Abu Dhabi Grand Prix -- SPOILER ALERT!!!!

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I think half of the reason Mercedes employed the services of Hamilton is because the way he is. They knew this from day one & are never going to change him.

We are all talking about this & chewing the fat. It creates entertainment in a sport often lacking. I don't see why any of this is much of an issue. If Lewis did what he was told all the time you may as well stick a robot in that seat.

The sport benefits & is enriched with people like Lewis involved whether you, I or anyone likes it or not. I have no issues with 1499 doing their job & toeing the line & 1 doing his own thing. Does it mean that the 1 is wrong & the 1499 are right......not necessarily.

That is what creates differences, interest & controversy in the sport. No bad thing in my book.

Many people in life & history were told things that they should or shouldn't do but pushed through all this to do some truly great things. Alan Turing for one out of many.
 
I have no issues whatsoever with Lewis doing what he did during the race. As Rockits says everyone's different. As a driver he's exciting. I was gutted when McLaren lost him but what a decision it turned out to be.

For me the problem is is attitude, petulance etc. Playing with his phone in the press conference when he's there to answer questions. Constantly reminding everyone of his bad luck throughout the season (insinuating that's the only reason Nico won the championship.)
Complaining that the mechanics were rotated and Nico now has HIS boys & HIS car.

As the saying goes, no driver is bigger than the team. I'm certain that Merc would have dominated the last 3 years with any 2 of 8-10ish drivers. Had Lewis still been at McLaren he'd just have his one championship. So, he has a lot to be grateful to Merc for.
 
I have no problems with him trying to bring the others into play to push Nico down the field, he was trying to win the championship. If Mercedes doesn't like the fact he did not "follow orders" then they could sack him and employ someone else if they feel that strongly, I'm sure other teams would be more than happy to employ him.
 
Time to introduce an element of perspective. LEWIS and NICO were vying for the world championship because------- thro-out the season they were driving a vastly superior car to the opposition. Time and time again we had the spectacle of "Red Bull or Ferrari are really posing a threat in this qualifying" only for Nico or Lewis to turn a knob or flick a switch on the steering wheel to walk away from the opposition in final qualifying. It has often been this way in F1 with drivers in a technically dominant team. At the end of the season it would have been fitting if Lewis had acknowledged that salient fact when essentially asked to "take one for the team" . As a top driver he may have won the race but his stature as a man was definitely diminished.
 
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Mercedes were already guaranteed the constructors championship for the team.

Mercedes were already guaranteed a 1-2 in the drivers championship.

Hamilton had one way of winning the title, he tried to do it and it didn't work. Nico drove well to do enough to keep Vettel behind him in the closing stages and i commend him for that (I'm a LH fan by the way).

If (and its a big if) Mercedes were worried about Vettel winning the race then so be it. But, in my view, they were sending out a signal to LH that at that stage he has to just accept that NR will win the title and he isn't allowed to do anything about this. Given they can see how much pace LH had in the bag (they can see from the telemetry) I can't see how this isn't team orders?!?

Mercedes only solution is to have a definite lead driver going forward a la Vettel/Webber etc. I just don't agree with claiming your drivers are 'allowed to race' but when it comes to the crunch its 'all about the team'.
 
I think it's a shame Max spun at the first corner. If he had maintained his position rather than have to overtake most of the field he might have won the race - albeit we would then have seen the Mercs' true speed in trying to reel him in with LH getting the call that 'overtaking Verstappen is critical to the title'.

LH really had no choice to deploy the tactics he did as it was the ONLY chance he had at the title. I'm not sure I get all the 'dirty tricks' nonsense - it's racing isn't it? The biggest disappointment here as had been said by others is the lack of any humility by LH in defeat. Although to be fair to LH I don't think you would have seen it pouring out from the likes of Senna, Schumacher, Alonso or Vettel either if they had lost title by so little at the wire...

I don't think we'd have seen a team call like that either from Ron Dennis, Flavio or Christian Horner, had Senna, Alonso or Vettel been in that position in years gone by

Roll on 2017 and a competitive Red Bull and Ferrari... And well done Rosberg on a deserved championship across the whole season
 
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Under the circumstances, I think Lewis didn't do too bad re congratulating Nico.

He had just won the last race but lost the championship. You could argue Nico lost the championship on the previous 2 occasions but he never actually lost it (wasn't current champion) but failed to win it. Driving around after the pit stops as slow as he could knowing the championship is all but gone.

I would be surprised if Mercedes suspend him, next year they may need every point they can get
 
I'm sure other teams would be more than happy to employ him.

He doesn't have a lot of choices. Remember he took what looked like a huge risk going to MB - it might not have turned out so well as it has.

RB are not likely to want him.

Ferrari? He's not going to survive half a season there.

So what then? Force India, Williams, Renault, McLaren?

He needs MB more than MB need him. This year MB could have won both world championships with at least half a dozen of the drivers - Ricciardo, Verstappen, Vettel, Raikonnen, Alonso in addition to Rosberg and Hamilton- and possibly Perez, Hulkenburg, Button, and Bottas.

Maybe Hamilton ought to reflect that having a team mate who can beat him to a WDC actually validates his last two WDCs as much as having Hamilton as a team mate validates Rosberg;s - yes they had car advantages - but they still had some quality opposition.
 
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....and herein lies the truth of the matter. LH is losing friends in the sport. Not for "backing up" That was expected and even called correctly by Horner, but for his lack of any kind of humility with regards to the team that have given him the platform to enjoy the success that he has and does.

Out of a Mercedes he will struggle to find a top team that want this attitude and the aggro that it creates within a " team"

Toto makes no secret of the fact that Mercedes are growing tired of his continual public demonstrations that undermine the team effort. Toto also knows that there are any number of young talented drivers that would eat their own heads to get a drive in a Mercedes, partnering NR.

Think about it? They have the constructors and the drivers titles. They are the most sought after drive in the sport and they have a petulant driver bemoaning his lot every time he does not win. What could they change to bring harmony?
 
There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that if say Verstappen partnered Nico, M-B wouldn't miss Hamilton. If I'm correct where would that leave Hamilton?
 
There is another unmistakable truth in the sport. In order for there to be winners there also have to be losers. Otherwise it would just be one guy racing against the clock round the track. The spectators buy into this unwritten rule when they pay for their tickets as do those all important team sponsors. They may be ardent supporters of a certain driver/team and want them to win, but if they lose they want them to do it with good grace--- its part of the deal. Sometimes in the heat of the moment drivers may lose sight of the fact they are driving very expensive advertising hoardings round the track. Sometimes it may be wise to remember that. :dk:
 
Or in a tribunal if they sacked him for gross misconduct.

Not saying they should, but could be the other end of the spectrum to millions better off.
 
£150m richer, he's signed a 3 year deal with Mercedes @ just under £50m per year.

Was it not £30 million / year until 2018.

Or has he extended again?
 
Or in a tribunal if they sacked him for gross misconduct.

It would presumably be breach of contract. And I suspect that any dispute would be messy for both sides - so if there was some sort of parting of the ways then it would involve a settlement and much confidentiality.

Can't see MB doing that though. He normally delivers on the track. And that's what counts. If their car loses a bit of performance relative to the others with the changes for next year then he's still the guy to have if he's motivated.
 
I'll admit that my view of LH is that he's both a supremely talented driver and a bit of an a-hole when out of the car. But...

Whether you or I think he's an a-hole, he appeals to a demographic who Mercedes-Benz want to court as customers. That's why he gets cut the slack that another in that position may not. Simples.
 
I'll admit that my view of LH is that he's both a supremely talented driver and a bit of an a-hole when out of the car. But...

Whether you or I think he's an a-hole, he appeals to a demographic who Mercedes-Benz want to court as customers. That's why he gets cut the slack that another in that position may not. Simples.

What you're really trying to say is that if Hamilton was an average Joe he'd drive a C63...:devil:
 
I think it highly unlikely that Mercedes will sack him. That said it was highly unlikely, if not exceptional that they asked Paddy Lowe to get on the radio to him. They must have felt sure that he would respect Lowe's authority. What Toto is now saying (between the lines) is that LH is telling the team that he has no respect and does not feel the need to work with the other 1499 employees who have respect and give him a winning car. The point being made that if any one of these employees took it upon themselves to behave like LH then LH may find himself with a vastly inferior car.

Too much money leads to a brain that is remote from day to day reality. Some humility would go a long way to restoring his image. But I doubt he worries about that.
 
More chance he will agree severance and walk into another multi million £££ contract with another team...just cannot see how him and Rosberg will work out together next season, untenable situation:dk::fail...i think LH is no1 driver so should have little difficulty getting into another top competing team:thumb: win win for Mr Hamilton...

I think it highly unlikely that Mercedes will sack him.
 
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