The Mercedes AMG F1 team with a 1-3 finish at the Italian GP spoilt the party of their main rival Ferrari on home turf. Lewis Hamilton won the race and extended his lead in the drivers’ championship to 30-points over Sebastian Vettel.
Mercedes AMG F1 Debrief of the Italian GP
James Vowles, Chief Strategist of Mercedes, debriefs the Italian GP.
Mercedes Play The Team Game To Spoil Ferrari’s Party
The two Ferrari drivers, Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel, started on the front row. Ferrari was the favourite to win the race in front of the partisan Italian crowd. They had the faster car. But Mercedes with the right strategy used their two drivers, Hamilton and Bottas, against the lone Ferrari driver in front to clinch the 1-3 finish.
Hamilton and Vettel came together on lap 1 at turn 4 that dropped Vettel to the back of the grid. The German pitted under the Safety Car and rejoined at the back of the field after a front wing change and a new set of soft tyres. At the front, Hamilton mounted an all-out attack on Raikkonen, the race leader.
Aided by Bottas who went long in his first stint, Hamilton closed the gap to Raikkonen in the second stint. Hamilton eventually passed Raikkonen to take a famous win at the Italian GP. Bottas fought his own battle with the ever-combative Max Verstappen to take P3.
James Vowles explains the strategy decisions made by Mercedes to bring home a 1-3 finish in the race. Mercedes now has a 25-point lead in the constructors’ championship.
We head to Singapore for the Singapore GP in 2 weeks time (14-16 September 2018) for the start of the Asian-leg of the Formula 1 season.
