Inexplicable Lapse

It had to happen, sooner rather than later. From the time Lewis Hamilton alleged his number two status following the Monaco Grand Prix, it was clear that the 22-year-old rookie was set on an unavoidable collision course with teammate and two-time world champion Fernando Alonso.

While it was no surprise when the simmering conflict came to a head during qualifying for Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix, the manner in which the combatants declared hostilities was both stunningly abrupt and ill-considered.

Lewis Hamilton's opening gambit, of brazenly refusing to honour a team agreement and repeated requests to allow Alonso past during the fuel-burning phase of final qualifying, was in stark contrast to his carefully-crafted image as the gushing and eternally grateful rookie content to be 'living the dream'.

However, if Hamilton was to place his own interests above team harmony in his quest for a maiden championship title, disregarding the team agreement and radio orders was the lowest-risk option at his disposal.

Such agreements usually fall outside the scrutiny of the stewards and, because they are private arrangements within the team, are also generally unknown to spectators and fans.

As such, allegations that a driver broke the agreement are usually based on hearsay, difficult to prove, and often dismissed as excuses or sour grapes on the part of the losing driver.

Besides, Hamilton had a handy rationalisation in defence of his actions: Alonso's pace was such that, if Hamilton had deferred, there was also the risk that Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen would have passed him, thus compromising McLaren's chances of locking out the all-important front row of the grid.

If Hamilton had harboured hopes that his transgression would be tolerated, they were scuppered by the team's repeated radio requests for him to abide by the agreement and defer to Alonso.

At that stage, all Alonso had to do was to play the innocent victim of a rogue teammate, and the team's support would have swung towards him. The media and spectators might never have found out what had transpired, but the team would know.

Even if Hamilton took pole and the victory in Hungary, Alonso was virtually assured of second place. The two-point difference wasn't worth it for Hamilton, and his own renegade approach would have come back to haunt him at future races. Alonso would have established himself as the solid team player, Hamilton as the selfish mercenary.

Instead, and quite inexplicably, Alonso not only chose to nullify Hamilton's transgression with one of his own, he also contrived to make Hamilton appear the victim.

As tactically astute as the sport's top drivers may be, they lose all semblance of subtlety and cool thinking when the glittering prize of the world title is (in their opinion) wrongfully snatched away from them.

Michael Schumacher's initial feigned innocence at Jerez 1997 and Monaco 2006 might have seemed like a compelling performance to him, but it didn't convince the stewards.

Likewise, Ayrton Senna's collision with Alain Prost at Suzuka 1990 was as blatant and cynical as a professional foul can be.

Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso after the race © XPB/LAT

Perhaps Alonso thought he could put up a more credible defence than his predecessors. Maybe the Spaniard feels so alienated in the British team that he assumed nobody would support him, even if he was blatantly wronged. Perhaps he was so incensed by Hamilton that he no longer cared about the consequences.

Either way, when he retaliated in such an ill-disguised and public manner, he left the stewards with no option but to intervene in a dispute that had, until that point, been outside their domain.

It seems unlikely that Alonso could have orchestrated the delaying tactic from inside the car, as the cockpit lacks the timing resources to have judged the delay with such precision.

However, even if he was just a party to the incident and not the instigator, he alone stood to gain and must bear the brunt of suspicion.

If it had worked the other way around - the battle-hardened Alonso pulling off a sly professional foul and luring the rookie into hot-headed and public retaliation - it might have been more understandable.

But Alonso is the seasoned veteran, the one who is supposed to act with the bigger picture and season-long campaign in mind. Even if he was completely innocent of malicious intent, a veteran like Alonso must have realised how the pitlane situation would be interpreted by the stewards and other observers.

The only positive from Alonso's viewpoint is that the incident and ensuing penalty at least brought Hamilton's earlier transgression into the public spotlight.

However, that minor moral victory was not worth surrendering five precious championship points, let alone the 15 constructors' championship points that McLaren seem likely to forfeit.

It is perhaps as well that Saturday qualifying produced such fireworks, because a dry race Sunday in Hungary is almost guaranteed to produce a damp squib of a race.

And so it was. With four slower cars between the two McLarens on a circuit where passing is miraculous rather than merely unlikely, there was never the slightest chance that Hamilton and Alonso would end up in the same area dialling code, let alone fighting over the same piece of tarmac.

Alonso flattered initially, with passes against Red Bull's Mark Webber and BMW's Robert Kubica, before hitting the figurative brick wall in Ralf Schumacher's Toyota.

Further ahead, Raikkonen at least provided a semblance of competition by keeping Hamilton honest. However, as is customary at Hungary, the vain hopes of wheel-to-wheel dicing were based on the physical proximity of the cars, rather than on any genuine attempts or opportunities to overtake.

Raikkonen saw his statistical hopes dwindle by surrendering another two points to championship leader Hamilton, but the Finn could justifiably draw some satisfaction from Hungary.

Although completing a race weekend without antagonising the team might sound like a strange criterion for success, it became pertinent within the context of the bizarre events at Hungary.

Raikkonen has also been offered the glimmer of hope that Hamilton and Alonso could emulate Prost and Senna before them and take each other out of contention at upcoming races, although the timing of the calendar works against that eventuality.

With the three-week summer break before racing resumes at Turkey, McLaren have the chance to regroup. Even if the relationship between Alonso and Hamilton is permanently soured, they will recognise the importance of continuing to finish both cars at each race.

At least, that is how things should work out if common sense prevails. However, judging by the disarray at McLaren, common sense is one resource that is currently in short supply at Woking.

Another explosive Prost/Senna conflict is a distraction that team chief Ron Dennis doesn't need, particularly not when his team is still embroiled in the ongoing espionage case.

For the fans, though, it's added yet another wrinkle to an unfolding plot that is already chock-full of intrigue and drama. The remaining six races are sure to add yet more twists in the tale.