Brake failure is “another gift” for Rosberg – Hamilton

2014 German Grand Prix

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Lewis Hamilton said the brake failure which put him out of qualifying was another “gift” for his team mate in the championship.

Hamilton had closed Nico Rosberg’s championship lead to four points heading into this weekend’s race. But brake failure during Q1 triggered a crash which leaves him provisionally 15th on the grid for tomorrow’s race.

“There’s still a decent amount of races to go,” Hamilton reflected while talking to reporters afterwards. “Obviously Nico’s basically got another gift but we’ll do what we can tomorrow.”

Hamilton was discharged from the medical centre following the crash. “I’ve got a little bit of pain but that’s what usually happens when you have a crash like that,” he said.

“I think they said I pulled like 30Gs or something. But it’s OK – even if something’s broken I’ll still be driving tomorrow.”

“Things like this happen, things for whatever reason are sent to try us,” he added. “The guys worked so hard over the evening, they were up really late last night.”

“We’ve done a great job with the set-up, it felt fantastic out there and I didn’t even get to do five laps. But it’s nothing really to do with the guys – it’s supposed to have gone through lots of test with the brakes, which they did, but just a bit unfortunate, I think.”

“It just takes you by complete surprise. It happened so quickly, you hit the brake pressure and… the thing is when you’re driving you have to have 110% confidence in the car, you never enter a corner thinking something’s going to happen. And so you hit it and then it’s a real shock.”

Mercedes said Hamilton’s crash was caused by “a sudden and catastrophic failure of the right front brake disc”. The team added the cause for the failure was “unexplained as turn 13 is not a particularly heavy braking event and the brakes were fitted new for [third practice]”.

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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59 comments on “Brake failure is “another gift” for Rosberg – Hamilton”

  1. Considering his awful run of bad luck, if Hamilton somehow wins the championship this year, it would be well and truly deserved.

    1. @trublu Obviously, in my opinion at least if he wins it via the Abu Double, Rosberg will be the deserving winner.

      1. @formula-1 I’ve read that a few time but don’t understand. Do you mean Rosberg would be the deserved winner even if he needs the double on top of Hamilton’s bad luck

      2. At least = unless?

        1. @trublu Sorry, forgot to worded it badly and forgot a comma :) , I meant in the way that if Hamiton wins it via double points then in my opinion Rosberg would be the more deserving winner, but then again rules are rules.

          1. The double points are there for everyone. It’s a crap and pointless (no pun intended) but it doesn’t give any particular driver an advantage.
            But it’s certainly not the race to have a failure…

    2. The bad luck is only for those who don’t win…

  2. OmarR-Pepper (@)
    19th July 2014, 15:38

    He meant it was bad luck? Because saying it is a gift sounds weird. A gift from toto ro nico?
    And yes, now you can crush me to powder, I know it will happen.

  3. This guy’s luck… gutted for him.

    The frustrating thing is apart that apart from the fact that Lewis’s side of the garage seems to be having more bad luck that Nico’s, were missing out on some potential great races between the two.

    I hear it might be raining tomorrow, so lets hope he gets through the first corner in one piece and watch as the race unravels.

  4. Start from back or pit lane mess around with best settings. Rememeber if it is wet you can put loads of wing on. Even if dry aslong as car is reliable Ham will finish 2nd. I think he should start in Primes, then go options then Prime.

  5. And even more people accusing Mercedes of giving him faulty brakes intentionally.

    In my opinion, if you think they would do this, you should stop watching the sport.
    You clearly have no understanding or appreciation of the consequences of faulty brakes, the risk the drivers put themselves through when racing, or the team’s obligation (and want) to keep their drivers safe from harm.

  6. Better it happen in quali than in the race!
    Looking forward to a good charge tomorrow hopefully! :)

    1. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      19th July 2014, 18:33

      @nemo87 considering how good his Mercedes reacts, he will be second in 1 minute after the start.

      1. @omarr-pepper I bet you a fiver he does not finish in the top-three?

        1. OmarR-Pepper (@)
          20th July 2014, 6:40

          @jdanek007 Let’s bet something possible. If he doesn’t finish second or first, I’ll use a “44” avatar for a week. You know I won’t like it.
          If he indeed finishes second or first, you will be happy (as I can see in that pic) but you have to put a Vettel photo (or something related to him).
          I hope you accept this bet :P

          1. Let’s bet something possible. If he doesn’t finish second or first, I’ll use a “44″ avatar for a week. You know I won’t like it.
            If he indeed finishes second or first, you will be happy (as I can see in that pic) but you have to put a Vettel photo (or something related to him).
            I hope you accept this bet :P

            @omarr-pepper I accept!! I think Lewis will do OK and driver pretty heroically, but definitely not make it into into the top-2! Even 3rd I think might be out of reach, w/ how strong the Williams cars have been (but I favor a relentless, hungry Bottas over a twitchy Massa). And then of course there’s Alonso, who’s a machine, and even a resurgent Vettel…

            Yes, I have a lot of great Vettel pics that could be avatars, but I’m actually starting to like the guy now that he’s not smothering the competition w/ his dominance like past 4 seasons!! lol…

            It would actually be more humiliating for me to have to use a Rosberg avatar, as I LOATHE HIM! lol

  7. I think after all of Hamilton’s brake issues (this, canada, maybe austrian quali) that his brakes (he and nico use different brakes) aren’t quite up to par with other drivers’, especially nico’s. If you remember, nico had the same issues in canada, caused by an ERS faliure, but still stayed in the race, whereas hamilton’s brakes went out completely

    1. That was because they use different brake bias, and Hamilton was also behind Rosberg at Canada, so the brakes couldn’t cool down.

      1. +1 for some reason, the fact that Lewis runs with more rear bias and he was behind Nico with no chance for his brakes to cool.
        It was a KERS issue which stressed the rear brakes even more so Lewis had all three factors working againts him. But people act loke Nico was a genius who “managed the situation”.
        Totally wrong….he had less stress on his rear brakes AND a heads up because it hit Lewis already.

    2. Keep in mind last year Hamilton pushed Mercedes to get him new brakes, the same he used in Mclaren. It seems this year that has come back to haunt him.

      1. Mercedes did get him new brakes. They bought him Brembos… the same spec that have been failing up and down the grid all year.

        IMO, Merc will be unlucky if they don’t get away with replacing them with CI units under a ‘safety’ clause.

  8. I’m very concerned by Lewis’ mindset. It’s obviously necessary to have incredible desire to be a champion, but the emotional ups and downs that he goes through when faced with adversity are not adaptive tools for making it through the long haul of a championship season or even a career. And comments like “this is a gift” when regarding a rival or “these things are sent to try us” start to invoke metaphysical forces beyond one’s control that are arrayed against one’s success. I know this is how some people motivate themselves, but there is a very thin line between “me against the world” as a source of positive energy to keep fighting and “I personally am continually being victimized by fate” mentality which comes very close to ungrateful whining. No one is entitled to or “deserves” success despite how much they have sacrificed or worked for it. There are so many variables that come into play: weather, materials, other drivers, strategic choices, the pit crew, etc etc. Parts failures are part and parcel of motorsport, particularly when technical rules are changed wholesale and engineers try to figure out how close they can run to the edge without failure. Given other Brembo failures, looks like they’ve underestimated some parameters in what it takes to stop 2014 cars given the rule changes. If Lewis wants to blame someone, he should blame his own preference for Brembos. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and get on with it. 99.9999999% of humanity has a worse life than an F1 driver. IMO Lewis needs a mental coach to learn to control his frustration with failures both large and small and channel his immense desire in a more positive way for himself and those around him. A company like Mercedes does not need a brand ambassador who continually complains about his fate.

  9. and that brake disk is not German either…

  10. Chris (@tophercheese21)
    19th July 2014, 16:24

    Very strange failure :(
    Will be interesting to see what he can do tomorrow.

  11. What a shame. So tomorrow will be damage limitation…

  12. Mauricio Pérez González
    19th July 2014, 16:41

    Rosberg favoritism!!! tomorrow pits stops of 4 segs…… Brembo sucks!!!!

    1. I suppose you don’t care that Hamilton chooses to use Brembo discs instead of Carbon Industrie. No, you just want yet another excuse to spew bile and hatred.

      1. “…I suppose you don’t care that Hamilton chooses to use Brembo discs…”

        Hummm… Are you sugesting that Lewis are guilty for Brembo´s incompetence in their quality control?

        I think we hit another level here…

        1. Are you sugesting that Lewis are guilty for Brembo´s incompetence in their quality control?

          How wide was the logical chasm you leapt to come to that conclusion?

          1. Well, the same one that you´re using to suggest that Lewis´ choice for Brembo is to blame for a brake failure.

          2. I thought I’d already read the most stupid post made today, but you’ve somehow managed to top that, and spectacularly so.

            It’s obvious to anyone with an IQ greater than 0.00001 that I am not implying Hamilton’s choice is the reason for the failure. If you’d bothered to read the whole discussion instead of spewing total garbage, you would have easily seen I was countering González’ assertion that Merc are favouring Rosberg by giving Hamilton dodgy brakes. But of course you didn’t bother.

            And of course you won’t bother reading this either, and carry on in the delusion that you have created for yourself.

          3. @raceprouk I don’t think it’s appropriate for you to insult another reader w/ such ignorant spiteful commentary.

            They might not share your point of view, but your post is boorish and disrespectful.

          4. Well the commentary is not quite ignorant, spiteful yes. Nor is it logically unsound.
            Nothing follows about Hamilton’s guilt from his choice of certain brake discs.

      2. Ihearyoureopinionbutignoreit
        21st July 2014, 5:16

        Except that Hamilton actually prefers the Carbone Industrie discs to the Brembo’s and has done for a long while…
        From Sky Sports in June 2013:
        “Just as at McLaren he has a preference for Carbone Industrie brake discs rather than the Brembos used by Rosberg in conjunction with the Brembo calipers that are a standard part of both Mercedes.”

  13. OmarR-Pepper (@)
    19th July 2014, 16:44

    He meant it was bad luck? Because saying it is a gift sounds…. well. A gift from toto to nico?
    And yes, I know I will get “all the love” of Ham fans… start!!!

    1. HAM has fans ?!

      1. Of course he does. The problem is he also has brain-dead fanatics, and it’s those people that keep banging on about sabotage and favouritism.

        1. and you are the only “fanatic” with his/her brain alive?? .. Leave some respect for others dude..

          1. Oh good, another idiot trying to pick a fight.

    2. I have to agree with hamilton that it’s a gift for rosberg, if it’s a normal race roseberg is gonna win comfortably… from your comments it’s (not only this one but other comments as well) quite evident that you dont like hamilton and maybe that’s what’s causing you to come up with bizarre interpretations of any hamilton statements…
      By the way I am no Hamilton fan

      1. @omarr-pepper is simply aware that there are those among the Hamilton fan base for whom logic and reason are foreign concepts, and every time someone shoots down one of their wild conspiracy theories, they just scream the same garbage louder and louder.

    3. Isnt it nice of Lewis and Nico to gift each other their home GP’s ???
      ;)

  14. resplendent_donkey
    19th July 2014, 16:51

    During the Sky interview, I thought Paddy Lowe said that the brakes were new for Qualifying. Ted Kravitz even made a point of asking if it was something they did specially for this race

  15. I’m concerned by Lewis’ mindset. It’s obviously necessary to have incredible desire to be a champion, but the emotional ups and downs that he goes through when faced with adversity are not adaptive tools for making it through the long haul of a championship season or even a career. Comments like “this is a gift” when regarding a rival or “these things are sent to try us” invoke metaphysical forces somehow arrayed against one’s success. I know this is how some people motivate themselves, but there is a thin line between “me against the world” as a source of energy to keep fighting and the “I personally am continually being victimized by fate” mentality which comes close to ungrateful whining. No one is entitled to or “deserves” success regardless of how much they have sacrificed or worked for it. There are so many variables: weather, materials, other drivers, strategic choices, the pit crew, etc etc, and yes, random chance. Parts failures are part and parcel of motorsport, particularly when technical rules are changed wholesale and engineers try to figure out how close they can run to the edge without failure. Given other Brembo failures, looks like they’ve underestimated some parameters in what it takes to stop 2014 cars given the rule changes. If Lewis wants to blame someone, he should blame his own preference for Brembos. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and get on with it. 99.9999999% of humanity has a financially more difficult life than an F1 driver. IMO Lewis needs a mental coach to learn to control his frustration with failures both large and small and channel his immense desire in a more positive way for himself and those around him. A company like Mercedes does not need a brand ambassador who continually complains about his fate.

    1. Everyone is now a psychologist it seems

    2. OmarR-Pepper (@)
      19th July 2014, 18:43

      @slowhands maybe he is forcing a resemblance with Ayrton Senna. Remember he always had the same kind of speech: I feel closer to god, god controls my driving, etc. I respect people’s opinioins about believing or not, but it sometimes sounds a little out of place.

    3. “If Lewis wants to blame someone, he should blame his own preference for Brembos.”

      Actually Lewis used CI brakes at McLaren and now ofterns switches between Brembo and CI at Merc depending on circuit spec, as does Rosberg.

      “[b]Hamilton, who frequently switches between different brake disc suppliers, said his decision to switch from Carbone Industrie to Brembo was based on feel.

      “You can choose the brake that perhaps doesn’t bite as much at the beginning but has more bite later on, has less fade,” he said.

      “In these temperatures there can be fade on some brakes – I chose these ones because they have more stopping power which means I can brake later.”

      Wolff denied that Hamilton’s switch of brake discs was a gamble in safety terms, because Brembo actually appeared to be the more conservative supplier.

      “Brembo had a failure earlier in the year, and they upgraded the discs to what is supposedly the safest disc,” explained Wolff.

      “They put a lot of research in to the carbon disc so there was no gamble whatsoever. It was just a matter of what suits your driving style.

      “Both of them have been trying both brake materials every weekend, or almost every weekend.[/b]”

    4. Juan (@gumbercules)
      19th July 2014, 18:52

      wow, people are reading WAY too much into his words. It’s a f*cking figure of speech, all he said is that it’s ROS getting another gift because HAM has had so many problems this year. No need to psycho-analyze the unconscious meaning of “Gift” as being a deity that is magically ruining HAM’s car. It’s no different than using the word “luck”, which nobody takes to mean a real force that is actively favoring one person over another.

      Stop drinking the media and Hamilton-hater kool-aid.

    5. Oohkay DOCTOR @slowhands

      I’d be curious to know where you got your qualifications from?

    6. Someone’s just opened a tin of tripe…

    7. @slowhands I think , it’s you who needs some mental coach because it’s incredible to blame him for choosing the brembo brakes.brakes should never fail like that.

      1. Brakes SHOULD never fail, but yet they do. And they have been doing so this year in particular because there is so much more they’re expected to do than just slow the car down.

    8. @slowhands Great comment and good analysis with some very very good points. I’m not surprised you received some criticism because the hordes read but do not understand, or if they do understand, they can’t handle the truth and they’ll criticize..

      1. It’s you who didn’t understand that the comments, it went from Sigmund Freud analysis , to saying Lewis is blaming someone, to Lewis is so depressed he’s not going to even turn up to race tomorrow.
        1. No one can tell a drivers mindset if they don’t have any interaction with them besides the TV.
        2. I have not heard Lewis blaming anyone for his misfortunes.
        3. Why would Lewis be paid 20 million a year to not give 100 percent?

      2. Thanks @scepter. Easy to tell who’s who.

  16. Turned off quali after that. *sigh*

  17. All said and done. .it would be boring without lewis…not only the championship. ..what would you guys have to twitter about..

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