Wow, Lewis Hamilton really is the business! Yes, the McLaren was most definitely the best car at Spa, but did the Englishman make it count… All this while another British icon, Nigel Mansell, was seemingly party to efforts to dampen the flair of young German hero Sebastian Vettel, arguably one of Lewis’ most threatening rivals…
When all around them were losing their heads, the McLaren driver kept his – apart from a scary moment when he slithered once too many times on his slicks as the rain pelted down, skating across the grass verge and the gravel, luckily just avoiding the tyre wall. And that, arguably, was the fault of team strategists who kept him out on the slippery track for a lap longer than he would have liked before the inevitable switch to intermediate rubber.
The reward for Lewis was the lead in the title chase, a position one hopes will stand him in good stead in coming races when the McLaren is likely to have a performance disadvantage vis-à-vis the cars of some of his rivals, notably the Red Bulls. But, judging by his Spa performance, an insignicant detail such as a slightly less suitable car is unlikely to deter him in his battle against team-mate Jenson Button, Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso (who continues to put a positive spin on things despite the most appalling luck in Belgium) and, most threatening of them all, Red Bull racers Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel.
Of course Vettel, one of the most flamboyant of Hamilton’s rivals, was another contender who had a race from hell at Spa, sliding into Button when his car lost all adhesion in an overtaking manoeuvre. Woefully, that took the unlucky Button out of contention, but the drive-through penalty imposed on Vettel for what was to the minds of many experts a simple racing incident, was absolutely ridiculous.
Seems to me that the inclusion of former drivers on the stewards’ panel is having little effect on the insane decision-making by officialdom in the heat of the action. And guess who the former driver was this time? Nigel Mansell, again…
I have been castigated for taking issue with Our Nige’s contribution to the stupid, illogical decision to penalise Fernando Alonso for his overtaking manoeuvre on Kubica at Silverstone, many pointing out that he is merely a member of a panel and that he might well disagree with some of the decisions taken. Well, Vettel’s move at Spa was another case of a manoeuvre that Mansell might well have attempted during his career, certainly one that would have gone unpunished during those halcyon days.
It would be nice if Mr Mansell were to speak out if he disagrees with the majority decision. Or, if that would be regarded as improper, to simply opt out in future. If he does neither, one has to assume that the former charger has become very “politically correct” in his old age. To the point of denying the younger generation the opportunity of performing the kind of swashbuckling manoevres that were once his stock in trade…
