Canadian Grand Prix 2019: Penalty for Vettel

Stewards Steal Victory – Hamilton Wins

Sebastian Vettel gets a five-second penalty for a driving mistake, Lewis Hamilton inherits the victory. All information about the Grand Prix of Canada in Montreal:

Lewis Hamilton won the Canadian Grand Prix even though Sebastian Vettel saw the black and white checkered flag first. The British Mercedes star got the victory after a five-second penalty for the German driver. Vettel, according to the race commissioners, executed an “unsafe” return on the race track after running wide at the first chicane.

“No, no, no”, you could hear Vettel scream on the radio in disbelieve.

“You have to be an absolutely blind man if you think you can control the car on grass,” he railed against the race stewards. Then he pushed his Ferrari out of the Parc Fermée, refused the weighing procedure and marched out with helmet into the Ferrari Hospitality.

Then he changed his mind and returned towards the podium. On the way back, he took away Hamilton’s Mercedes ‘number one’ sign at the Parc Fermée. Sky and RTL commentators called it “disrespectful behavior”.

You could see it differently: Vettel, who on top of all the drama, got two penalty points on his super license, just showed human emotions after a clear unfair decision and actually acting in the spirit of all fans.

Victor Hamilton commented on the incident during the race:
“I took the curve normally. You have to get back on track normally.”

Vettel explained later on the podium:
“I enjoyed the audience as they supported me. Lewis was a bit faster, I stayed in front. Ask people how they see it.”

But the Ferrari star also backed Hamilton who didn’t get a warm welcome on the podium:
“People should blame him, but those who made the decision.”

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff:
“If you come back on the track, you have to leave a car some space. I also understand that this penalty polarises.”

Vettel to German TV RTL:
“In a way, I feel like a winner. I was the first to cross the line and for good reason. That was a small mistake. I had to fight with my rear axle all the way. I was happy to keep the car on track. I do not know why I was punished for it. I did no harm to anyone. I just can’t understand it.”

Race Report

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc came in third ahead of Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas and Red Bull star Max Verstappen.

There was already some commission in Mercedes garage before the start. Hectic works on Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes. Apparently, his Silver Arrow had braking problems after a hydraulic leak was diagnosed the night before.

In the warm-up session on Sunday, Hamilton reported problems with the anti-stall system. The response of his race engineer Peter Bonnington:
“You have no problem.”

Start:
Vettel experienced a good start with Hamilton right behind him in second place before Leclerc.

Daniel Ricciardo held his Renault in fourth place, while his teammate Nico Hulkenberg stayed on sixth.

Round nine:
Lando Norris dropped out with a stunning break failure. His rear right break literally melted through his rear suspension. He parked his McLaren with a loose right rear wheel in the pit lane exit.

The gap between Hamilton and Vettel in the meantime was about two seconds.

Lap 26:
Vettel picked up new, hard tires, and comes out in front of Bottas who was in third place at that time.

Hamilton was now given the command “Hammer-Time”, but he complained:
“These tires are pretty much through.”

A lap later, on lap 28, Hamilton came in as well while Vettel had a shot at new fastest lap increasing his gap to Hamilton to four seconds.

Hamilton switched on his attack mode hunting down Vettel, decreasing the gap in lap 37 to a mere two seconds.

On lap 40,
Hamilton arrived in the DRS window and increased the pressure.

On lap 48,
Vettel experienced oversteering in the first chicane, skated over the grass and rejoined just as Hamilton tried to squeeze into the gap that Vettel created on the exit of the corner. Vettel remained in front of Hamilton.

For the stewards, it was an “unsafe” return, while Vettel unintentionally closed the door for Hamilton and stayed his line and clearly staying ahead of Hamilton.

It was actually a miracle, that German was able to keep his car on track and not hitting the wall himself.

The incident was investigated. The result was a 5-second penalty for Vettel.

His reaction on the radio: “I could go anywhere else and I didn’t see him. Where the hell was I supposed to go? They steal the race.”

Vettel got so upset that he lost seven-tenths of a second. Hamilton now had an easy job.

Meanwhile, Bottas and Verstappen fought past Ricciardo, who bravely defended himself but couldn’t keep up with two superior cars.

Bottas ended the race fourth, Verstappen fifth. Nico Hülkenberg came in seventh. Vettel was the first to cross the finish line. The victory, however, went to Hamilton.

Canada Race Result

Drivers’ standings

Constructors’ Standings

Saturday: Vettel on Pole

Sebastian Vettel placed his Ferrari on Pole at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. Daniel Ricciardo delivered surprise, disappointment for Max Verstappen.

The 221th Ferrari pole position felt like a victory for Sebastian Vettel … On the radio, the German cheered and sang in a fashion we haven’t heard from him for a long time when he was the last of the top stars with the fastest time and new lap record on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

“I’m full of adrenaline,” he later commented after the 56th pole of his F1 career, and the first for him since Hockenheim 2018.

“This feeling for my car, that was one of these special rounds. I’m especially happy for the team because the last few weeks haven’t been much fun. The car was also significantly better today than yesterday. “

Hamilton had to yield to Vettel in second place ahead of Vettel’s teammate Charles Leclerc (P3). Hamilton ended up with two and Leclerc six tenths behind. The Monegasque explained the big gap to Vettel as follows:

“I had some problems with the car, I made the wrong choice during set-up. Congratulations to Seb, he has earned the pole today. “

Hamilton summed up his qualifying:
“They were just faster, that was four to five tenths on the straights. Anyway, I gave everything.”

His team boss Toto Wolff added:
“The pole is well deserved. Sebastian made a really good lap. Lewis made a mistake in the hairpin, so he lost the pole. But our long runs were really good while the reds had to struggle a bit with their tires.”

Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo surprisingly finished fourth ahead of Red Bull’s Pierre Gasly. Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas finished sixth. In his first run, he briefly lost control of his silver arrow and slipped across the track, but could prevent a crash.

Max Verstappen, however, starts only from eleventh place. Bad luck for the Dutchman: He drove in Q2 like the Ferrari and Mercedes on harder yellow tires, but did not make an acceptable lap time. When he finally pulled on soft (red tires) Kevin Magnussen caused an unwanted stop in the Q2.

Provisional Starting Grid

Free Practice – Vettel Fastest

Formula 1 driver Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari made a final strong impression in FP3 on Saturday ahead of the qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix (Sunday from 19:15 live on Sky Sport 1 HD – German Time).

The four-time World Champion ensured the fastest time in the third free practice on Saturday in 1: 10.843 minutes. Vettel was slightly faster than his team-mate Charles Leclerc (1: 10.982). The distance to Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton (1: 11.236) and Valtteri Bottas (1: 11.531), was about half a second.

The Emmericher Nico Hulkenberg (Renault / 1: 12.394) was eleventh. A shocking moment came when local hero Lance Stroll (Racing Point) had engine trouble. His Mercedes engine went up in flames at the start of the session before the start and finish. The 20-year-old parked his car in the pit lane.

Ferrari is under pressure in Canada and has to deliver. Their weaknesses in curves shouldn’t be too important given the long straights at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

“On paper, the course should be better for us,” said Vettel on Thursday. His impression seems to be confirmed. The Italians are still waiting for their first triumph of the year.

Saturday Recap: Can Ferrari Win This Sunday?

The 221th Ferrari pole position felt like a victory for Sebastian Vettel … On the radio, the German cheered and sang in a fashion we haven’t heard from him for a long time when he was the last of the top stars with the fastest time and new lap record on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

According to Vettel, his car screamed for more:

“It called ‘more, more’! On the radio, I heard my team shout ‘Pole Position’. That was pure joy, mixed with adrenaline. I’m not a good singer, but I screamed pretty well. It was a long time ago that I was allowed to taste this feeling.”

And now? Is a victory possible in Canada?

“I feel fine, the car was great today, but I also know that Mercedes will be very strong in the race. It will not be easy to keep Lewis behind me. Also in the race, I will have to dare a lot. You can come damn close to the walls here in Canada … “

“We know that we still have to catch up. Right now, this route favors us. Our advantage is top speed. It plays a bigger role here in Canada. At the same time, we have fewer corners here.”

On Friday, Vettel’s long runs were still

“horrible. But today the car was much better, we take that as encouragement for the weekend. In addition, we can go into the race with the medium-hard tire because we were able to do without the red tires in the second qualifying segment. That’s another reason why we should be optimistic about the Grand Prix. “

“And Maranello everyone is doing their best to give us a better car.”

Ferrari also tried new brake drums with double slots, which should help to warm up the tires better. This is important, as the asphalt in Canada is rather gentle to the tires.

We should also keep in mind, Ferrari hasn’t always been inferior to Mercedes in 2019. In Bahrain, Charles Leclerc dominated the race until he got into trouble with a drive control unit and lost a cylinder. Actually a good omen. Because the track characteristics of Bahrain and Montreal are similar: many straights, little corners.

What we know so far: If it’s straight, Ferrari is super strong. Unfortunately, they lose a lot of time in corners. It’s a question of grip and getting the tires to work. Sebastian Vettel:

“On paper, we should be better off here in Canada. The biggest question mark is the race grip. It’s pretty slippery here and it will not be easy getting the tires to work.”

Another disadvantage: Ferrari hasn’t brought any new parts to Ile de Notre Dame.

“We know that we are not competitive at the moment,” commented team boss Mattia Binotto in the official press conference.

“In the near future, we will not have any modifications to the car that would significantly alter the problems we’ve been dealing with since the beginning of the season.”

In France, a new front wing with steeper flaps is expected. Ferrari plans to further develop the area around the side baffles and underbody.

Vettel revealed that they had recognized the problems and had solutions in the pipeline. “We understood what the car needs. Some things we can implement in the short term, some may take some time,” commented the German with the patience and prudence of a project manager.

“We have some ideas to improve our situation. They seem to be promising.”

Mercedes Only Second

On the other hand, Mercedes has already stepped up the game here in Montreal. A new engine should bring two-tenths of a second per lap – a tenth just because it is a fresh unit.

Ferrari had already brought it first engine update to Barcelona. Lewis Hamilton believes in the strength of his Silver Arrow:

“We are better prepared this year than in the past. Our car has improved a lot in the slow corners.”

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff explained:

“In the past, we built the car for low air resistance and high top speeds, and now we have a chassis built around the drive, more downforce On the straights, we’re not the fastest anymore, but this is the best compromise.”

 

Red Bull without Luck

Red Bull is going to have a much harder time than in Monte Carlo when Max Verstappen almost smelled Hamilton’s tail-pipes chasing the Mercedes driver for most of the Monaco Grand Prix.

Because Honda doesn’t want to fully unfold their engine power before a crucial Honda board meeting this summer, the team struggles a bit on race tracks with long straights like here in Canada.

However, the team of the Austrian energy drink manufacturer continues to develop its chassis. A closer look reveals important details. The Bulls brought new rims to Canada that generate swirls, which calms the airflow around the car. Interesting also covers that conceal the pivot points of the rear upper suspension.

Toro Rosso wants to impress again. After a very successful Monaco Grand Prix (places seven and eight) the STR14 received new rearview mirrors and new baffles. The rear-view mirrors with a small wing and the slot in the carbon shell remind of the versions Ferrari introduced in 2018.

 

Racing Point, on the other hand, tried to generate more downforce. Sergio Perez admonished:

“We are lacking pressure and we have no balance.”

That’s why the technicians have mounted a snow plow under the nose. McLaren and Mercedes serve as an example. They both already introduced corresponding variants in 2018.

*This article was first published in German at autobild.de/motorsport.

Friday Practice

Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel were surprisingly fastest in Canada’s second qualifying session. Hamilton hitting the wall.

A glimmer of hope for Ferrari? In the second practice for the Canadian Grand Prix, the two red racers of Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc made it to the top of the time rankings.

Leclerc completed the course during his qualifying simulation with soft tires in 1:12.177 minutes. Vettel was missing 74 thousandths of a second. Valtteri Bottas came in third with just 0.134 seconds behind.

Lewis Hamilton couldn’t intervene in the fight for the top. The World Champion left the road in turn nine and hit the wall with his right rear tire. The result: rim, tires, and underbody damage.

Nevertheless, ​the experts weren’t fooled by the fastest lap times. On the long runs, Ferrari missed Mercedes be almost a second. The first free practice in the morning was sobering for anyone who still had a glimmer of hope for a competitive season this year.

The bottom line was that Mercedes superstar Hamilton was almost a second faster than the supposed challengers Ferrari and Red Bull. Only Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas was reasonably on par with the British.

 

What we got out of the two free practice sessions was that the second engine upgrade during the season (usually coming in Montreal), has given Mercedes two-tenths of a second making them even faster.

The Canadian local hero Jacques Villeneuve seems to be right. Shortly before the race in Montreal, the 1997 world champion prophesied:

“As long as we drive with these hybrid engines, Mercedes is unbeatable – too large is the knowledge advantage and the resources that the Group has in this area.”

At least some excitement comes from the team internal competitions. The Ferrari fight for drivers’ preferred status went into second gear. After being celebrated by the Italian Press, Leclerc faces some barriers with more experienced driver Sebastian Vettel.

The ten-year-older Vettel gets support from the older Formula 1 generation. Double world champion Mika Häkkinen (1998, 1999) can’t understand the hype surrounding the Monegasque. He feels it’s still too early:

“Leclerc still has to do a lot to be at the same level with Vettel,” the Finn warns against too much initial euphoria.

Free Practice 2

Free Practice 1

*This article was first published in German at autobild.de/motorsport.

Saturday Free Practice 3