Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton is desperately waiting for redemption after a horrible time on the grid last year. He could not win a single race last season. Moreover, this current season has been more or less better than last year. With the W14 car, the German Team is not facing too many porpoising issues and bouncing troubles. But Aston Martin is competing hard with Mercedes for second place in the constructor’s championship.
Moreover, fans are not able to see a fight between the top two finish anymore. Apparently, Max Verstappen is not giving any other driver any chances to get to the P1 spot, as he has won six already from eight. But the fans are enjoying the battle between the two old McLaren teammates for second place. In the Australian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton beat Fernando Alonso for a P2 finish. But in the Canadian Grand Prix, the Spaniard made it even with the Briton. There, the two drivers were caught in a little mixup in the middle of the race in Montreal. Although Mercedes boss Toto Wolff claims that Fernando Alonso tried to get Lewis Hamilton into trouble.
Toto Wolff Blames Fernando Alonso For Creating A Scene Out Of Nothing
The seven-time champion came so close to being eligible for a penalty in Montreal last weekend. The safety car entered when George Russell hit the wall, and at that point, both Hamilton and Alonso decided to come to the pit. The Spaniard entered first, so his pitstop was set to finish quicker. But Lewis Hamilton came out of his pitstop and just in the two-time champion’s way. Hence, Fernando Alonso had to take evasive action to avoid contact with the Mercedes driver.
The whole incident was a bit theatrical. But Toto Wolff thinks otherwise. According to him, Alonso made a scene out of nothing, and he is pretty skilled at doing so. The Mercedes boss even mocked Fernando’s loud steering movements and mentioned that the little touching of the brakes was to create an “I almost hit him” drama. On the other hand, the former Minardi F1 team boss, Paul Stoddart, believes Lewis Hamilton deserved a 5-second penalty. But after the investigation, FIA did not think it was essential to penalize Hamilton.
Lewis Hamilton Praised The Spaniard’s Pace In Montreal
On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton praised Fernando Alonso for being too fast for him in Canada. The seven-time champion mentioned in BBC Chequered Flag Podcast, “In terms of pace, Alonso would pass me one way or the other. I mean, he was just that fast.” Hamilton believes Alonso was, at one point, only half a second faster than him. Although he later focused on getting the podium and bringing as many points as possible for the team.
But the team Mercedes is still far away from the current leader Red Bull. They have won all the races so far. On the other hand, Mercedes managed to gain four podiums so far. Hamilton got three podiums, and George Russell got one in Spain so far. Although currently, Mercedes is focusing on closing the gap as far as possible with Red Bull and hanging on to the second place.
