2017 Australian Grand Prix team radio transcript

2017 Australian Grand Prix

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Two “critical” radio messages to Lewis Hamilton demonstrated how his Australian Grand Prix victory chances slipped away.

The first was broadcast 18 laps into the race as Sebastian Vettel was bearing down on the race-leading Mercedes. Hamilton was urged to increase his gap over the Ferrari but replied there was “nothing left”.

Worried Ferrari could pit Vettel early and benefit from an ‘undercut’, Mercedes brought Hamilton in. He rejoined the track behind Max Verstappen, who had enough of a gap behind him that Mercedes might have expected him to pit soon. But the Red Bull stayed out, and that was a problem for Hamilton.

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Now Mercedes told him it was “critical” to overtake Verstappen. But Hamilton was suffering so much understeer from the disturbed air behind the Red Bull he wondered if his car was damaged.

Bottas said he was quicker than Hamilton
The time lost gave Ferrari a narrow window to make Vettel’s pit stop and bring him out ahead of both cars, and in position to grab the victory.

In the closing stages of the race Valtteri Bottas clsoed on his team mate and told the Mercedes pit wall “I feel like I have a little bit more pace”. Some reports have claimed Bottas was told to hold position behind Hamilton, but no such messages were heard during the race broadcast.

Not all messages between teams and their drivers are broadcast. According to Mercedes Bottas was reminded he needed to get his set of tyres to the end of the race with 18 laps to go, and shortly before he said he was potentially quicker Bottas was advised both cars were in the same engine mode. These messages aside, according to Mercedes the only other communications with Bottas were to communicate information such as yellow flags.

Toro Rosso did use team orders to manage their drivers. Carlos Sainz Jnr was told to let Daniil Kvyat past so he could attack Sergio Perez ahead, on the understanding that if he failed Sainz would be let back through again.

However Kvyat ended up having to pit due to a loss of air pressure in his Renault power unit, much to his disappointment. “It’s not cool,” he complained after the race.

2017 Australian Grand Prix team radio transcript

Lap*DriverMessage
PRTo Felipe Massa

Track temperature is now 39 degrees. We’ve not run these tyres in this sort of temperatures before but my feeling is the rear is always going to be the weakening side. Maybe another half degree?
PRFrom Felipe MassaI think so, yeah, take away a half-degree.
PRTo Valtteri Bottas

Wind direction is the same. The track temperature is starting to drop.
PRTo Fernando Alonso

The following are on starting on prime: Ericsson and Stroll. The following are on back-up: It’s the Sauber [Giovinazzi], Magnussen and Palmer.
PRTo Nico Hulkenberg

Nobody told me that the gears are not synced any more.
PRTo Antonio Giovinazzi

The car is moving again in first gear.
PRFrom Lewis HamiltonGrip feels poor on the grid.
1To Kevin Magnussen

Do you have damage? Oh, you have a puncture.
3From Stoffel VandoorneMy dash is not working.
3To Stoffel Vandoorne

Understood Stoffel. Currently you’re doing well. Stoffel do you mean you have no display at all, or just fuel?
3From Stoffel VandoorneIt’s stuck on the out-lap dash.
4To Daniil Kvyat

DRS should be enabled, try again.
4From Daniil KvyatNo, doesn’t work for me.
4From Lewis HamiltonStruggling for grip.
4To Lewis Hamilton

OK, copy.
5From Marcus EricssonSomething is not right in the rear.
5To Marcus Ericsson

Yes Marcus we can see some loss of downforce in the rear.
7To Stoffel Vandoorne

Car behind is now Ricciardo. Don’t get tangled up with Ricciardo, he’s a lapped car.
7From Nico HulkenbergGrip is super-poor both front and rear axle. Just struggling for grip at the moment.
7To Max Verstappen

OK Max so we’ll have a balance update and a tyre phase rotary update when you can please.
7From Max VerstappenAll good, a bit of oversteer, a bit of understeer but it’s just because I’m close to Kimi.
7To Daniel Riccairdo

Alright Daniel, get stuck in, have fun.
8From Stoffel VandoorneI’m low on power.
8To Stoffel Vandoorne

Copy, we’re investigating.
8From Stoffel VandoorneNo power.
8To Stoffel Vandoorne

Copy Stoffel, stay out.
9From Lewis Hamilton28.0 is not possible
9To Lewis Hamilton

OK copy Lewis, just need to keep building that gap.
9To Daniil Kvyat

Tyres are stabilising and track temperature is starting to drop.
9To Lewis Hamilton

OK Lewis you’re doing a great job now, just keep it up.
9From Valtteri BottasTyres are holding on well.
9To Lewis Hamilton

1.6, the gap’s at 1.6.
10To Sebastian Vettel

You can push. Very good lap, Sebastian, keep pushing like this, you are doing well.
10To Valtteri Bottas

Need to carry more speed turn 14 and turn one late entry.
10From Daniil KvyatOverheating, at the moment I feel quite a bit of overheating.
10To Daniil Kvyat

Copy, I’ll keep you posted.
10To Stoffel Vandoorne

Vandoorne pitted to reset his car.
OK Stoffel apply the brakes during the stop. You need to do the power cycle. Don’t try and restart the engine as normal.
11From Lewis HamiltonTyres are overheating.
12From Stoffel VandoorneThe pack is not doing anything. The pack is just empty.
13From Jolyon PalmerProblem, problem.
13To

OK, understood, talk to us.
13To

No, anchored on the brakes.
13To Jolyon Palmer

Anchored on the brakes, understood. Can you move at all?
13From Jolyon PalmerYep, I’m moving.
13To Jolyon Palmer

You’re moving. OK, carry on, we’ll see what it is and get back to you.
14To Valtteri Bottas

That’s good pace there.
15From Jolyon PalmerAh same problem!
15To Jolyon Palmer

Understood Jo, we’ll get back to you, understood.
17From Felipe MassaI’m losing time behind this guy, so it’s a little bit different to last year. I’m very close to him, guys, sorry. How close do I need to be, one second?
17To Felipe Massa

Yep we need one second.
17From Felipe MassaUnbelievable. For sure I am one second.
17To Felipe Massa

Yep we think that’s one second now. OK he’s getting proper blue flags now, he has blues.
18From Jolyon PalmerAaargh, same again.
18To Jolyon Palmer

OK Jo we’re going to retire you this lap. Sorry about that. But you did a good job out there today. We’re going to retire you this lap.
18To Lewis Hamilton

Lewis we’re going to need to get this gap, it’s critical. Gap 1.7.
18From Lewis HamiltonThere’s nothing left.
18From Romain GrosjeanI lost the power.
18To Romain Grosjean

Lost power, OK, understood.
18From Romain GrosjeanWhat’s going on? What do we do?
18To Romain Grosjean

Box, box. I think we’re done Romain you have to switch it off, sorry mate.
20To Sebastian Vettel

Tyres look very healthy. Keep pushing like this. You are doing very well. Keep your head down.
22From Lewis HamiltonStill a lot of understeer, is the floor OK?
22To Lewis Hamilton

Everything OK on the aero data, Lewis.
22From Lewis HamiltonLet me know where I stand so I can look after tyres if needed.
22To Lewis Hamilton

This is race-critical, you need to get past Verstappen.
22From Lewis HamiltonRepeat, repeat, you’re quiet.
22To Lewis Hamilton

You are still safe to Vettel, we need to get past Verstappen.
22From Lewis HamiltonI don’t know how you expect me to do that right now.
23To Kimi Raikkonen

Hamilton currently stuck behind Verstappen behind, this is good for our race as well, Kimi.
23From Marcus EricssonHydraulic failure, red light.
23To Marcus Ericsson

OK I’ll come back to you.
23From Marcus EricssonI cannot shift. I’m losing steering assistance.
23From Lewis HamiltonThere’s no way I can get past this guy.
23To Lewis Hamilton

OK copy that Lewis, just keep the pressure on.
23From Max VerstappenI’m starting to struggle a little bit more with the rears.
25To Daniel Ricciardo

OK Daniel Ericsson has stopped between turn 12 and turn 13. Remember we are in the Safety Car window. For your reference Daniel a lot of the leaders have swapped onto the soft tyre at their first stop.
25From Lewis HamiltonThere’s nothing left in these tyres, guys, they’re already sliding.
25To Max Verstappen

OK Max let’s push and box.
27From Lewis HamiltonOK Lewis so we’re thinking B now, plan B.
28From Nico HulkenbergIt’s unbelievable. [Censored by FOM] hell. This dirty air is incredible.
31To Daniel Ricciardo

OK Daniel essential we’re turning down the engine a bit to try to save it, it’s a few tenths a lap, it’s not a disaster. The sad truth is that we’ll get points through Safety Car, not through pace today. Still worth hanging out because there are possibilities but let’s save the engine, not make our day any worse.
31From Daniel RicciardoUnderstood
31From Daniel RicciardoOK, I guess we didn’t save it. I’ll go to P0. I’ll wait for your call, but…
31To Daniel Ricciardo

No P1, don’t go to P0 just yet mate. We can’t restart the car in P0. Just hang in there, we’ll check the data, we’ll let you know, OK.
31To Daniel Ricciardo

OK Daniel, P0. Sorry mate. Car’s done. Don’t know what to tell you, mate.
31From Daniel RicciardoLet’s get the [censored by FOM] out of here.
32To Daniil Kvyat

We are looking very good on the strategy, Danny, keep going.
33To Lewis Hamilton

OK Lewis Vettel 28.1. Just let us know what you can do, we need to close that gap. Looking for high 27s.
33From Lewis HamiltonIs fuel OK?
33To Lewis Hamilton

Yeah, Fuel is good.
33To Sebastian Vettel

Still a long way to go, keep your head down.
36To Lewis Hamilton

Tyres look like they’re holding up so I don’t think people are going to struggle at the end. May have to stretch it out. Sticking on Plan A.
38To Sergio Perez

Tyre is good. We can push on the tyre.
38From Sergio PerezYeah but don’t get too excited, man. There might be Safety Cars or something, no?
39To Kimi Raikkonen

It’s not over yet, Kimi. Hamilton is complaining he might not be able to make these tyres last until the end. At the minute if Hamilton had to stop he would come out behind Verstappen.
41From Lewis HamiltonThe timing of this message is curious given Hamilton’s lap 36 message. Perhaps this message was delayed, or Ferrari had overlooked Hamilton’s ‘Plan A’ message, or they had heard something which was not broadcast, or they were trying to keep Raikkonen motivated by being economical with the truth.
How much longer are my tyres competitive?
41To Lewis Hamilton

Eight laps older for Valtteri, six laps for Vettel.
42To Kimi Raikkonen

Hamilton still complaining a lot about tyres, Kimi. Just keep…
42From Kimi RaikkonenOK, OK.
43To Carlos Sainz Jnr

OK Carlos. Swap position now.
43From Carlos Sainz JnrIt’s a little bit early.
43To Carlos Sainz Jnr

Do it now, please. Vettel is coming behind and it will be a blue flag. I will explain later.
43From Carlos Sainz JnrHe will give me the position back if he doesn’t pass Perez, right?
43To Carlos Sainz Jnr

Yes, Carlos, yes.
43From Carlos Sainz JnrOK, I let him by.
43To Carlos Sainz Jnr

Now, please, yes.
44From Lance StrollI think I had brake failure. Yeah I think something broke. Tell me.
44To Lance Stroll

OK. Box, box.
44From Lance StrollArgh, I missed it, sorry, I didn’t know. Sorry.
44To Lance Stroll

OK just take it easy.
44From Lance StrollThink I got a [unclear] failure.
44To Lance Stroll

OK copy. So we’re going to push you back into the garage, Lance.
44From Lance StrollShame.
45From Lewis HamiltonPower dropping in and out.
45To Lewis Hamilton

OK copy we’ll get a look at it.
47To Max Verstappen

So Max just be sensible. You saw how difficult it was, Lewis was unable to pass you on fresh tyres. So make sure you’ve got good grip to the end of the race. Obviously if the opportunity presents itself don’t be shy.
48From Valtteri BottasTyres will be OK to the end, no problem.
48To Valtteri Bottas

Copy that.
48From Valtteri BottasI feel like I have a little bit more pace but struggling to get closer.
48To Valtteri Bottas

Copy that.
51To Daniil Kvyat

OK Dany we will have to box soon, we have a problem with the engine air. Don’t worry we still have…
51From Daniil KvyatNo, let’s stay out guys.
51To Daniil Kvyat

Box Danny, we can still stay in front of Alonso. You cannot stay out. Box, box.
51From Daniil KvyatIs there anything I can do? I can drive slower.
51To Daniil Kvyat

No, engine air refill. We will go to ultra. Box, box.
52From Kevin MagnussenSuspension failure. Do you want me to bring it home or stop the car?
52To Kevin Magnussen

Stop the car where you are.
53From Fernando Alonso[Censored by FOM] there is something wrong with the car. We lost something. It is pulling to the left. There is something on the suspension, maybe.
53To Fernando Alonso

OK Fernando we need to retire. Box this lap, cool the car on the way back.
54To Carlos Sainz Jnr

OK Carlos four laps to go. I will leave you alone. Push like animal. We can reach Perez. Push like a mad animal.
55To Daniil Kvyat

OK Danny just bring it to the flag, OK? Situation is very calm for us. Just bring it to the flag.
55From Daniil KvyatOK. Should I get the fastest lap or not?
55To Daniil Kvyat

No, Vettel does.
55From Daniil KvyatOK, how much off?
55To Daniil Kvyat

One-tenth. Danny, bring it to the flag, we have some points on the table, just bring it to the flag.
55From Daniil KvyatCalm, OK.
56From Max VerstappenHow much faster is the fastest lap?
56To Max Verstappen

Too fast. Two laps remaining. We just want to bring it home.
VLTo Sebastian Vettel

P1 Sebastian. Awesome drive, that’s the way to do it.
VLTo Sebastian Vettel

Grande Sebastian, bravissimo.
VLFrom Sebastian VettelWoohoo! Forza Ferrari, regazzai. Questa e per noi. Tutti noi. Grazie tutti. Grande lavoro. Grande macchina. Thank you everyone. Woo-hoo!
VLTo Lewis Hamilton

OK Lewis, well done mate, sorry about that. P2 still, not a bad result, plenty to learn from this race. Good drive.
VLTo Antonio Giovinazzi

OK Antonio that was a very good race from your side, P12. Congratulations, very good race for your first Formula One race.
VLTo Valtteri Bottas

So a good job Valtteri. P3. Good job.
VLFrom Valtteri BottasThanks guys. The reds were definitely too quick.
VLTo Max Verstappen

Well done. As expected. You did a really solid job.
VLFrom Max VerstappenYep it was not bad. Think the balance of the car was quite good.
VLTo Max Verstappen

Well done Max it was a very good drive. You were on the right tyre in the second stint. Good afternoon’s work, well done.
VLTo Stoffel Vandoorne

I think you drove really well. Well done Stoffel. I’m sorry about the problem we had with the car which was a shame. But I think your pace was good, it was a good job.
VLFrom Stoffel VandoorneYeah thanks guys. Difficult weekend. I think we knew that before coming here. But I think it’s already an achievement to go to the finish. I think we didn’t expect this after Barcelona. Even though the pace wasn’t so good we made it to the end. Still a lot of work to do.
VLTo Carlos Sainz Jnr

P8 Carlos.
VLFrom Carlos Sainz JnrYeah, thank you. A shame on Perez after the pit stop, couldn’t hold on to him because of the top speed. So that’s it.
VLTo Carlos Sainz Jnr

Yep we saw that on the TV.
VLTo Sergio Perez

Great job Checo, well done, P7.
VLFrom Sergio PerezGood job, guys. Good start. We are obviously lacking a lot of pace at the moment. So let’s really focus and try to get those updates soon. But good job man I think we maximised the day. Well doen to everyone.
VLTo Esteban Ocon

Chequered flag, well done mate, that’s tenth place. A point.
VLFrom Esteban OconAwesome guys thank you. Good strategy, very good. Such a shame with Alonso in front, he blocked me all race. But first points of a lot of them.
VLTo Daniil Kvyat

OK Danny sorry for that. P7 was clearly on the table for us.
VLFrom Daniil KvyatCheers guys. Did a good job. But this engine fuss cost us more points. It’s not cool.
VLTo Daniil Kvyat

Yeah, hard luck, no worries. You’ve done very well mate. Very good weekend. Very strong.
VLFrom Daniil KvyatThank you sunshine!
VLTo Daniil Kvyat

No, please!
VLTo Nico Hulkenberg

Tough race, mate. Well done for hanging in there.

Lap: Refers to lap message was broadcast on. There may be a delay between messages being said and being broadcast. PR = pre-race; FL = formation lap; VL = victory lap.
Message: Repetitive or irrelevant messages omitted. Notes in italics. Highlights in bold.

Follow F1 Fanatic Live on Twitter for team radio highlights during all live F1 sessions.

Australian Grand Prix data

    Author information

    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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    49 comments on “2017 Australian Grand Prix team radio transcript”

    1. I wish Liberty would publish all the transcripts, the meaning is lost without the context.

      1. Whole transcripts would nice but this is already much better than what we had last year.

        1. @anatoli68 We already had this last year…

          1. @ho3n3r Ok maybe I should have been more specific. What I meant was that due to team radio restriction in the beginning of the last year, the transcripts were also quite a bit shorter. Sometimes we had something like this for the race transcript: https://www.racefans.net/2016/07/07/2016-austrian-grand-prix-team-radio-transcript/

    2. CoasterJunkie
      31st March 2017, 13:13

      Bottas looked so grumpy on the podium I kind of took it as read that he had been told to hold position and not press Hamilton….

      1. Find facts to back up claims. Just like the evidence has come out with Toto saying once they realised (quite early on in the race) that Hamilton wasn’t going to win they turned his engine down and therefore allowed Bottas to close up.

        1. @David Bell Well said mate. These same people whining about it did not mind it when Massa had to move over for Alonso, was not aloud to attack Alonso and even took a penalty for Alonso (USGP2012) smh.

          1. @patienceandtime struggling to find the correlation between Merc ensuring a formation finish, and fans being selectively judgemental about team orders.

            It’s like comparing apples and… motor oil?

      2. you sir are a 1st class clown . you’re reading the transcript yet conjuring up ghost to claim Bottas was ordered to not attack just because its Hamilton? what did Hamilton ever do to some of yous?

      3. Valtteri Bottas: I feel like I have a little bit more pace but struggling to get closer.

    3. Toto Wolff admitted at the end of the race that they freezed the positions…

      1. No he didn’t. You can even see in the transcript Bottas says he has more pace but can’t get close to Hamilton. Why do you feel the need to make lies ?

        1. How do you know he’s lying or making things up? What are you overcompensating for with the way you are attacking without questioning in a kind manner? The Internet does not give anyone any rights to lie or to be rude at all.

          Is this how you people behave in real life….

      2. http://www.formulapassion.it/2017/03/f1-wolff-ordini-scuderia-bottas/

        The last sentence of the article, by Toto (translated from Italian): “Lewis had older tyres, we told him to manage [them] to try and finish the race without attacking too much. Then, we asked Bottas to do the same”.

        1. I asked Mercedes about that article before writing this piece and was told what Wolff is quoted as saying in it is not what he said. Note that the quote in question was not given to that website, it’s from an interview Wolff gave to Sky F1 Italia.

          1. Exactly! the anyone but Hamilton would conjure up even the remotest unlikely piece to try to discredit him

            1. @pking008 It’s getting out of control with the Hamilton hate, seriously smh.

    4. Looking at the rest of the race, one Mercedes wouldn’t have had a fireball on Pluto’s chance of passing another Mercedes on that circuit anyway, unless one of them broke down… so I don’t suppose it matters whether the request was made or not.

      1. It matters for pride and context.. Bottas in his first race at Mercedes, paid probably only 1/4 of what Hamilton is being paid, driving faster than Hamilton, dirty air of new cars saved Hamilton the embarrassment it seems.

        1. “dirty air of new cars saved Hamilton the embarrassment it seems”

          Really?

        2. Driving faster than Hamilton.. lol

          While Hamilton had problems with his tyres at the end because of his early pit that he did TRYING TO WIN the race, Bottas was in better shape cuz he was cruising alone and much behind. He didn t need to change his cuz he was already behind.

          He never offered Mercedes a chance to win. So saying he was faster or that Hamilton was saved from the embarrasment is an absolute joke.

        3. The way people will twist events to suit their narrative is what’s embarrassing.

          Hamilton drove the Mercedes to the best possible result it could achieve that day with the tactics used. Bottas going easier and longer on his first stint didn’t magic him ahead of Vettel, so Hamiltons driving early on was justified to give them a chance.

        4. kpcart….At the start of the race, Bottas never kept pace with Vettel in order to challenge him for second place, and was 10 seconds behind Lewis when he made his first pit stop.

          Faster than Hamilton…..not really.

      2. @neilosjames

        one Mercedes wouldn’t have had a fireball on Pluto’s chance

        Oh that’s good, I’m nicking that one :-)

        1. Neil (@neilosjames)
          1st April 2017, 1:08

          @keithcollantine It was going to be the more common ‘snowball in hell’, but I occasionally get caught by the ‘post is awaiting moderation’ thing (and usually have no idea why), so decided to go creative in case ‘hell’ set it off!

    5. Merc apologized to Lewis for making another dumb pit call.

      1. @Jay How many times did Ferrari apologized for Alonso ?..

      2. It seems like no matter what you guys read, you’ve already made up your mind to blame Hamilton for something which was not his decision alone.

        Before the race both drivers were asked to give frequent feedback on the tires, he did that. Yes he asked to come in, but that wasn’t just his decision, Mercedes had all the info, they could’ve easily said to stay out as his pace was still better than those behind him and Seb, they made the decision assuming that Max would’ve stopped on the same lap. Had Max done so, Lewis would’ve walked off with another easy win and everyone would be screaming their heads off that it’s going to be another boring season of Mercedes dominance.

        1. I blame Mercedes for them making the call to come in too early. Hamilton would not have wanted to be pitted into 5th place traffic. The team panicked just lke Malaysia/Monaco 2015. This should have been an easy win for HAM.

          1. At first I did, but when I reviewed the entire thing, it wasn’t that bad a call. If I blame them for anything, it was to assume that Max/RB would’ve stopped on the same or Lewis’ first flying lap. Had Max stopped early, Lewis/MB would’ve won the race.

      3. Well, at least this time he asked for it himself.

      4. Hamilton fans have even started to attack each other preemptively it seems, just in case one of them might be criticizing the driver…

    6. It seemed awkwardly quiet in the Ferrari pit wall.

      1. More like “comfortably”, since everything was under control.

    7. Logic would dictate that if Bottas was able to catch Hamilton he was told overtly or not that third was good enough on that day. Further aggravating their star driver is not something these guys, who are smart guys, would want to do.

      1. However there’s no evidence to support that logic. Lewis was substantially faster than Max and couldn’t get by, you really think Bottas was just going to cruise up behind Lewis and breeze by him? Really?

      2. If the team bosses had given any instruction detrimental to Bottas during the race it would have caused terrible negativitiy on Bottas’s side of the garage right at the beggining of the season. Smart bosses don’t neg out their team!

        1. I doubt that VB would have been considering trying to catch and pass LH, and I doubt that TW needed to order VB to stand pat, and if TW had told VB to stand pat I would understand that as it would have simply risked an issue for no gain as all that would have happened would have been a driver swap in position but no change in points for the team. Early days, they’re learning the cars and tires still, and there’s everything to play for yet.

    8. It now transpires the suspension problem Magnussen reported wasn’t actually a suspension problem and he needn’t have retired:

      https://www.racefans.net/2017/03/31/magnussen-retired-unnecessarily-in-australia/

    9. Curious that vettel seemed to be the only one without a problem in following, and by doing so keeping tires and temperatures in check…. Kimi complained very few too, considering he seemed way off in the race (except the last laps where he pushed for fasted lap), but that would fit his narrative that they knew what was going wrong the week end

      1. Yes he had problems following, said as much after the race. The reason why it looked like he didn’t have a problem was simply because of the issues with Hamilton’s car. Look at Kimi, he wasn’t able to follow closely to Bottas who wasn’t having the same problems.

    10. Keith, I have a question: does the coaching drivers rule was “relaxed”? I thought the drivers weren’t allowed to get driving tips like this one to Bottas:

      “Need to carry more speed turn 14 and turn one late entry.”

      It looks they’re clearly helping him, not?

      Thanks

      1. @mmertens They reversed that rule at the end of last year.

      2. @mmertens Yer as @paeschli points out that was reversed last year as of the German Grand Prix and the only such restriction which still applies is the ban on radio messages to the driver between then start of the formation lap and the start of the race, to limit the assistance they receive with optimising their starts.

    11. Thanks a lot for the reply Patrick and Keith! It’s appreciated! It’s kind of silly to restore this driver assistance rule in my opinion!

    12. Lewis Hamilton lost the race because he couldn’t manage the tyres/get the right feel in the tyres. Let’s not make this more complicated than need be.

    13. Outlets such as BBC suggest HAM’s engine was turned down when Merc realised the couldn’t catch VET. How does this fit into the narrative? Anyone proffer some Merc sources on this? I also thought it curious that BOT, who struggled more for pace in the first stint, ran significantly longer than HAM. My take is that HAM panicked and pushed Merc into a premature pitstop despite still-healthy laptimes. 2-3 more laps out and HAM would likely not have lost track position and the Merc, being what it was on mediums, would have had a very good chance of remaining P1 through the chequered flag.

      BOT is a better racer (wet racing, overtaking etc.) than ROS and Australia suggests he is a better qualifier that, I for one, thought. HAM appears complacent, so I expect him to be shocked into an attitudinal shift fairly soon.

      1. http://www.planetf1.com/news/wolff-very-impressed-with-bottas-first-race/

        “Wolff, though, did conceded that Bottas was aided in his efforts to catch Hamilton when Mercedes dialled back the Brit’s car.

        He added: “Having said that we had taken pace out of Lewis quite early when it became apparent we wouldn’t win under normal circumstances.

        “But I am very happy with his performance.”

    14. Who’s the Sunshine?

    Comments are closed.