During the Bahrain Grand Prix last weekend, Lewis Hamilton was ordered to box in for the second time. However, he advised them not to take that decision because the tyre seemed fine. But ultimately, team Mercedes compelled Hamilton to follow the box. This has recently caused a huge drama among the fraternity. However, after the race was over, trackside engineer Andrew Shovlin explained why they did not listen to the seven-time world champion on the track.
Lewis Hamilton is arguably the most loyal driver of Formula One. By the Mercedes AMG Petronas team, we remember the face of Hamilton. He joined the team in 2013, leaving the comfort of McLaren, unaware if he was ruining his career or raising it. However, the Briton became a seven-time world champion there and made Mercedes hold eight constructors titles.
However, today, Hamilton has become one of the backward drivers. He passed a season with no wins last year. And perhaps this year, too, the history will repeat itself, and Hamilton will have to go winless as it seems. The W14 Mercedes car did not deliver the expectations in the competitive surrounding at the Sakhir International circuit. And Mercedes got another rival, Aston Martin, back in form.
In the 2023 season opener, the Bahrain Grand Prix, one of the most nostalgic and important moments was the rivalry between Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso. Both the Briton and Spaniard went wheel to wheel several times, re-igniting their vendetta from the past. And the reason why Mercedes ignored Hamilton’s advice while racing is none other than the two-time world champion, Alonso.
Fernando Alonso Was The Reason Why Lewis Hamilton Was Ignored
Mercedes did not mean to ignore or deny Hamilton’s saying about the tyres. The Aston Martin driver rather threatened them. During the post-race questionnaire, Mercedes was slapped with a question that fans were demanding to get answered. Why did they ignore Hamilton’s advice, who perhaps knew things better about the tyre? To which the trackside director, Andrew Shovlin, said, “We did it just to stop in or order to remain sure that we could keep the position. There, Mercedes would have liked to go longer had it not been for that threat.”
Andrew accepted Mercedes’s mistake while making a strategy that they focused on Aston Martin rather than focusing on Carlos Sainz, who was perhaps an easy take. Shovlin said, “only if we’d known that [the strength of Aston Martin] then we would have known that the position is almost lost”. And that’s how they would have gone longer with Hamilton. In the end, the Mercedes director admitted, “Against Carlos Sainz, maybe Mercedes would have a better chance.”
Now that Aston martin has risen like a new star after following Red Bull’s style of adapting to the new technical rules, it is safe o say that Mercedes is now a fourth team. Also, Hamilton claimed it. So Shovlin, too, fears not claiming that the Spaniard is a threat to the team. Mercedes made a mistake in counting Aatons as not that strong and tried to battle with Alonso instead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.