Mercedes were dominating Formula 1 just two seasons ago. Such has been their downfall that they are now fighting in the midfield. Moreover, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton are very close in race pace. This is providing headaches to the team. At the Japanese GP, they tripped over each other a few times which left Charles Leclerc confused and Carlos Sainz laughing.
Mercedes Fumble Over Themselves
The Japanese GP was a race where both Mercedes drivers kept finding each other on track, despite differing strategies. When they were beside each other during the first part of the race, they raced each other very hard. While it was good for us, Mercedes surely didn’t enjoy it.
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At the end of the Japanese GP, George Russell was driving with old hard tyres. Lewis Hamilton caught up to him on fresher tyres. Soon enough, Carlos Sainz caught up to both of them as well. Mercedes instructed George to let Hamilton through.
However, they then instructed Hamilton to keep him in DRS. That was something Sainz did with aplomb in Singapore. However, asking Leis to do it at the Japanese GP was destined to fail. Not only did it not work for Russell, but it also left Lewis vulnerable to Sainz.
‘I was laughing’
Carlos Sainz immediately came over the radio to say how Mercedes borrowed his trick at the Japanese GP.
After the race, he said, “Yeah, I found it [funny], actually. I was laughing in the car because I could see Lewis backing off in 130R to give the DRS to George.”
“Expected Mercedes to Play as a Team”
Charles Leclerc finished a very respectable P4 at the Japanese GP. He had the difficult task of passing George Russell when his tyres were still new. However, he knew Lewis Hamilton was catching up quickly. Therefore, he admitted he made a risky move.
He said, “Hamilton was going fast and pushing hard; I expected Mercedes to play as a team, so I knew I had little time and I had to risk a bit to pass Russell and in the end it was a good overtaking.”
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If Mercedes had played their cards right, they could have had a better result at the Japanese GP. If they make a title contender next year, will this teammate rivalry boil over? Keep following us to find out.
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