PPo

Sure... The winner gets a $5 cheque, in any colour, to be used for a new set of tyres!

But seriously, here is a solid analysis of the incident that I found interesting:

http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/an...-so-very-wrong

What I found most interesting is that if Mercedes was able to match or better the first pit stop total time, Hamilton would have come out ahead...

"At least a bit of that time went astray in the pitlane itself – his first stop had a pit time of 24.181s, and the second was 25.495s, so some 1.3s went just there, probably as he was held for Nasr passing by. Certainly enough to have got him out ahead of Vettel, if not Rosberg..."

So, when everything is considered, not a bonehead move by anyone really... just an unfortunate set of circumstance.

2BWise

Interesting read. It sounds as though they've gotten too drawn into what the computer and simulation say and not enough on what common sense tells them.

Secondly, Hamilton has been praised for his ability to work strategy from behind the wheel, but it appears as though the team is relying too much on his input and not enough on their own strengths and this time it bit him. It sounds like there was a bit of indecision once Hamilton questioned new tires and they tried to quickly make a decision that they made not have made otherwise.

Fortunately, for us as fans it has been making the season more interesting. The championship may stay closer than anticipated.

gums

That was the worst race I've ever walked out on

multi21

Truth is slowing coming out.

“We told him to stay out,” Wolff said in a fan Q&A on Twitter. “Lewis said "not good" and that the tyres had lost temperature. We had one second to react and, combined with our wrong timing data, we made the mistake of calling him in. We're not happy about the situation itself & therefore there was no such thing as happiness about that incident.”

Wolff also gave more insight into the decision-making process to bring Hamilton in, putting much of the onus on the incorrect timing data.

“We believed we could make a free stop to cover risk of cars behind on SuperSoft. Unfortunately our data was wrong. You need the right balance between data and gut feeling. Our tools told us we had the gap but they were wrong. Under Safety Car you need 12 secs gap to maintain position. Our system showed us that we had that gap.”

multi21

The truth is slowing coming out.

Lotus says it has data to prove that Romain Grosjean did not brake test Toro Rosso rival Max Verstappen prior to their collision in the Monaco Grand Prix.

While battling over 10th position, Verstappen hit the rear of Grosjean's car under braking for Sainte Devote, before flying head-on into the barriers.

Speaking to media after the incident, Verstappen suggested that Grosjean brake tested him, a claim he has since repeated in an entry on his official website.

But Lotus Trackside Operations Director Alan Permane has stated that Grosjean braked five metres later than on the previous lap, evidence the stewards accepted.

Verstappen was thus hit with a five-place grid penalty, which he will serve at the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix, while two penalty points were added to his licence.

FGL28

I do not buy what Susi's husband is trying to petal. Mercedes screwed up. Just say there was a screw up and that is all we are going to say. Susi's Husband and staff did screw up. A pit deta of 22 seconds is LONGER than an interval of 17 seconds between 1st and 2nd. Not only can AWayne see this he could block Rossberg for the rest of the race.

Just move on.

Or aim the reporters towards Bernie by saying the word bribes.

NaroEscape

When I saw it in real time, I immediately thought that Grosjean did a blocking move on Verstppen. Looking at the incar of Verstappen, you see Grosjean juke right slightly, then back to the left/"normal driving line". Max was already in the process of making the inside move and couldn't react to Grosjean's juke quick enough.
Watch right at .05/.06, you see Grosjean move quickly to the right over the yellow line in an obvious attempt to block, IMO. I think, had Grosjean not juked, Max would have made that pass and we would all be saying how aggressive and amazing of a driver he is...

pontifex4

I'm kind of leaning this way, too. Also, I like Grosjean, but he could have braked 5m sooner on the previous lap for a variety of reasons that don't exactly exonerate him from the brake check allegation before the crash. Obviously, there could have been traffic on the previous lap. Ultimately, I think they were both just fighting too hard in too little space, but it's too bad it happened the way it did.

You could argue that Verstappen now has to focus on finishing races if teams are going to want him, but they said that about Vettel at the beginning. And at one point, Hamilton. Senna crashed and DNFed a lot, too -- way more than most, actually.

I would love to see some top-5 finishes from Max this year.

333pg333

Just saying...

pontifex4

Ha! Good one. I voted for Hamilton for the first time, and look how that went!