Hamilton chases a high-five
MERCEDES driver Lewis Hamilton can edge closer to an inevitable sixth Formula One world title at the Japanese Grand Prix, but all eyes will be on the two Ferraris and the weather on Sunday.
After a spat in Singapore, a team orders row again engulfed the Italian team at last month’s Russia Grand Prix, where Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two despite Ferrari looking perfectly placed for a fourth win in a row.
Charles Leclerc was in pole in Sochi but teammate Sebastian Vettel was permitted to use the 21-yearold’s slipstream to take the lead and keep Hamilton at bay, with the understanding he would give first place back to Leclerc.
It never happened and instead Germany’s Vettel had to retire with a technical problem, leaving the door open for Hamilton after the gap had grown too big to Leclerc.
“That was definitely not right,” Vettel admitted yesterday but insisted: “the relationship is likely it was before, as it was the whole year, we get on well with each other.”
Four-time champion Vettel started the season as Ferrari No 1 but Monaco’s Leclerc is 21 points ahead of him with five races left.
“There were some misunderstandings from the car, but we’ve had a discussion and everything is clear now,” Leclerc told the drivers’ press conference yesterday.
Both drivers have tried to calm the situation and their shared love for Suzuka provided a distraction.
“Suzuka is probably my favourite circuit of the whole season.
“It is the only track in the championship that has a figure of eight layout and, in some ways, it reminds me of the sort of tracks we played on when I was a little kid,” Vettel said.
“The weather at Suzuka is always unpredictable which means all sorts of things can happen in the race, which makes it particularly complex but also fascinating.”
An approaching typhoon could affect the F1 weekend and organizers say timing changes may be necessary.
But the iconic track and the weather are not the only issues on Leclerc’s mind. His good friend Jules Bianchi died after a crash at a wet Suzuka in 2014, becoming the first F1 driver since Ayrton Senna in 1994 to die as a result of an on-track incident.
“Obviously, it is a very sad memory that I will always associate with this grand prix,” Leclerc said. “The track itself is very technical and demanding. It is one of the best to drive on in terms of its layout.”
Hamilton also adores the track and does not need to fear his teammate. He leads Valtteri Bottas by 73 points and although he cannot wrap up the drivers’ championship this weekend, his Mercedes team can clinch the constructors’ title if results go their way.
But team principal Toto Wolff already has his eye on 2020 and knows Mercedes have gone slightly off the boil.
“The win in Sochi doesn’t change the fact that Ferrari had a stronger start to the second part of the season than we did,” he said.
“We’ll bring some minor upgrades to the car in Japan which will hopefully help us take a step in the right direction. However, we know that we need to extract absolutely everything from our car and the tyres if we want to be able to challenge for a win.
“We have a strong track record there, having won every Japanese Grand Prix in the hybrid era, but we expect this year to be challenging given the strength of our opponents. It will be a very close battle on track – and one that we very much look forward to.”
Hamilton has won four of those past five races in Japan with former teammate Nico Rosberg snatching the other in his 2016 title season.
Back then Mercedes had their own worries about overcompetitiveness between their drivers. Now all the focus is on the Ferrari duo and what happens next at Suzuka.
| dpa