Lewis Hamilton punched the air with a pair of gloved clenched fists when he
finally swept past the chequered flag to win the Hungarian Grand Prix
yesterday and he cut an ecstatic figure as he graced the top of a Formula
One podium for the third time this season.
His brother, Nicolas, led the cheering by the McLaren Mercedes mechanics.
Alongside him, Hamilton’s father, Anthony, was struggling to keep his own
feelings in check as he savoured a few precious moments of joy at the end of
what, until then, had been a nightmare of a weekend for Hamilton and his
team.
But all that had gone on in the build-up to the race – the row over the
attempt by Hamilton’s team-mate, Fernando Alonso, and the team to stop the
Briton from taking pole position and the punishments handed down to them by
the stewards – quickly came back to haunt Hamilton.
By the time he came into the postrace press conference just half an hour after
he had stepped out of the car, he looked and sounded like a young man with
the weight of the world on his shoulders. We heard about his battle with
Kimi Raikkonen, of Ferrari, about how the steering on his McLaren had played
up in his second stint and how he worked hard to conserve his soft tyres
over the final laps.
But the 22-year-old seemed just as keen to talk about the embarrassment for
McLaren that was partly of his making. Hamilton admitted that he had made a
mistake on Saturday, when he disobeyed team orders and did not let Alonso go
ahead of him in the early laps of the final stages of qualifying, and he
said the whole episode was hanging over him before the race, as it plainly
was afterwards.
“I think going into the race it felt like a big cloud over my mind and it was
difficult to stay focused because obviously you had this feeling in the
team. The team weren’t getting any points, so you didn’t know whether the
team hated you or just hated the situation or who they blamed,” he said with
disarming candour.
He revealed that in the build-up to the race, he had gone to speak to everyone
in the team, with the exception of Alonso, to talk to them and explain what
had gone on. Earlier, he had sat down with his own race engineer, Phil Prew,
with the McLaren chief executive, Martin Whitmarsh, and with Alonso and his
race engineer to try to thrash out the issues.
“We went through what the programme was and they asked me why I didn’t do the
part they wanted me to,” Hamilton said. “And so I explained to them; I said
‘look I made a mistake – I apologise, it won’t happen again. But it’s
happened, let’s forget about it and move on. We’re both on the front row, so
we can still smile.’ ” That, of course, was before Alonso was handed a
five-place grid penalty.
Listening to him, you almost felt that Hamilton had concluded that he was the
one who had committed the more serious offence of the two McLaren drivers
when the team and Alonso, as the stewards put it, were punished for actions
“prejudicial to the interests of the competition and to the interests of
motor sport generally”.
Having said that, Hamilton was still openly and aggressively critical of what
he believes was his teammate’s role in the attempt to stop him getting pole,
remarking at one point: “I wouldn’t have thought Fernando would do something
like that but I have reasons to believe otherwise.”
He also threw light on the state of their relationship, which certainly does
not fit the old “official” McLaren imagery of them playing basketball on
PlayStation together and popping into each other’s rooms for a chat.
Hamilton said he still respected Alonso for what he had achieved in past
seasons but implied that he could not say the same for what he has been
doing more recently.
All communication had now ceased. “He doesn’t seem to be speaking to me since
yesterday . . . so I don’t know if he has a problem,” Hamilton said, adding
that he was not going to break the ice himself. “If he doesn’t want to speak
to me again, that’s for him to decide but I’m open.”
As for Hamilton and Ron Dennis, the team principal with whom he had a very
colourful exchange at the end of qualifying, the two have now “started on a
clean slate”. Dennis himself sounded as worn out by his weekend as his young
protégé, describing it as “full of stress and emotion”. He said he felt “a
bit of emptiness at the end of an extremely difficult weekend. I’m so
drained, it’s difficult to have any emotion left.
“What happened [on Saturday] was really unacceptable. We have a very, very
strong commitment to parity. But this was one of those times where, as hard
as you try, there’s always a deviation from our plans, that put the team in
an extremely difficult position.”
Dennis also suggested that the team may withdraw their decision to appeal
against the stewards’ ruling that, in addition to demoting Alonso on the
grid, cost McLaren their constructors’ championship points from yesterday’s
race.
Why should Hamiliton have to relinquish his lead to accommodate Alonzo. If Alonzo wants pole, ever, let him qualify for it fair on his own merit and time. Well done Hamilton. You did nothing wrong. Stop apologizing.
dwayne, Nassau, Bahamas
I think the F1 drivers have dilemma; do they follow team orders or the FIA rule book? Before, it is always what the team says goes, but now, the drivers would risk the wrath of the FIA. Alonso really should have known better that his actions would not go unnotice since the team has already been investigated in Monaco. And I understand him wanting to prove something to Mclaren---but he should have done it in the race track. I know Hamilton has been taken a lot of flack for his part in the incident, but I do admire his honesty, yes he was wrong to disobey team orders, and the team should sanctioned him for that. In the case of Alonso, I believe the FIA has no choice but to punish him, for not to do so would be also unfair to the other drivers, specifically to Fisichella who committed the same offense albeit to another team.
Marie, Philippines,
At least the Spaniards on this board are civilised. One-eyed, maybe, but civilised. If you want to see the pondlife of Spain ranting and raving (much of it racist) check out www.marca.es. There are many Spaniards who don't like Alonso one bit. There is a guy on my local radio station who every morning for the last 2 years rants on and on about what a jerk Alonso is. Before Alonso came along there were exactly 5 people in Spain that took any notice of Formula One. Hence the uninformed comments. They have no idea bless 'em. They think Stirling Moss is some kind of plant. Espana, listen up. This is Formula One and stuff happens. It was always like this. It existed before 2005. Get over it and stop calling for the head of Lewis Hamilton, you just look ridiculous. Your boy retaliated and got caught. The penalty was harsh. The FIA should have moved Alonso off of pole and into second place and let the 2 of them go for each others throats on the track.. that would have been good viewing..
Tom, La Coruña, España
This Hamilton is just pathetic, he disobeys team orders, behaves in a totally unsportive manner, win his race and then wants to play again the repented good boy role.
PATHETIC!
José Ramón , Madrid, Spain
Alonso is much better than hamilton. He has show it with two different cars.
Jose, Tarragona, SPAIN
Fernando and Lewis may have the driving ability but they certainly don't have the innate self control, generosity and sporting instinct of those two true gentlemen Damon Hill and David Coulthard.
Vivienne, Colchester, UK
Amusing, amusing, amusing, this Spanish logic and reasoning, if one could call it that. Now we know why there are so many places on the planet with Spanish names and no Spanish control. By the way the Golden Age of Spain was when the Moors controled it. Think about it.
Christoph, New York, U.S.A
You should take into consideration that what McLaren is doing this year is what they could not do in the last championships. In front of a leading team there is always a great pilot able to develop frame and engine and to explode all their possibilities, do you really think, my english friends, that this enormous change comparing to last year would have been possible without Alonso in your team. Hamilton has just been good enough to take advantage of this situation, just taking notes of waht Alonso showed him.
I would add to Donovan Wright, if you were able to take a look outside your Island and read something in any different language from yours, you could maybe now that in France they would be glad to have Alonso in Renault again.
But don't get nervous, the season is still long and time will put anyone in his place.
Javier, San Sebastian, Spain
Hamilton should be able to win his own victories. The FIA has, by nursing him in an excplicit way, not done him a favour. If ever he had won,starting from second, Lewis would have been a hero to everybody (but the fans in Spain ;-).
This is a win with a bit of a nasty taste, not in the least for Hamilton himself.
And why not stop the nonsense about "Lewis the perfect son in law? " He's an F1 pilot for christ sakes! Not a lovable kindergarten teacher.
Wim V, Mechelen, Belgium
Unbelievable... at the end ofm the movie FERRARI will be the most honest team in the Formula 1. Reading the news it´s clear that Ron Denis is not the most honest principal in the Formula 1. Who can belive to Ron Denis when he says that Alonso and Hamilton have the same chance to win...?? Mybe Hamilton... Max Mosley sure no.
The key to fix this problem is easy to let Alnoso leave the McClaren team at the end of the season and buy another "mediocre" driver from another F1-team (as called Ron Denis a few days ago).
The last years McClaren was hard figthing to get 3 or 4 podium in the all season and now with Alonso has the 2 cars in P1 and P2. Will you led him leave the team...?? The ansewer is NO. Too much talent to led go.
Hamilton keep lieing and sure you will arrive far.
ramon romagosa, Barcelona, Spain
HOW CONVENIENT!!!
After creating all this problems by pointing his own team,and making them, and Alonso loose their points, and getting himself the first place, he apologized.
HOW CONVENIENT!!!
After he was told SIX (6) times to let Alonso thru by the team, and his step father RON DENNIS , he apologized.
I just know tha on this past weekend I learned a lot about who is Lewis Hamilton. And if you people in the UK are proud of something like this, then you're very far from been fair.
There's no way mclaren or Lewis would be where they are if not for Alonso.
There's not a general manager or big bos in no company or team that will take what Lewis told Ron Dennis over the radio!!!
That says a lot about him.
But at the end Ron Dennis deserves it...They are RATS from the same hole.
The good part will be when Alonso lifts his third consecutive world champion trophy and depart to a better team.then we'll see where MCLAREN AND HAMILTON are going to be!!!
wilfredo, miami, usa
Hamilton is an immature kid who, besides being grossly unprofessional, is biting the hand that fed him. Shame on him!
Michael, London, England
Lewis went out ahead of Alonso. He apologized for it. Alonso stopped for 10 extra seconds to ensure that Hamilton did not get in a hot run. He never apologized. He doesn’t have the courage to admit it. Who committed the bigger infraction. Alonso of course. It also shows he’s afraid of Hamilton. Alonso just keeps whining, just like last year and the year before that. First it was Michael Schumacher who was his nemesis and ruined everything for him. Now it’s his own teammate. Grow up and quit whining Alonso. Shut up and drive or leave Formula 1.
Katha Garland, Seattle, WA, USA
Hamilton is pitifull. Really! How can people praise the fighting spirit of somebody who doesn´t respect his team, his boss or his teammate. I would like to see what would have happened If Fernando was the one to disobey the team order. Surely Hamilton would be crying his papa to make the work he´s not man enough to do. Anyway, time will put him in the place he earns. After Alonso. And a lot far from him.
Raul, Madrid, Spain
I think you guys are a bit biased!
Your champ isn't as good as he thinks hes is, and a rookie is making him look bad!
Dan, London,
Pathetic! Alonso should quit on the spot and join Ferrari next season.
John, Reading, Berkshire
Alonso I am sure only responded tit-for-tat with Hamilton because Hamilton disobeyed team orders. the only problenm was that the "tit" got more punished than the "tat".
Greg Nichols, Chicago, America
Hamilton made a mistake and Alonso made a mistake too. Alonso's was much more obvious - sitting in the pit box for 10 seconds and delaying Hamiltion - than Hamilton's mistake.
The thing to remember is that two wrongs don't make a right.
Guy Dawson, London, UK
it's really amazing how many people refuse to realize what alonso did to hamilton at quali.
glad to see that hamilton is mind-over-matter and is still excelling at his work.
cherry, vienna,
The Spaniards seem to miss the point here. The Maclaren Team and Alonso were breaking the rules. Hamilton did what he did because he new what they were doing was unjust and good on him for that. Hence FIA's ruling in favour of Hamilton and against Alonso and the team. A very simple situation, not sure what all the confusion is about.
Greg , Fortaleza, Brazil
Well, I'd say that Alonzo was punished too leniently: for something more debatable, Schumacher was pushed to the end of the grid in Montecarlo, a track were overtakes are even more difficult than on Hungaroring. That said Alonzo is the poster child of bad-champions, of those pilots who always find bad behaviour in others and nothing faulty in themselves. For an example see the row with Massa at the end of last GP. Anyway, Hamilton was right in defending against the illegal tactics of Alonzo. If Dennis chose to defend Alonzo only to keep the matter inside the team, then he deserves the penaly also.
Fabio Sgambuzzi, Cento, Italy
Let's get AT LEAST one thing straight here! Fernando Alonso DID NOT break any rules. FIA rules or otherwise. FIA took it upon themselves to butt into team issues to apeace British yellow press. Again, he did NOT break any rules. He was handed a set of used tyres when he was supposed to get a set of new tyres and he inquired as to the reason for him being YET ONCE AGAIN being handed the raw end of the stick !!! Just release Fernando NOW. Mid season. Like McLaren did to Montoya last year. You'll see how McLaren Does NOT win one more race this season. Not one !!! We all saw the result of Hamilton using "his own" settings for Silverstone....... I knew something like this was bound to happen the minute his contract with McLaren was made public. And as far as the spoiled bratt asking forgiveness, it is getting a bit old, isn't it? His motto of doing his thing to systematically apologise with a smile inmediately thereafter is getting old real fast. Just let Alonso go NOW !!!
Pacman, Philadelphia, USA
Oh come, this is the first time Lewis has put a foot wrong in terms of his Sportsmanship. He's been a model sportsman until now and he freely admits to starting the chain events that brought this all about.
His actions however didn't bring the sport into disrepute just perhaps dulls the shine on his halo a little though. The pitstop actions did make the sport look bad hence the McLaren punishment.
All seems fair enough to me.
Of course Alonso could have never expected to be put in to the shade by a rookie this year and his nose must have been put out of joint somewhat. Makes for the most interesting season in some time in my opinion.
Of course if Lewis wins the championship by just a few points people will say it was because of this drama, conveniently forgetting the times Alonso through himself out of some early races with some foolhardy first corner shenanigans.
Good luck lewis.
Chris, Basildon,
I think, I've just about heard it all now. There has been anti- anti-English feeling, anti - British feeling, now
(Rafael Santander) believes its all anglo saxon culture is to blame. I think you might be crossing a line here with that rediculous diatribe. I have been half expecting some racist taunts form the Iberian peninsula...But now poor Hamilton got it all wrong coz he;s an anglo-saxon. Do grow up!
Simon, Carrickfergus, Antrim
Ahh please just keep the crytics to yourself will you ! This is the real world. Lewis is the greatest 22 year old of all times .. He is ONLY 22 . What stupid mistakes didnt we all make at 22 ? His instincts took over thats all. Dont we still let that happen to us at what ever mature age we are? He deserves respect .. He is number 1 one on the stand and this is his first year . I'm speechless at what an accomplishment that is. If you are this sad about his success already you should stop supporting the sport cause there are many years of success coming for that boy and you are gonna be sad for a looooong time :-) He is only warming up. LONG LIVE LEWIS ..
will, london, uk
From your article: 'Listening to him, you almost felt that Hamilton had concluded that he was the one who had committed the more serious offence of the two McLaren drivers when the team and Alonso, as the stewards put it, were punished for actions “prejudicial to the interests of the competition and to the interests of motor sport generallyâ€. '
Your article in this paragraph is greatly misleading because the stewards punished Alonso for following his team's instructions. In the same way, FIA punished the team for those instructions. However, the driver that did not follow his team's instructions was not punished (?!).
kejeta, Shenfield,
all time best drivers
1.- Schumacher and Hamilton ( nexy year Hamilton only)
2.- Stewart, G. Hill, D. Hill, Hunt, Mansell
3.- Irvine, Button, and others ( british, of course)
4.- Senna, Fitipalldi, Prost....
5.- Raikonnen, Massa
n.- Alonso ( the last)
well done Hami¡ up with the british¡ I love fair play, it,s hilarius that cheated spanish¡, what they thought? we are the champion of the world, remenber trafalgar¡
jose lago, oviedo, spain
These comments are a joke...Spanish on one side saying how bad Hamilton is and English on other saying how good he is and that is all Alonso's fault.
At the end of the day, Alonso should be respected by Hamilton and Hamilton should grow up and be a man and stop acting like a child
R. McCann, London, England
Let's get AT LEAST one thing straight here! Fernando Alonso DID NOT break any rules. FIA rules or otherwise. FIA took it upon themselves to butt into team issues to apeace British yellow press. Again, he did NOT break any rules. He was handed a set of used tyres when he was supposed to get a set of new tyres and he inquired as to the reason for him being YET ONCE AGAIN being handed the raw end of the stick !!! Just release Fernando NOW. Mid season. Like McLaren did to Montoya last year. You'll see how McLaren Does NOT win one more race this season. Not one !!! We all saw the result of Hamilton using "his own" settings for Silverstone....... I knew something like this was bound to happen the minute his contract with McLaren was made public. And as far as the spoiled bratt asking forgiveness, it is getting a bit old, isn't it? His motto of doing his thing to systematically apologise with a smile inmediately thereafter is getting old real fast. Just let Alonso go NOW !!!
Pacman, Philly, USA
We should all praise and thank Lewis and Alonso for this real life drama, which even Hollywood producers could not have plotted. I guess already the fim producers are planning the release of their next film based on this real life drama in 2009.
And the winner in all this is Bernie Ecclestone : blood spilt on the track will attract milllions of new vultures [ TV Viewers ].
And I will be one of them. Set the road gladiators free in the arena. Buy your popcorn and fasten your sofa belt : the real show gonna starts now at the next Grand Prix in Turkey.
Denis Li Tim Cheong, Port Louis, Mauritius
Ok, I'm English and let me state quite clearly that I find Hamilton's sanctimonious persona and endless press briefings against Alonso utterly reprehensible. He should show some respect and learn to keep quiet as for the large part, Alonso has done.
Mclaren would not be the front running team without the experience of Alonso. I'll enjoy seeing Hamilton struggling to set up his car next year whie Alonso beats him in a BMW.
For the 2nd season running, Alonso is clearly not the FIAs champion of choice, that honour goes to Lewis 'marketeers dream' Hamilton.
Alonso is the true heir to Senna. Hamilton is a corporate robot.
Nick Banks, London,
Let's get AT LEAST one thing straight here! Fernando Alonso DID NOT break any rules. FIA rules or otherwise. FIA took it upon themselves to butt into team issues to apeace British yellow press. Again, he did NOT break any rules. He was handed a set of used tyres when he was supposed to get a set of new tyres and he inquired as to the reason for him being YET ONCE AGAIN being handed the raw end of the stick !!! Just release Fernando NOW. Mid season. Like McLaren did to Montoya last year. You'll see how McLaren Does NOT win one more race this season. Not one !!! We all saw the result of Hamilton using "his own" settings for Silverstone....... I knew something like this was bound to happen the minute his contract with McLaren was made public. And as far as the spoiled bratt asking forgiveness, it is getting a bit old, isn't it? His motto of doing his thing to systematically apologise with a smile inmediately thereafter is getting old real fast. Just let Alonso go NOW !!!
Pacman, Philadelphia, USA
The principal team sponsor is Vodafone... not Santander.
El aberrao, Carabanchel, EspaÑa
you really guys make me laugh!! Ron Dennis admits that Alonso's engineer asked him to stay 10 more seconds, and you guys did not admit it!! you are such a bunch of blinded english desperatly looking for a world champion... but this ain't going to happen as long as there is a man standing, fighting against his own traitor team, where the enemy is his teemate!! vaya alonso! double world champion!
Fadi, Beirut,
Both drivers should be ashamed of the way they acted in Qualifying, but this shouldn't reflect on the race itself. Alonso didn't have to throw a hissy fit into cheating and get himself demoted to the third row. Arguably, Hamilton is still young and is still prone to the occasional childish act, but Alonso, as World Champion, should be more mature and sort this out himself. It's a shame that a great race will be overshadowed by these little temper tantrums.
Oh, and by the way, I would hardly think that killing someone is an appropriate comparison for an act of gamesmanship in a SPORT.
KR, Cambridge, UK,
C' mon! Hamilton is a brilliant driver, of course. And Alonso has been nervous during canada and usa gp and made many mistakes. That's right. But he 's living a bad experience in mclaren. Hamilton is english and the team is english and the relationship is different with fernando. hamilton is not a better driver than alonso and also less talented. This year is being more regular.Alonso must leave mclaren after the current season. The atmosphere is unbreathable for him. And if he feels who is being used by his team or not enough appreciated by them he can complain about that. Hamilton was a kid this weekend and in monaco gp too. Both of them desire to win. But they must be in different teams. Fernando cant be in a english team with a brilliant english driver working for it.
ignacio val, madrid, españa
Lets be honest guys, it's the best season we have had in years. !!!!!! Enjoy it. Check out L.H. on youtube. Watch some of his old kart races. The guy is awesome.
Roy King, Manchester, England
I´ve lived in the US, UK and Canada and one thing I can say about Anglo-Saxons is there win-at-all-cost mentality. Forget about ethics, good behaviour, equality, etc... One need look no further than the A.S. family to understand their take on teamwork and togetherness. Anglo-Saxons are simply not interested in Justice of any kind. There is no I in TEAM, but there is an M and an E, should be the motto for A.S. culture. All in all, rubbish!
Alonso, above all, is a just person and driver. He can never be accused of anything else and his record to date will attest to that. I don´t know whether he impeded Hamilton´s lap or not. I can assure you of this, if he did, he had a damn good reason for doing it! Self interest, I don´t think so. If, I repeat, If he did it deliberately it was to send a message to everyone involved within the team that he would not be toyed with! Championship be damned.
As all Spaniards know, to win without fairness is not to win at all!
Rafael Lastra Gomez, Santander, Spain
Did someone see Ron Dennis or Mclaren team celebrating Hamilton's triomph last sunday? It is clear that all what succeded there was because Lewis didn't obey rules. And it's true that Hamilton was "crying" to stewards all saturday afternoon, forcing a penalty. He forces Alonso's penalty but Mclaren's too. What a hero.
The fact is that in every race Fernando and Lewis are alternating last lap on Q3. It was Fernando's turn, but Hamilton inverted the situation, being he the last one.
Mclaren and Alonso forced the programmed Q3... Yes, I think they delivertatedly delayed Hamilton. They were preventing Lewis to cheat . It was Hamilton who broke rules, and they forced the way to reintroduce the programmed Q3. Of course stewards only saw the surface of the fact.
Is very sad to see english press talking about Alonso (and Mclaren?) as the cheater. All was deliveratelly forced by Hamilton's acts (including afternoon declarations).
Congrat. Lewis, you have adulterated your leading.
Jorge, Barcelona,
the saddest thing i've ever seen in f1,Hamilton is playing dirty and that should be stopped by someone in the team.Why does Fia help so much hamilton?(Gp europe(getting him back on the track),gp hungary)i think f1 this year is corrupted and there won't be champion but Lewis Hamilton,this was arranged from the beginning of the season.Big shame for all f1 supporters.
John, London, uk
Not a nice situation by any stretch and I think the relative treatment on Hamilton was far too lenient. However one must concede this:
Hamilton broke a team rule but not a single FIA rule. Fernando broke an FIA rule and suffered the consequences.
Given his experience, one can't help but be surprised that someone with Alonso's experience couldn't have thought up a way of evening things with Hamilton without breaking FIA regulations. He did the crime, he should suffer the consequences.
Ultimately, Hamilton should not have broken team rules, but if Alonso really wants to garner support, he should have done nothing. By taking retaliatory action he just made himself look like a petulant child.
After Hamilton's action, Alonso had everyone in the team, bosses included on his side... He could have really used that for the rest of the season...
good driver... but clearly not the sharpest tool in the box!
Tim, London,
"Hamilton admitted that he had made a mistake on Saturday, when he disobeyed team orders..."
and I thought there were no team orders in McLaren. This whole episode just doesn't sit well with good sporting behaviour. There should be no place in sport for temper tantrums. Being angry does not solve anything.
It sounds as though the two individuals need to backtrack and think of the sport and their team first. Without either of those they wouldn't be in the fortunate positions that they are currently in.
Fiona Anderson, Cambelrey, England
I'm not sure that McLaren punished Hamilton: if I recall correctly, the team's delay was due to their having to calculate a good slot for Alonso. This is consistent with their having to deal Hamilton's deviation from their programme. It's possible that Hamilton could have got onto the track in time if not for Alonso's interference: the team would have only hurt itself in not hepling him once Alonso was out. Both drivers have something to regret; Hamilton's actions damaged his team, Alonso's both himself and the team.
Richard Long, Dublin,
To the angry Spanish people: Hamilton made a mistake by not listening to the radio. This mistake doesn't prevent Alonso from competing, it just makes the team reorganise what they had planned to do, which is probably very annoying when you have to think on your feet, have only 15 minutes and have two pilots fighting for pole. That's bad. What Alonso did, however, was to make sure that Hamilton wouldn't be able to compete. That'#s bad too, but I think that is worse. The proof is that Alonso got all his Q3 qualifying runs and Hamilton didn't. Also, Hamilton apologises and Alonso doesn't... does it make Hamilton the bad guy???
Alain, Paris, France
If alonso was that upset that he didnt get the extra fuel burn why did he just sit there , if alonso is that good why not shown it on the track rather than a fit of petulance in the box. and if hamilton is ordinary then alonso must be as well because he's behind hamilton in the championship At least he's fighting for what he belives in rather than sulking
Hobson, houston, texas
1. Hamilton's misdemenor was relatively minor, and he apologised and admitted openly that it was a mistake.
2. Alonso's was a highly visible dirty trick, in front of a world audience, potentially damaging the whole sport. The stewards decided Alonso lied in an attempt to cover up his unsporting behavior. Therefore the I believe punishment was most deserved.
3. Rather than a British team favouring a British driver, what about the pressure of the principal Team sponsor, Santander, to give preference to the Spanish driver?
Michael Shine, Telford, UK
To Xel, this "ordinary" driver has been beating Alonso, fairly, all season long. What he did in qualifying was wrong, but not as wrong as what Alonso did.
You need to face it, if Hamilton had started two years earlier, Alonso would never have been champion. Looking back, Alonso got lucky to race after Schumacher passed his best, and before the newer, better driver arroved.
The way he is cheting to try to get back on top is sad to see, but not surprising.
Maybe he should join a top Spanish team next year, if he is unhappy with a British one.
Johannes, Frankfurt,
Hamilton's move put Alonso out of qualifying plan. If they have agreement to switch roles every race, then... purpose was to affect pole position standings in his own favour buy breaking internal deal in McLaren. Fair play?
For Spaniard's move... Stupid, but easier to understand. Hamilton's move was calculated, back stab. Alonso was suprised, offended. He responded in wrong way, but he responded how he felt (disgust, I guess), not thinking to much and not planing in advance.
If Hamilton is superior driver like some people think, then why starting all this in the first place?
He is not comforable, he is afraid of Spaniard, so he used dirty trick to get advantage. Championship leader can not calculate to let his team-mate pass and not to let Raikkonen?
Phileas, London,
Yes, the Spaniards are predictable as a bull when shown the red bullfigthing cloth (el capote). And unfortunately for them (and me), young and talented Lewis has the skill, but perhaps the money of his daddy to even put his boss into question and not be told off. When you reach this level of cockiness, then the sport suffers, becuase it is no longer about champions and competition, but about money and buying yourself a championship.
Pitty cause admittedly the Brits have had the best drivers in motor history, and it wil be a shame to have this young brat tarnish such a great racing culture. But you never know, he might not win after all this noise...
Jose Frederick, Madrid, Spain
Hamilton vs Alonso? no.... Hamilton vs McLaren both harming Alonso. He can and have to win prix without FIA decisions. McLaren needs that Hamilton communicates with the team and doesn't cry, otherwise it only will quit points in constructor's championship. And that is not logical.
yandh, Jerez, Spain
This was an unfortunate incident both for McLaren and yet again the sport as a whole. Hamilton was wrong to disobey team orders in theory, but he had is reasons and i for one can see why did it.
The bottom line is Alonso can be just a as petulent and self-absorbed, we have seen his own attempts to give himself the advantage not only this season but in the past two. Looking for this edge is what makes him a champion and what will make Hamilton a champion as well.
It's all very well getting emotional about it but Alonso is just as 'bad' as Hamilton otherwise he would not have done what did in the pits, so to lambast Hamilton as treacherous and spoilt is wrong. If anyone is spoilt it is Alonso, he wants all the resources of being a number 1 driver, he isn't.
Hamilton did deserve to win this race, he put up a good defense against a surprisingly competitive Ferrari and showed he had the raw pace to maybe beat Alonso in a fair race this weekend.
Adam, Farnham, England
You might agree or not with team orders ....you have to accept that, but no way you can accept that one pilot follows this orders and the other one do not.
If I were Dennis, I would send Lewis home for a couple of weeks to think about who is paying the money and put De La ROSA in the car.
But we all know they're not doing that. We know that deep inside the team is happy with this weekend'd result.
Next year I hope to see Fernando in the red car against Lewis, and who is doing the car setup for him then??? His father ???
Jose, Madrid, Spain
Firstly, well done to Mr Gorman for his many excellent articles and great analysis - a busy time! Thank you. Secondly, I think both Hamilton and Alonso play very hard within the team: both, like infant cuckoos in another nest, trying to grab what they can. But successful racing drivers need that single (selfish) mindedness. Schumacher had it in vast amounts. Where Alonso is to blame above Hamilton is he actually impeded another driver. Although some commentators say this should be only a team matter it has wider implications for the sport so it was right the stewards ruled. Within the team, both drivers probably deserve being penalised - unless, that is, the team really did try to punish Hamilton by delaying him. In that case, as the stewards found, they too are guilty and Hamilton was punished (albeit "unpunished" by the stewards). Ron Dennis seems to centre his please on "fair-play" but two wrongs do not a right make. If Hamilton did wrong, penalise him do not hinder him.
W Tree, Southampton, UK
Hamilton benefited from FIA decisions because he didn't break the rules like Alonso did. If Alonso hadn't behaved like a spoilt child and took matters into his own hands then Hamilton could have been dealt with internally by Mclaren and no-one would be any the wiser.
Instead Mclaren lost the points because it was Alonso who broke the rules not Hamilton. Hamilton just disobeyed team orders which isn't against FIA rules and something plenty of drivers have done before
Peter Wilson, Didcot,
Now Alonso knows what's behind Hamilton's smile. At last!.
I can't wait for the next Grand Prix.
David R., Gran Canaria, Spain
Can´t wait to see Alonso driving a Ferrari.
Mc Laren stinks
david, vigo, spain
Alonso's a great driver earns millions from the sport, but this year he has shown what a pre maddona he is. We have seen him waving his arm at every driver on the track even at his own team. He has turned into the spoilt child of F1. You've got to feel sorry for him though, because Lewis is one of the best drivers ever to step into an F1 car. He earns a fraction of Alonso's salary and it's only his first season. Alonso looked like a nervous kitten at the post qually press conference. He's beggining to look a little foolish. He will never be an all time great, as Lewis will be, because he is unable to control his emotions. Here's to you Lewis, Go get him. You will see a grown man cry.
Roy King, Manchester, England
even though lewis disobeyed team orders, it was not up to alonso to punish him. he would have left it to the team. holding up a fellow teammate to stop him from going for pole postion is wrong. most probably alonso would haven taken the pole, but now we will never know.
Alonso was still in time although lewis refused him to pass. this did not make any differance has his car seemed light enough to win that pole.
suzan, sutton, uk
I am becoming really tired of reading comments from belly aching Spaniards feeling sorry for their purile and petulant countryman!
Fernando Alonso is a supposed to be the mature and 'current' world drivers champion. He is being paid a lot more than Lewis Hamilton and with that comes certain responsibilities. Whatever Lewis did to him, it did not result in the FIA penalising the entire McClaren team. Alonso's behaviour this season has been disgraceful and frankly, as a motor racing fan, I would be happy if he left McClaren and perhaps even left the sport all together.
Motor racing is a team sport and after complaining about bias at Renault and now the same complaints at McClaren, I think that Alonso is running out of top teams who would be prepared to offer him a drive.
Whatever happens in the remaining six races, Lewis Hamilton has already shown that he has an extraordinary ability and is destined for greatness. God bless Ron Dennis for his ability to spot and nuture talent.
Donovan Wright, Reading, Berkshire
As Daddy, Ron must have to punish his son with a book on his head looking to the wall or don´t let him go out next weekend.
Please, note that mclaren has this car only because of the duo PEDRO -FERNANDO.
The spoiled son only is trained in the simulator and getting the data base form the spaniard dou
bravo, MARBELLA, SPAIN
Hold on...Hamilton did not obey team orders; this does not amount to cheating but to being defiant and putting himself first. Alonso didn't put himself first, he cheated. Hamilton may have done something bad but to equate what he did with the cheating of Alonso is madness. How come eveyone seems to think that poor little Alonso is entitled to cheat and take the rules into his own hands? Did the team imagine that he could exact his revenge and nothing further would happen? Hamilton behaved badly but Alonso behaved disgracefully; his actions cannot be justified by saying that he was wronged in the first place. This sort of behaviour sends a very bad message out to young people; disrespecting you means you can exact your revenge? Hamilton should have been told off by his team and that should have been the end of it. This whole situation is of Alonso and the team's making. Hamilton is only to blame for his bad faith.
psf, London, UK
Close your eyes, and imagine Hamilton passing through Massa as Alonso did past GP...
You are dreaming, not remembering...
It is a matter of time that Hamilton will lose the champ and let in in the hands of the best driver, Alonso.
Charles, Paris, France
Once again, the Spanish Armada sail to Alonso's reascue ;-) Every blog, forum and feedback column is filled with Spaniards crying into their sangria and complaining about Hamilton's assertiveness in dealing with his team and Alonso. Do you guys trawl Google for negative comments to respond to? The bottom line, as I see it, is that Alonso came into a team expecting No.1 status. He's been upset and destabilised that not only does he not have parity with a rookie, the same same rookie is being feted as the Second Coming and, by Jove, the rookie turns out to be every bit as good as him. Alonso needs to view this situation as the ultimate challenge and look to beat Hamilton on the track, rather than in the pits or in the press. Similarly, Hamilton must start to get his head down and re-build some of the bridges he's spent the weekend burning - quite spectacularly in the case of his boss, Ron Dennis. If he starts to get too above himself, he could well lose his team's goodwill and support
Martin E, Denbigh, Denbighshire
Frederico - it was the HUNGARIAN course stewards who decided that Alonso's behaviour was punishable. The Hungarians are neutral and you have to accept that they saw what they saw and took the action they felt was appropriate and neccesary.
Xel - It's a sport, not a blood feud. Real men accept they make mistakes, apologise and / or accept aplogies and then get on with life. Immature people inflame situations until there is no return.
Neither Alonso or Hamilton would appear to be anything other than over paid, spoilt children. Maturity would do them both and the sport a real service. A team needs everyone to be their best at every level all the time.
Hamilton was well out of order and appears to have been so for a few weeks now. I wonder which role model he's been closest to during his first F1 season?
FastEddy, Scotland,
Hamilton has't killed anyone (Xel) has admited his mistake in not carrying out team orders(Fedrico) but in interviews has defended his position well, Alonso was too close to the Ferrari at the start of Q3 for Lewis to let him through and then Alonso dropped back so Lewis went for it. OK it was a mistake and against orders but he's a racing driver.... The real fraud is we haven't seen or heard the proof of Alonso's defence that he was being counted down by his engineer, the stewards didn't believe it so why should we?
Chris, Croydon, England
Well Xel in Gijon Spain.....did your guy fail to perform again??
Joe, Frankfurt, Germany
I guess the point is that what Hamilton did was to break McLaren team orders. What Alonso did was judged to break FIA orders. One gets Ron mad, one gets Max mad. Whom was smarter? They're both in it to win, and neither may be defensible, but then again look at F1 over the last 20 years. Senna and Prost, Mansell and Piquet, even Schumacher... get over it ladies, it's competition..
Chris, Vancouver, Canada
Gotta love the fiery spaniards...Singleminded and one-eyed to the extreme.
Red, Hoddesdon,
This is unbelievable, the one who does something wrong by not obeying team orders, is in fact the one who benefits from the FIA decisions!! Victory was handed on a plate on Saturday night, Hamilton did not deserve the win.
Federico, Sevilla, Spain
If i desobey to my boss, I´m out.
With "disarming candour" Dennis is going to do nothing.
Two FIA investigations provocated because Hamilton...
¿What thinks Mercedes, if they loose de Constructors Championship?
NAUGHHTHY BOY HAMILTON!!!
Ernesto Aleixandre, Madrid, Spain
Fantastic. Really fantastic. Please tell me... Do you think this is correct? I kill a man... and tomorrow I say I apologise... and everything is repaired??? Bah... If Hamilton can keep on winning this way the rest of the championship, he´ll be a bad champion. The champion of the shame. If he cannot keep on winning this way... Everyone will have seen the real nature of this guy. You may be english, but you are not blind: this winning has been a fraud. Long live Hamilton! Hope your team will speak to you some day. Hamilton the treacherous. This way is how the world will know you since this moment. An ordinary driver with lots of influential "daddys". All the world has seen the betrayal he is able to do. Good night, spoilt boy.
Xel, Gijon, Spain