Lewis can play it cool this time
SEBASTIAN VETTEL remained tight- lipped on his prospects for Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix when the Daily Express quizzed him ahead of boarding his fl ight for Shanghai. The feeling in the paddock is that he will need to do all his talking on the track.
Despite the Ferrari driver delivering an earlier- thanexpected slap in the face to what many thought would be a Mercedes procession this season, do not be surprised if defending champion Lewis Hamilton cruises to a comfortable victory in China.
Hamilton has won more times at the Shanghai International Circuit than any other driver, having triumphed here in both years he went on to win the world title – 2008 and 2014 – and also in 2011. And what was pivotal in Ferrari’s shock victory in Malaysia two weeks ago is the missing ingredient this time around: heat.
The cooler conditions mean the Mercedes’ tyres will not wear out as quickly as they did in Malaysia. That heat forced the team into a three- stop strategy. Ferrari were able to manage their tyres better and so made a two- stop strategy work. Take that factor away and you are left with one raw element: the Mercedes is still the fastest car on the grid.
Still, Hamilton must be sure to keep his head cool as well as his tyres after several heated outbursts to his team over the radio at Sepang told a story of frustration.
With the tyre degradation not expected to be a problem, you can take that heat out of the kitchen. Add to that Mercedes’ plans to introduce some aerodynamic improvements to the car and suddenly you expect Vettel to be speechless for a completely different reason. It is Hamilton’s race to lose. Speaking of losing, McLaren appear to be on the up in their battle to become competitive.
They are hoping they can keep at least one driver in the race this time around after both Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso were forced to retire in Malaysia. The McLaren project is for next season, if truth be told, although Button remains optimistic they can keep pace with the midfi eld runners this term.
“Obviously we want to fi nish a race but seeing improvement in pace was much more important,” he said. “Yes, we both had failures but I’d rather that with us pushing and trying to get more power out of the car than trotting around at the back and simply getting to the end.
“To be able to race other cars and see the Red Bulls until a long way into the race was good. Right now, we are comparing ourselves with the Force Indias, Saubers and Lotuses. We were quicker than Force India, the Sauber was on the same sort of pace and the Lotus wasn’t that much quicker.
“Fighting with the pack is important for me. It’s what I enjoy and hopefully, race by race, we’ll start picking them off. There is defi nitely progress being made and it will be fascinating to see how much change we can effect over the forthcoming races.”
Not as fascinating, you would think, as the heat of the battle that has now emerged at the front of the grid.