Lewis Hamilton Chinese Grid Penalty

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/98713

I could start the bull**** saying it's the only way McLaren could get Jenson to take pole by removing Lewis but I won't lol! Funny, how it's only picked up in the last 48 hours, what the hell was the team doing over the break?.....shocking. I fully expect the f***** up pit-stop during Lewis' charge from say 5th or 6th on the grid. I'm not too worried as China offers plenty of overtaking opportunities and Lewis' new racing approach may have to be thrown out the window.....exciting.

Thoughts? Is it Jenson's to lose or will Mercedes DRS system take them to pole?

Calm down it can happen to anyone, it's better getting it sorted before the race and starting 6th or 7th than retiring from the race. Rosberg went really well at China last year and led large chunks of the race so considering the length of that back straight, i'd say Mercedes are in with a good chance of pole. Be interesting to see how Redbull do, don't think they'll have any updates, big ones at least, but they do seem strong in the race as opposed to qualifying.

Its a daft rule imo, regardless of who the driver is being penalised.

I highly doubt McLaren would deliberately jeoparise their chances of another front-row lockout, given Alonso is currently top of the driver standings.

Drivers' points are also what win Constructors' titles, so it makes no sense to sabotage either of your drivers.


@Critical_mass: The grid penalties were brought in to enforce the engine and gearbox usage rules. Hitting teams with financial penalties hasn't worked in the past, so the only alternative is to hurt their chances of success.

For what its worth, I agree its harsh, but the same rules apply to everyone.


@john: I'd be surprised if Button isn't on pole, after Hamilton's grid penalty (assuming Red Bull, Ferrari et al haven't brought any new upgrades to China) and you'd have to say its his race to lose. Judging from the last couple of races, Mercedes' DRS system will get them near the front in qualifying, but they will be let down by their poor race pace.

dyrewolfe wrote:I highly doubt McLaren would deliberately jeoparise their chances of another front-row lockout, given Alonso is currently top of the driver standings.

Of course they wouldnt, it was just a joke lol! I agree it must be Jenson's to lose, although will be fascinating to see if Lewis changes that consistant approach he is currently employing, when back amongst the pack, which is what he is going to face this weekend. Surely, the old aggressive, risk-taking approach from Lewis should return this weekend, especially as he's no longer on the front row and can no longer sit back and remain consistant like he did in Aus/Malaysia where I actually found him astonishingly boring to watch.

My wife asked me why they punish the drivers for this and said its unfair. I explained why and she said its nonsense but hey.

If I were LH, I would adopt a different race strategy and try to qualify with the hard tyres and go for a longer stint to negate the penalty.

One thing's for sure, it's going to be interesting watching him come through the pack

I'd be surpried if Lewis does have to "come through the pack".

Barring any further problems, I'd expect him to get provisional pole and end up starting 5th, in which case he's going to have some interesting scraps to get past the likes of Alonso, Vettel and Webber.

As to qualifying on hard tyres, it will depend on the McLarens' pace relative to the other teams. If they have enough of an advantage that they can be as quick, or marginally quicker, even on harder tyres, I'd say it makes sense.

If not, Lewis could end up starting too far down the grid and be left with too much to do to get on the podium.

I'll say pole then start 5th. With a good start he could get up to 3rd. Then see what he can do from there, if anything. Im confident it'll be a Mclaren win either LH or JB - saying that, if its wet, then it could be anybodies race.

If he gets on pole he would be start 6th.

Exactly, that's why it's going to be difficult for Lewis to be higher than 7th in my opinion, especially as he's probably going to be only doing one run in Q3, we just dont know.

Well well well. What a fascinating quali

Monty - yup meant 6th

John - im happy to say you were wrong!

how was i wrong? someone said if he gets pole he starts 6th and i agreed by saying exactly. I then said i think it would be difficult for lewis to get pole if he's only doing one run so i reckoned he would grab 2nd and therefore be around 7th, which he was. i was right cm.

Crossed wires i think mate. I misread what you said and thought you meant highest is 7th - meaning the race, when infact you meant quali. Sorry haha.