Subject: “Weight of car number 63”. If the Formula 1 regulators spread a message like this after a Grand Prix, it will definitely mean big trouble. Then the racer in question was found to be too light at the finish line, following the obligatory gasoline sample taken: in this case by one and a half kilograms. And lightweights are punished.Two and a half hours after George Russell raced to supposed victory in his number 63 Mercedes in the High Fens, the disqualification took place, and record world champion Lewis Hamilton, Russell’s colleague at Mercedes, was proclaimed the winner. “Heartbreaking,” Russell wrote on Instagram. “We arrived 1.5 kg underweight and were disqualified from the race.” Russell’s W15 weighed 796.5 kilograms. 798 kilos are required. The Mercedes team saw the blame as their own: “We have to take the disqualification on ourselves,” race director Toto Wolff was quoted as saying in an initial statement. “We made a mistake and we need to make sure we learn from it.”
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Disastrous strategy?Mercedes later speculated that Russell’s supposedly winning strategy of only making one pit stop, unlike his rivals, turned out to be disastrous. “We believe that the loss of rubber resulting from the one-stop strategy contributed to the underweight,” chief engineer Andrew Shovlin was quoted as saying. Heavily worn tires weigh less than barely worn tires. Russell stopped after just ten of 44 laps, while Hamilton stopped for the second time after 26 laps. In the end he rode on significantly fresher rubber, which was also heavier. External content from Twitter In order to display external content, your revocable consent is required. Personal data from third-party platforms (possibly USA) may be processed. Additional Information . Activate external contentIn addition, Formula 1 does not have a lap of honor after crossing the finish line on the seven-kilometer-long track at Spa-Francorchamps. But it serves a practical purpose elsewhere. The pilots steer beyond the ideal line, to where there are countless rubber particles: abrasion. It sticks to the hot tires of the cars, which makes them land heavier on the scales. The pilots are always reminded by the command center in the pits to “pick up the rubber” so that there are no disqualifications. Mercedes said: “We will evaluate the events and understand what went wrong.” holiday at its best. Russell and Hamilton fought a close duel in the final, in which Russell had the upper hand by half a second and Oscar Piastri came third in a McLaren, but can now look forward to second place ahead of Charles Leclerc in a Ferrari. World champion Max Verstappen? Fourth thanks to Russell’s disqualification. But didn’t win in the Red Bull for the fourth time in a row: The last time that happened was in 2020. Nico Hülkenberg came last. The eventual winner Hamilton admitted that Mercedes was surprised by their own strength on Sunday. Especially after the training impressions. “Friday was such a disaster,” said the 39-year-old Hamilton. “The car was in the middle of nowhere.” It seemed unrealistic that Mercedes would triumph for the third time in the last four races. “We had a car that was the measure of all things in today’s race using two different strategies,” commented Toto Wolff on the jump in performance, but couldn’t really find an explanation for it. Hamilton, who started from third place, had Sergio Pérez in the second Red Bull and Leclerc passed, looking like the sure winner after two pit stops in a race marked by the balance of power. Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull toured at eye level, wheel to wheel, if you will. “Leave yourself enough space” Hamilton only had to overtake his work colleague Russell, who was 13 years younger than him. He dared to forego a second pit stop. When the others stopped a second time, he moved to the lead 14 tours before the end. Asked Russell again: “Confirm briefly, are you happy with staying outside?” “Yes,” he replied shortly: all or nothing. Piastri overtook Pérez and Leclerc, would he still crash the Mercedes party? The Australian succeeded in the masterful outside lane maneuver against Leclerc too late. How much risk would Hamilton, who is soon leaving Mercedes, take in the fight for victory? “Give yourself enough space,” they warned him. The record world champion obeyed and crossed the finish line behind Russell, but didn’t want to hide his disappointment. It wasn’t until much later, when the champagne had already been splashed, that he was allowed to celebrate.More on the topicAnd Verstappen? Coming from eleventh place due to a grid penalty, he raced to the finish ahead of Lando Norris. Although he had nothing to do with the victory, he still increased his lead in the World Championship over Norris: 277 to 199. In the constructors’ championship, McLaren overtook Ferrari and is now second. After the summer break, Formula 1 will tour the dunes of Zandvoort at the end of August.
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