FORMULA 1 - 2016

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SCOPE FOR MORE STRATEGY GAMBLES AS F1 MOVES TO POPULAR MEXICAN GP

The last few races have seen some fascinating strategy gambles from Red Bull and others, so will we see more of the same this weekend, as the F1 teams race for the second time on the revamped Hermanos Rodgrizuez circuit in Mexico City?

Over 350,000 people are expected to attend across the three days, with organisers installing new grandstands, such is the demand for F1 tickets in Mexico.

The track was brand new last year, so the surface has had a year to shed the oils that are always present in new tarmac and in addition there has been quite a bit of racing activity, so there should be significantly more grip from rubber on the surface.

It is forecast to be hot and dry; Mexico is entering its dry season, which means a very low risk of rain for the weekend.

Last year Mercedes had a huge pace advantage over the rest of the field, so it will be intersting to see where they are relative to Red Bull and Ferrari this time. It is likely that they will still have a good edge, so the intensity of the drivers’ championship battle will continue.

There was a Safety Car at a key moment in last year’s race, which had a big effect on the race and a bold strategy gamble from Williams on Valtteri Bottas’ car paid off to give them a podium finish. How Williams would like to repeat that this season!

They are in a tight fight with Force India over fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship, with several million dollars in prize money, not to mention pride; Williams were third in 2014, so it would be a bad collapse to fifth two years later with a Mercedes engined car.

Last year the new track surface appeared from practice running to give low tyre degradation, but in fact it was quite significant as the race went on. Although tyre graining was an issue for many until enough rubber had gone down in the race, the higher temperatures in fact reduced the effect of graining. Meanwhile another challenge the teams will be aware of from last year is the fact that the low air density at altitude means that the cars travel at speeds of over 360km/h and as a consequence brake cooling is critical for many cars.

Last year Pirelli brought the soft and medium tyres and it was essentially a one stop race. The medium works better in cooler conditions, as we saw on Sunday in Austin when the cloud cover came over during the race and many teams went to that tyre.

For Mexico few medium tyres have been picked in the allocations so it looks like qualifying on supersoft and then leaning more on the soft for the race, with the likelihood of two stops for most. The soft lasted around 25 laps last year, the medium significantly more. The drive through time in the pits is 16 seconds, plus the time for a stop so the total time needed for a stop is quite short relatively speaking and this encourages more stops.

The track showed huge improvement in lap time as the rubber went down last year; at one point Lewis Hamilton did a faster lap on the medium tyres than he had done in the first part of qualifying, which is highly unusual and shows how fast the pace was in the race as the track improved.

Last year the race was held on the first week of November and the track temperature on race day hit 56 degrees. The medium tyres were good for around 40 laps last year and its interesting to note was that Hamilton was harder on his tyres in this race than Nico Rosberg, who went on to win.

There were only 21 overtakes in the race last year, of which 12 were DRS assisted, so it’s not a high overtaking track.

Mexican Grand Prix in numbers

The 2016 Mexican Grand Prix will be the 17th world championship F1 race hosted at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. The track is named after Mexican F1 racers Ricardo and Pedro Rodriguez, and the former held the record for being the youngest front row starter by qualifying second at the 1961 Italian Grand Prix aged 19 until Max Verstappen qualified second at Spa earlier this year aged 18.

Heading into this weekend’s race, Mercedes has now won 16 races in each of the last three F1 seasons and can now set a new all-time record for victories in a single season if it wins any one of the final three events. The 2016 season is the longest in the history of F1 but if one of the Silver Arrows wins in Mexico, the team will break its own record in the same number of races (19) as were held in 2014 and 2015.

Nico Rosberg goes to Mexico with the first ‘match point’ in the drivers’ championship as he can clinch the title if he wins and Lewis Hamilton finishes tenth or lower. If he does win the title this year, Rosberg will become the third German F1 world champion after Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel.

For the first time in F1 history, two drivers from the same team are now guaranteed to finish in the first two positions in the drivers’ championship for a third successive year. Behind Rosberg and Hamilton, Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo can wrap up third place in the 2016 standings if he finishes in the top ten in Mexico.

Hamilton can score a victory at a 23rd different F1 circuit if he wins this weekend, which would tie Schumacher’s current all-time record. The world champion can also reach that target if he wins at the next race in Brazil, or take the record for himself if he wins both events.

The British driver’s pole at the US Grand Prix last weekend means he has now taken the top spot in qualifying at 23 different venues, which broke Alain Prost’s record of 22 that had stood since 1993.

Felipe Massa will make his 250th F1 race weekend appearance in Mexico, but he won’t get to 250 Grand Prix starts until the season finale in Abu Dhabi, which will be the last race of his 14-year career in the sport. This is because the Brazilian driver didn’t start the 2005 US Grand Prix due to the Michelin tyre saga at Indianapolis, and the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix after his accident in qualifying.

Massa secured his 150th F1 points finish last time out in Austin, but his controversial collision with McLaren’s Fernando Alonso meant he has slipped down behind the Spaniard to 11th place in the drivers’ championship. The 35-year-old, who announced his retirement at the Italian Grand Prix last month, has not finished outside the top ten in the standings of a full F1 season that he has completed since 2005 when he race for Sauber.

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MEXICAN GRAND PRIX: HAMILTON BEATS ROSBERG

Reigning Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton won the Mexican Grand Prix, at the Autdoromo Hermanos Rodriguez, to add pressure on Mercedes teammate and title rival Nico Rosberg by reducing the points deficit between the pair to 19 points, with only two rounds remaining.

Hamilton made a strong start, winning the drag race to Turn 1 but locking up on the brakes in the process which resulted in a trip across the grass for the Mercedes, but he rejoined the track in the lead and stayed there all afternoon.

He said on the podium, “It was amazing because of all these people viva Mexico! This is honestly the best crowd we get anywhere. In our home country it is always great, but these guys have such a great passion.”

“I love it here. I have had tacos every night. Nico is doing a great job. I’m really grateful the team did a great job,” added the Briton.

Championship leader Rosberg went wheel-to-wheel with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen through Turn 1 and he too was forced of track to avoid flying over the kerbs. The German slotted into second place where he stayed for the the rest of the race, with only a lunge by Verstappen (again) late in the race to contend with.

Rosberg summed up his sentiments, “It has been a good day. I haven’t been too fast this weekend so I have to accept second place. I got shunted at the start and had a battle with Max Verstappen late on, so it was OK to be second.”

There was more action, down the order, as the field roared through the Turn 1 and Turn 2 complex, with the Haas of Esteban Gutierrez clipping the back of Pascal Wehrlein’s Manor which caused it to spin into the Sauber of Marcus Ericsson. Wehrlein was out of the race with a broken rear wheel, while the other two managed to continue.

The incident brought out the safety car, which prompted Red Bull to get creative with strategy and call in Daniel Ricciardo to swap his Soft tyres for a set of Mediums.

Once the action resumed it must be said that up until the final few laps, in front of 190,000 eager fans, the race was a mundane affair.

However a dramatic end was in store, as the different race strategies impacted the battle for the final position on the podium with Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel on fresher Medium tyres reeling in, his nemesis, Verstappen on tired Mediums, and the pair of them stalked by Ricciardo on a fresh set of Softs.

With a handful of laps to go, the trio were circulating nose to tail, with Verstappen on the defensive in his inimitable style while Vettel stabbed at him where he could and clearly getting frustrated behind the teenager.

On lap 67 of 71, Verstappen braked too late into Turn 1 with Vettel almost beside him. The Dutchman cut over the grass (very similar to what Rosberg and Hamilton did at the start of the race) and kept his third place with Vettel having to tuck in behind the Red Bull.

Verstappen was advised over the radio by his race engineer to give back the position, which he ignored. The race stewards announced that they were investigating the incident after the race.

At this point Vettel was seething, spewing expletives over the radio while Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene gesticulated theatrically on the pit gantry.

With all the drama going on over the airwaves, Ricciardo attacked on the next lap into Turn 4. The Ferrari and Red Bull rubbed wheels as they battled for the same piece of tarmac. Vettel managed to hang on to fourth, while Ricciardo was forced to concede to avoid a collision and dropped back.

Ahead of them Verstappen had a couple of seconds cushion and thus it was game over, the furious last minute battle between the trio seemed settled as they crossed the line behind the Silver Arrows pair – Verstappen from Vettel ahead of Ricciardo.

But Vettel’s anger continued after they crossed the line, as he lunged towards the slowing Red Bull of Verstappen, gesticulating at the Dutchman who responded with similar universal sign language of racing drivers.

The stewards’ verdict came when Verstappen was already in the pre-podium room with race winner Hamilton and second placed Rosberg. The teenager looked at the screens and saw he was fifth, thanks to a five seconds penalty for his actions.

Vettel was third and along with a red entourage made his way to the podium in the awesome stadium arena, as Verstappen trudged the other way back to the paddock.

During the podium interviews with Juan Pablo Montoya, Vettel excused himself, “I was using a lot of sign language. You have to understand the adrenaline. Then obviously he left the track and didn’t move and so you can understand why I was annoyed. I was really disappointed when I crossed the line, but then I was told to come up here.”

Ricciardo, who was promoted to fourth thanks to his teammate’s penalty, was nevertheless aggrieved by Vettel’s defensive moves and made his feelings known, “[Vettel] is smiling now. He doesn’t deserve to be up there. I thought I had every right to be there but he kept closing the door under braking. I was frustrated with that.”

“I also didn’t understand the start, how you can be leading the race, defend, go off the track and not get a penalty? What was different with Max Verstappen’s move and Lewis? It was a mistake and you have to pay the price. I am just frustrated with how it all panned out to be honest,” fumed the Australian.

Verstappen’s near podium finish turned to fifth, and of course he was not happy, “I think it is pretty similar to what happened in corner one, Lewis went off and got a massive advantage and Nico went off when we touched. I didn’t even get an advantage, I was the same length in front, so i think it is ridiculous.

“They thought I had to give it back, but it was never confirmed. I was not backing him up, I was just trying to do the best I can. They don’t give a penalty for Nico, don’t give me a penalty at the end of the race.”

“I saw the footage. At least I can do it in a good way, it is ridiculous what [Veetel] did and then he starts shouting on the radio. I don’t know how many times he is using very bad language. I will speak to him because this is how ridiculous he is handling it, he is just a very frustrated guy at the moment,” added the 19 year old.

Behind the squabbling trio, Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen and Nico Hulkenberg in the Force India, had their own intense battle for sixth. The pair also going wheel-to-wheel late in the race, with Hulkenberg spinning as the pair were side-by-side and Raikkonen taking sixth.

Hulkenberg recovered to finish seventh, ahead of the Williams duo of Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa who crossed the line in eighth and ninth respectively.

Local hero Sergio Perez, who spent most of the race staring at the back of Massa’s car, scored the final point for Force India.

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VETTEL: HERE IS A MESSAGE FOR CHARLIE – F*CK OFF!

Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel may have been gifted third place in the Mexican Grand Prix, but the quadruple Formula 1 World Champion Sebastian Vettetl is in hot water for his tirade during the race in which he told his engineer that Charlie Whiting to f*ck off and blasted Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.

Here is what Vettel said to his engineer over the radio during his intense battle for third place with Verstappen late in the race:

Vettel: “Move, move. For f*ck sake. He’s a little f*cker… that’s what he is.”

Vettel: “I mean am I the only one or are you not seeing what I am seeing? He is just backing me up into Ricciardo? For f*ck sake.”

Ferrari: Charlie said [radio crackles up]

Vettel: “Here is a message for Charlie: F*ck off! F*ck off! Honestly. I mean honestly, I am going to hit someone. I think I have a puncture, rear left.”

Ferrari: Tyres are fine, tyres are fine

Vettel: Here is a message for Charlie: F*ck off!“He has to give me the position. End of the story.”

Ferrari: Charlie say no.

Vettel: “Well here’s a message for Charlie. F*** off! Honestly, f**k off.”

Ferrari: Sebastian calm down. They are under investigation. We know it is not fair, but calm down. Put your head down and we talk afterwards.

Vettel: Okay, copy. Received.

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WOLFF: BRAWN HAS MY VOTE FOR F1 LEADERSHIP ROLE

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has said his predecessor Ross Brawn would have his vote if the Briton wanted to return to Formula One in some capacity.

“He has been there forever, he has the right distance from any team after being away a couple of years,” the Austrian told reporters after Mexican Grand Prix qualifying on Saturday.

“If I need to underwrite Ross coming back in a leadership function in Formula One, he has my vote.”

Former Ferrari technical head Brawn was principal of the Honda team before taking it over when the Japanese company pulled out in 2008.

He won the 2009 championship with his eponymous outfit and then sold it to Mercedes and remained in charge before leaving in 2013.

Brawn said recently that he had no interest in working for a team again but indicated he could be tempted to help the sport as a whole.

“Trying to help F1 become a better F1 would be appealing. It would be the one thing that could be interesting,” he told Britain’s Daily Telegraph newspaper in an interview published last week.

“If you ask me what F1 needs, it needs a plan; a three-year and a five-year plan. My view is we haven’t got the ideal structure for creating that plan and implementing it over time,” he added.

Brawn has a book coming out in Britain next Thursday, with much made already of comments about his departure from Mercedes and how he felt a lack of trust from Wolff and non-executive chairman Niki Lauda.

Wolff, whose team have now won three constructors’ and drivers’ championships in a row since Brawn left, said those comments had been cleared up.

“There was lots of controversy around the book he has written, and succession and transition are never easy,” he said. “It’s a delicate matter.

“For me this is no problem, and actually we’ve been in touch and he has said some quite nice things about us not dropping the ball, and the relationship is intact.”

Brawn, 61, has been linked to a possible role in Formula One under new owners Liberty Media, who took over the sport in September, in technical or management areas.

“Ross has huge experience, has the right personality, the technical knowledge of potentially playing an important part in Formula One going forward,” said Wolff.

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ECCLESTONE SAYS ARRIVABENE NEEDS SUPPORT

Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone believes that Ferrari team principal Maurizio Arrivabene should not be ousted, instead he should be supported by a right hand man to help with the running of the sport’s most famous team.

This year’s on track failings and behind-the-scenes drama are well documented, with Italian media having a go at everything, from the leadership to the drivers to the team personnel.

Ecclestone gave his opinion, on the situation at Maranello, to La Gazzetta dello Sport, “Ferrari has all the requirements needed to win the F1 world championship, from their drivers to the technical team.

“The problem lies with the senior personnel. I remember a similar situation when I suggested Ferrari should hire Jean Todt,” said Ecclestone in reference to the start of Ferrari’s golden era.

“It was not easy for them, because Ferrari preferred to have an Italian team principal. I believe today this is what is missing.”

“I am not suggesting that someone replaces Arrivabene. They need someone who can support him in daily running of the team and operational aspects,” he added.

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Verstappen calls Vettel's behaviour 'ridiculous' in Mexican GP

Max Verstappen labelled Sebastian Vettel's behaviour "ridiculous" as the Ferrari driver blocked Daniel Ricciardo and swore angrily over the radio during the closing laps of the Mexican Grand Prix.

Vettel was furious that Verstappen did not concede third position after locking up and taking to the grass at Turn 1 while defending the place with three laps to go.

The German criticised Verstappen, then turned his fury onto Formula 1 race director Charlie Whiting, saying: "Here's a message for Charlie - F*** off! F*** off!"

He also exchanged hand gestures with Verstappen after the chequered flag, waving a finger at the Red Bull driver, who responded with a wave of his own.

"I don't know how many times he is using very bad language in general," Verstappen told Sky Sports.

"I think he has to go back to school or something to get some language.

"I will speak to him because this is just ridiculous the way he is handling it.

"He's always so frustrated, the whole weekend, he's shouting on the radio.

"In the end, he's just a very frustrated guy at the moment."

The stewards handed a Verstappen a five-second time penalty after the chequered flag, enough to drop him to fifth, meaning he had to leave the cool-down room as he prepared to visit the podium.

Verstappen disagreed with the decision, which meant Vettel was promoted to third, citing Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg running over the grass at Turn 1 at the start and not picking up a penalty.

"It's ridiculous," he said. "It is pretty similar to what happened on lap one, corner one, where Lewis ran off, he gained a massive advantage.

"Nico also went off in Turn 1 when we touched, and he also gained advantage.

"OK, if they don't give a penalty for that, don't give me a penalty at the end of the race.

"I didn't even gain an advantage, I was still ahead on braking and when I came back on the track, I was the same length in front."

Verstappen's Red Bull team-mate Daniel Ricciardo accused Vettel of moving under braking in defence of fourth, something Verstappen has been criticised for previously.

When asked how he saw the incident, Verstappen said: "I saw the footage already. At least I can do it in a good way - he [Vettel] doesn't know how to do it because it's ridiculous what he did.

"Daniel is alongside him and he just turned into him, they touched, and he starts shouting on the radio."

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JUST IN! Vettel loses Mexican GP podium after penalty

Red Bull Racing's Daniel Ricciardo inherited a Mexican Grand Prix podium finish after Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel was penalised for his late-race defensive maneuvre.

Having been held up by Ricciardo's teammate Max Verstappen after the Dutchman straightlined Turn 1 and remained ahead, Vettel blocked the fast-approaching Aussie aggressively at Turn 4 on the penultimate lap of the race.

The pair nearly made contact arriving at the corner but Vettel would hold on to what was then fourth position, leading Ricciardo by 3.5s at the chequered flag and then inheriting third place when Verstappen was assessed a swift post-race penalty.

However, his podium remained provisional as the stewards investigated his defensive driving, with both Red Bull's Helmut Marko and Ricciardo himself saying Vettel had violated the very rule against moving under braking that had been recently implemented in response to Verstappen's tactics.

Following a meeting with the parties involved, the stewards gave Vettel a 10-second penalty and dropped him to fifth place for changing direction under braking. 

The penalty means Ricciardo moves up to third and Verstappen to fourth.

Vettel was also awarded two penalty points.

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Vettel's behaviour "unworthy of a four-time champion" - Marko

Sebastian Vettel's former Red Bull mentor Helmut Marko says the German's behaviour during the Mexican Grand Prix was "unworthy of a four-time world champion".

Vettel raged on the radio in the final laps of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez race after Max Verstappen straightlined Turn 1 ahead of him while defending third and refused to give up position.

While Verstappen would be penalised post-race, with Vettel promoted to the podium, it was not before the German insulted both the Dutchman and F1 race director Charlie Whiting on team radio.

Red Bull advisor Marko, who oversaw Vettel's years with Red Bull, said: "The situation is unworthy of a four-time world champion.

"His choice of words certainly wasn't first class."

Vettel went to see Whiting about his comments in the post-race press conference, but refused to discuss the meeting in detail.

"I don’t understand why you’re making a fuss and asking the question," Vettel told Sky Sports.

"For sure it’s not the right thing to say. Equally, in my defense, emotions and adrenaline are pumping high. I don’t understand why you’re trying to push me in a corner and make me answer something [that] then you try and make another loop.

"Out of respect I went to him and told him what I did. I think he’s aware, and that’s it."

Asked what Whiting had told him, Vettel said: "It's none of your business."

Verstappen has Red Bull's support

Commenting further on the race, Red Bull's Marko said that Verstappen enjoyed the team's full support, and questioned the penalty assessed against the Dutchman.

"We support him. The decision is not understandable. They use different standards and this is not okay."

Marko also said that Vettel had overstepped the line in defending from Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo after his Verstappen run-in.

""I've never seen such a huge line change as when Vettel moved over to Ricciardo and pushed him off the track, leaving him no space at all.

"Vettel completely turns in on him. This is exactly what the anti-Verstappen rule should forbid you to do. There is politics involved that I cannot comprehend. We just hope for a fair decision and we don't protest."

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Bottas: Force India still faster

Nine points behind Force India on the Constructors’ Championship table, Williams drivers’ Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa finished the race P8 and P9 respectively.

Earning a combined total of six points, their rivals for fourth on the Championship managed seven points after Nico Hulkenberg finished seventh and Sergio Perez finished tenth.

Bottas admitted that the Silverstone-based outfit were quicker than them on the track, but with two races left in the season, the Finn is hoping gain an edge on them at the next Grand Prix in Brazil.

“As a team we did a good job today, with a strategy and tactics that worked as good as we could have hoped,” he said.

“We managed to make the one-stop strategy work, which was helped by perfect timing with the pitstops. Unfortunately Force India still have a bit more pace than us and that is why one of them was ahead of us today.

“Our battle with them is very close and we just need to make sure that we do an even better job next time in Brazil.”

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Rosberg: Okay to be second

While Nico Rosberg has always maintained he is racing for the victory and nothing less, he concedes it was “okay to be second” after an eventful Mexican GP.

The championship leader started Sunday’s grand prix second on the grid knowing that he needed nothing short of a victory to stand a chance of wrapping up the World title in Mexico.

However, a P2 would mean he was still on course for a first title but in the longer game.

And that is exactly what he achieved.

Rosberg survived first lap contact with Verstappen to run second but later came under attack from the Red Bull racer for a second time.

Verstappen made a lunging move but went in too hot and ran off the track, handing second back to Rosberg.

And that was enough to ensure he’s still on track for the title as he holds a 19-point advantage over race winner Lewis Hamilton.

“It has been a good day,” said Rosberg.

“Lewis has been too fast this weekend so I just have to accept second place.

“I had some massive battles out there.

“At the start I got shunted and then with Max later on and everything so it is okay to be second.”

[LLC]

First couple of laps and the last couple of laps were exciting racing, the rest was a bit dull.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Baldy]

The inbetween was boring because of the track.  Typical track with huge runoff areas but no place to pass.  Because there's no place to pass, strategy and luck plays a bigger role than a driver's brilliance in modern F1.  One of the result of this is drivers and teams crying to the stewards about every little thing like a bunch of whining 5 year olds.  I'd rather see driver brilliance, hard racing with consequences for taking risks and daring. 

The steward's involvement with F1 is getting ridiculous.  I don't tune in to see what the steward's decision of the day is.  Why, in this modern age, does it take them so bloody long to make a decision?  Except for exceptional cases, they don't need to talk to everyone before making a decision.  Other sports manage to review plays and make decisions in a much more timely manner.  Max's penalty for example is 2 min decision after watching a few replays.  What the hell took them so long?!  Not a fan of Max but the kid should never have been in the podium room in the first place if the stewards did their job. Even the decision against Vettel should not have taken that long.  The TV replay shows an infraction or it will not, it will not change after talking to anyone.

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VETTEL TO ESCAPE SANCTION AFTER APOLOGY TO FIA

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel has escaped sanction after apologising to Formula One race director Charlie Whiting and the sport’s governing body for Sunday’s expletive-laden Mexican Grand Prix rant.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) said in a statement on Tuesday that its president Jean Todt had decided, “on an exceptional basis”, not to take disciplinary action against the four-times world champion.

The FIA made clear, however, that any such incident in the future would be met with a summons to its International Tribunal.

Vettel could have faced anything from a reprimand to a race suspension if the governing body had decided to take disciplinary action.

The FIA said the German “spontaneously sought out” Whiting after the race and had, on his own initiative, also sent letters to him and Todt “in which he apologised profusely for his actions”.

“He also indicated that he would likewise be contacting (Red Bull’s) Max Verstappen and vowed that such an incident would never occur again.”

Vettel’s outburst, in the closing laps, was broadcast to a worldwide television audience on Sunday with the swear words beeped out.

Whiting drew his ire after race direction did not immediately order Verstappen to let Vettel past when the Dutch teenager gained an advantage by cutting a corner while defending third place.

In a farcical conclusion, Vettel was promoted to third after the race and appeared on the podium before being demoted back to fifth for an illegal defensive move of his own against Verstappen’s team mate Daniel Ricciardo.

The Australian was moved up to third and Verstappen, who had finished third on the road but dropped to fifth after a five second time penalty, fourth.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said on Sunday that what Vettel had done was similar to a football player abusing the referee and he expected some sort of punishment for his former driver.

Whiting, who is also the FIA’s technical head, is a highly respected figure in the paddock.

“The FIA will always condemn the use of offensive language in motor sport, especially when directed at officials and/or fellow participants,” the governing body said.

“(It) expects all participants in its Championships to be respectful and mindful of the example they set for the public and the younger generation in particular.”

Vettel is enduring a tough time at Ferrari, failing to win a race so far this season with only two of 21 rounds remaining.

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HAMILTON: IF I LOSE THIS YEAR IT WON’T BE AS PAINFUL AS 2007

Lewis Hamilton accepts he is more likely to lose the Formula One title than win it, even if he is giving it his best shot, but failure will hurt less than in 2007 when he missed out by a single point.

The triple world champion’s victory in Mexico on Sunday was the 51st of his career, putting him second equal on the all-time lists with France’s Alain Prost.

“I am not focused on the championship now, I am focused on trying to win these races, performing at my best,” said the Mercedes driver, 19 points behind team mate Nico Rosberg with two rounds remaining.

Rosberg will be champion for the first time if the German triumphs in Brazil, a race he has dominated from pole position for the past two years and that Hamilton has yet to win, next week.

Asked whether he was prepared to lose, Hamilton said he had been there before.

“I lost in 2007 and I know it won’t be as painful as then,” he said, referring to his rookie season with McLaren when he was pipped in the final race in Brazil by Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen.

“I have lost many races and championships in my career so it is not like I haven’t experienced it. I am in a scenario now where there is more of a chance I will lose it than win it. It is hard to swallow but it is what it is.

“Life will move on, I will move on. I still have three (titles). I really hope next year I don’t have reliability problems.”

Rosberg finished second on Sunday and Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said there was now less pressure on the German.

“I think for Nico it’s maybe beneficial now because all this talking (about how) ‘you need to finish second in order to make it to the end’ is finished now,” Wolff told reporters.

“He has it in his hands. If he wins the race in Brazil, he’s winning the championship early.

“I think this is maybe a bit easier in terms of tackling the situation with a little bit less pressure because he still has another go in Abu Dhabi.”

Rosberg, the bookmakers’ favourite, has adopted the mantra of one race at a time and said that would remain the same.

“I’m not going to change my approach,” he said. “I’m going for the win in

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WHO ARE THE CLOWNS RUNNING THIS CIRCUS?

You wouldn’t trust Formula One with a loaded gun, because it would be sure to shoot itself in the foot and the drivers’ derring-do, the adrenaline, the speed, the glitz and the wealth of the sport are trumped sometimes only by its buffoonery.

The Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday could be Exhibit A in a business school class about how to turn a perfectly good product into unappealing gruel. Tennis champion Serena Williams, a trackside VIP guest, spent chunks of the race typing on her mobile phone, likely asking the questions, “Who are the clowns running this circus?” and “When’s the next flight home?”

A quick summary: The third-placed driver was actually fourth, replaced by the fifth-placed guy who finished third after the driver who was fourth was moved up to third immediately after the race, but only for a few hours, when he was demoted to fifth.

And on his way to his fourth place that became a third place and then a fifth place, Sebastian Vettel sprayed expletives over his car radio. This childlike fit of road rage was prompted by the fact that the driver in front of him, Max Verstappen, was laboring under the clearly mistaken impression that the whole point of an F1 race is that one shouldn’t move over simply because the short-tempered guy behind feels he should be in front.

With Vettel breathing down his neck, Verstappen braked too late, careened off a turn and across the grass before rejoining the track back in front of the German. Post-race, in the first of their confusing changes to the finishing order, stewards demoted the Dutchman from third for that misdemeanor which they previously ignored when race winner Lewis Hamilton did almost the exact same thing.

Head scratching.

And was Vettel immediately punished for his beeped-out foul-mouthed televised tirade? Of course not. He was promoted from fourth to third, albeit temporarily, handed a shiny trophy and bottle of Champagne.

Again, confusing.

The redeeming feature of this otherwise processional and largely dull race, yet another, that Hamilton led from pole position to finish would have been the brief light at the end of the tunnel when Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo fought wheel-to-wheel going into turn four near the end.

Ricciardo, his Red Bull shod with faster soft-compound tires, tried overtaking Vettel’s Ferrari from the left. The German, understandably, didn’t make way, squeezing the Australian into the left-hand turn but not appearing to do anything rash like ramming into him.

The exquisite car-handling skills, to touch at high speed but not crash, were exhilarating to watch; heart-in-the-mouth stuff.

“Brilliant driving from both of them,” former F1 driver Martin Brundle said, commentating on Sky Sports.

But the stewards ruined that, too. Long after fans in Europe had gone to bed thinking that Vettel was third, having watched his celebrations on the podium with Hamilton and second-placed Nico Rosberg, the stewards nitpicked holes in his driving and demoted him to fifth.

In defending his position on the bend against Ricciardo, Vettel made “an abnormal change of direction” that was “potentially dangerous,” the stewards ruled.

It was impossible not to scoff at the irony. Danger on a track where cars hit hair-raising top speeds of 370 kilometers per hour? Duh. Perhaps next time, they’ll hand out speeding tickets and wring the sport completely dry of thrills.

What else was Vettel to do? Wave Ricciardo through? Miss the bend and drive straight on like Verstappen, only to be penalized for that, too? The sport needs rules, but not rules that stop racers from racing.

Nor did it make sense that Vettel wasn’t pulled over for his radio meltdown. The four-time world champion blamed the heat of the moment — “I was full of adrenaline,” he said — for turning the airwaves beeped-out blue. In football, Vettel would have earned a red card and an early trip to the showers, not a shower of bubbly on the podium.

Shame, really, because this F1 season is heading to an exciting crescendo, with Rosberg close to winning his first world title if he can hold off Mercedes teammate Hamilton in November’s last two races, in Brazil and Abu Dhabi.

But the overwhelming impression left by this Mexican Grand Prix of frustrating confusion and poor behavior was that the off-season respite from F1 can’t come soon enough.

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VERSTAPPEN: SEB PENALTY WAS A SMALL BIT OF JUSTICE

It was a classic TV moment when Max Verstappen realised, in the pre-podium room at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, that he was actually not supposed to be there and in fact at that point Sebastian Vettel was third while the Dutch teenager was demoted to fifth due to a five second penalty he received from the FIA race stewards.

Vettel celebrated with gusto on the spectacular podium, in the stadium arena, but it was Verstappen and the Red Bull team who had the last laugh on the day as Vettel was also penalised, the ten seconds punishment he received dropped him to fifth, promoting Verstappen to fourth and Daniel Ricciardo to third.

Verstappen commented afterwards, “I think it was a small bit of justice that the stewards made the decision to penalise Seb. It was clearly a wrong move which has been punished according to the rules.

“As long as we can stick to the rules every week then we won’t have the frustration we felt after the race. I’m really happy for Daniel to get on the podium after a strong drive and it’s a great result for the team.”

Verstappen also felt that his mistake on lap 68 which forced him to skip across the grass and with it cut the track in Turn, was similar to the incident race winner Lewis Hamilton had on the first lap.

Verstappen explained, “When I went off the track towards the end I think it was pretty similar to Lewis on lap one, corner one. He went off and I felt he gained an advantage, I didn’t even gain an advantage, I was ahead going into braking and when I came back on the track I was the same distance in front so I don’t understand the penalty.”

Meanwhile Red Bull boss Christian Horener predicts that Vettel’s radio rant – where he insulted race director Charlie Whiting (report here>>>) and also had a good go at the Red Bull drivers – will result in some form of penalty or sanction.

“Of course in the heat of the moment there’s always going to be emotion from the drivers,” said Horner “In other sports, I’m sure if football players had microphones on their language would be an awful lot bluer than what’s going out on the track.”

“But in any sport what you can’t do is give abuse to the referee, essentially. So I would be surprised if that went unreprimanded.”

“It is not an attribute that he had when he drove for us. Obviously his frustration is vocalising, and everyone can hear that,” added Horner.

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HULKENBERG: LEWIS’ START THING WAS VERY STRANGE

In the aftermath of the Mexican Grand Prix and the subsequent furor involving Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, many seem to have forgotten the lap one incident whereby race winner Lewis Hamilton over shot his brake marks and was forced on to the grass, cutting the track and gaining a  big advantage over the pursuing field in the process.

However Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg, who finished seventh, raised some questions after the race, “Lewis’ start thing was very strange. I mean if that’s not gaining an advantage then I don’t know what is gaining an advantage.”

“Had there been a gravel trap or a wall he would have been in big trouble. Maybe something like we have at other tracks like Sochi or Monza [cones or boards] if you go off there you have to go around a certain thing to make you pay the price.”

“Because where he braked there’s no way he’s going to make the corner. I was surprised afterwards that it wasn’t even looked at,” added Hulkenberg.

Championship leader Nico Rosberg saw no wrong in the incident, “Lewis went into the corner first, and came out first. That’s  okay.”

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PROST CONGRATULATES LEWIS HAMILTON ON 51ST WIN

Lewis Hamilton scored his 51st Formula 1 victory at the 2016 Mexican Grand Prix and with it equalled Alain Prost’s record of wins at the highest level of th sport and the Frnechman was one of the first to congratulate the reigning world champion.

After witnessing Hamilton’s triumph at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Prost wrote on Twitter:

Quote

 

51 and not the end . Well deserved @LewisHamilton

 

The French F1 legend scored his 51 victories in 199 starts, winning for the first time at the 1981 French Grand Prix and scoring his final win at the 1993 German Grand Prix.

Hamilton has reached the 51 victory milestone in 186 starts, and now only trails Michael Schumacher in the record books, the great German driver has 91 wins on his F1 CV.

Hamilton said after the race in Mexico City, “It feels very surreal right now. That was an incredible target to get to. [Prost] was a great master, he had 51 wins, that’s a lot of wins. To think that Michael has 91 is just mind blowing, mesmerising, so I feel really grateful.

“I think I’ve had 30 wins with [Mercedes] so it just shows that this is the best team and weekend in and weekend out I continue to prove that it was the right decision coming here and the best decision of my life and career,” added the reigning world champion.

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Williams to skip FW39 name in favour of FW40 for 2017 car

Williams will mark the 40th anniversary of the team by naming its 2017 car the FW40 - meaning it will skip the FW39 designation.

It's the first time the team has missed out a number in its naming sequence, having started with the FW06 in 1978 for the first of its own designs. Previous to that, the team used a customer March 761 chassis during its debut season.

The first part of the naming pattern are the initials of co-founder Sir Frank Williams.

Speaking ahead of the team's 40th anniversary, deputy team principal Claire Williams said: "40 years ago Frank and Patrick created what would become one of the most iconic teams in the history of Formula One – Williams.

"We are immensely proud of what we have achieved during our long and illustrious history. We have experienced the most euphoric highs - reaching the pinnacle of the sport nine times as a Constructor and created seven Champion drivers; Alan Jones, Keke Rosberg, Nelson Piquet, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve.

"We have also experienced the lows; the heartache that the sport can cause and victories that have agonisingly slipped away.

"So much has changed in Formula One in the last 40 years but one thing remains the same, our passion for motorsport. We want to celebrate our passion, our achievements and our heritage with everyone who has made this journey possible – our fans, partners, media colleagues and the many friends we have made over the last four decades.
"Racing, it’s in our blood, it’s our DNA and has been since 1977. We are proud of that and that will never change."

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Sergio Perez disappointed with 'frustrating' home race

Sergio Perez was disappointed with 10th place at the Mexican Grand Prix after a “frustrating” home race for the Force India driver.

He started in 12th place and made a good start, moving up to ninth place on the opening lap behind the Williams of Valtteri Bottas.

After the pit stops, the Mexican found himself behind the second Williams of Felipe Massa and struggled to find a way through.

He eventually just missed out on ninth place and picked up one point for 10th, in front of his enthusiastic home fans.

“Even though I scored a point, it was a very frustrating race being stuck behind the Williams cars and unable to overtake,” he said.

“I tried everything I could, but it’s not easy because they had a straight-line speed advantage. There were a few occasions when I was very close to making the move stick on Felipe [Massa], but in the end it just wasn’t possible.

“I think maybe we could have tried something different with the strategy because we underestimated the effect of the medium tyre, which turned out to have much more life than we expected.

“So perhaps we could have pitted earlier and run longer on the medium. That’s something we need to analyse and understand if it would have made a difference to our result.

“Even with the tenth place the fans were cheering for me. They are so loyal; always behind me and they have given me so much positive energy all week.

“Although I wanted to give them a better result, this has still been the most enjoyable race of the year.”

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Kimi Raikkonen 'struggled' for grip with medium tyre in Mexico

Kimi Raikkonen has admitted that he struggled for grip with the medium tyre throughout the Mexican Grand Prix.

The Finnish driver qualified sixth, ahead of his team-mate Sebastian Vettel, and moved up to fifth in the early stages on the soft tyre.

He switched to the medium compound at his first pit stop but couldn’t find the grip he had expected from the tyre.

Ferrari opted to pit him again for a new set but it didn’t solve the issue, with Raikkonen passing Nico Hulkenberg late on to finish sixth.

“My start was not too bad and we were running quite OK,” he explained after the Mexican GP.

“After the first pit stop, though, I struggled to get any good grip with the mediums, so we thought maybe we should try and see if we could go back on track with a new set of the same tyres: but to be honest I had no better grip at the rear.

“It was the first time I was running with these tyres, maybe it’s just how the tyre is. Afterwards it’s easy to say that probably it was not the right thing to do, but I’m happy that we tried.

“It was not easy to pass [Nico] Hulkenberg, it’s difficult when you get close and you have no grip. I don’t know if we touched, I just saw him spin.”

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'Not much to shout about' after Mexican Grand Prix - Eric Boullier

Eric Boullier says there wasn’t “much to shout about” for the McLaren team after a difficult Mexican Grand Prix.

The Woking-based squad qualified 11th and 13th with Fernando Alonso ahead of Jenson Button, but both drivers struggled to overtake at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

Boullier admitted there were a number of reasons why Button and Alonso ended up 12th and 13th, describing it as a “frustrating” race.

“Clearly, when you qualify 11th and 13th, as we did, there isn’t much to shout about when you manage to convert those starting positions to only 12th and 13th,” he said.

“But the race was a tough one for us, for many reasons. First, the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez is a decidedly difficult circuit on which to overtake, as a result of which our drivers were held up behind Carlos’s [Sainz] Toro Rosso for many laps.

“Second, we were forced to down-tune Fernando’s power unit during the race, which obviously handicapped him to some extent and third, there was a delay during Fernando’s second pit-stop, which lost him a further two or three seconds.

“These things happen – that’s racing – but it’s always frustrating for driver and team alike when they do.

“Anyway, from here we move on to Sao Paulo, Brazil, whose famously undulating Interlagos circuit will present a very different set of challenges.

“Having won the Brazilian Grand Prix no fewer than 12 times in our history, which is more than any other team, we hope to fare better there than we did here, although a 13th Brazilian Grand Prix victory will of course be out of our reach. But we hope points will be possible.”

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Brawn in, Bernie out?

According to German publication Auto Bild, Ross Brawn has agreed a deal with Liberty Media and the FIA to replace Bernie Ecclestone.

However, it is not suggested when exactly the former Ferrari and Mercedes boss will take up the role, with Ecclestone already confirming that Liberty Media asked him to stay on another three-years following their acquisition.

During an interview with Daily Telegraph, Brawn revealed that he will only come back to F1 as head of the sport and not part of a team.

He also offered advice on how to better the sport in the same interview.

“If you ask me what F1 needs, it needs a plan; a three-year and a five-year plan,” Brawn said.

“My view is we haven’t got the ideal structure for creating that plan and implementing it over time.”

Despite slamming Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda for breaking his trust when he departed Mercedes in 2013, the Austrian team boss still supports the idea of having Brawn at the top of the hierarchy

“If I need to vote for the return of Ross, then I am ready to do that,” Wolff told reporters in Mexico.

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Ericsson: Sauber performance upturn deserving of points

Sauber driver Marcus Ericsson says his team deserves to end its pointless 2016 run "sooner or later" in light of its recent performance gains.

Ericsson, who finished 11th in Mexico, says Sauber is finding more and more pace with each weekend since it got on top of its new aerodynamic package in Singapore.

"We're getting closer, that's the thing," Ericsson said in Mexico.

"Every race from Singapore, I would say, when we really started to get this new aero package to start working, from then, every weekend, we're taking steps - bam, bam, bam!

"Austin was really a good weekend, and now it was even better here. We're moving in the right direction, we need to keep doing that, keep pushing and not give up, because it's still two weekends to go.

"And if we keep doing like we did this weekend, we got to deserve a point, sooner or later, we need to get a point."

Sauber, for which Ericsson's 11th place was a season-best result, still has Brazil's Interlagos and UAE's Yas Marina as opportunities to finally claim points in 2016 - and will likely overhaul Manor in the fight for 10th in the constructors' if it does manage to score.

Asked if either Brazil or Abu Dhabi suited the Sauber car better, Ericsson reckoned: "No, I wouldn't say. But Brazil is usually a surprise race, with a lot of things happening - so bring that on, please."

     

"My best race in F1 so far"

Ericsson's Mexican Grand Prix looked undone when the Swede was caught up in the fallout of the Pascal Wehrlein - Esteban Gutierrez opening-lap crash, but a resulting safety car allowed the Sauber driver to pit onto the mediums and run the 70 laps until the end without stopping again.

"It's very frustrating to be 11th, because we're here for the points and we've been hunting the points for so long now - and this was such a good chance," Ericsson said.

"But anyway we need to also look at our performance, and that's been really really good all weekend. Already in qualifying we had a really strong showing there, and then we were a bit worried that the race pace was going to be not as strong, because that's where we've been struggling a little bit in the last couple of races.

"But to be honest, the pace in the race was been really really good, surprisingly good.

"I'm really, really happy, it was a great race, probably my best in F1 so far."

The Swede went on to suggest that Sauber had made a big step during the Mexican Grand Prix weekend, as the car hadn't looked capable on Friday of the pace it wound up showing on Sunday.

"Even when other people behind boxed and had fresh mediums on, you know, the pace was similar to, like, the McLarens and the Toro Rossos... and that was not the case in Austin, and on Friday we were far off these guys in race pace.

"We need to analyse and see why we managed to unlock that so good today. I think we did some good changes [on Saturday] to get a stronger rear end - and that helped me in qualifying, but also in the race I think that's made a big difference."

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OPINION: SEBASTIAN VETTEL’S SWEARING MAY BE PARDONED, BUT F1’S RADIO MOANING HAS GOT TO STOP

Sebastian Vettel has been let off by the FIA after profusely apologising for his tirade of swearing over the radio during the Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday.

The four times world champion wrote to the FIA Race Director Charlie Whiting, whom he had abused and to its President Jean Todt and in light of this, he escaped with a warning.

Vettel’s battle with Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo livened up a Mexican Grand Prix that had long since been decided in favour of Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton.

But the four times world champion’s expletive-filled radio rant towards Whiting has generated lots of headlines and controversy after he said: “here is the message for Charlie: F*** off! Honestly, F*** off”.

This was said in frustration at Verstappen’s not ceding third place after running off the track at Turn 1 towards the end of the race and no penalty coming his way that stage (he was subsequently handed a five-second penalty, with Vettel also getting penalised for a later clash with Ricciardo).

This website understands that Red Bull was told by the FIA stewards that Verstappen should give the place to Vettel – a message which Ferrari heard and relayed to its driver. This message to Vettel was heard by TV audiences but was thought to refer to an informal message to Verstappen from his race engineer soon after the incident.

But Red Bull did not tell Verstappen to move aside, and in failing to do so, while at the same time backing Vettel up into Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo on fresh soft tyres, it incensed Vettel to the point that he lost his head in the heat of the moment, went over-board with his messages and ended up in embarrassing situation for both himself and the Ferrari team.

It was a psychological one-nil to Red Bull in its best-of-the-rest battle with the Scuderia.

Even though it was a (heated) conversation with his race engineer, Vettel should definitely have been aware that tasty sound bites get picked up for broadcast on the world feed (just ask McLaren’s Fernando Alonso), but this idea that “if he said that to a referee in another sport he’d be sent off” doesn’t apply here. Vettel was effectively telling his manager to tell the referee where to go – an aspect unique to F1.

He should certainly have also been wary of breaching Article 12.1.1.f of the FIA’s International Sporting Code that warns of sanctions if drivers commit “any words, deeds or writings that have caused moral injury or loss to the FIA, its bodies, its members or its executive officers”.

Had Vettel made such an outburst in a TV interview he’d certainly have a case to answer for, but speaking his mind at 200mph off the back of frustrating race and season and all the emotion that came with it was great TV and should not be discouraged. It probably even contributed to his clash with Ricciardo that was certainly thrilling if you leave aside the (necessary) debate on moving in braking zones that followed it. But Vettel should probably hold back on the expletives in the future though as the role-model aspect of being a sporting star is important too.

But what should definitely be stamped out – and Vettel is as guilty of this as any other driver – is the immediate moaning via the team radio about any infraction committed by another competitor, no matter how small.

Consider the start of Q2 in Mexico when Vettel dawdled through the stadium section preparing to start a flying lap and inadvertently forced Hamilton to take a tighter, less-than-optimum line into the final corner after Ferrari failed to warn its driver of the world champion’s on-coming presence.

Hamilton immediately reported that he’d been blocked just as Vettel was loudly blaming his team for the mistake in an attempt to ward off the stewards starting an investigation into the incident.

For his part, Vettel did say after qualifying that if he was given a penalty then he would accept it without further protest, and that scenario did not indeed come to pass.
Both Hamilton and Vettel were easily going to make it into Q3, so why was there any need for cases to be instantly made for the prosecution and the defence over the team radio?

That example is purely illustrative, let’s not have complaints about perceived bias for or against certain drivers when there is none, but there have been plenty more examples of this moaning culture that has emanated from many drivers’ cockpits in recent years.

The worst was arguably Vettel and Alonso’s duel at the 2014 British Grand Prix during their prolonged battle over fifth place. Both drivers produced stunning displays of driving, but by effectively grassing each other up when they ran wide or didn’t leave space at certain parts of the track via the team radio they immediately undermined this.

So, in a roundabout way, lets not lose the drivers speaking their minds in the cockpit. It’s entertaining, insightful and adds an extra dimension to an already multi-faceted sport. Indeed the lack of radio messages during this year’s early-season ban on the teams helping their drivers with car problems showed how valuable it is to Grand Prix broadcasts.

But lets get rid of the instant moaning over minor indiscretions. Yes, F1 has a win-at-all costs mentality, but hearing the constant complaining is tiresome and at odds with the gladiatorial image the sport likes to portray of its heroes.

Perhaps Ross Brawn’s new role as the boss of the sporting side of F1 could be to install a ‘I-think-I’ve-been-hard-done-by-please-investigate’ button on the steering wheels (which I’m aware would be open to blatant abuse by those pesky drivers) and we might get an end to the “we’re talking to Charlie” messages that have become far too prevalent in recent years.