Lewis Hamilton to start from the back of the grid with new power unit in the Italian GP
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Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes seem to be on a relatively upward trend, while Ferrari continue to struggle, mostly with themselves, but also with performance. It seems that for the moment Mercedes’ package has pipped Ferrari in the pecking order, and with Lewis Hamilton, it may or may not have finally got the elusive victory if not for a strategic error.
Monza is a track where Lewis Hamilton has taken victory on many occasions in the past, but it’s unlikely this will be the case this time. Especially as Hamilton is reportedly going to be taking a back-of-the-grid penalty, as per AMuS. This is due to the engine from Spa not being operational following his collision with Fernando Alonso. The track would already seem to suit Red Bull, and this news may just assert their ascendancy over the other competitors even further.
Many drivers had been served with penalties in Spa-Francorchamps, including Max Verstappen, but Mercedes chose not to take one, perhaps they didn’t need to. In Zandvoort, overtaking is not always easy, but in Monza, there are many DRS zones, which should make it easier. George Russell has not yet taken any engine penalties this season.
Lewis Hamilton fighting against a large deficit to George Russell
Mercedes have had a rather odd, and disappointing season for their standards. Their package is extremely reliable, but for most weekends it’s just not had the speed of the frontrunners, who have considerably worse reliability problems. On the other hand, it is this reliability that has allowed them to take advantage of the missteps up front on many occasions, and for the most part, is responsible for their small gap to Ferrari.
Performance has seen an uptick in the last few races, especially for Lewis Hamilton. The Briton was on the podium for every single race from Canada to Hungary just before the summer break. But the last two weekends have been rather disappointing for him, with a potential win or podium being taken away in Zandvoort and early retirement in Zandvoort.
As such, the gap to George Russell which had been shrinking has now swelled up yet again to a 30-point deficit, and the next closest driver, Carlos Sainz is 17 points away. Lewis Hamilton certainly has a task ahead of him to catch up to his teammate, but as one of the greatest drivers of all time, it is one that he will surely be up to.
George Russell, however, is expected to have a ‘normal’ race. Depending on Mercedes’ package for the weekend, he will probably at the least be competing for the podium, especially if Ferrari’s performance does not improve for their home race. On the other hand, Hamilton will have a big task on his hand.
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Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)