FLOYD ON F1: Boss talks tough as teams lick wounds

F1 is enjoying the annual summer break until the Belgian race at the end of August and I am sure there are various drivers and teams who are grateful for the short respite. Not least of these will surely be Lewis Hamilton after his strenuous battle at the Hungaroring, finishing third.

That following his push from the back of the field, after a wrong call from his pit wall, resulted in him taking a late pit stop and having to rejoin well down the pack.

Amid the joy and celebrations of Esteban Ocon and Sebastian Vettel on the podium, it was obvious that Hamilton was not on top form and was struggling to stand and lift his trophy.

It brought back memories of Nigel Mansell, who regularly collapsed at the end of challenging F1 races.

According to Mercedes technical director, Mike Elliot, Hamilton was suffering from heat exhaustion and the lingering effects of an earlier Covid infection.

Hamilton was promoted to second place after it was found that Vettel’s car did not have the required amount of fuel left after the race, resulting in the German being disqualified. The FIA upheld its decision this week despite Aston Martin trying to have it overturned.

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There is probably a lot of work going on at the Red Bull factory where three very damaged cars require urgent attention at great cost and this creates a problem. With the damage inflicted by others, the F1 budget cap becomes an issue. Christian Horner has suggested the teams responsible should foot the bill and the idea finds favour with Ferrari, but not all agree and some stress such incidents should be budgeted for. I am not sure how one does that, when you have three cars damaged in two races, neither completing the first lap.

No matter who you blame for the Silverstone incident, there is no doubt about the culprits during the Hungarian F1 Grand Prix coming together.

Too see the latest standings in the 2021 F1 Driver’s Championship, click here.

Controversy is sure to surround the latest pronouncements by F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, when he commented on the Sprint format trialled at Silverstone.

“The response that we have, from the drivers, the teams, the media, has been really positive,” he said. “Also for the promoter, because every day we had something new to see. People coming to the track on Friday were really excited for the first qualifying already on Friday.

“So the outcome of the first event has been dramatically positive, and it’s great because that’s brought attention, interest to TV, and also partners. Thanks to that we have brought in, for example, Crypto.com. We have already seen our financial influence being positive.”

Perhaps a realistic reduction in the hosting fees would have provided a similar result, but then F1 is all about business and entertainment. Oh! And of course, the sport – let’s not forget that.