Racing happens. Hamilton had a run on Rosberg, Rosberg shut the door. One trying an aggressive move, the other blocking aggressively. Bit daft on both counts but it happens. How the team deal with that I don't know. Hard for them to really punish them other than to remind them that they're ultimately punishing themselves when they lose it like that.
I really wouldn't want to be Kvyat today though. He must totally feel like cac. I totally hold my hands up though. Seems like RBR made the right call...
No doubt about it, the kid did good. Last half of the race reminded me of Maldonado/Alonso from 2012. Everyone expected Maldo to crash, make a mistake and for the Ferrari to hound him down and make the pass. Didn't happen then, or now. This should also end any speculation that the Renault/TAG engine is not up to scratch. If it's not up to the Mercedes, it is clearly at least as good as the Ferrari.
Ya know... I think Ferrari might be bigger losers than Merc today even though they got two cars on the podium.. Both Mercs out and they still couldn't get a win. That's pretty shocking to be honest. I really think they need to bite the bullet and bring back Ross Brawn.
Considering they mucked it up for themselves I think the stewards were right not to pursue it. Nobody else was harmed.
Congrats to Verstappen on his dream-come-true. Bizarre strategic decision with Ricciardo but one might speculate that Helmut Marko prefers this outcome because of its far bigger headline. It's naughty of me to speculate like this because I know it can start rumours; but I wouldn't put it past him, Horner or Mateschitz! Anyone who has an inkling of Red Bull's operation knows that the drinks company's greatest priority is publicity… [Edit: I've now seen others started the rumour in this thread before me, so I am vindicated!] As for Mercedes' crash-gate, I'm sure there were a lot of non-partisans only too pleased to see that particular racing incident. As Bhaji says at the top of this page, it was very aggressive driving from both drivers, but I think we should celebrate that Mercedes allow their drivers to fight hard. There are at least two other teams I can think of who would never allow it, especially an Italian one.
P.S. to above. I see it as a 'racing incident' not justifying any penalty to either driver. I say this regardless of the fact that both drive for the same team: although some stewards in the past have allowed incidents between team mates to play a part in their findings, it should make no difference whatsover and appears to be a thing of the past, thankfully. Both drivers had reasonable cause to take the actions they did, immediately prior to the collision. The situation was exacerbated by the speed differential and Hamilton was quite right to try to exploit what he knew was a weakness in Rosberg's car at that moment. I emphasis this because Rosberg's power setting error would almost certainly not be repeated by the time they reached Turn 5, and besides, it is a racer's instinct to go for the very first opportunity precisely because such errors are so rare.
Looking at Hamilton's onboard, he is very lucky not to have barrel rolled when the front wheel sheared off and went underneath the car. Have seen them go over before when that happens.
Yes. Thanks EMSC. And they've been doing it for decades, with complete disregard for the concept of 'sport' and how such actions alienate the public. Personally, and I say this despite the obvious current advantage of the Mercedes power unit, this is why I'm quite happy to see this team dominate more than all others, until the next regulation changes will once again reward whomever gets it right first, especially when testing is such a rarity. During most eras, one team tends to dominate, especially after regulation changes. But only Mercedes have made a policy of holding the concept of 'sport' a priority and made it crystal clear, pretty much from the outset.
Yes. Once he'd begun to spin, the fate of both drivers were in the hands of of the racing gods and Hamilton should be especially thankful to whoever put the finishing touches to that gravel trap.
