The Formula One world was a little bit worried heading into the Malaysian Grand Prix.
With Easter falling early, it’s now three weeks until the next race in China. What on earth would we talk about until then?
Luckily, Sepang had a few tricks up its sleeve.
Team orders have an uncanny ability to steal the spotlight despite being an integral part of Formula One and – notwithstanding an eight year ban between 2002 and 2011 – being totally legal.
That alone will undoubtedly rankle a few people, but let’s not forget that World Championships have been decided by team orders. In 1964 John Surtees was let through by teammate Lorenzo Bandini to win the title by a single point. Team orders have been, and always will be, a part of Formula One.
First, let’s look at Mercedes. Hamilton and Rosberg came home P3 and P4. Hamilton used more fuel than Rosberg over the course of the race and had to switch his car into miser mode just to finish.
Rosberg was ordered to follow him home despite having more fuel to burn.
Was the call right or wrong?
Malaysia is the home for Mercedes title sponsor Petronas. The team wooed star driver Hamilton over the summer – wouldn’t you want to get him up on the podium and show him off a bit?
What Mercedes didn’t count on was Hamilton denouncing the orders on the podium. It seems, at heart, Hamilton really is a McLaren driver after all those years racing under the Dennis/Whitmarsh philosophy. But the call, for the team, was right.
Red Bull’s situation is a little more complex.
The tension between Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel is well known after *that* collision in Turkey, 2010. Ever since, Webber has never felt he’s being treated equally at Red Bull.
Despite this, he’s has generally towed the party line on track. But this weekend the team was in a situation in which Mark was leading Sebastian and, to its credit, it made the call. It wanted both cars home safe and, since the Championship is still in its early stages, it was going to give the win to Mark. No challenges. No passing. Webber-Vettel, 1-2.
Yet the result is the opposite situation. Vettel disregarded his orders. He took the race into his own hands and decided he should win.
But was it right or wrong?
Vettel disobeyed his team. He put at risk all 43 points it had earnt that race. He threatened the already tenuous Red Bull harmony. But he was right to do so.
There it is, I said it. With the qualification that his manoeuvring as he tried to pass his own teammate was brash, dangerous, and petulant, Vettel was right to pass Mark Webber.
Put your monocle back in and look at it objectively. Sebastian Vettel is a triple World Champion. He knows he’s better than Webber. Mark is one of the top five drivers out there at the moment, but put him wheel-to-wheel with Vettel and he’ll come off second best. And Vettel knows no team will ever punish a defending triple World Champion for breaking the rules.
Therefore, if Red Bull is able to secure a title for one of its drivers this year, Vettel will surely be the one to take the trophy home. The last three years have confirmed that it’s right to bank on this probability.
Moreover, on the evidence of the two rounds just raced, Formula One in 2013 will be closer than it’s ever been before.
Five teams are in race-winning contention this season, so every point will count when the standings are tallied at the end of November.
So you’re sitting in your car. Ahead of you is a driver that is unlikely to beat you in the Championship. You know you need all the points you can get to fend off this extraordinarily close field. You can outrace him on track. What do you do?
You pass him. Of course you pass him.
Did he break his team’s rules? Undoubtedly. Was it morally reprehensible? Most certainly. But it was right.
It was a decision calculated on what will be the most probable outcome at the end of the season, and Vettel just tilted the table in his favour. He was right, and it may well prove to be a decisive moment in his title defence.
As a final point, I’ve seen a few comparisons between Vettel’s actions and those of Michael Schumacher at the height of his ruthlessness – all that win-at-all-costs behaviour that lost him a great deal of popularity.
Drivers aren’t racing for plaudits, they’re out there for Championships. Schumacher won seven.
I’d call him a pretty good example for success, wouldn’t you?
NotaWebberfan!
Guest
Just saw this posting months after you originally wrote it. It is good to see it on an Australian site too. I agree with you that Sebastian did the right thing. I've read most of your responses to other posters as well. Like you say in the end Schumacher is not remembered for his cold blooded racing style but his titles. Ferrari adores him for that. He has made his family comfortable with that wealth. Jenson and Sergio are pulling off the same kind of racing style over at McLaren now. Mark just went on Top Gear venting again, calling Vettel a boy. Well that boy pulled off in his short career more than him and that boy apologized to a furious and whining Mark Webber on the podium. The more you look at it the more it feels Mark completely lacks sportsmanship. He showed him the middle finger, embarrassed the RBR Team on stage by saying that they prefer only 1 driver, goes to Top Gear and whines some more and all the members at Milton Keynes only found out about his retirement through the internet. Now these are the guys that make his race possible and they are the reason he makes so much money. People can say what they like but Sebastian was not ethically or morally wrong. In the aftermath of the Malaysian GP it has been said that Webber had used more fuel and had to turn his engine down whereas Vettel was not given these orders but turned his engine down a little bit too. So that kills the argument for those who say Webber was a sitting duck. Not to mention Webber goes out dining with Alonso and they post that pic out. I think when you go down so low as to stoop at Ferrari's mind game levels than you are not much of a sportsman. Vettel was right. Couldn't have been more right. He should never have said sorry. You do not say sorry for winning.
sols
Guest
As one poster posted, has everyone forgotten Silverstone 2011 when WEB ignored/defied the order not to pass VET? Where was the backlash towards him then? People are quick to say that VET should be punished for his actions, but was WEB ever punished for what he did? I'm thinking that maybe it's more the case of Mark is well-liked compared to Seb hence the pitchforks.
Michael Lamonato
Expert
This is the most important thing to considering in the aftermath of Malaysia. If Horner comes across as two weak or ineffectual, his position becomes pretty much untenable. But it'll take some guts to sideline the triple World Champions for a race, that's for certain.
Macca
Guest
Exactly - It's like saying tying a rabbit down before hunting it is fair, Webber was no longer racing, he was coasting - overtaking him in that position isn't "right"! And if Vettel is the better driver why wasn't he in front?
kid
Guest
You need to remember that Formulae 1 is a team sport not an individual one as it might seem. Drivers reley on the strategy of team bosses and must adhere to what they are being told. Seb has effectively sabotaged his own team for personal glory.
Dav82
Guest
It was red bull that engaged there drivers into a race by mistake when webber came out of the pits at the same as vettel was coming down the straight every race driver should have the right to try 100% to win the race so red bull was in the wrong with their stratergy which engaged their drivers into a race for 1st place Vettel made 2 mistakes the first was he ignored team orders and 2nd very dangerous too agressive when overtaking Webber on the inside inches from the wall and closer to hitting Webbers wing on the corner he was wreckless and very close to a collision and a penalty.
Iron Chef
Guest
I think this is more of a test of Christian Horner's leadership than anything else. There's a part of me that hopes he keeps his job and only gives Vettel a slap on the wrist, because I think that will be enough for the gloves to come off for the rest of the season, as far as Webber is concerned. It could make for good viewing, that's for sure.
HelBic
Guest
Nice article and I agree with it in the terms of Vettell did what was best for his season but I still find it reprehensible in that as stated many times above, Webber AND Vettell were told priorto the race that there could potentially be a problem with tyre wear and that the positions they were in after the final pit stop would be the one they were to finish in (in terms of each other,of course). So they both agreed that they would race each other up until the final pit stop. At one point Vettell was complaining about Webber's pace and then Webber pulled out his fastest lap immediately after that, leaving Vettell in his wake. After the pit stop Webber turned his engine settings down, not expecting to race his team mate and then Vettell tried to pounce as Webber left the pits. I think he then saw red as Webber JUST managed to get out in front of him and we saw the rest from there. It does remind me a lot of Counthard and Hakkinen - they also had an agreement and Coulthar allowed Hakkinen to pass as per their pre-race agreement and then when it came for the reverse to happen, Hakkinen didn't reciprocate. As someone said, Vettell is a (typical) world champion racer. Win at allcosts. Hamilton was wrong to say it was Rosbergs place as he had been told by the team to push at all costs earlier in the race. He did as he was told then had to coast after that to avoid running out of fuel. He would not have ran out of fuel if he had not received the push push push instruction. Finally, I also firmly believe that Hamilton is a racer similar to Vettell. Had Rosberg attempted a pass, hamilton would have defended and raced and I suspect both would have ended up not completing the race, either through coming together or both running out of fuel.
matt
Guest
we can learn a few things from the triple world champion: better to ask forgiveness, not permission
Blaze
Guest
So disobeying team orders that you agreed on before the race is not doing anything wrong? Sorry, but just because you call yourself a competitive racer, doesn't mean you can disregard your morals as a human being... He should have told the team before the race that he wasn't going to oblige, and atleast give webber the decency to make it known that he would "race" until the end dispite team orders, so mark could have raced to the end aswell. But he didn't, he dog acted it to get a win... Such is the make of the man apparently..
Colin
Guest
Take a chill pill guys! The Number one driver is the one who is paid most.Is Webber paid most? No. Please someone, show Webber his contract ! Mercedes knows how to maximise its investment.
Michael Lamonato
Expert
I think you both have points. On the one hand, Vettel did the right thing by him (obviously I think this, I wrote the article!) On the other, from Red Bull's perspective, a precedent needs to be set. Christian Horner is at risk of losing his authority as team principal if the team doesn't believe he acted hard enough in doling out punishment. But that's more to do with the team than the driver.
Michael Lamonato
Expert
It's an opinionative article, it's certainly not trying to a piece of objective journalism! I'm not a fan of Vettel, not really. I'd actually consider myself a bigger fan of Mark Webber - at least in part because I'm Australian. Don't get me wrong, when it happened my heart went out to Mark. He was betrayed, this is obvious. But from Vettel's perspective, and from that of the Drivers' Championship, it make perfect sense. I will admit, however, that Vettel's behaviour this round could be described largely as childish. I think the idea was right, the way he went about it was immature.
Michael Lamonato
Expert
It was one of the most interesting podiums I've seen in a while! And the atmosphere was so cold in the green room prior to the podium, too. I've not seen anything like it. I think if it backfires on Seb, it might be that Mark, with his back up against the wall, gets out there to make a point and suddenly rediscovers his consistency. If he wins the Championship, this whole decision will be for nought - but what an amazing season it'd be!
Michael Lamonato
Expert
I think this generation may well remember this sort of Vettel: the ruthless driver who's looking out for himself - but his legacy will be more positive than negative. I think Michael Schumacher had some significantly darker moments in his career, but it's difficult to get past his record-breaking seven titles first. His legacy, in the long run, will be as the most (for now, anyway) successful driver in our sport. Don't forget, Vettel's a numbers man. He loves collecting trophies and trinkets to add to his collection - constantly itching to set fastest laps and such. Winning more Championships will be above making a nice public image for himself on his list of priorities. I think that's closer to truth for most of Formula One's legendary drivers, as well.
Michael Lamonato
Expert
Both Red Bull drivers were asked by the team to tune down the performance of their cars to conserve parts, yes - but it was mostly to save the tyres. Red Bull was shocked with the tyre wear it experienced in Australia and during practice at Sepang, and didn't want to risk 'falling off the cliff' and losing all grip in the final stages of the race. That's why team orders were agreed upon before the race - Red Bull wanted to be sure it would take home as many points as possible (no matter where they were in the field) until they either sort out the tyre usage problems, or successfully lobby Pirelli to change its tyre compounds.
Kenneth
Guest
You say that about trophies, and my mind goes back to Senna and Prost in '89. What do people remember them for again?
nickoldschool
Roar Guru
For the record, I didn't believe for one second he was sorry. Was more referring to the fact he knew he was wrong, hence the '' for regrets.
B.A Sports
Guest
Mareks at 11:52am you told me "The reason the team instructions at the final pit stop to hold position was to ensure the engine (8 engines allowed for the whole season) was not compromised, the gear box was not burdened and the tyres were preserved." and 18minutes later you are telling me "There was nothing wrong with Mark’s car! Red Bull ordered to cruise home and avoit a crash between both drivers like in 2010 Turkey" So which is it?
Mareks
Guest
You are wrong once again! There was nothing wrong with Mark's car! Red Bull ordered to cruise home and avoit a crash between both drivers like in 2010 Turkey. Haven't you seen this a million times before in Ferrari, when M. Schumacher was cruising while his team mates were told to keep the gap and slow down?