REVEALED: Why Mercedes F1 Ignored 2-Stop Strategy for Both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas
Follow Us
Mercedes potentially made the mistake of opting against pitting Valtteri Bottas for the second time in France. And the Brackley outfit did end up amidst a similar situation in Styria. But, only this time, a second stop could have possibly shattered Bottas’ hopes of re-claiming P3 from Sergio Perez.
It was the same for Lewis Hamilton as well, who, at one point, lost hopes on beating Max Verstappen. Hence, he pitted for the second time to secure the fastest lap point.
However, James Vowles, Mercedes’ strategy director, revealed that the team were constantly planning for a two-stop strategy with Bottas and Hamilton throughout the race.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
What did the Mercedes strategy director say?
Mercedes posted a video on YouTube, where Vowles responded to certain queries from the fans. One of them questioned why Lewis’s second pit-stop did not come earlier, possibly opening the floodgates to a late charge on Verstappen.
“It was there as a consideration, not just for Lewis, but for Valtteri as well all the way through the race. The problem is that the undercut power there was fairly small, around a second and a half,” he said.
Trending
Liam Lawson’s Surprise Contract Clause Threatens Daniel Ricciardo’s RB Seat
April 24, 2024 11:15 AM EDT
Daniel Ricciardo To Be Replaced by Liam Lawson After Miami, F1 Pundit Dishes Out Harsh Verdict After Australian’s “Amateur Mistake”
April 17, 2024 11:14 AM EDT
What Is Azzurro La Plata and Azzurro Dino? Significance of Ferrari’s Historic Change to a Blue Livery for Miami GP
April 24, 2024 04:52 PM EDT
“[Charles] Leclerc Doesn’t Care About Ferrari”: F1 Insider’s Brutal Blow to Fred Vasseur & Co. Has Racing Community Lashing Out
April 24, 2024 05:00 PM EDT
F1 Rumor: Christian Horner and Wife Geri to Publicly Reveal All Details on Leaked Chat Scandal
April 22, 2024 04:10 PM EDT
Get instantly notified of the hottest F1 stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.
Follow Us
“If you look at this race pace, you can see that, relative to Verstappen, we fell behind by such a margin, that we weren’t close enough to execute a successful 2 -stop.”
Ultimately, Hamilton stole the fastest lap point from Perez at the very final lap of the race, denying Verstappen of any chance to counter-strategize and clinch that point from the Briton.
What would have happened if Bottas pitted before Perez?
Of course, Perez drove his way into the pits with around 15 laps left in the bag. However, assuming he did not do that, Mercedes could have pulled off a strategy with Bottas similar to what Verstappen did against Hamilton at Le Castellet. Would that have worked for Bottas at the Red Bull Ring?
James doesn’t think so.
“Perez had a small pace advantage relative to Valtteri,” he said. “The significance of that is if we were to convert it to a 2-stop, we would move Valtteri out of that podium position, now back into 4th.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
“And we simply wouldn’t have the pace to be able to catch back up and overtake.”
Overall, it was a bitter-sweet weekend for Mercedes, despite doing the best with the strategy for both the drivers. But the pace deficit against Red Bull denied the Silver Arrows from taking their usual gambles.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
So, with the Austrian GP around the corner, can Mercedes somehow bring down the gap to their rivals and possibly challenge them for P1?
Watch Story: Lewis Hamilton’s Biggest F1 Crashes