© Steve Etherington for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.
By Bonnie Cehovet
Mercedes started 2021 with the hope of attaining their eighth Constructor’s championship, and Lewis Hamilton’s eighth Driver’s championship.
What immediately became apparent is that their car was not on par with previous year’s machinery. It was stunningly “less than” Red Bull’s car. We all watched, horrified, as things started to spiral out of control. Two things came out that were behind this: (1) Toto Wolff’s decision to move major funds to their 2022 car, necessitating less upgrades for the 2021 car, and (2) Red Bull absolutely throwing money at their 2021 car. We won’t know until 2022 if Toto made the right decision (Note: Several other teams made this same decision, due to major rules changes and new specs for the cars for 2022).
On the track
Mercedes retained the black livery from 2020 as a show of support for diversity and a stand against racism and discrimination. This is a cause that speaks very much to the heart of Lewis Hamilton.
In 2021 Mercedes took nine wins (Bahrain, Portugal, Spain, Britain, Russia, Turkey, Brazil, Qatar and Saudi Arabia), nine pole positions (Emelia Rodriguez, Portugal, Spain, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Turkey, Mexico, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia), and won the Constructor’s championship.
There were also some not so fun moments:
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In July of 2021 Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen collided at Silverstone, leading to Verstappen crashing into the wall at 51G. Hamilton was held responsible, and received a ten second time penalty.
In September of 2021 at Monza where Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton collided, with one of Verstappen’s wheels riding over Lewis Hamilton’s head. If we were skeptical of the need for the halo before this, we were definitely happy after this incident that it was there! Verstappen was held predominately responsible and received a three-place grid penalty for Russia.
In November 2021 after the race in Sao Paulo Toto Wolff submitted a request to the FIA asking them to review a racing incident on lap 48 between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen where both drivers ran wide. The FIA denied the request.
Off the track
INEOS became equal shareholders with Daimler and Toto Wolff (from December 2020). This was/is considered to be a very positive sign that F1 is doing well enough to attract significant investors.
In October of 2019 Mercedes sponsor Petronas reiterated its long- term commitment to Mercedes, after much Internet speculation that they would be replaced by Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco.
In May of 2021 Toto Wolff noted that Red Bull had approached 100 of its engine staff with job offers – 15 people accepted. To me this was a red flag that Red Bull was pulling out all stops to undercut Mercedes, and that it did not feel the need to play fair to do so.
In July of 2021 Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton launched a new charitable initiative in conjunction with Mercedes to support diversity and inclusion in motorsport. The charity, named “Ignite”, comes as a result of the publication of the Hamilton Commission’s report on diversity in motorsport. It will be supported by a multi-million-dollar fund created by Hamilton’s Mission 44 charity and the Mercedes F1 team.
In July of 2021 Lewis Hamilton signed a two-year contract with Mercedes, ensuring that he will be driving for them through 2023.
In July of 2021 Mercedes did an upgrade before the race at Silverstone, and indicated there would be no further upgrades in 2021.
In September of 2021 Valtteri Bottas signed a multi-year contract with Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN.
In September of 2021 George Russell signed a long-term contract with Mercedes.
Looking forward to 2022
My thought here is that the first thing we need to do is leave 2021, and the debacle that saw Max Verstappen taking the driver’s championship, behind us. Mercedes has a strong team of drivers in Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, and they have a strong technical and engineering team that will make the best of the new rules and the new specifications for the cars (the new tyre width will more than likely be the least of the changes). As fans, we stand behind Mercedes and cheer them on!
Be sure to visit SilverArrows.net Member Bonnie Cehovet’s website bonniecehovet-author.com!
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