“The problem is that Lewis Hamilton is the guy who shuts the door – Rosberg knows, in a one on one fight, that he’s the one who needs to make sure they’re not going off because Lewis doesn’t give a damn.”
“Lewis just shuts the door; if you’re there it’s your problem. Rosberg’s not like that. He’s not a killer, and Lewis is.’
The concise words of the Netherland’s Sport One’s Olav Mol before the Belgian Grand Prix, reflecting on Mercedes’ team orders debacle in Hungary. The words are also particularly pertinent when applied to Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg’s fights in Bahrain and Spain, which Rosberg complained were out of order at time.
Back to the present day and to how the world has changed. Rosberg, once universally regarded as the cleverer racer of the two, has made an uncharacteristically stupid mistake.
The Mercedes team, previously able to hold together a precarious harmony with its underlying ‘just go racing’ attitude, has crumbled and must rethink the foundation of its racing philosophy.
Context removed, this situation ought to be filed under ‘storm in a teacup’. The racing we’ve seen between the Mercedes pair this season is rare among teammates, but reasonably common between drivers from rival outfits.
Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel, for example, have had their own memorable on-track encounters in 2014.
In fact it’s probably more noteworthy that only one ‘racing incident’ has come from the significant amount of time this pair has spent together at the pointy end of the field. Such incidents are plentiful in the tangle of midfield cars over the course of a season.
Certainly the Formula One world is in hysterics because they are teammates, and any manoeuvre that puts a sister car at risk is a violation of that golden rule to keep both cars on the track.
The situation is exacerbated by the obvious title tensions that exist inside the team, and Mercedes will be made all the more uncomfortable by the creeping threat of Daniel Ricciardo holding a not-impossible Championship points deficit.
But none these reasons describe why the events a Spa-Francorchamps are important.
Belgium represented a significant shift in the Hamilton–Rosberg dynamic. Rosberg has assessed the situation and recognised that Hamilton, that great hustler of cars, twice narrowed a significant points gap – first of 25 points after Australia, then 29 points after the German Grand Prix – and was poised to seize the title lead for the first time in Belgium.
Tied into that is Rosberg’s own experience on the receiving end of such bullish drives, all of which put him in the decision to make sure the two don’t come together – at the detriment of his points haul.
All that’s changed now.
“When you’re out there you have to trust the people [not to] do things deliberately … I don’t really know how to approach the next race.”
The summation by Lewis Hamilton as to his feeling after Mercedes’ post-race debrief, in which Rosberg revealed to the team that he chose not to pull out of the ill-fated pass.
Much like football players blasting the ball through a wall of defenders when taking a free kick, a psychological objective has been achieved – the opposition might flinch and think twice before putting themselves at risk.
Rosberg’s pass attempt was clumsy – clumsy in the extreme considering his experience – and he is unlikely to draw any pride from his actions or their consequences. It is equally unlikely that his intention was to send Lewis out of the race, despite Hamilton’s belief that this is the case.
However, some satisfaction will be gained from Nico’s side of the garage – not from the 29-point buffer between he and his teammate, but from the knowledge that his message has been heard loud and clear.
Nico Rosberg is no pushover, no nice guy.
That’s the circuit breaker he was after. Next time he and Lewis are sharing the same piece of track – and there will certainly be a next time – Lewis might not be so fast to close the door on his teammate.
Though unjustly achieved, that psychological edge may well be the difference between a World Champion and the best of the rest.
Mark
Guest
I cant believe Rosberg has not taken such action before now, at long last he has put some manners on Hamilton, well done Nico.
greg t
Guest
Good to hear such sense in this forum. Rosberg stuffed up. If it was any other teammates so what. Just because it has championship repercussions shouldn't mean rosberg did it on purpose. Maybe lewis knows that fast ,ice cold consistency beats fired up supere he complains almost every ra speed. Must be killing him everytime he loses pts. Well yes we now this because he sooks every time it happens.
Rellum
Roar Guru
double post
Rellum
Roar Guru
To me it seems Nico took real umbrage at Hamilton's statement that he wasn't tough enough(I can't remember the exact quote) before Monaco. That dig seemed to really steel Niko into a much harder racer.
Bayden Westerweller
Roar Guru
I like to think of it as more of a 'Peter Pan' complex. He's a grown man at the wheel of an extremely powerful piece of machinery, and it's time for him to act like it.
Michael Lamonato
Expert
Yeah, fair call. Oliver Brown's latest column in the UK Telegraph (fw.to/mf8pa9l) pretty much nails it by calling Hamilton out on his persecution complex. If you haven't already come across it, I think you'll enjoy it.
Bayden Westerweller
Roar Guru
It doesn't exactly help Hamilton's argument about worthiness when you look at it this way - poor Lewis only had McLaren backing from the age of twelve and was given priority status in his first season, he really did it rough in those early years! This season is the first where Nico has a genuinely competitive package at his disposal, he toiled away for years at Williams with some great results, and as you mention, look how he did as Schuey's team-mate.
Bayden Westerweller
Roar Guru
Sorry, I probably should have clarified listless in the context of Lewis' mindspace - his Sundays have been fine, but leading into each race weekend since Monaco he's generally made inflammatory statements which have only accentuated his misfortunes.
Michael Lamonato
Expert
Yeah, I like this one. Rosberg spent many of his early F1 years moving out of the way of faster cars, it's taken him time to realise he needs to kick that habit!
Michael Lamonato
Expert
Thanks guys, glad you liked it! Lewis is an interesting case when it comes to is off-track behaviour. I tend to agree with you when you say he ought to leave his driving to do the talking - some of his worst drives are the result of him letting his emotions get the better of him. That said, I've also been impressed with the way he's dealt with his emotions this year. He's definitely matured in recent years - the (alleged) injustice of qualifying in Monaco probably would have destroyed him in 2011, for example. I wouldn't say he's been listless since then - his qualifying performances have definitely been lacking, but his raceday drives have been solid, particularly in recovery in Germany and Hungary. Plus his emotions lend the sport some colour it often lacks. Rosberg is pretty clinical when it comes to dealing with the press, as are most other drivers. It can be a nice change of pace!
Jawad Yaqub
Roar Guru
Exactly. Why don't we compare both of their Formula One careers? Lewis made his debut with one of the strongest teams at the time and was in the title hunt immediately. Nico in comparison started with the then struggling Williams outfit and never really emerged as a top driver until he was put next to Michael Schumacher in 2010. In that retrospect then, Nico has come from nothing whilst Lewis had been well groomed by McLaren once he made his debut and was winning races straight off the bat.
Bayden Westerweller
Roar Guru
His "I came from a poor background whereas Nico had everything provided for him, so I'm more deserving of the title" spiels are really growing tiresome. He needs to rediscover the back to basics attitude which saw him, as you say, sweep Malaysia until Spain. Compared to this, since Rosberg's incident at the conclusion of Monaco qualifying, Lewis has been listless. I second that Jawad, great work Michael!
Jawad Yaqub
Roar Guru
Yeah I agree Bayden. Lewis did the same thing at Monaco too after Nico's 'faux pas' in Q3. He needs to let his driving do the talking as it did from Malaysia to Bahrain earlier in the year. Playing on everyone's heartstrings including the press isn't going to win him the championship this year. Also, great read Michael!
Bayden Westerweller
Roar Guru
A big part of Lewis's problem - though not without Nico's help on the weekend, is his tendency to speak out whilst he's still raw. Making remarks on matters which are best left behind closed doors, such as "he (Rosberg) said he did it on purpose... he said he did it to prove a point." are the obvious example. Yes, perhaps Nico did, but it's up to the top brass - Lauda or Wolff, to make these kind of statements, which they eventually did. Hamilton turned the whole thing into a scandal, when he should have been thinking, "OK it's done, how can I make these points up at Monza?" He comes across as somebody who is fragile and needs the world to hear his story when it's already quite clear to see what the situation is, this as you say, could be the difference between claiming his second title or having untold long-term psychological issues which may stop him from being the amazing driver he is when he is on.