The stakes are considerable and the values in the field are so balanced as to force the parties involved not to be able to leave out the smallest detail. A scenario in which Red Bull and Mercedes are fighting each other on all possible fronts, on and off the track, with mutual monitoring of all technical and sporting activities.
The Interlagos weekend was a very clear example of the level that this sports war has reached, and the events of the Brazilian weekend did not end with the departure for Doha.
Among the most discussed episodes after last Sunday’s race was the decision of the stewards not to analyze in detail what happened during lap 48, or when Max Verstappen defended himself from the attack brought to him by Lewis Hamilton, extending the detached at curve ‘4’ forcing the rival to pass through the escape route.
Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff celebrate after Mercedes victory in Sao Paulo
Photo by: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Images
Mercedes immediately opened communications with race director Michael Masi, and Red Bull did the same to support Verstappen’s work. The episode after being “noted”, or noticed by the stewards, was filed without sanctions. Hence Hamilton’s ironic “naturally”, informed by radio, and Toto Wolff’s outburst when a few laps later Lewis managed to take command of the race.
Two hours after the checkered flag, Masi was a little surprised when in responding to the media on the reasons that led the stewards to “not investigate”, he explained the choice with the lack of frontal images of Verstappen’s onboard camera.
At that moment, the Dutchman’s single-seater had a camera that focuses on the rear of the car and, to recover the front view, it would take some time. An explanation that has not really convinced completely, considering that above all the images from above have given a clear picture of what has happened.
The video then appeared yesterday, when the Formula 1 television production extrapolated it from the recorded images, and shows how Verstappen at the entrance to turn ‘4’ turned the steering wheel at a minimum angle, out of the usual trajectory and pushed accordingly. Hamilton on the escape route.
The availability of new evidence was an opportunity Mercedes jumped at to ask the FIA to re-investigate the case.
In these circumstances it is the college of sports commissioners of the race in question (therefore those present in Brazil) that must return to the matter, and between tomorrow and Friday they should meet by videoconference to decide whether to sanction the Dutchman or to definitively close the case.
It is still unclear whether any sanction could drop Verstappen one position in the Brazilian Grand Prix standings or whether he will have to serve a penalty on the Losail grid.
However, few insiders believe in the possibility that the sports college that operated at Interlagos will change its vision on the episode, as shown by some precedents, namely the case of the Silverstone accident (accused Hamilton) this year. and further back the controversial case of Sebastian Vettel in Montreal in 2019.
An absolute certainty is, however, the atmosphere that will be breathed in Doha between the contenders for the 2021 titles. The “zero tolerance” approach threatened by Wolff after the case of the rear wing at Interlagos suggests that they have everything ready in the team to file complaints if they deem it necessary, but it is a possibility that they also consider at Red Bull.
Detail of the rear wing of Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes contested in the Brazilian GP
Photo by: Giorgio Piola
Christian Horner also continued his campaign against the rear wing of the Mercedes in Brazil and, commenting on Hamilton’s winning ride, showed off a mischievous smile highlighting the engine skills that guaranteed the new power unit mounted by Lewis at the Interlagos weekend.
All scenarios are possible at this point, and the Mercedes line (which got the message across that it felt unfairly penalized in Brazil) looks more like an attack than a defense.
Pointing the finger at Red Bull’s wing changes in the Parc Fermé in both Mexico and Brazil is smoke and mirrors. So far the cars of Verstappen and Perez have always passed the checks without problems and if there is a similar precedent it is that of Kimi Raikkonen in Baku in 2019. Alfa Romeo Racing’s front wing did not pass the flexibility tests for the break. of a support, but ‘Iceman’ was still forced to start from the pit lane.
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