Mercedes confirm plan to trick Vettel in Baku quali
Mercedes confirm plan to trick Vettel in Baku quali
Mercedes strategy chief James Vowles has confirmed that the Silver Arrows successfully pulled off a plan to trick Sebastian Vettel into taking an unfavourable track position in qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix which helped the constructors' champions lock out the front row.
Ahead of the final Q3 runs, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas pulled out of the garage, with Vettel following them, only to pull over at the end of the pit-lane in the position reserved for practice starts.
This highly unorthodox practice had a huge impact on the segment as it gave Hamilton and Bottas each a tow, which the Finn used to take pole and ultimately a win, while Vettel ran in clear air and could only qualify third, despite Ferrari's apparent advantage on Baku's big straight.
"In qualifying the effect of the tow is very significant," Vowles said in Mercedes' 'Pure Pitwall' debrief. "In Baku this effect is very extreme.
"It's around about four tenths of a second] in Baku, so a significant amount that you can or cannot be on pole as a result of it.
"Over the last few races you've seen almost a Mexican standoff in the pit lane, everyone has their engine fired up and everyone's looking at each other but who's going to go out first?
"In Shanghai you saw that we left very late and other cars weren't able to do their lap because they were so keen on getting the tow that the flag came before they started their lap.
"In Baku we were very conscious of this effect could well dictate whether you were on pole or not.
"What we decided to do therefore is send our cars out a little bit earlier which would pull the whole train of cars behind us – that worked – and then do a practice start, simply so that we did not end up at the front of the queue because we felt the effect was so powerful.
"This is taking enormous risks and indeed we only crossed the line several seconds before the flag as a result of this.
"But in this situation it worked. We pulled over to the left-hand side, other cars came past, Vettel led the pack and didn't have a tow on this particular occasion, allowing our cars to get in a nice position behind competitors and benefit from both a tow and good track position."
Vowles confirmed that the ruse had been concocted well in advance of Saturday's qualifying getting under way.
"This sort of plan doesn't go without quite a bit of discussion beforehand," Vowles added. "Especially with the drivers to make sure they understand, accept and agree [with] the plan.
"For them, it's very difficult. You're asking them to break up what is the normal routine of going out for Qualifying 3 – a very high pressure situation – and doing something different.
"They understood exactly what was required of them and they did a fantastic job."
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Hamilton in Ferrari F1 SHOCK as star targeted for stunning Audi move - GPFans F1 Recap
- 2 hours ago
F1 wonderkid in Mercedes TEST amid driver replacement reports
- 3 hours ago
Former Perez F1 boss reveals who should replace him
- Yesterday 21:57
Sainz hints at sensational move to rival series
- Yesterday 20:57
McLaren star DROPPED following serious injury
- Yesterday 19:57
F1 legend confident about Newey to Ferrari
- Yesterday 18:58
Related news
Top exciting Red Bull junior team drivers who could REPLACE De Vries
Best EVER start to a season and unwanted Ferrari records – Azerbaijan GP stats and facts
Wolff reveals rivalry Verstappen will NEVER shake after Russell clash
Marko slams 'FORCEFUL' move that sparked Azerbaijan GP outrage
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860