Mercedes F1 team orders in Russia defended by Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel has defended Mercedes' tactics in the Russian Grand Prix, calling the rival Formula 1 team's decision to move Valtteri Bottas aside for Lewis Hamilton a "no-brainer"
Hamilton inherited victory at Sochi when Mercedes told Bottas, who was on course for his first win of the season, to let the championship leader past.
Victory for Hamilton, combined with Bottas keeping Vettel at bay for the rest of the race, means Vettel trails the Mercedes driver by 50 points with five races to go.
Vettel said: "Well done to both of them, they played together as a team very well.
"In their defence, all the questions - I know you guys love controversy so therefore ask naughty questions to them as individuals, but I think in the position they are it's a no-brainer what they did today.
"Maybe not all the questions are justified."
Mercedes had used team orders before the race-defining call, having asked Bottas to slow down and back Vettel up to try to avoid Hamilton - who pitted a lap later than Vettel - from being overtaken by the Ferrari when he stopped.
Although that failed and Vettel got ahead, Hamilton was able to re-pass his rival on his way to an eighth win of the season that means he is two victories clear of Vettel in the fight for the 2018 crown.
There are 125 points available this season but the gap is the largest it has been all year.
"I'm clever enough, I wasn't a genius in maths but I was clever enough to pay attention to make out for myself that it's not getting easier if we lose points," said Vettel.
"We have to be happy with third, and settle with that for today.
"I still believe in our chance yes. Obviously it's not getting bigger if you finish behind but who knows.
"It takes one DNF and all of a sudden things look different. Ideally two! Which I'm not wishing to Lewis, but you never know what happens.
"We need to stay on top of our game, which maybe we haven't been completely this weekend, and make sure from where we are now we focus on winning the last races."
Previous article
Gasly says debris hit his F1 helmet on first lap of Russian GP
Next article
Lewis Hamilton didn't want Mercedes team orders in Russian GP
About this article
| Series | Formula 1 |
| Drivers | Sebastian Vettel |
| Teams | Mercedes |
| Author | Scott Mitchell |
What needs to “change” for Red Bull is ending Verstappen’s errors
OPINION: Going up against the dominant force of Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton was always going to demand the best from Red Bull and Max Verstappen. But after making a couple more errors during the Portuguese Grand Prix, the Dutch driver showed there's a small gap he still needs to close in the 2021 Formula 1 title fight
The "subtle" Red Bull upgrades that kept it in the Portugal F1 mix
Red Bull's Portuguese Grand Prix fortunes were decidedly second best to Mercedes', but the result skews the potential that the team had at Portimao. With a new set of updates, the team looks good going forward into the rest of 2021's spicy F1 competition
Portuguese Grand Prix Driver Ratings
The 2021 Portuguese GP will for several drivers go down as a weekend of missed opportunities amid imperfect track conditions that caused struggles with tyre warmup. But the performances of a select few stood out from the crowd
How Hamilton took a “completely different journey” to Portugal victory
Just as he did in 2020, Lewis Hamilton had to come from behind to win the 2021 Portuguese Grand Prix. Only this time there were two rivals he had to pass, among the several challenges he had to overcome, on his way to securing a 97th grand prix victory
The ‘big fish’ mentality that kept an Australian legend winning
Frank Gardner was the veteran of just eight grand prix starts. It could have been more, but why waste his talent if the cars weren't up to it? NIGEL ROEBUCK recalls the life of one of racing's great characters
Why Todt’s FIA successor could be cut from the same cloth
Jean Todt has signalled that he will not stand for re-election as FIA president. MARK GALLAGHER analyses the strong credentials of one potential successor…
The data that leaves both Red Bull and Mercedes uncertain of supremacy at Portimao
Lewis Hamilton topped the crucial FP2 session on Friday as F1 returned to Portugal, but his Mercedes team cannot be sure it has the edge on its Red Bull rivals. As cool temperatures and wind combine with the still-slippery surface to present drivers with quandaries over set-up and tyre warmup, there's still everything to play for come qualifying
How in-form Norris is staking his claim as Britain's next F1 champion
As a highly-rated Mercedes junior, George Russell is naturally billed as Lewis Hamilton's heir apparent where Britain's next Formula 1 champion is concerned. But he may face competition for that accolade from Lando Norris, fresh from a confidence-boosting run to third at Imola, whose rise is being accelerated by his McLaren team’s revival
