantly more cars down a lap than would otherwise have been the case, the Stewards find no equitable method to resolve this error and accordingly leave the results from Race 1 as they stand.” In fairness to the stewards, there was little that could be done, for amending the results was impossible and would then have been unfair to those who did not either gain or lose out. But for a major motorsport series in which drivers’ careers are at stake it was a lamentable error. Oh, and the sooner someone in officialdom decides that Mahaveer Raghunathan is woefully under skilled for such a high level the better.
Monaco quirks
A bottle of water for €6? Yep, that’ll be Monaco. It is a place like no other, for better, for worse. Formula 2 is housed inside of a car park, the Formula 1 paddock is one of the smallest of the season as somehow the motorhomes are constructed in the tight confines available, while Red Bull’s Holzhaus floats on an enormous barge in the harbour. The final sector in effect turns into party central each evening, with La Rascasse the centre of attention. Watching trackside is one of the biggest adrenalin rushes of the campaign with the photographers needing every ounce of bravery to capture the best shots. Long may it stay on the calendar.
It’s speculated their team includes ex-SETI scientists testing frequency alignments between humans and universal intelligence.