Mercedes celebrate toughest constructors’ title yet
MERCEDES joined a select group of teams to have won the Formula One constructors’ championship for four years in a row on Sunday and recognised it as their toughest title yet.
With an unassailable lead of 147 points with 129 remaining from the final three races, Mercedes joined Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull who racked up similar streaks during their years of dominance.
Unlike their rivals, Mercedes have managed to stay on top despite major rule changes at the end of last year that introduced wider tyres and revised aerodynamics to make the cars faster and harder to handle.
And this season they have been fighting a resurgent and determined Ferrari, rather than just waging an internal battle between teammates.
“This for us was the most difficult one because Ferrari was competitive and we still made it,” the team’s non-executive chairman Niki Lauda, himself a triple world champion, told reporters at the US Grand Prix.
Mercedes have dominated since the start of the 1.6 litre V6 turbo hybrid era in 2014, and are set to win both titles again this year.
They have won 11 of 17 races so far this season and 62 of 76 since the start of 2014.
Britain’s Lewis Hamilton, who won at the Circuit of the Americas on Sunday for the fifth time in six years, has won nine times this year and is a fingertip away from his own fourth championship.
His title looks sure to come in Mexico next weekend, barring misfortune.
It would have been five had now-retired teammate Nico Rosberg not beaten him last year in a season where car reliability played a major part in the eventual outcome.
Mercedes have also qualified on pole position for 69 of the last 76 races and Hamilton, who holds the sport’s all-time career record of 72, has taken 11 of them this season alone.
“When we set our objectives at the beginning of the year it was to win both championships and be the first team to do that through a regulation change like this,” said team boss Toto Wolff.
“Having achieved that here in Austin with three races to go, it feels really unbelievable. It’s just the reward for so many people that have been hard working.
“You always try to identify silver bullets that make the difference but the fact is that we have a really great dynamic within the team and we enjoy doing what we do, pulling it all together. Bringing it home feels just super.”
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen accused Formula One stewards of killing the sport and suggested fans could stay away in protest after he was stripped of a podium place on Sunday.
With Red Bull boss Christian Horner and past champions joining in the outcry, the 20-year-old Dutch driver vented his feelings.
“The engine penalty is what it is,” said Verstappen, who started 16th after being demoted for power unit changes. “We had a great race, but with those stupid decisions you kill the sport.
“I hope the fans do not like this decision and next year they do not come.”
Verstappen had thrilled the crowd with a last lap overtaking move on Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen to take third place and was voted driver of the day by fans.
He was then demoted to fourth, while waiting with Hamilton, pictured, and second-placed Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel in the pre-podium room, for exceeding the track limits to gain an advantage.
As the driver headed back down the stairs, team principal Horner let rip at what he saw as inconsistent behaviour by the stewards who had not punished others for similar offences during the race.
“It is an appalling decision. They have robbed all of the fans here. It was a great grand prix and they have screwed it up,” he said.
“We could pull out five or six different incidents today of cars going off track.
“Where do you gain an advantage and not gain an advantage?”
It was the second time that Verstappen has been demoted from the podium by stewards post-race, with the youngster also missing out in Mexico last year for cutting a corner.
Verstappen’s father Jos was scathing of the decision on social media, with a series of comments on Twitter suggesting Ferrari favouritism.
“Shame on you FIA,” he said referring to the sport’s governing body. “Obviously F1 don’t know what racing is.”
Mario Andretti, the 1978 world champion, also chimed in: “After watching videos could equally argue Kimi forced him there. Best overtake of #USGP. Feel sorry for @Max33Verstappen you got robbed,” he said. Lauda also agreed. “This decision is the worst I’ve ever seen,” he told reporters.
“He (Verstappen) did nothing wrong. These are racing drivers, we’re not on a normal road and it’s ridiculous to destroy the sport with this kind of decision.
“At the next strategy meeting we’ll bring it up the agenda and start all over again because we cannot do that, going too far and interfering. It was a normal overtaking.”