How Hamilton’s latest F1 battle error dents his otherwise stellar 2023
OPINION: The Qatar crash between Lewis Hamilton and George Russell had many Formula 1 observers referencing the intra-Mercedes shunt at Barcelona in 2016. But from Hamilton’s perspective this was far more like Spa 2022 and adds a poor blot on what had previously been a really good 2023 campaign for the seven-time world champion. Here's how
In a huge warehouse across the road from Silverstone circuit, there sit some famously broken parts of modern Mercedes Formula 1 cars. Amongst the mammoth catalogue of almost every car part and piece of team kit the Black Arrows squad has produced at its Brackley base 10 miles down the A43, are scuffed sidepods from the smashed W07 cars that sensationally collided on the opening lap of the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona. So too is the scarily scraped halo from the W12 Max Verstappen rode over when crashing with Lewis Hamilton at the 2021 Monza race.
We wonder, will Hamilton’s broken right rear wheel hub from last weekend’s Qatar GP one day be proudly displayed along with these items? Or are the circumstances so different this time – the painful reminder of just how abnormal a period this has become for the previously dominator Mercedes squad – that it won’t be available for team guest and sponsor gawking?
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