Lewis Hamilton
Both Lewis Hamilton and McLaren have been stripped of the podium finish they received after a wonderful performance at the Australian Grand Prix.
Apparently, the reasoning behind this decision was that the team and driver were responsible for “providing evidence deliberately misleading to the stewards”. Ironically, a post-race hearing moved Hamilton from fourth to third ahead of Jarno Trulli, after Trulli passed the Brit under the safety car (something which for obvious safety reasons should never, ever happen).
There aren’t clear details at the moment, but it seems as though the ‘new evidence’ are the radio exchanges during the race that Hamilton had with his team, as well as a post-race interview. Whilst Hamilton left without comment, you do have to wonder just exactly what went on and/or what was said to instigate this decision.
It’s a fair bet that whatever happened, McLaren certainly didn’t go out to dupe anyone – least of all the stewards. I can say that with certainty given the rotten luck they had last year, whilst other teams (notably Ferrari) seems to fare much better.
Is it a little inexperience from the point of Hamilton? Well, I’d find that surprising given that his record is a 2nd and a World Title. He’s young, but has a wealth of talent right at his fingertips. Should he have received a better briefing from the team for just this sort of situation? I’m not sure, it was a strange one and I do still get the impression that the stewards’ rules are exactly that – and remain a little unclear. Either that, or McLaren’s (bad) luck is going to continue this season…
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