Showing posts sorted by date for query Lewis Hamilton. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query Lewis Hamilton. Sort by relevance Show all posts

Sunday, November 3, 2024

#F1 - 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix - Sunday "Battling results for George in P4 and Lewis in P10 at Interlagos" Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team

 

Press Information
3 November 2024


 
F1: Session Report
 
2024 São Paulo Grand Prix - Sunday

 
Battling results for George in P4 and Lewis in P10 at Interlagos
  • George Russell finished fourth and Lewis Hamilton tenth in Sunday's Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
  • In a compressed Sunday schedule, qualifying and the race were held on the same day, with qualifying at the unusually early hour of 07:30 local time.
  • George led the field into Turn 1 after a strong start from P2, and headed the field until a VSC period was called on lap 28.
  • Using the VSC period, which coincided with a heavy run shower the team called George to the pits to fit fresh intermediate tyres, followed by Norris from P2.
  • George rejoined in P4, and was passed for P5 by Norris before the race was red flagged.
  • Resuming after the red flag, George climbed to P4 but was unable to make further progress without the overtaking assistance of DRS.
  • Lewis started from P14 owing to incidents for other cars in qualifying and drove a battling race to secure the final point.
  • Struggling throughout for rear grip and confidence, Lewis spent the final stint stuck behind Lawson's slower car, unable to pass in the wet conditions.
Driver
Grid
Result
Fastest Lap
 
George Russell
P2
P4
1:21.645
 
Lewis Hamilton
P14
P10
1:22.041
 

Strategy
Start
Stop 1
 
 
No.63
Intermediate
Intermediate (lap 28)
 
 
No.44
Intermediate
Intermediate (red flag)
 
 


George Russell
That was an intense race and there's lots for us to debrief and learn from. I got a good start and I was surprised at the pace in the opening stint - we didn't have the right tyre pressures on the set, and we were expecting them to drop off, so that was encouraging. When the VSC came with the heavy rain, I was in favour of staying out as I thought there would be a red flag - it was like driving a point at points, with the aquaplaning on the straights. I pitted and so did Lando, and we ended up P4 and P6 at the finish, while the cars that stayed out finished ahead. But it's easy to make the call after the race, and we're in this together, trying to make the best calls with the information we have available. I think we would have taken P4 at the start of the weekend; but of course, after qualifying P2 and running in the lead for the first half of the race, it's hard not to feel some regret for the opportunity we missed today.
 
Lewis Hamilton
That was such a tough race for us today - and probably one of the most difficult race weekends of the season, to be honest. The car has been very difficult to drive all weekend, and it didn't hook up at any point during the race either. But even with the results today, it's hard to come away upset because the fans here are incredible. It was such an unusual day with the early qualifying session, and they were queuing up from 04:00 this morning - and you just cannot beat that commitment and positivity, no matter what the result on track. It was so emotional to drive Senna's car in front of them all this morning, and to connect with the five-year-old child inside of me. That was a very special moment for me, and I'm very grateful we could make it happen today in spite of the conditions.
 
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

It has been a tough triple header for the team - and the final day of competition continued in very much the same way. Qualifying and the race itself were bittersweet: Lewis struggled for confidence in the car, and did not progress past Q1 in a session that saw several cars finish out of position; George was able to build greater confidence in the rear end in particular and took a strong P2 on the grid. The aborted start led to some unusual circumstances but when the race proper began, George ran strongly at the head of the field until the VSC came out at the same time as a heavy rain shower. We wanted to use that opportunity to change his worn intermediate tyres and were followed into the pits by Norris from second place - while Verstappen and the Alpine drivers stayed out and took the gamble on a Safety Car or red flag, which subsequently came. When racing resumed, with everybody on new tyres, George was able to get past Leclerc into P4 but then - as we saw up and down the field today - got stuck behind an ultimately slower car and was unable to overtake, without DRS available. It was the same story for Lewis a little further back, who climbed into the points but was unable to pass Lawson despite several close attempts. P4 and P10 feel like a meagre reward after leading the first part of the race, but there's plenty for us to pick through and learn from across this weekend, and from the last three races. We will be focusing on that work in the coming days, to give ourselves the strongest foundation for the final triple header of the season

Saturday rain stopped qualifying

Saturday, November 2, 2024

#F1 - 2024 F1 Brazilian GP SPRINT race by Peter Windsor

2 November 2024

McLaren-Mercedes duly dominated the Brazilian GP sprint race and - as predicted - instructed Oscar Piastri to give the win to Lando Norris.

Thanks to some edgy decision-making on the pit wall, however, it was a close-run thing: instead of telling their drivers to swap positions early in the race, when Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was under pressure from Red Bull's Max Verstappen, McLaren left the instruction to the bitter end, at which point a VSC seemed likely.

They got away with it but it was a close-run thing, as Peter Windsor points out in this video. Verstappen found a way past Leclerc but then lost the position again when he was handed a five-second penalty for being below the minimum time behind the Safety Car when the track turned green.

Ferrari thus sandwiched Verstappen, as they had in qualifying, with Carlos Sainz P5; George Russell was sixth for Mercedes but Sir Lewis Hamilton, after losing ground at the start, could only finish a dismal P11.


Friday, November 1, 2024

#F1 - 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix - Friday "A challenging Sprint Qualifying session on the bumps of Interlagos" Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team

Press Information
1 November 2024


 
F1: Session Report
 
2024 São Paulo Grand Prix - Friday

 
A challenging Sprint Qualifying session on the bumps of Interlagos
  • George Russell will start Saturday's F1 Sprint in Sao Paulo from P6 with team-mate Lewis Hamilton in P11.
  • This weekend, both drivers are once again running the updated configuration of the W15 that was first introduced in Austin.
  • George finished FP1 in a strong P2 while Lewis was further down the timesheets only because he was the sole driver not to run the Soft tyre in the session.
  • During the break between the sessions, small set-up changes were made to the set-up, including raising the car's ride height to cope with the bumpy track surface.
  • Both drivers struggled for confidence with the car during the session; in spite of a significant improvement on his second run of Q2, Lewis fell just short of the top 10 and will start P11.
  • George was able to complete a late run on the Soft tyre in Q3, taking P6 with a half-second gap to pole sitter Oscar Piastri.
Driver
FP1
SQ1
SQ2
SQ3
George Russell
P2
6 Laps
1:10.479
P10
Medium
6 Laps
1:09.683
P8
Medium
3 Laps
1:09.443
P6
Soft
Lewis Hamilton
P16
6 Laps
1:10.625
P13
Medium
7 Laps
1:09.941
P11
Medium




George Russell
That was a challenging session as the track cooled through Sprint Qualifying. Finishing P6 is reflective of where we are right now, at the back of the front pack of teams, and with a pace delta to the next group behind us. I enjoy the challenge of Sprint weekends, getting straight into the action, and of course today has also brought the slightly unexpected challenge of a very bumpy track - which obviously is the same for everyone. For tomorrow, I will be looking to move forward and using the Sprint to work out where we can improve the car for qualifying and the Grand Prix on Sunday.
 
Lewis Hamilton
It has been a difficult day for me - notwithstanding the incredible support from the amazing fans here in Brazil. I think the ride on the bumpy surface has been pretty bad for everyone, and it made FP1 very challenging inside the cockpit. We lifted the car during the break and improved the situation, but the pace simply wasn't there when it came to the timed laps - the balance is on a knife edge, and the car just so tricky to drive and I couldn't attack any of the corners as I wanted to. I hope we can move forward from P11 during the Sprint and keep working to figure out how to find the sweet spot of the balance in qualifying tomorrow afternoon.
 
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director
It has been a challenging day for us in Interlagos. Running in very warm conditions in FP1, it quickly became clear that the resurfaced track was as bumpy as ever, and that this would provide us with a set-up challenge for the weekend. Both drivers completed decent long runs, and we made relatively small changes going into Sprint Qualifying. Once we began running, it became clear that neither George nor Lewis were completely happy with the balance, suffering with snaps at the rear. This cost Lewis confidence and lap time, and saw him knocked out of SQ2 by less than 0.1s. George was able to reach SQ3, eventually taking P6 but with a substantial gap to Piastri on pole. The Sprint tomorrow is going to be useful to learn about the long run balance ahead of qualifying in the afternoon. It's normally a good circuit for overtaking so if we have pace, there's every opportunity for both drivers to move forward.

Tuesday, October 29, 2024

#F1 - 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix - Preview & Stat Sheet: Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team

 

Press Information
29 October 2024


 
F1: Race Preview
 
2024 São Paulo Grand Prix - Preview The final leg of the triple-header takes place at Interlagos in São Paulo.

 
  • Toto Talks Brazil
  • Fact File: São Paulo Grand Prix
  • Stat Sheet: São Paulo Grand Prix

 
Toto Talks São Paulo
 
The past two races in Austin and Mexico City have not been our cleanest so we are aiming for a smoother weekend at Interlagos. Despite the challenges in the US and Mexico, we have furthered our learning with the W15. Given our position in the championship, we have been able to test things out with little penalty. While we are still focused on maximizing our result each and every weekend, that testing and learning will be valuable in setting us up strongly for 2025. We will continue that approach this weekend in Brazil. Interlagos is a proper driver's circuit with plenty of undulation and a challenging mix of low, medium, and high-speed corners. Given that it is the penultimate Sprint format of the year, we will have to execute effectively from the first session to get the car in a good window. We know it will be difficult to challenge the Ferraris and the McLarens who have looked strong in recent races. We will still be working hard to do so though and will see where our relative performance is over the weekend. Fact File: São Paulo Grand Prix
 

 
 
  • The Autódromo José Carlos Pace is the fourth-shortest track on the 2024 F1 calendar at just 4,309 km long, only behind Monaco, Zandvoort and Mexico.
  • The São Paulo Grand Prix venue is situated 800 meters above sea level, the second-highest altitude on the F1 calendar behind Mexico City (which sits at 2,300m above sea level).
  • Interlagos is a track of two extremes. The first and third sectors require a low-drag car for the long straights, but the middle sector is twisty, requiring high downforce. The second DRS zone means more focus is typically on higher downforce for the ultimate fastest lap, but a balance still needs to be found with being competitive on the straights during the race.
  • There is 1.2 kilometers of driving at full throttle between the exit of Turn 12 and the braking zone for Turn One, with an elevation change of 33 meters.
  • The biggest difference in elevation is from the start/finish straight to Turn 4 where there is a 40-meter drop in elevation.
  • The long straight before the lap begins also requires some clever deployment of energy from the ERS to maximize performance towards the end of the out lap, as the drivers start their flying lap.
  • Turn 1 is banked heavily towards the inside, unloading the front-left wheel and causing frequent lockups. However, because the tire is unloaded, flat spots are less likely and time loss isn't as high as you'd expect, due to the steep banking and variety of corner lines drivers can take. The variety of lines is also what makes this corner well suited to overtaking.
  • The uphill grid requires the drivers to find the balance between holding the car on the brakes as gently as possible, without rolling backwards.
  • From Turn 10 to Turn 6 (around 3.5 km of distance) the left-hand front tire does very little work and therefore cools down quickly, providing a tricky engineering challenge to keep the tire in its temperature window.
  • With long straights and a second DRS zone, Interlagos is one of the best tracks of the season for overtaking. However, it can be difficult for the defending car to manage its battery, as there aren't many big braking zones to recover energy.
  • The São Paulo Grand Prix is ​​the fifth F1 Sprint of the 2024 season, with just Qatar left on the Sprint calendar this season.
  • This will be the fourth consecutive year that the circuit has hosted a Sprint weekend.
  • Interlagos is a very flowing circuit with a lot of combined corner entries (where you are cornering and braking at the same time), meaning good stability is important. However, you also need a good front end for the low-speed middle sector.
  • Track temperatures can reach some of the hottest of the season in Brazil, up to 60°C. And thunderstorms are common around this time of year, which can potentially spice up the weekend.
  • Since 2021, the race around the circuit has been known as the São Paulo Grand Prix.
  • Valtteri Bottas won the inaugural F1 Sprint race at Interlagos in 2021. A year later, George Russell won his first F1 Sprint race at the venue.
  • A day later in 2022, George won his first F1 Grand Prix, leading home at W13 1-2 with Lewis behind.
  • Lewis has three wins at the circuit (2016, 2018 & 2021) and in 2022 the seven-time world champion was made an honorary citizen of Brazil in an official ceremony.
  • The team has six wins overall at Interlagos. In addition to the four from Lewis and George, Nico Rosberg also won in São Paulo (2014 & 2015).
Saturday rain stopped qualifying


 
 
Stat Sheet: São Paulo Grand Prix
 
2024 São Paulo Grand Prix
 
Session Local Time (BRT) Brackley (GMT) Stuttgart (CET)
Practice (Fri) 11:30 - 12:30 14:30 - 15:30 15:30 - 16:30
Sprint Qualifying (Fri) 15:30 - 16:14 18:30 - 19:14 19:30 - 20:14
Sprint Race (Sat) 11:00 - 12:00 14:00 - 15:00 15:00 - 16:00
GP Qualifying (Sat) 15:00 - 16:00 18:00 - 19:00 19:00 - 20:00
Grand Prix (Sun) 14:00 17:00 18:00

 
 
Race Records - Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team in Brazil
 
  Starts Wins Podium Places Poles Front Row Fastest Laps DNF
Mercedes 13 6 12 6 12 5 2
Hamilton 16 3 7 3 7 4 2
Russell 4 1 1 0 0 1 1
MB Power 28 11 28 11 25 12 20

 
 
Technical Stats - Season to Date (Pre-season Testing to Present)
 
  Laps Completed Distance Covered (km) Corners Taken Gear Changes PETRONAS Fuel Injections
Mercedes 5,974 30,419.084 101,198 294,462 239,240,000
Hamilton 2,945 15,021.400 49,776 144,784 118,080,000
Russell 3,005 15,286.943 51,044 148,814 120,020,000
MB Power 22,731 115,670.422 382,763 1,118,619 906,480,000

 
 
Mercedes-Benz in Formula One
 
  Starts Wins Podium Places Poles Front Row Fastest Laps 1-2 Wins Front Row Lockouts
Mercedes (All Time) 313 128 296 139 262 109 59 84
Mercedes (Since 2010) 301 119 279 131 242 100 54 80
Hamilton 352 105 201 104 176 67 N/A N/A
Russell 124 2 14 3 11 8 N/A N/A
MB Power 583 221 612 230 467 219 94 123