After the Singapore Grand Prix Lewis Hamilton has a seven point lead with just three races left this season. A big lead with so little time left, sounds familiar doesn't it?
Last season Lewis Hamilton went into the Chinese Grand Prix needing to finish in second place to win the world title, but as we all know he did not, and that was down to McLaren.
Hamilton was in second place behind Kimi Raikkonen and heading for the ultimate in a racing driver's career, but the race had started in damp conditions and everyone began on intermediate tyres.
That was fine, but towards the end of the middle stint the rain began to dry, and the inters began to wear down. Hamilton is notoriously hard on his tyres, for reasons that even I can't understand.
The tyres wore down right to the white camber beneath the rubber and that meant very little grip. Hamilton asked the team to come in for new tyres but they said that he should stay out to secure the title.
Hamilton at this point said that he would rather finish lower down and be safe than stay out and risk other drivers and himself too, but McLaren were becoming greedy at the prospect of taking the title.
Hamilton had to obey team orders and stay out for another lap, but he was very careful the whole way round as he complained that he was losing grip rapidly. His original thought was that the traction control system had faulted and was not keeping the back end in check, but he then sussed the problem and told the team he was coming in this lap no matter what the team said.
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Hamilton came towards the penultimate corner and nursed the car round, and then came into the pits. He took the outside line as he was unsure of the grip, but then the car would not stop and he trundled into the gravel on the outside of the pit entrance.
The title race went into the final race and bad luck cost him the world title as the badly designed steering wheel was his foe. Hamilton tried to pass Fernando Alonso into turn three at Interlagos, but missed his braking point and flew on to the run-off area.
The steering wheel was a cluster of buttons and the pit limiter was placed directly next to the handle, where Hamilton would grab onto after his attempt to pass Alonso. He thumb just touched the limiter and Hamilton tried desperately to turn it off, but it only goes off once it goes past an FIA sensor at the end of the pits.
McLaren were a mess, trying various different modes before the finally got the car going again. Hamilton could still finish high enough to win the title, but he needed a one-stop strategy to do it.
He had the pace to catch the BMW and Williams drivers, but he was given a ridiculous three-stop strategy which let him catch the pack and then fall back after his hard work.
This season it could be the same, a large lead with it all to lose, but will McLaren cost him the title again?
Well, they have already started to do it. At Canada they told him there was one car, Robert Kubica at the end of the pits and to wait next to his rear tyres. He saw the red light and braked at his normal distance, but then realized Raikkonen was there and could do nothing to avoid him.
Then, at Monza they sent him out far too late in session two of qualifying on the wrong tyres! Then in the race they brought Hamilton in for his only stop, and rather take the sensible option and put inters on whilst the track was beginning to dry, they put full wets on and cost him what could have been a podium.
Points have been thrown down the drain by McLaren this season, and if it continues, Hamilton could be denied for the second season in a row, and if history repeats itself, Kimi Raikkonen will take full advantage and win the title.
27 points behind I hear you say? So what, he was 17 behind with two left and won it, so why not again?
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2 months ago
Nice article, I think Mclaren have made far less mistakes this year, Monza was Hamiltons choice, so not really Mclarens fault.
Ferrar are the ones who have made the mistakes and thrown away the championship this year!
from 2 months ago
Nope, they have made as many mistakes, and I even forgot a few that I have just remembered!
Ferrari have bollocked themselves into a hole though, and you have to wonder if both teams will throw it away and allow the uber consistent BMW to snatch it at the last second.
2 months ago
i don't think they will cost him the title again.
hamilton has realised that he was a very agressive driver in 2007 and partly through 2008 and i think mclaren don't want a ten year drought. they will be conservative for the last 3 races.
from 2 months ago
Yep, I think they should just concentrate on qualifying well and getting strong finishes for the race. Sensible option is always the best.
2 months ago
Interesting, but I think he is the creator of his own mess, not McLaren. Ultimately it is the driver who has the final say on tyres.
As for Interlagos, he had not hit the wrong button for the other races that season, therfore I can only surmise that his mentality let him down after his fighting with Alonso. There is a psycological reason behind every action we make.
Lastly at Canada, regardless of whether he was only told about Kubica, surely he could not have failed to notice the shiny red Ferrari.
from 2 months ago
The driver has half of the say, and the driver knows that the team has the weather data so they listen to them.
He had no other sort of incident last season so him hitting the limiter is understandable, Heikki did it at Aussie this season and then they changed it.
Kimi should not have been illegally parked anyway.
from 2 months ago
He still needs to be strong enough to follow his own instincts, stand up to the team, and get the right tyres on.
2 months ago
hamilton is gonna win this one for sure. massa is good enough this year for title but luck, weather & disabled team mate might prevent him for grabbing the title :sigh
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