Making the most of a superior start, Lewis Hamilton enjoyed a leisurely stroll that was in stark contrast to the dismal afternoon of teammate Nico Rosberg
If there’s any driver that’s earned a few weeks off: it’s Lewis Hamilton. If there’s any driver who needs some time away: it’s definitely Nico Rosberg.
The races experienced by the two Mercedes drivers were the embodiment of their recent reversal of fortunes, with Hamilton at his commanding best while Rosberg’s afternoon just went from bad to worse.
As was the case a week prior in Hungary, the start played a huge factor in their races, with Hamilton once again jumping his teammate to take a lead he would never relinquish. Conversely, Rosberg found himself stuck behind the Red Bulls of Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen, with an untimely penalty forcing him to settle for fourth.
His sixth win in seven races, Hamilton more than tripled his championship lead on Sunday, with Rosberg trailing by 19 points. The last race before the summer break, this was a race that could have big repercussions for the rest of the season, so read on at a look at all the fallout from the 2016 German Grand Prix.
A man known for his love of the jet-setting lifestyle, Lewis Hamilton has plenty of reason to be flying high after Sunday.
Driving most of the race in a class of his own, the three-time world champion has to like his chances of adding a fourth after getting what might be his most important victory of the season. With four weeks to digest whatever happened at Hockenheim, Hamilton dealt Nico Rosberg another body-blow by extending his championship lead from 6 to 19 points.
Winning the sprint to the first corner, the rest of Hamilton’s race proved elementary as the sandwiching Red Bulls prevented Rosberg from challenging him. In a race not devoid of wheel-to-wheel excitement, Hamilton was a picture of the domination Mercedes has enjoyed since 2014, with the rival Red Bulls doing well just to get in the same camera shot. Even when it looked like there was a remote possibility of a challenge, with Daniel Ricciardo taking chunks out of Hamilton’s lead after starting his final stint on super-softs, Hamilton was able to swiftly crush the Australian’s hopes with his own PBs, proving that he had more than enough pace in hand. In all honesty, it probably can’t get much easier.
For all the hardships endured to start his season, Hamilton heads into the final nine races in a very familiar position. Of course there’s no guarantees in this sport – and we know Hamilton’s in for some discomfort with two big engine penalties looming, but right now, come race day, the Brit is simply better. He’s on a seven race stretch that’s as good as he’s ever had it at Mercedes – who in their right mind would bet against him?
For Nico Rosberg, it’s safe to say this year’s German GP was a homecoming he’d rather forget.
After a Saturday where an electronics issue couldn’t stop him from besting Lewis Hamilton for pole, Sunday was an entirely different story for Rosberg as he was beset by misfortune on his way to fourth.
In many ways, Rosberg’s race was the antithesis of Hamilton’s – where Hamilton was able to nail his start, Rosberg cost himself with wheel-spin. Where Hamilton spent the majority of the race far away from the drama, Rosberg was the one creating it. And while Hamilton managed to extend his gap to the Red Bulls, Rosberg couldn’t close his. The German seemed utterly devoid of composure, which was no more exemplified than in his incident with Max Verstappen.
While it wasn’t quite as ham-fisted a move as his one on Hamilton in Austria, it was similar enough to once again draw the ire of the stewards, as Rosberg was handed a five-second time penalty – although apparently it took the team’s timer another three seconds to switch to his iPhone’s stopwatch from Pokémon Go. From Rosberg’s perspective, his frustration was understandable as Verstappen did get away with another cheeky, last-second waggle in the braking zone, but while he probably shouldn’t have been penalised, there is still a more general problem for the German in his lack of composure in setting up the pass. The pass was very much a speculative attempt, with Rosberg coming from a long way back just to draw alongside Verstappen, and against someone with the teenager’s reputation, he was always throwing caution to the wind. Was that moment – lap 29, with his opponent on an out-lap, at the very first opportunity he had – the only chance Rosberg would get to pass Verstappen? This was the thoughtless approach, and once again, it cost him.
If 2016’s early stages showed that Rosberg could finally usurp Hamilton, this recent stretch has served as a reminder of why the German finds himself in his teammate’s shadow to begin with, as he is starting to once again lose composure at particularly inopportune times. We’ve seen Rosberg perform better than this, and while a 19-point deficit with nine races to go is far from insurmountable, it feels like if he wants to keep his dream alive, he has no choice but to regain that form sooner rather than later.
The holiday may be just beginning, but it’s clear the honeymoon has officially ended at Ferrari.
Just days after technical director James Allison abruptly left the team, the Scuderia found themselves jumped by Red Bull in the constructor’s standings at Hockenheim, and just as they were at the end of the Fernando Alonso era, once again struggling for answers.
Heading into the break last year, Ferrari were unquestionably the second-best team on the grid, with two victories to their name and another to follow in Singapore. The new partnership of Sebastian Vettel and Maurizio Arrivabene seemed to mark a turning point for a team that had been struggling to regain much of the spark it had in the early 2000s, as the pair led a campaign that exceeded expectations while promising much more to come. A year later, all the hope and general positivity they brought seems to have eroded.
In Germany, the Scuderia was more lame duck than prancing horse, never really challenging Red Bull, let alone Mercedes, as both their qualifying and race-pace failed to impress in a trend that continues to worsen. After outscoring Red Bull 30-10 in Azerbaijan, they’ve gone 65-116 in the four races since, and have now completely shifted focus to development of their 2017 car. While in itself that seems like a prudent move, the behind-the-scenes turmoil reflected in Allison’s leaving does nothing to instil confidence.
As much as 2015’s improvement could be put down to the impressive progress made with their power unit, it seems the Scuderia has been let down by a chassis that by Arrivabene’s own admission, hasn’t gained downforce since Barcelona. With Renault slowly closing their own PU-gap to Ferrari, aerodynamics is only going to become more important for every team, and Ferrari have by their own admission, lost the 2016 war. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that the three teams who have a better chassis are all led by a member of the “design tree” of Red Bull’s Adrian Newey, with former Newey colleagues Paddy Lowe and Peter Podroumou spearheading Mercedes and McLaren’s designs respectively. If Ferrari wants to get back on top of the aero battle, it might be time to look to that tree for their next hire – after all, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.
Can Hamilton continue his hot-streak after the break? Or will Rosberg be able to recover? Does Ferrari have any hope of righting the ship for 2017? Sound off in the comments below.
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