Formula 1 lessons from Brazil
Lousy strategy prevents Vettel’s last “hello”
11/14/2022, 8:05 am
George Russell wins the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver celebrates his first Formula 1 victory ahead of Lewis Hamilton. World champion team Red Bull has a lot of trouble internally. The German duo Sebastian Vettel and Mick Schumacher are again left with only words, there are no points. As so often.
The Mercedes future is called George Russell
As a teenager, George Russell stood in front of Toto Wolff in a black suit and bow tie. With the help of a Power Point presentation, he explained to the Head of Mercedes Motorsport that he wanted to win races in the Silver Arrow one day – eight years later he has now kept this promise. So Russell lives up to his reputation, the weekend in São Paulo was completely his: The 24-year-old is extremely fast and at the same time analytical in his driving style.
And Mercedes can be happy: With the exceptional talent, the dominators of yesteryear already have the driver of the future under contract. If Lewis Hamilton does stop at some point, then the factory team need not be afraid. In São Paulo not even a water leak in the car, of which he was unaware, could prevent him from winning. “I’m speechless,” said Russell, before finding many words and thanking family and friends for their support. Breakdowns had cost him victory as Hamilton’s Corona replacement two years ago in Bahrain. Now Russell was the one who secured Mercedes’ first success of the year
… but Sir Lewis is still involved for a moment
Hamilton, however, is not even thinking about the end of his career and the team’s appearance in Interlagos should not have changed that. For two races already, since an update package in Austin, things have been noticeably uphill for Mercedes. In the USA and Mexico Hamilton was already in second place, in Brazil Russell now won the sprint and the Grand Prix – the first victory of the year is finally ticked off, Mercedes returned to its old dominance for a weekend. Even Toto Wolff couldn’t explain why the gap was so big. However, the upward trend is no coincidence. At the end of a difficult year, Mercedes is under the impression that it is gaining momentum for the coming season. “We’ve worked so hard this year to be where we are now. We’re fighting for the front row, for the podium and getting a double win. I’m really happy for the whole team,” said Hamilton, who is his wants to get his first win of the season in Abu Dhabi.
At Red Bull there is time for Zoff
What a difference two weeks can make. In October, Red Bull, but especially Max Verstappen, seemed untouchable, in São Paulo layer after layer was now crumbling. The car was clearly no longer the fastest on the rollercoaster, that was already evident on Saturday. This impression was reinforced on Sunday, and the crew also made a mistake at the stop – but the big end came on the last lap. Verstappen’s refusal to cede sixth place to his teammate Sergio Perez in the fight for runner-up in the World Championship seemed almost unprecedented. After all, Verstappen is no longer about anything, his title has been perfect for a long time. In addition, he could not have won the 2021 World Cup without Perez’s work as an assistant. But “something happened,” said the Dutchman now – and Perez let it be known that he thinks very little of Max Verstappen. It’s an interesting mix given that Perez extended his contract to 2024 this year. Verstappen has a long-term commitment anyway.
There is nothing to get for Schumacher and Vettel
Aston Martin driver Sebastian Vettel was eleventh in the penultimate Formula 1 race of his career, Haas driver Mick Schumacher 13th in what may be his penultimate Grand Prix for the time being. The German yield in Brazil was disappointing. “It felt like more all the time, but in the end our strategy of starting behind the safety car with the used medium tires was no longer possible,” said Vettel about the final phase of the race. “I did what I could do, that was all I could do.” Vettel resigns at the end of the season. Schumacher has to worry that Haas will sign Nico Hülkenberg as the second driver alongside Denmark’s Kevin Magnussen. No points in Interlagos is no argument to stick with him. “Sometimes it’s your year and sometimes it’s not. I don’t think this year was mine,” admitted Schumacher.