Disharmony in top Formula One teams: Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull
Martin Whitmarsh, the team principal of McLaren, has said that the team that has harmony within its ranks would have a better chance of winning the world title this year.
The top 3 teams this season, Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull, all have their share of problems, with teams blamed of favouring one driver over another. Whitmarsh said that the team that can make its drivers coexist will be the one to take the cake come the end of the season.
Red Bull have had their share of driver problems this season; Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel have locked horns on two occasions already. First, there was the infamous incident in the Turkish Grand Prix, when Webber was leading the race and with just 18 laps to go Vettel saw a window of opportunity and tried to make his way past his teammate. Webber was not ready to give up without a fight, and did not make things any easier for Vettel. In the end, Vettel bumped into the rear end of Webber’s car, which resulted in Vettel being knocked out of the race and Webber slipped from the 1st position to 3rd. There were a lot of things said after the race, and both drivers pointed fingers at each other. In the end, the duo agreed to disagree but still made their peace. Webber, though, accused the team of favouring Vettel in the situation. The controversy had barely died down when at Silverstone, just before qualifying started, after the orders of team Principal Christian Horner, a front wing from Webber’s car was taken off and put in Vettel’s. Webber was furious and ironically ended up winning the race. He made controversial comments on the radio saying this was not a bad win for a number 2 driver. Team boss Horner later accepted that he should have consulted with Webber before making the switch, but said that he was only looking to facilitate the driver who was ahead on points. Since the incident, Webber did have a long chat with Horner and apologised for his comments on the team radio, but still, the air has not been completely cleared at Red Bull.
Over at McLaren, it was once again the famous Turkish Grand Prix that sparked the controversy. After the Webber-Vettel incident, Hamilton took the lead in the race with his teammate Jenson Button on his tail. The team on the radio informed both racers that they had a significant lead over Webber, so they should not push the engine and conserve oil. Soon after, Jenson Button closed in on Hamilton and took the lead; Hamilton seconds earlier had told the pit crew that Jenson was closing in on him and may overtake him. Hamilton, though, regained the lead and ended up winning the race. However, there was a lot of noise made after the race that carried on to Valencia and Silverstone, and things have still not been clarified totally by the team.
And now finally there is the fresh issue of Ferrari. In the German Grand Prix, Ferrari was very optimistic of a good race and that is exactly what they got. Even though Vettel outpaced Alonso in qualifying, the Spaniard did manage to move ahead once the race started. Alonso’s teammate Felipe Massa, though, was even quicker and took the race lead. Just before the chequered flag, a team engineer on the radio told Massa: “Alonso is quicker than you, do you understand?” Massa obliged and slowed down to let Alonso through. Fernando Alonso won the race, but the face of a dejected Massa told a whole different story; he definitely looked like a man who had been robbed of a win. Even though the duo managed to portray that all is well in the camp during the post race press conference, it was obvious that Massa was not happy with what had happened. FIA later did fine Ferrari for the banned team orders, but the team would have to quickly determine what they need to do to make sure the two drivers remain on the same page in the next race.
All of that clearly means that having two drivers in one team who are going for the world title is not always the best thing. And whoever is able to keep a balance within the team would be able to win the Drivers’ and Contractors’ title.
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