I wouldn't write him off just yet. All it takes is one win to restore his confidence. He just has to do it before he's truly relegated to #2. There's a lot of racing to go yet.
yeah, it did look a bit like the tortoise and the hare, Ferrari probably knew they were going to be 3rd and forth unless they tried something different, however I don;t think Kimi would've passed Rosberg but for the brakes, once he got within 1.1 seconds he didn't get any closer, much like Vettel with Bottas.
I'm wondering if that little off broke more than just the wing. Otherwise you'd think Vettel would have had an easier time of it.
Finally realised spotted what broke on Vettels car, a big bit! The top flap seemed to just keel over. please log in to view this image
If they came in 2 laps earlier, they would have been 4.3 seconds closer to Hamilton and Rosberg, with 2 more laps to make it up and 2 laps less on the tyres when he caught up to them. Of course it may have made no difference as he may not have got around Rosberg so quickly with his issue, but they didn't give themselves the best chance IMO. Obviously they never anticipated Hamilton's issue and were racing for second, and the strategy in the end delivered what they aimed, but that was more luck than judgment and in hindsight with knowledge of Hamiltons issue, i fully believe they'd bring him in 2 laps sooner.
Hindsight again is a wonderful thing, Ferrari couldn't have expected the brakes to be that big of a problem for them towards the end. If they did Kimi would have won the race instead of just going for Rosberg at the very end as he would have needed less tyre to overtake Rosberg and Hamilton.
I don't think he'd have got past if it weren't for the brake issues.. Just look at how well Bottas kept Vettel behind.. The Merc is still the best donkey to have (for now) and for the couple of laps Kimi was behind Rosberg, Rosberg was able to keep him at just over a second behind, therefore not get DRS (well, at least I didn't think he did..) Had he put the Softs on earlier, he may have caught up quicker but then again his tyres may have gone off quicker too.. Not a Rosberg fan but he was pretty decent yesterday, yes, he wasn't on Hamilton's pace but, Hamilton's been on it all season so far, the more he keeps winning the more it will feed his ego/belief that he can't be caught, if we want a championship fight then one of Rosberg, Vettel and Kimi will need to start taking it too him and beating him more often!
Hamilton is driving like a man with no pressure. Getting the 2nd WDC has lifted a huge chip off his shoulder for a driver who many felt probably has under achieved since his explosive first season. All very well pointing out the Merc still have the best car (which they do), but you can see how he is in and out of the cockpit that he's enjoying his racing. He is under no pressure in the races because he is putting himself in a position where he is not under pressure. It's not by luck. He's got Rosberg defeated in the head, which after what went on last year will also be a huge boost for him. The others need to step up otherwise Hamilton is going to run away with the season. Vettel/Kimi/Rosberg are going to be taking points off each other, which is only going to make things better for Hamilton.
Lewis has to capitalise on this. I think he knows that anyway, it is well known that he wants to retire having achieved atleast 3 titles. This is probably going to be his best and last chance.
He'd just slipped behind Rosberg, so 4th was likely the best finish he would get. I think they felt the gap to Bottas, or at least fresh tire advantage, would mean he'd finish 4th anyway, so it wasn't worth risking it developing into a bigger problem.
Bit premature to say it will be his last chance. What do you think is going to happen in the future that will mean he can't challenge again? It's definitely a very good chance for him whilst Merc still have a competitive advantage. If Ferrari keep getting closer then he will have to fight more to win, but he's quite happy to roll his sleeves up and have a battle on the track.
Unless Ferrari give him a seat, I just don't see Mercedes dominating after this season (contrary to what I predicted, Mercedes haven't got their advantage tied up properly at the moment, letting Vettel or Kimi interfere with the perfect 1-2 result, it's exactly that way Mclaren rolled over to Ferrari in early 00's). RBR + Mclaren are clogged with young drivers in the pipeline and I doubt Lewis would want to move there. Lewis Hamilton is a great driver, but I think more doors will close than open, in no fault of his own, so it would be better to tie up his career aspirations now.
Controversial, if I may say so. I think most teams would still be happy to have him as a driver. I agree (and hope) that Merc's domination does not last as it is not good for racing, but Hamilton does not need a dominant car to win races. So long as he is given machinery that is at least competitive he will always have a chance. What will be interesting to see is that if, say Merc and Ferrari are at least even next year, will Hamilton go back to over-driving the car like he has been seen to do in the past when he feels like he has to make up the difference in performance?
I thought Vettel looked average in Bahrain, although Kimi brought some life to proceedings, Ferrari still miles away, not quite sure what Rosberg was up to !!
Ferrari just didn't have the speed down the straight to make use of the DRS, I think they made up .3 over the williams down the straight, compared to over .5 the other way around, getting the drive out of the final corner was essential, and neither Kimi or Vettel made any headway against Bottas or Rosberg. Kimi caught Rosberg at over a second a lap until he got into the really dirty air and then his progress stopped dead and he remained between 1.05 and 1.2 secs behind until Rosbergs brakes failed. Both Ferrari's were losing .2 from the entry of the last corner to the DRS activation point on the start/finish line to the Merc powered cars, I think if the 2nd DRS zone was on the second straight it would have served the non Merc powered teams better.
I wonder whether it's down to gear ratios, rather than anything engine or car related? Have they gone too short on the rations to make good use of DRS on a long straight? It was only towards the end of the straights where Rosberg suddenly pounced on them, so power wise Ferrari seem to be okay. Vettel never fell far back from Bottas on the straight coming out of the corner, but DRS couldn't get him close, which suggests its gear ratio related.
