N review: from h world rcedes-Ferrari battle
knocked down in the first round.
Ferrari ought to have won the race in 2016, but screwed up their strategy. This time they dominated - and set the alarm bells ringing in Mercedes’ chassis and engine camps in Brackley and Brixworth.
It soon became apparent that while the Ferrari worked well on most tracks except perhaps the very fastest, the Mercedes didn’t like low-grip surfaces and tight corners. Later, insiders would refer to the F1 W08 as a ‘diva’, and certainly every effort was made by the engineers to find her sweet spot and keep her happy there.
Hamilton hit back with a win in China, but Vettel beat him again in Bahrain. And for the first time in Russia, Hamilton failed to get as much out of his car as Bottas, and the Finn emerged as a title contender by saving Mercedes’ face with a narrow victory over Vettel as Hamilton struggled home only fourth.
Hamilton bounced back with a great triumph over Vettel in Spain, beating him fair and square after overtaking the Ferrari on the track, but things were still close and Vettel remained at the top of the points table after dominating the Monaco Grand Prix. Again, Hamilton struggled to get his car set-up right, and shockingly could manage no better than seventh place.
By that stage it appeared that Ferrari had a hand on the title trophy, as the SF70 appeared to have so few weaknesses. Hamilton went to Canada in desperate need of a win, and he got a very strong one. But Vettel finished a fighting fourth after a first-lap clash with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, which kept him 12 points ahead.
Seb under stress
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku changed the dynamic. Vettel betrayed the pressure he was under when he unaccountably lost his head and banged into the side of his arch-rival’s Mercedes while they were running behind the safety car. He was torn apart in the media where he was deemed lucky to avoid a race ban, but he still kept the points lead after a loose headrest cost Hamilton victory. Instead, the honours went for the first time in 2017 to a hitherto disappointing Red Bull, courtesy of a great opportunist’s drive by the popular Daniel Ricciardo. Adding to the odd nature of this one, Bottas snatched second on the last lap after recovering from early dramas with fellow Finn Kimi Raikkonen, and Canadian rookie Lance Stroll drove a blinder to complete the podium in only his eighth appearance for Williams.
Hamilton said that Vettel had disgraced himself, while a beaming Ricciardo admitted that he was giggling like a schoolboy on his slow-down lap. Neither of the title rivals was.
Bottas narrowly beat Vettel again in Austria where Hamilton was once more only fourth; then Hamilton hammered everyone on his home ground at Silverstone, as Vettel slumped to a tyre-troubled seventh.
But Ferrari scored a solid 1-2 in Hungary to send Vettel into the summer break well in command with 202 points to Hamilton’s 188.
The run to the title
Belgium marked a turning point. Mercedes were expected to dominate at the majestic Spa-Francorchamps, but Vettel matched their speed in a tense race in which Hamilton played a racer’s cunning card.
It seemed inevitable that Vettel would sail past after stalking him mercilessly, but when his one main chance came on the 34th lap after a safety car period, Hamilton backed him up at precisely the right moment. Vettel, in his faster Ferrari, got very, very close to the back of the Mercedes on the run down to Eau Rouge, but as Hamilton feathered his throttle Vettel got a mite too close, too soon, and had to lift momentarily. Hamilton had thus ensured that he could not be slipstreamed out of the lead as they climbed the Kemmel hill to Les Combes at the top of the circuit, and thus went on to stay just far enough ahead to take a crucial triumph. The scores were now Vettel 220, Hamilton 213.
That signalled a spree for Hamilton. Mercedes thrashed Ferrari on their home ground, and he took the championship lead from Vettel for the first time. He then won his third race in a row after Vettel, Verstappen and team mate Raikkonen came together in a clumsy start in Singapore, where Mercedes were expected to struggle again.
That was the beginning of the rot for Ferrari.